FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 27, 2011
Contact: Howard Sutter, 714.834.6203 office, Howard.Sutter@ocgov.com

Orange County Board of Supervisors Appoints Interim Public Defender

(Santa Ana, CA) — The Orange County Board of Supervisors has appointed a veteran employee of the Offices of the Public Defender to serve as Interim Public Defender.

Frank Ospino was selected for the interim appointment to succeed Deborah Kwast, who is retiring on August 2nd after serving more than 30 years with the Public Defender’s Office, including the last eight years as Public Defender. Ospino most recently has served as Senior Assistant Public Defender with responsibility for overseeing and supervising all facets of the Juvenile Court and Mental Health divisions of the Public Defender’s office.

After receiving his law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of Law in 1984, Ospino joined the Public Defender’s office in 1985. Following a brief period in private practice, he rejoined the Public Defender’s office in 1992 and became a member of the department’s management team in 2004.

The Offices of the Public Defender provides high quality legal representation to indigent clients in the criminal and delinquency courts, advocates the parental rights of clients in the dependency courts, and works to protect the rights of individuals in the mental health courts of Orange County.

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