Steven Hughes is an Assistant State Public Defender in the Waukesha Office, working in the State Public Defender’s Trial Division. He has served as an Assistant State Public Defender for the last nine years, handling thousands of cases across a wide range of matters. He has earned multiple awards for his litigation skills, including several Kuchler-Nicholson-Stilling Sensitive Crimes Awards for winning felony sexual assault trials. Steve has also handled hundreds of OWI cases, many resulting in dismissals, and has taken several OWI cases to trial.
Steve is actively involved in his community, serving on Criminal Justice Coordinating Committees and in treatment courts. He helped establish a local pretrial release program aimed at reducing pretrial confinement. In addition, he has served as a Director on the Government Lawyers Division Board and as a Public Defender Representative on the Wisconsin Association of Treatment Court Professionals Board.
Steve graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2015 and holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Outside of work, he participates in endurance racing and has completed five Ironman triathlons and 17 marathons.
- Understand how you can best prepare clients for life after conviction
- Deliver more comprehensive, constitutionally sound representation under Padilla v. Kentucky
- Understand how different offenses trigger restrictions across multiple areas of law
- Anticipate collateral issues before they jeopardize employment, housing, benefits, or immigration status
- Provide clients with a fuller picture of the real-world stakes of criminal cases
- Criminal law practitioners
- Immigration lawyers
- Government lawyers
- Public interest lawyers
- Public benefits lawyers