Mission
First Defense Legal Aid mobilizes lawyers and community members to fill gaps in public defense and create, protect, and engage replicable alternatives to the criminal system, starting with its entry points.
Public Charity
First Defense Legal Aid
First Defense Legal Aid is a Public Charity headquartered in Chicago, IL. Financial data from the 2025 filing: $654K revenue, $664K expenses, $230K total assets. 24 publicly reported grants to this organization, totaling roughly $656K, appear in IRS filings.
EIN: 010729555
Chicago, IL
Legal Services
NTEE: I80
Latest filing: 2025
Total Revenue$654K
Total Expenses$664K
Total Assets$230K
Grant Records24
Funding Total$656K
Filing Years2017–2025
Where $100 goes at First Defense Legal Aid
How First Defense Legal Aid divides every $100 it spends, from its own Form 990 filings, averaged across 4 years.
$81
Programs
the work itself
$17
Management
running the organization
$2
Fundraising
raising the next dollar
Inside the $81 for programs
$81
First Defense Legal Aid mobilizes lawyers and community members to fill gaps in public defense and create, protect, and engage replicable alternatives to the criminal system, starting with…
Source: Form 990 filings with the IRS, latest fiscal year 2025. Shares are from the organization's reported expenses. Data by Imperigo; not affiliated with the IRS.
Sample Grants Received
GENERAL OPERATIONS
$25,000
$50,000
GENERAL OPERATIONS
$40,000
TO PROVIDE LEGAL INFORMATION TO PEOPLE IMPACTED BY THE CRIMINALIZATION OF CANNABIS.
$35,000
General Operating Support
$30,000
Showing up to 5 of 24 total records — full history available with membership.
Officers & Directors
Director
Alexandria Santistevan
Secretary
Deborah Lefler
Chair
Emmanual Andre
Director
John Preston
Executive Director
Leena Odeh
Treasurer
Mariana Karampelas
Officer compensation and complete director data available with membership.
Top Grant Purposes
Financial Trends
| Year | Revenue | Expenses | Assets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $654K | $664K | $230K |
| 2020 | $631K | $637K | $73K |
| 2019 | $717K | $720K | $70K |
| 2017 | $407K | $395K | $86K |
Between 2017 and 2025, reported annual revenue grew from $407K to $654K (+61%), with total assets most recently reported at $230K.
Interactive year-over-year charts and full filing details available with membership.