Paul Henderson III

1939 - 2018

Paul Henderson III

Paul Henderson III - a Pulitzer Prize winner, crusader for justice and beloved friend and family member - died peacefully in Seattle on December 7, 2018 of lung cancer.

Paul was born January 13, 1939, in Washington, D.C. After attending Wentworth Military Academy, he joined the Army and served in Korea, where in 1960 he got his first newspaper job as a reporter for Stars and Stripes. Upon his discharge, he worked at the Council Bluffs (Iowa) Nonpareil and the Omaha World-Herald while also studying journalism at Creighton University and the University of Nebraska Omaha. In 1967 he began working at The Seattle Times, where he made a name for himself writing gritty features for which he lived among the homeless, hung with heroin addicts, drove a taxi and rode box cars with hoboes halfway across the country. As an investigative reporter, he won the Pulitzer in 1982 for a series of stories that cleared a young man who had been wrongfully convicted of rape. That accomplishment launched Paul's second career as a sought-after private investigator focusing largely on exonerating the falsely accused. In 1988 he began working on a case-by-case basis for New Jersey-based non-profit Centurion, which he joined full time in 1996. During his 25 years with Centurion, Paul's work was instrumental in helping the organization free 14 innocent people. He retired in 2013.

He is survived by his life-long partner, Janet Henderson; their sons, Peter Henderson and Brady Henderson; three daughters from his earlier marriage, Leslee Degenstein, Jill Wiltfong and Pauley Henderson; his sister Gale Lundberg; six grandchildren, Alex Fisher, Kathryn Fisher, Heather McGlynn, Brittney Stevens, Josee Farmer and Miles Henderson; and his little dog Holly.

A private service will be held. Remembrances may be sent to Centurion: centurion.org/donate