ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Note from Zamir Ben-Dan

I am grateful to my family for their support throughout my life.

Many people played a role in my entry into the legal profession and growth as an attorney, far too many to list here. However, there are four mentors in particular I'd like to credit by name. Three of these lawyers were the very first attorneys I got to know personally: Angelo Pinto, Kwesi Dash, and Nefertiti Ankra-Lashley. The fourth lawyer, C. Sidney Lester, taught me a lot about the day-to-day mechanics of public defense when I was an intern and significantly influenced my future practice.

I am grateful to all of the fifty-four present and former public defenders who took the time to sit down with me and candidly offer their thoughts and perspectives on everything related to the job and the profession. I have great respect for these participants, including but certainly not limited to Azalia Torres, Sidney Lester, Finda Gbollie, Akin Akinjiola, Kevann Gardner, Tiffany Gordon, Norman Williams, Asia-Sierra Millette, Dominique Day, David Ourlicht, Jennifer Norman, Rigodis Appling, and the Honorable Marva Brown. I am also grateful to Izel Fortunato for her editorial work on several of the chapters.