I graduated from the University of Connecticut with a BS in Nursing. I received a Master of Nursing Degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. I taught nursing on the baccalaureate level at U.C.L.A., Howard University in Washington, D.C. and the University of Nevada Las Vegas. I am a graduate of the University of San Diego School of Law. I have been an active member of the California State Bar since 1979. I am also a member of the Virginia State Bar.

I began practicing law in the Arlington,Virginia as an attorney with the U.S. Department of Labor. Later that year I returned to California and began a private practice. I worked as a Deputy District Attorney for Contra Costa County as a trial attorney and later worked in a very busy office of the Public Defender in San Francisco, California as a trial attorney.

I am an experienced trial attorney having tried misdemeanor and felony cases in public and private practice. I have also been on the criminal defense panels for Alameda County and Sacramento County. I've represented numerous parolees in parole hearings ( hearings before an administrative law judge for the Board of Prison Terms). I find that I prefer defense work, because it allows me to work at helping real people. I enjoy the personal contact.

As a member of the California Public Defender's Association I regularly attend seminars to remain on the cutting edge of our ever changing law.