About me
Marilena David is the Deputy Director, Training Director, and Project Reentry Manager at the Michigan State Appellate Defender Office. Marilena represents individuals on appeal of their felony convictions and individuals who are being resentenced after serving unconstitutional juvenile life without parole sentences.
Marilena served as Manager of SADO's Criminal Defense Resource Center from 2015-2022. Previously, she 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 also co-led a SADO Committee that launched "Family Outreach Night," a program designed to help families and friends of the incarcerated.
Marilena managed SADO's 3-year strategic planning process in partnership with the Center for Court Innovation, and she led the office through the development of SADO's Mission and Values.
Marilena serves on the Board of Directors for the Criminal Defense Attorneys of Michigan (CDAM) and the Michigan Appellate Bench Bar Conference Foundation. Marilena is 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.
Marilena lives in Detroit with her dog Tim, and she enjoys playing sand and indoor volleyball.
