Molly O’Neal

Molly O’Neal is the recently retired Chief Public Defender of Santa Clara County. Molly attended the University of California, Santa Cruz, receiving a degree in Linguistics with college honors in 1986 and was a member of the UCSC soccer team. She graduated from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1990, and was a member of the USF Law Review. She began working at the Public Defender’s Office on the misdemeanor team, going on to do virtually every position in the office including the juvenile unit, felony trial team, research and homicides. She supervised the juvenile and felony trial team from 2005 to 2011, and was named the Acting Public Defender in July 2012. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors appointed Molly to the permanent Public Defender position on March 25, 2013. She was a member of the Board of the California Public Defenders Association (CPDA) and a member of Baymec Board. A major focus of her tenure was to champion holistic defense, adding 2 full time immigration attorneys, a record clearance unit, a team of social workers and a community outreach team. She made it a priority to combat racial inequity and insist on alternatives to incarceration. She is an avid swimmer, pickle ball player, skier and loves to cook.  She has two children and a brand new Granddaughter with her partner Judge Beth McGowen.