Public Defender Daniel Eisinger grew up in Palm Beach County. He attended Suncoast High School in Riviera Beach where he received his International Baccalaureate Diploma upon graduation. Daniel went on to earn both his B.A. (2000) and J.D. (2003) from the University of Florida.
Daniel began his career in Carey Haughwout's Palm Beach County Public Defender office in December 2003.
For more than 20 years, Daniel has represented clients charged in misdemeanor, felony, and major crime cases — including capital cases in which the state was seeking the death penalty. Prior to assuming the Office of Public Defender in January 2025, Daniel served 13 years on the PD-15 leadership team and five years as Chief Assistant (the senior most position on the leadership team), tried more than 175 jury trials, and helped supervise more than 200 staff, investigators, and attorneys. An experienced manager of people and budgets of up to $18.3 million , he has also recruited, selected, and trained young lawyers just starting their careers as Assistant Public Defenders.
Representing indigent clients who do not have the ability to afford a private attorney, Daniel has fought with a passion on providing unparalleled legal representation, reducing sentencing disparity, and increasing re-entry services for citizens returning from imprisonment.
Daniel believes that Public Defenders are an integral force in keeping our communities safe. Public Defenders know best what services are needed to keep people from reoffending.
Daniel has been instrumental in establishing court programs to better serve clients and the community — the Misdemeanor Mental Health Court to connect low-level offenders suffering from mental illness with mental health professionals and the Driving Under Suspension Court. These courts have resulted in making our communities safer while benefiting clients at the same time.
Daniel is a member of the National and Florida Association(s) for Criminal Defense Lawyers, a member of the Palm Beach Bar Association, and a graduate of Leadership Palm Beach County.
A family man, Daniel is married to Amy Eisinger. They have three active sons (Ethan, Micah and Benjamin) and a rescue pup named Chocolate Chip (CC).
We must always look for ways to innovate in advocating for our clients. In response to U.S. Supreme Court rulings prohibiting the death penalty and life sentences for juveniles, we shifted resources to resentencing investigations and hearings for clients who were impacted. This resulted in the successful reduction of many sentences and, for some, immediate release.
We then shifted our focus to supporting our clients' transition back into our community. Additionally, we established a dedicated unit with lawyers specializing in forensic sciences to take a closer look at these issues in criminal cases.
The voters approved in 2018 Amendment 4 to the Florida Constitution, which was designed to enable felons, who did not commit murder or a sexual offense and who completed their sentence in full, to become eligible to vote. On June 28, 2019, § 98.0751 Florida Statue was enacted and prohibited these ex-felons (also known as "returning citizens") from voting unless they pay off all legal financial obligations imposed by a court pursuant to a felony conviction even if they cannot afford to pay. We have committed along with local, state, and national partners to help these "returning citizens" attain voter status and to support ongoing litigation surrounding the law's provision. The Public Defender's Office routinely participates in collaborative efforts in our community to assist in sealing and expunging of eligible criminal records and the restoration of Civil Rights lost with a felony conviction. For more information on these processes and to find out if you are eligible, please call 561-355-7655.
