About me
Most people building technology for public defenders have never been one. Ryan spent eleven years as one first: dozens of jury trials from misdemeanors to murder in Los Angeles and St. Louis, a seat on the training team that guided new LA County defenders through their first trials, and recognition by his colleagues as Los Angeles County's Misdemeanor Attorney of the Year in 2016.
Technology has bookended his career. Before law school, he led development teams and implemented enterprise systems at one of the world's largest mutual fund companies. Inside the LA County Public Defender's Office, he helped lead technology initiatives, including the steering committee that implemented the office's internal case management system.
Watching dedicated defenders work around software that was never built for them is why ZLS.app exists: Ryan co-founded the company with Mohammed Al Rawi, former CIO of the LA County Public Defender's Office, to build case management designed for public defense from the first line of code. Ryan leads ZLS's work with defender offices across 12 states, and he still takes contract public defender cases in St. Louis.
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