Marilena David named Director of the State Appellate Defender Office

Marilena David has been named Director of the State Appellate Defender Office by the Appellate Defender Commission at its meeting on May 2, 2025. The Commission's press release is available here. 

Marilena began working at SADO as intern in 2007. Since that time, she has held many positions at SADO, including Assistant Defender, Training Director, Manager of SADO’s Criminal Defense Resource Center, Deputy Director, and Acting Director. Marilena currently manages Project Reentry, a program she launched that is focused on supporting people on their journey home from prison. She also launched and managed SADO's Crime Lab Unit, a federal grant-funded unit tasked with analyzing the impact of potentially faulty Detroit Crime Lab evidence on criminal convictions following the shocking 2008 Detroit Crime Lab closure. Marilena co-led the SADO Committee that launched "Family Outreach Night," a program designed to help families and friends of the incarcerated.

Marilena serves on the Board of Directors for the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan (CDAM) and the Michigan Appellate Bench Bar Conference Foundation; she is the past chair of the State Bar of Michigan’s (SBM) Prisons & Corrections Section. She serves on the National Association for Public Defense Core Well-Being Committee and contributes to developing and implementing national standards for public defense sustainability.

Marilena is the recipient of the 2024 SBM Champion of Justice Award, the 2018 Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association Community Impact Award, the 2014 SBM Outstanding Young Lawyer Award, and the 2014 CDAM Justice for All Award. In 2019, she was appointed by Governor Whitmer to serve on the Michigan Community Corrections Board. In 2021, she was appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to serve on the Michigan Judicial Council.

Marilena regularly trains public defenders in Michigan and around the country on topics such as: persuasive writing, editing, research, issue spotting, client-centered representation, client interviewing, theory development, sustainability and well-being, boundaries, sentencing advocacy, reentry, litigating racial justice issues, technology, adult learning principles, and more.

Marilena is an adjunct professor at Wayne State University where she teaches Judicial Process. She lives in Detroit with her dog, Tim, and she enjoys playing sand and indoor volleyball.

Congratulations, Mari!