The following is a video transcript.

Meet Independent Program Attorney: Robert Trenkle

My name is Robert Trenkle and I’m an Independent Program Attorney for U.S. LawShield of North Carolina. I graduated from the University of North Carolina Law School in 1986. Next, I went to Florida to work as a public defender, then a private attorney, and later taught at the University of Florida Law School.

In 2002, I joined Mark Edwards to form Edwards & Trenkle, representing people accused of crimes in state and federal court.

I discovered early on as a young attorney the criminal justice system does not do a good job of deciding who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.

I have always believed in the right of a citizen to defend themselves and others, and that is a big reason why I agreed to work with Mark Edwards as an Independent Program Attorney for U.S. LawShield of North Carolina.

The one thing I tell all gun owners in North Carolina based on my years as a defense attorney and as an Independent Program Attorney with U.S. LawShield of North Carolina, is that your right to defend yourself and your family is a permanent right and no one can take that right away from you.

It’s a privilege to be an Independent Program Attorney for U.S. LawShield of North Carolina and to be able to fight to protect the freedom of their members and the right to protect themselves and their loved ones.

Meet Independent Program Attorney: Mark Edwards

My name is Mark Edwards and I am one of the Independent Program Attorneys for U.S. LawShield in North Carolina. I was born and raised in Mount Airy, which some of you may know was the inspiration for Mayberry in The Andy Griffith Show.

People often ask why I decided to become a criminal defense lawyer. I am particularly fascinated with the Bill of Rights and the way it protects the people from an overzealous government. From that point on, I knew what my career path was.

I’ve tried well in excess of 100 jury trials to verdict and 100’s more bench trials in the Florida and North Carolina state courts and in federal court. I have won appeals in Florida, North Carolina and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.

I became an Independent Program Attorney with U.S. LawShield in the spring of 2016. The first case I handled as an Independent Program Attorney involved a U.S. LawShield member who later became our state manager for U.S. LawShield in North Carolina. He was so impressed by U.S. LawShield he went on to work for the company.

I am honored to be an Independent Program Attorney for U.S. LawShield and to be able to defend our state members when they find themselves in a jam.