ATLANTA — Suspended District 113 State Representative Sharon Henderson has been given 30 days to decide if she would like to take a plea deal in her ongoing criminal case.
Henderson was indicted in December 2025 on two counts of theft of government funds and 10 counts of making false statements. She attempted to have those charges dismissed, citing jurisdiction concerns. However, a federal judge denied her motion to dismiss and certified the case as ready for trial.
On May 6, the court gave Henderson three weeks to determine if she wanted to take the case to trial or enter a guilty plea. Two weeks later, Henderson notified the court that her former attorney, Gerald Griggs, had been replaced by Paul Kish of Kish Law LLC in Atlanta.
Kish then made a motion to extend the deadline of a possible guilty plea for 30 more days, which was granted by the judge. Henderson will now have until June 27 to determine if she’d like to enter a guilty plea or take the case to trial.
To this point, Henderson has insisted her innocence after prosecutors claimed she collected $17,811 in false unemployment benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Henderson reportedly made claims that she was out of work as a substitute teacher for Henry County Schools due to the pandemic. But the U.S. Department of Justice says that Henderson had not worked for Henry County Schools since 2018, despite her submitting certifications to receive unemployment benefits and accepting said benefits as recently as 2021.
Two other state representatives, Karen Bennett (D-Stone Mountain) and Dexter Sharper (D-Valdosta), have also been charged with pandemic unemployment fraud-related charges, though their cases are unrelated.
Bennett pleaded guilty and was sentenced to time served, a $1,000 fine and ordered to pay full restitution of $13,940. Sharper also pleaded guilty to making false statements to obtain funds administered by the U.S. Department of Labor and is set to be sentenced in July. Both have resigned from the Georgia House of Representatives.
Henderson was suspended by Gov. Brian Kemp in January just before this year’s legislative session. She will remain suspended until the disposition of her case or until the expiration of her term, whichever comes first.
Henderson declined a reelection bid for the seat, instead unsuccessfully running for state Senate in District 43. The new District 113 representative will be decided between Republican nominee Don Scarbrough or Democratic nominee Karla Daniels Hooper in the November general election.
