In celebration of Women’s History Month, Polk County is highlighting Susan Wadsworth Roberts, the first Public Defender for the City of Lakeland and the first woman to serve as a judge in Polk County. Born in 1945, Roberts graduated from the Florida State University College of Law in 1969, becoming the first woman to do so.
She was appointed by Mayor Charles E. Whitten in 1972 as Lakeland’s first Public Defender and later elected as a county court judge in 1976. Residents can learn more about local history at the Polk County History Center…