Mano Raju serves as the City’s elected Public Defender. A son of immigrants, Mano’s pursuit of justice is rooted in his awareness of the ramifications of social inequalities. His parents emigrated from a farming village in India to America, where they raised Mano to not forget his humble beginnings or those still left behind. Mano completed his undergraduate degree at Columbia University, and holds a Master’s degree in South Asian Studies from U.C. Berkeley, where he also earned his law degree. He worked as a Deputy Public Defender in Contra Costa County for seven years before he was recruited by his predecessor, Jeff Adachi to join the San Francisco Public Defender.
Prior to being elected Public Defender, Mano defended clients as a line attorney, Director of Training, and Felony Unit Manager. He has lectured on various trial defense practices such as race-conscious representation as well defending gang and homicide cases for the California Public Defender’s Association, California Attorneys For Criminal Justice, and the Black Public Defender’s Association. Mano is on the Board of the National Association of Public Defense. He has been awarded North America South Asian Bar Association’s 2019 Public Interest Achievement Award, the Society of Professional Journalists’ 2021 James Madison Freedom of Information Award, La Raza Centro Legal’s 2022 Visionary of Justice Award, and the California Public Defender’s Association’s Special Recognition Award for achievements and contributions in the field of criminal defense. In 2025, he received awards from the Washington State Office of Public Defense for his contributions as a Faculty Member at the Public Defense Leadership Institute and from the Family Foundation for his dedication to justice and commitment to advocating for the underserved in San Francisco.
Mano is committed to a client and community-centered approach to defense work. “Our impact is not measured in numbers, but in the people we represent,” he said. “It’s by the mother who can return home to her family. The son who can continue to work to support his family. And to the children of those we defend, who benefit from having an equal opportunity to survive and who might one day use that opportunity to lead.” The personal interest he takes in his clients’ lives helps fuel him not only to fiercely litigate and win cases, but also to raise his voice against the inequities he and his clients encounter in the criminal legal system. As the only elected Public Defender in California, Mano continues to uphold the Office’s ethos of lawyers, paralegals, social workers, investigators and support staff who protect individual freedom while also pushing for legal system change in local and state-wide arenas.