Anna White
By Greg Chandler
Zeeland Record
An Ottawa County public defender and board member of a Zeeland-based ministry has been appointed to fill an opening on the 58th District Court bench.
Anna White of Holland, who has already filed to run for a District Court judgeship in this year’s elections, was appointed last Thursday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to fill an opening created by the resignation of longtime Judge Bradley Knoll. Her term will begin July 6 and conclude on Jan. 1, 2027.
White has been an assistant public defender at the Ottawa County Office of the Public Defender since December 2018. Before that, she had been an associate attorney at the Holland-based law firm of Hann Persinger PC, according to her LinkedIn account.
“It is truly an honor to be appointed to this seat,” White said in a news release from Whitmer’s office. “I care deeply about our community and I look forward to the opportunity to bring justice and dignity to every person who enters the Holland District Court.”
White has served on the board of directors for Zeeland-based Compassionate Heart Ministries since 2020, and has also been on the board of directors for Ridge Point Community Church for 11 years, according to her LinkedIn account.
White has also previously served on the boards of the Ottawa County Bar Association, Holland Teen Court and Latin Americans United for Progress, according to her LinkedIn account.
White holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from Hope College and a juris doctorate from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
Knoll, who had been a district judge since 2003 and was not eligible to run for re-election this year because he is past the age of 70, agreed to step down from the bench six months before the end of his term under a consent order approved March 25 by the Michigan Supreme Court.
The Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission filed a complaint against Knoll in April 2025 in connection with a December 2023 incident at the judge’s Grand Haven home in which Knoll struck his wife “with an open hand and slapped (her) on the top of her head,” then verbally threatened a Grand Haven Department of Public Safety officer, according to case records.
Knoll, 74, pleaded guilty to domestic assault and was sentenced in March 2024 to four months’ probation and ordered to complete an anger management class. He successfully completed his probation and the case was dismissed without entry of a conviction, case records show.
In addition to agreeing to retire early, Knoll is not allowed to seek or accept appointment as a visiting judge until after Jan. 1, 2027, and cannot take any case involving any charge of domestic violence as a visiting judge, case records show.
Knoll is facing an assault charge stemming from a February incident where it’s alleged he assaulted a man who had appeared before him in court. A pre-trial hearing in the case was held last week, and a trial has been set for October in 58th District Court, according to court records.
Zeeland Record
An Ottawa County public defender and board member of a Zeeland-based ministry has been appointed to fill an opening on the 58th District Court bench.
Anna White of Holland, who has already filed to run for a District Court judgeship in this year’s elections, was appointed last Thursday by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to fill an opening created by the resignation of longtime Judge Bradley Knoll. Her term will begin July 6 and conclude on Jan. 1, 2027.
White has been an assistant public defender at the Ottawa County Office of the Public Defender since December 2018. Before that, she had been an associate attorney at the Holland-based law firm of Hann Persinger PC, according to her LinkedIn account.
“It is truly an honor to be appointed to this seat,” White said in a news release from Whitmer’s office. “I care deeply about our community and I look forward to the opportunity to bring justice and dignity to every person who enters the Holland District Court.”
White has served on the board of directors for Zeeland-based Compassionate Heart Ministries since 2020, and has also been on the board of directors for Ridge Point Community Church for 11 years, according to her LinkedIn account.
White has also previously served on the boards of the Ottawa County Bar Association, Holland Teen Court and Latin Americans United for Progress, according to her LinkedIn account.
White holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from Hope College and a juris doctorate from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
Knoll, who had been a district judge since 2003 and was not eligible to run for re-election this year because he is past the age of 70, agreed to step down from the bench six months before the end of his term under a consent order approved March 25 by the Michigan Supreme Court.
The Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission filed a complaint against Knoll in April 2025 in connection with a December 2023 incident at the judge’s Grand Haven home in which Knoll struck his wife “with an open hand and slapped (her) on the top of her head,” then verbally threatened a Grand Haven Department of Public Safety officer, according to case records.
Knoll, 74, pleaded guilty to domestic assault and was sentenced in March 2024 to four months’ probation and ordered to complete an anger management class. He successfully completed his probation and the case was dismissed without entry of a conviction, case records show.
In addition to agreeing to retire early, Knoll is not allowed to seek or accept appointment as a visiting judge until after Jan. 1, 2027, and cannot take any case involving any charge of domestic violence as a visiting judge, case records show.
Knoll is facing an assault charge stemming from a February incident where it’s alleged he assaulted a man who had appeared before him in court. A pre-trial hearing in the case was held last week, and a trial has been set for October in 58th District Court, according to court records.
