WLWT: How one of Ohio’s newest lawyers went from federal prison to UC Law

UC Law alum Damon Davis is helping individuals without representation navigate the justice system

Damon Davis took the oath for the Ohio Bar Admissions  this month and is now a Hamilton County public defender.

Davis, a 2022 graduate of UC Law, spoke with WLWT-TV about his journey from former federal prison inmate to accomplished attorney. Davis spent four-and-a-half years behind bars after being convicted of federal drug and gun charges in 2017. 

He was introduced to law while working in the prison library. Davis was released homeless and with only $26 to his name before finding a factory job that reimbursed his college tuition and offered a path forward. Davis attended community college and later the University of Kentucky for a bachelor’s degree. He completed UC Law with scholarship assistance.

“It means a lot to be here and be able to help these people,” Davis told WLWT. “To understand what they're going through and to have faced personally the things they're going through.”

While at UC Law Davis was an Ohio Innocence Project (OIP) fellow who wrote appeals for individuals in the prison system. Now a freshly-minted public defender, Davis is making a positive difference in his community.

Listen to the WLWT segment.

Read a digital story on WLWT’s website.

Spectrum News also produced a segment on Davis.

See a story on Davis from Court News Ohio.

Learn more about Damon Davis at UC Law.

Featured image at top: Damon Davis. Photo/UC Alumni Association.

Related Stories

1

Sugar overload killing hearts

November 10, 2025

Two in five people will be told they have diabetes during their lifetime. And people who have diabetes are twice as likely to develop heart disease. One of the deadliest dangers? Diabetic cardiomyopathy. But groundbreaking University of Cincinnati research hopes to stop and even reverse the damage before it’s too late.

2

Is going nuclear the solution to Ohio’s energy costs?

November 10, 2025

The Ohio Capital Journal recently reported that as energy prices continue to climb, economists are weighing the benefits of going nuclear to curb costs. The publication dove into a Scioto Analysis survey of 18 economists to weigh the pros and cons of nuclear energy. One economist featured was Iryna Topolyan, PhD, professor of economics at the Carl H. Lindner College of Business.

3

App turns smartwatch into detector of structural heart disease

November 10, 2025

An app that uses an AI model to read a single-lead ECG from a smartwatch can detect structural heart disease, researchers reported at the 2025 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association. Although the technology requires further validation, researchers said it could help improve the identification of patients with heart failure, valvular conditions and left ventricular hypertrophy before they become symptomatic, which could improve the prognosis for people with these conditions.