JUDICIAL EDUCATION:
- National Judicial College, Reno, NV
- General Jurisdiction I & II
- Advanced Evidence
- Legal Writing
- Essential Judicial Skills
- Trial Management
- Law and Literature
- Law and Economics Institute, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL
- American Institute for Justice, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS
EMPLOYMENT:
- Chancery Court Judge
- Hinds County Chancery Court, Jackson, Mississippi; 1989-present
- Associate Professor, Paralegal Technology
- Hinds Community College, Jackson, Mississippi; 1995-present
- Associate Professor, Pre-Law Society
- Tougaloo College, Tougaloo, Mississippi; 1995-present
- Managing Attorney and Partner
- Owens Law Firm, Jackson, Mississippi; 1983-1989
- Assistant City Prosecutor
- City of Jackson, Jackson, Mississippi; 1983-1989
- Staff Attorney
- Central MS Legal Services, Jackson, Mississippi; 1979-1983
- Associate Professor Criminology & Political Science
- Tougaloo College, Tougaloo, Mississippi; 1978
- Law Clerk
- Legal Services of the Elderly, Washington, D.C.; 1977-1979
- Office Clerk
- Emergency Land Fund, Jackson, Mississippi; 1966
TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
- Jackson State University, Business Law
- Tougaloo College, Legal Writing, Criminology and Constitutional Law
- Hinds Community College, Legal Writing, Real Property, and Wills & Estates
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:
- Mississippi Bar Association
- Gender Bias Task Force, Organizational Member
- Race & Ethics Bias Task Force
- Delivery of Legal Services Committee, Vice Chair
- Family Law Section, Organizational Member
- 1999 & 2000 Law School Professionalism
- Orientation Program, Facilitator
- Mississippi Supreme Court Pro Se Task Force
- American Bar Association, Judicial Division
- American Trial Lawyers, Judicial Division
- National Bar Association, Judicial Division
- Magnolia Bar Association
- Judicial Council, President
- Law Students Symposium, Coordinator
- Girls Law Camp, Coordinator/Founder
- Mississippi Conference of Chancery Court Judges
- President, 2000-2002
- Program Chairperson/Vice-Chair, 1998-2000
- Secretary, 1996-1998
- Catholic Charities, Board Member, 1990-1992
- Jackson Chapter, Links, Inc., Services to Stewpot
- Community Services Shelter (Sims House)
- Bone Marrow/Blood Drive
- Hinds County Bar Association, Peoples Law School
- Mississippi Equal Justice Summit, Co-Chair
- Legal Services State Planning Body, Program Chairperson
- County Foundation of Greater Jackson, Board Member
- Co-Chairperson Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, 2007-present
RECOGNITION AND AWARDS:
- 2010 Chief Justice Award from the Mississippi Supreme Court
- 2010 Tougaloo College Meritorious Leadership Award
- 2009 Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project Pro Bono Pioneer Award
- 2008 Champions of Justice Award, Mississippi Center for Justice
- 2006 Hinds County Bar Association Judicial Innovation Award
- 2006 National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO)
- 2003 Fellow of the Mississippi Bar Association Award
- 2002 Magnolia Bar Association Government Service Award
Education
J.D., George Washington University
B.A., Tougaloo College
