Jeff Ashton Biography, Life, Interesting Facts

Childhood and Early Life

Jeff Ashton was born on the 3 October 1957 in St Petersburg, Florida to Richard and Barbra Ashton.

Education

Jeff Ashton was educated at Boca Ciega High School and St Petersburg College before enrolling at the University of Florida, Gainesville. He obtained a BA in philosophy (1978) and then was accepted into law school at the University of Florida.

Rise to Fame

After graduating from law school, Jeff Ashton worked as a prosecutor in Florida. In 1983, he obtained his first murder conviction. Ashton made history in 1987 by becoming the first to win a case using DNA evidence.

Career

Jeff Ashton was at the height of a successful law career in 2011 when he was a member of the prosecuting team during the Casey Anthony trial. He wrote a book about the case, Imperfect Justice: Prosecuting Casey Anthony (2011). In 2013, he became a Florida state attorney.

Later Years

After the Casey Anthony trial, Jeff Ashton returned to working in a legal firm on a part-time basis. In the Florida state elections of 2012, he ran for office. After winning the seat of Orange Osceola, he became the state attorney (2013-2017). In August 2018, Ashton won election to the bench in Florida’s 9th Judicial Circuit.

Controversies

In 2015, when the Ashley Madison cheating website was hacked and millions of users details exposed, Jeff Ashton was one of them. Ashton said that he had committed no crime and would not be resigning his position as Orange-Osceola State Attorney.

Personal Life

Jeff Ashton's first was Amy Brotman whom he married in 1979. They share two sons: Adam and Jon. The couple divorced, and in 1987, he married Joy Meidhof (m.1987-div.1996). He had a son Alex and a daughter Rebecca with Meidhof. His third wife is Rita Brockway.