My goal is to ensure that every person who appears in court is heard, so that even if they do not prevail, they leave the courtroom knowing that the judge listened.
David’s Story
David Ross is a seasoned Los Angeles County criminal defense attorney with more than 30 years of courtroom experience. His distinguished career uniquely blends law, journalism, and a lifetime of public service. Currently serving as a Grade IV Deputy Alternate Public Defender, Los Angeles County, David has dedicated his legal career to ensuring justice for those who cannot afford representation. He has represented over 10,000 indigent defendants, completed 113 jury trials, and litigated more than 2,000 preliminary hearings and thousands of contested motions. He knows the judicial system inside and out, and is committed to making it serve the People of Los Angeles County.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, David graduated from Beverly Hills High School, earned his Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications from UC Davis, and his Juris Doctor from the University of West Los Angeles School of Law. He graduated in the top 13% of his law schoolclass and passed the California Bar Exam on his first attempt. While in law school, David worked at the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, and interned at the United States Attorney office in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles District Attorneys Office, and at the Indigent Defense Counsel Office. David’s academic achievements include the prestigious Gitelson Award for Outstanding Legal Writing, and publication in the UWLA Law Review.
Before entering the legal profession, David worked on Capitol HIll as a Legislative Aide to the ranking Democratic Congressman from Indiana, Floyd J. Fithian. His experience analyzing proposed legislation and responding to constituent issues sparked his lifelong passion for public service. He learned how government programs and priorities can work for the benefit of the people it serves.
1988, Chicago, Reporting on Bob Dole’s Presidential Campaign
David spent a decade as an award-winning television journalist and documentary producer. At WETA-TV in Washington, D.C., he produced six segments of the nationally broadcast PBS series “Congress: We The People,” hosted by Edwin Newman. He helped produce numerous live events, and was a Production Assistant on the weekly news program, “The Lawmakers.”
David Ross at the Wichita Eagle Beacon, 1987
Turning to journalism, David covered politics, crime, courts, and natural disasters as an on-air TV reporter and weekend anchor for the CBS affiliate in Chattanooga, TN, where he once interviewed future Vice President, Sen. Al Gore, on live television. He covered severe weather as one of the original Tornado Reporters for the NBC affiliate in Wichita, KS. He reported on the Contra War in Nicaragua, jail reform in Florida, and in 1987-1988 he covered the presidential campaign of Republican U.S. Senator Robert Dole. Traveling weekly from Kansas to Iowa to New Hampshire and the Deep South, David exclusively followed Sen. Dole on the campaign trail when no other reporters were interested.
His combined journalism and government career taught him the power of empathy, listening, synthesizing complex information, and communicating clearly with diverse audiences—skills that have proven invaluable in the courtroom.
David began his legal career as a Deputy Public Defender in Riverside County, where he handled drug court cases, writs and appeals, and completed 27 jury trials. He joined the Los Angeles County Alternate Public Defender’s Office in 2000 and has completed 86 jury trials. He has appeared in superior courts throughout Los Angeles County, including Torrance, Compton, Long Beach, San Pedro, Cerritos, Bellflower and Pomona.
While working full-time as a Deputy Alternate Public Defender, David was an Adjunct Professor of Law at Western State University College of Law from 2002 to 2006. He taught legal writing and research to first-and-second-year law students, and was a Moot Court Judge.
Leonard Rosen’s (David’s father) law degree from 1938
David also served as a Judge Pro Tem in Los Angeles County Superior Court from 2003 to 2004, presiding over small claims and limited civil cases. His judicial temperament—marked by patience, humility, and respect for all parties—has been shaped by lessons from his father, Leonard, who graduated law school in 1938 but never practiced law. Despite growing up an orphan in depression-era poverty, Leonard built a successful clothing business and instilled in his son a strong work ethic and the value of tolerance.
David Ross with his dog, Teddy
A Long Beach resident, David is married to Lisa Gold, a writer, director and gun-safety advocate whose short films have played in more than 100 film festivals. Their son, Samuel Ross, is a local jazz pianist, high school teacher, and prolific music composer.