Dana Fortinberry

Judge Dana Fortinberry was elected to the 52nd District Court, 2nd Division in November 2002. Prior to her election, she served as magistrate at the 52nd District Courts in both Clarkston and Rochester. A lawyer since 1982, Judge Fortinberry worked for eight years as a prosecutor in Macomb County, where she specialized in cases involving the sexual assault of both children and adults.  Her innovative work on trial methods in cases involving young witnesses earned her a 1990 Merit Award from the National Association of Counties.  After leaving the Prosecutor's Office, Judge Fortinberry spent ten years in private practice as a trial attorney in addition to her magistrate duties.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Michigan State University and a Juris Doctorate from Wayne State University Law School, where she served as a staff editor of the Wayne Law Review.

In 2004, Judge Fortinberry launched the 52-2 District Court Sobriety Court program.  An intensive probation program designed to guide repeat drunk drivers to sobriety through the use of immediate sanctions and incentives, the program boasts a 94 percent participant success rate.  Judge Fortinberry is active in the Oakland County Association of Drug Court Professionals and the Michigan Association of Drug Court Professionals, where she is chairperson of the Sobriety Court committee.

A native of Ohio, Judge Fortinberry has resided in Oakland County since 1971 and in Clarkston since 1990.  She believes strongly in giving back to the community where she lives, works and raises her family.  Judge Fortinberry is a past board president of the Children's Leukemia Foundation of Michigan and served for eight years as a member of the Independence Township Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission.  She has served on the boards of North Oakland SCAMP, Statewide Services for the Hearing Impaired and the Macomb County Child Abuse and Neglect Council.

Judge Fortinberry is married to Chuck Fortinberry, President of Clarkston Chrysler-Jeep, Senior Chairman of the 2004 North American International Auto Show and a founding director of the Clarkston State Bank. The Fortinberrys are the proud parents of three sons. The family attends Clarkston United Methodist Church.