Fresno : Government : OFFICE OF THE FRESNO COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER
The Office of the Fresno County Public Defender was established by the Fresno County Board of Supervisors on June 20, 1967. Under the direction of the first appointed Public Defender, Melvin W. Nitz, the Office of the Public Defender opened its doors on November 1, 1967, with a staff of thirteen attorneys, three investigators, and three legal secretaries. In 1981, Edward Sarkisian, Jr., was appointed Public Defender when Melvin W. Nitz left the Public Defender's Office to become the director of Defender's Inc., in San Diego, California. Jose R. Villarreal succeeded Edward Sarkisian, Jr., as Public Defender in 1987, when the Honorable Edward Sarkisian, Jr., was appointed to the Fresno County Municipal Court Bench.
