Chico attorney named judge

Gov. Jerry Brown appointed longtime Chico attorney and public defender Denny Forland (pictured) to fill the seat of retiring Butte County Judge Gerald Hermansen.

The 59-year-old Forland has served as a public defender since 1990. Before that he was a deputy district attorney for the Butte County District Attorney’s Office from 1980 to 1984. From 1984 to 1990 he worked in a couple of law offices, including that of Joe VanDervoort, the self-proclaimed DUI King.

Forland received his law degree from McGeorge School of Law. Chico defense attorney Dennis Latimer said that Forland’s appointment is a good thing. “He’s worked in about every aspect of the law, and that is really a rare balance,” Latimer said. “He’s respected by both prosecutors and defense attorneys.”