Oklahoma governor appoints new Pottawatomie County judge

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Gov. Mary Fallin has named Special Judge Dawson Engle to a vacant associate district judgeship in Pottawatomie County.

Fallin said Friday that Engle will replace Associate District Judge John Gardner, who recently retired.

Engle, of Shawnee, has served as special judge for Pottawatomie and Lincoln counties since August 2005. Engle was a prosecutor in Pottawatomie and Oklahoma counties from 2000 to 2003 and worked in private practice for two years before his initial appointment to the bench. He earned his law degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1998 and has also worked in the district attorney’s office in McClain County.

In 2011, Engle earned the Lincoln County Domestic Violence Advocate of the Year award from Project Safe.