Official Site of The State of New Jersey

TRENTON – June 28, 2024 – The New Jersey Office of the Public Defender (NJOPD) today announced it has named Danica Rue its first-ever Director of Investigations and Police Accountability. Rue will lead statewide efforts to strengthen the partnership between public defenders and investigators to further the goal of providing holistic, collaborative defense services to the people the agency represents. In addition, she will assist attorneys in litigating police-related issues, develop systems to track police and prosecutorial misconduct in NJOPD cases, and promote policies to address systemic misconduct. Rue will serve on the management team and report to Public Defender Jennifer Sellitti.

“Investigators are the backbone of our legal teams and work with our attorneys to uncover facts at the core of our cases. Their efforts sometimes also reveal systemic issues that must be addressed. This new position is designed not only to improve the quality of individual investigations but also to leverage information gathered to influence broader legal system policies, especially regarding police misconduct. Such misconduct threatens the integrity of our justice system, affects the rights of those we serve, and erodes public trust,” said Public Defender Sellitti. “Danica’s skills as an experienced trial lawyer, respected regional supervisor, and talented legal strategist make her the ideal candidate for this important and challenging role.”

In her new role, Rue will further contribute to the NJOPD’s push toward a holistic defense model by creating more opportunities for attorneys, investigators, and social workers to work together and provide a full spectrum of services to people the office represents. She will also build on ways to ensure the office has access to credible police findings as well as to effectively hold prosecutors to their legal obligation to provide defense counsel with police misconduct records under state guidelines, court rules, and constitutional law.

“This is an exciting time for our agency which, under Jennifer’s leadership, has already made great strides transforming our public defender system to both make the public safer and to provide better outcomes for the people we serve,” said Rue. “Having been with the NJOPD my entire career, I’m looking forward to this next chapter and the opportunity to work alongside my colleagues as we build this new department together.”

Rue started her career at the NJOPD in 2010, when she joined the Essex office as an Assistant Deputy Public Defender. She represented individuals charged with felonies from arrest through plea, trial, or dismissal. She handled complex forensic issues, including the first successful Frye challenge to Shaken Baby Syndrome in New Jersey, and tried the first Battered Person Syndrome homicide with same sex parties. Additionally, Rue trained new trial attorneys and lectured on handling DNA cases, cross examination, and Shaken Baby Syndrome.

In 2022, Rue was promoted to First Assistant Deputy Public Defender, during which she mentored and oversaw the cases and trials of eight to ten attorneys in Essex Adult Region. She provided trial strategy advice and second seated new attorneys in their trials. She also handled trial court lists for operational needs and consulted with the Deputy of Essex on attorney placement in courts and hiring decisions.

Prior to joining the NJOPD, Rue served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Denise A. Cobham of the Essex County Criminal Court. She was also a legal intern at the ACLU of New Jersey as well as an assistant to former President of the ACLU Nadine Strossen.

Rue received her J.D. from New York Law School and her B.A. in Political Science from Colorado College.

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