Adam Taliaferro, who gained national attention with a remarkable recovery from a spinal injury sustained during his freshman year as a star football player for Penn State 15 years ago, is the newest New Jersey legislator , Michelle Caffrey reports today in the  South Jersey Times.

Taliaferro, of Woolwich Township, was selected by Democratic leaders in Gloucester , Salem and Cumberland counties to fill the Third District Assembly seat vacated by Celeste Riley who in November was elected as county clerk in Cumberland County.   

Taliaferro was a star football player for Penn State when he sustained a devastating spinal injury during a game in 2000 that left him paralyzed. While doctors gave him a 3 percent chance of regaining the ability to walk, he managed to beat those odds, earn a law degree and start a career working for global biopharmaceutical company Bristol-Myers Squibb as a patient advocate and lobbyist.

"Anybody who knows Adam knows what a special person he is," said State Senator and Gloucester County Democratic Chairman Fred Madden (D-4 of Washington Township) in a release on the endorsement. "I continue to be impressed by the strength of his character and integrity. He has withstood some amazing challenges in his life, yet he has maintained a positive outlook and turned those challenges into opportunities to help others."

Taliaferro also serves on the Penn Sate Board of Trustees, but told OnwardState.com on Tuesday that he would not be running for re-election, citing his "additional responsibilities."

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