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Biography
Durell Peaden, Jr. (August 24, 1945 – June 23, 2015) was a Republican member of the Florida Senate, representing the 2nd District since 2001. He left office at the end of 2010 due to term limits.
Previously he was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1995 through 2000. He switched from the Democratic party to the Republican party in June 1997.
Peaden received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Tulane University, his medical degree at the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico, and his law degree from the Thomas Goode Jones School of Law at Faulkner University. He and has three sons: Durell III (Trey), Tyler, and Taylen. His sons are from his previous marriage to Sharon Peaden. He is currently married wife Nancy Peaden.
Peaden was a sponsor of the 2005 Florida stand your ground law which was subject to scrutiny in the 2012 shooting of Trayvon Martin. Peaden died after a heart attack suffered earlier in the month on June 23, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.