Bio

Building a foundation of expertise...

Currently, Paul serves as Deputy Chief of Staff and Public Safety Liaison in Mayor Edwin Lee’s administration. Since 2011, Paul’s job has been to advise the Mayor on a variety of topics and to develop and implement policy across a broad range of issues affecting San Francisco. Paul supports the administration of various City departments, providing direct support to the Mayor, with a particular emphasis on the criminal justice system and cooperation with and between local, State and Federal partners.

Before joining the Mayor’s Office of San Francisco, Paul served as Chief of Administration under then-District Attorney Kamala Harris, holding the highest position held by an African-American or LGBT male in the history of the office. Paul has over a decade of prosecutorial experience, winning dozens of trials, and has handled every type of case from nonviolent misdemeanors to serious felonies, including homicide.

Through his success working to protect victims of violent crimes and representing communities without a voice in the courtroom, Mr. Henderson has made many lasting impacts in the San Francisco Bay Area, that have garnered national recognition. His combination of legal experience and an informative perspective have made Paul a sought after speaker and on air personality. He sits on the editorial board for California Lawyer Magazine (the nations largest professional magazine) and is a contributing writer to Politico.com. In addition to his numerous presentations and trainings, Mr. Henderson appears on MSNBC, CNN, Fox News, PBS and is currently seen regularly as the on-air legal analyst for CBS. He is a frequent lecturer and speaker at the Commonwealth Club and various law schools throughout the country. Last year he was called to the White House to participate in a national forum addressing justice reform (where he was not able to get a fist pump with Obama).

A native of San Francisco, Paul worked his way through his undergraduate studies at UCLA before venturing off to earn his Juris Doctorate from Tulane University, where he also served as class president.

Mr. Henderson is a nationally recognized speaker, veteran prosecutor and champion of civil rights.