This paper aims to conduct a descriptive analysis of a total of 2,172 semi-structured interviews with sentenced inmates in Mexico City during 2002–2008 in order to explain how public legal defence works, how this service is evaluated by the inmates who took part in the interviews, and how the traditional division between public and private services constitutes an important distinction in the way in which criminals interact with, and are processed by, the legal system. Our findings suggest that, in the case of Mexico City: (i) to be tried by a public defender not only implies that the person accused holds a bigger chance of getting a softer sentence than those defended by private lawyers; but also, (ii) that the population will have a better perception of the justice process.