public defender

noun

: a lawyer usually holding public office whose duty is to defend accused persons unable to pay for legal assistance

Examples of public defender in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This runoff for a vacant seat on the bench features a longtime public defender running against a veteran alternate public defender. — Jon Regardie, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026

Although online court records list Michael Morrison as a public defender in the case, a representative of the Orange County Public Defender’s Office told PEOPLE that an individual attorney had not yet been assigned. — Esther Lian, PEOPLE, 16 Oct. 2026

Shea’s tampering was first revealed publicly during a 2024 trial for a 2010 murder and rape, when public defender Michael Kabakoff asked a testifying DNA expert about the issues. — Julia Coin, Charlotte Observer, 15 Oct. 2026

An area attorney and former chief public defender who was arrested earlier this year on multiple felony drug charges after a raid on his residence was arrested again early Monday on drug and gun charges following a traffic stop. — Steven Mross, Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1822, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for public defender

• bartender
• contender
• engender
• extender
• offender
• pretender
• provender
• surrender
• suspender
• transgender
• bender
• blender

Legal Definition

public defender

noun

: a lawyer usually holding public office who represents criminal defendants unable to pay for legal assistance