San Francisco Public Defender

Jeff Adachi, Public Defender

Jeff Adachi is the Public Defender of the City and County of San Francisco. Before being elected as Public Defender in March 2002, Mr. Adachi worked as a deputy public defender in San Francisco for 15 years and in private practice for 2 years. From 1998-2001, he served as the Chief Attorney of the office. He has tried over 100 jury trials, including numerous serious felony and homicide cases, and has handled over 3,000 criminal matters throughout his career, including some of the Bay Area’s highest profile cases.

As the only elected Public Defender in the state of California, and one of few elected public defenders in the United States, Mr. Adachi oversees an office of 93 lawyers and 60 support staff. The office represents over 23,000 people each year who are charged with misdemeanor and felony offenses. The office has a $24 million dollar budget, and provides a panoply of innovative programs to its clients, including Drug Court, Clean Slate expungement services, and a full-service juvenile division. The office also has one of the country’s top intern programs for law students and graduates.

Mr. Adachi served on the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigents until last year and is a member of the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is the co-author of Chapter 25: Immunity for Testimony, in the California Criminal Law Procedure and Practice book, and a past board member of the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and the San Francisco Bar Association. He is a past president of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area and the San Francisco Japanese American Citizen’s League. He has been a certified criminal law specialist since 1991. Mr. Adachi has also taught with BAR/BRI bar review for 15 years and has published five books in this area.

In 1992, Mr. Adachi received the California State Bar Association’s Hufstedler Award for public service. In 1997, Mr. Adachi received the Asian American Bar Association’s Joe Morozumi Award for exceptional legal advocacy, and in 2003, was honored by the Asian American Bar Association of the Silicon Valley. In 2000, Mr. Adachi received the Mayor’s Fiscal Advisory Committee’s Managerial Excellence Award. In 2006, Adachi received the California Public Defender Association’s Program of the Year Award, and the American Bar Association’s national award for excellence in public defense. In 2007, Adachi was the recipient of the prestigious California Lawyer Attorney of the Year award (CLAY) for his work in the field of prisoner reentry.

Mr. Adachi graduated from Hastings College of the Law in 1985 and attended undergraduate studies at U.C. Berkeley. He lives in San Francisco with his wife Mutsuko and daughter Lauren.

Teresa Caffese, Chief Attorney

Teresa Caffese is the Chief Attorney of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office. Ms. Caffese, who started at the Public Defender’s Office in 1987, has represented thousands of indigent clients in misdemeanor and felony cases and personally tried over 75 serious cases, including rapes and homicides.

Among the high profile cases Ms. Caffese has handled are: the first three strikes case in San Francisco; numerous death penalty cases; a rare double jeopardy jury trial; and many other trials requiring extensive skills in forensic analysis and interpretation, as well as mental competency issues. Recently, Ms. Caffese successfully secured a Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity (NGI) verdict in the case of LaShuan Harris, the mother accused of killing her three children by tossing them into the SF Bay.

Ms. Caffese is an Adjunct Professor at Golden Gate School of Law where she has taught Trial Advocacy. She has been honored by the Women’s Defenders Association and repeatedly recognized as one of Northern California’s leading criminal defense lawyers. Ms. Caffese was appointed to the Mental Health Task Force for the City and County of San Francisco that is charged with identifying and recommending long-term solutions for improving treatment and quality of life for the mentally ill.

As the Chief Attorney, Ms. Caffese is responsible for overseeing and managing all internal operations of the Public Defender’s office including the felony, misdemeanor, juvenile, mental health, and research units. Prior to being appointed as Chief Attorney, Ms. Caffese spent two years in private practice. Ms. Caffese is a graduate of Hastings College of the Law and the University of California at Berkeley.