Public Defender Candidate Speaks In North Escambia

September 16, 2008

tonyhenderson.jpgTony Henderson, Democratic candidate for public defender in the First Judicial Circuit, brought his message to North Escambia Monday night.

The First Judicial Circuit Court of Florida’s public defender office covers Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties.

Henderson has ran the public defender’s office in Santa Rosa County for the past seven years,  The public defender’s office is responsible for providing legal representation to those in the court system charged with crimes that are unable to afford their own attorney.

“I believe that equal representation for everyone,” Henderson said. “It should not be based on how much money you have to hire an attorney.”

Not everyone assigned an attorney by the public defender’s office is unemployed, Henderson said. Attorneys are often assigned to defendents from middle class families that are unable to afford $3,000 to $10,000 for a criminal defense attorney.

Henderson played championship football at Milton High School and later turned his football abilities into a scholarship at Marshall University. He then attended law school at Florida State. His first job out of college was in the public defender’s office where he worked for 15 years.

“I have a passion for this type of work,” he said. One part of the job he feels is important is simply doing his job to make sure that the innocent do not go to prison.

Henderson said crime in our area is not a black-white issue.

“We have to fight the battle together,” he said. “The battle is education, education, education.”

Comments

One Response to “Public Defender Candidate Speaks In North Escambia”

  1. carlyn salter on September 17th, 2008 9:46 am

    Mr. Henderson Is Very Dedicated To His Work. He Has Represented My Children’s Father (Wesley Salter) And He Did An Outstanding Job. I Appreciate His Hard Work, Dedication, And Attention That He Offers All His Clinets

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News