Marquette County

Chief Public Defender

Patrick J. Crowley has spent nearly 25 years representing clients in criminal cases ranging from trespass and shoplifting all the way up through armed robbery and multiple murders and has tried hundreds of Bench and Jury trials in District and Circuit court.

As the Marquette County Chief Public Defender he is responsible for capital-level criminal trial litigation, including the Public Defender office’s highest-profile criminal cases.

Before moving back to Marquette as an NMU Alumni to create the Office of the Marquette County Public Defender office, Mr. Crowley helped to form Crowley, Cornish, Rockafellow, & Sartz, PLLC. In Lansing Michigan where he represented clients as both retained and court appointed counsel. Mr. Crowley also briefly served as an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney handling both family and district courts in Muskegon, Michigan and later as trial counsel in Kent, Ionia, and Montcalm counties handling criminal defense, family law, landlord / tenant and other general litigation.

Member in good standing

  • State Bar of Michigan (2003)
  • Michigan Appellate Courts (2003)
  • Marquette County Bar Association (Vice President)
  • Federal Eastern (2005) & Western (2004) Districts of Michigan
  • United States Supreme Court Bar (April 2015)

Volunteer
Work

In addition to his legal work, Mr. Crowley serves on the Board of Directors for Room at the Inn, a Marquette homeless shelter. He has previously served on the corporate board of a Mid-Michigan Credit Union, served on the Standing Committee on Character and Fitness, the Committee for Lawyer Referral Service, and the Standing Committee on Publications and Website Advisory for the State Bar of Michigan. Patrick also volunteers as a scout leader and youth football coach.

Organizations
& Affiliations

Alumni of Northern Michigan University and the University of Dayton School of Law.  Member of the Phi Delta Phi honors legal fraternity, Golden Key National Honor’s Society, Boy Scouts of America – Eagle Scout 1989, National Eagle Scout Association, and a local area Men’s Ice Hockey League player.

Adjunct Professor of Cyberlaw at Northern Michigan University (since 2023).

Scheduled to Present on Winning Trial Strategies to the Great Lakes Legal Conference in June 2026.

Other recent presentations include classes to the 2015 Solo and Small Practice Institute and the State Bar of Michigan on cutting costs in the practice of law. At the 2013 American Bar Association Techshow, Mr. Crowley presented on Tablet usage in the law and on technology for “The Frugal Lawyer.”

This office will NEVER “tell” you to take a plea. We will explain to you any plea offers and let you choose whether this is the right choice for you. We are not afraid to go to trial. Ever.