CA: East Bay "resident elocutionist" retires

From the Contra Costa Times:

Contra Costa public defender retires after 35-year career speaking for indigent defendants

In his 10 years as Contra Costa County's top public defender, David Coleman ruffled the feathers of more than a few prosecutors, yet they say they'll miss him... Coleman... will retire July 31 after 35 years with the Office of the Public Defender, leaving behind a legacy that stretches beyond becoming California's first African-American public defender when he was appointed by county supervisors in 1999...