Metro Council Selects Deaner as Public Defender

Metro Council members selected Dawn Deaner last night as Nashville’s next head Public Defender.

Deaner takes over mid-term from Ross Alderman, who was killed in a motorcycle crash last month. Deaner, who’s been an assistant public defender for 11 years, says her first order of business will be to help the office heal after Alderman’s death.

“The office is going through a lot of emotional turmoil with the loss of Ross. I think the most important thing for us to do is to move past that as best we can and that’s going to take a little time.”

Deaner won the appointment with a wide margin—she had 26 votes. Metro Human Relations Director Kelvin Jones came in next with 9.

The Metro Council appointed Deaner to fill the remaining two years of Alderman’s term. She’ll have to run for reelection county-wide in 2010.