Get to know: Richard Minor, candidate for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals
Three seats on the five-seat court of Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals are up for election this year. Today’s candidate spotlight features St. Clair County District Attorney Richard Minor. Minor has served as the top prosecutor in St. Clair County since he was first elected in 2004. He’s running for Place 1 on the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals. With a little over four months until voters head to the ballots, AlabamaToday.com is inviting all candidates running for office in Alabama this year, to complete a questionnaire we believe offers an interesting, albeit, thumbnail sketch of who they are and why they are running. If you are a candidate and would like to complete the questionnaire, email Elizabeth@ALToday.com. Here Minor is in his own words: Significant other? How long married? Kids? I am married to Angela Callahan Minor of Pell City. We married in 2006. I have two daughters, Olivia (19) and Adyson (10), and one stepson Bailey (17). My wife and I also have have custody of our nephew Brad (18). Education background? Professional background? I am a 1993 graduate of the Cumberland School of Law, Samford University. While at Cumberland School of Law, I was a member of the American Journal of Trial Advocacy, a Cordell Hull Teaching Fellow and served as a Samford Senator. I graduated summa cum laude from Auburn University in 1990 with a B.A. in Criminal Justice.In 2004, I was elected District Attorney for St. Clair County. Prior to my election, I served as the Chief Trial Attorney in the St. Clair County District Attorney’s Office. I am currently in my thirteenth year as District Attorney and twenty-fourth year as a career prosecutor. Prior to serving as Chief Trial Attorney, I served as an Assistant District Attorney in Tuscaloosa County and Jefferson County as well as serving as an Assistant Attorney General in the Violent Crimes Division of the Office of the Attorney General under both Jeff Sessions, current US Attorney General, and Bill Pryor, Jr., a current judge on the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.During my tenure as District Attorney from 2006-2011, I served as the Acting Attorney General and Special Prosecutor for the State of Alabama overseeing the State of Alabama’s interest in a joint federal and state investigation of public corruption in the Post Secondary System of Alabama. This investigation led to the conviction of the former Chancellor of Post Secondary, state legislators, and a multitude of others. I have had the honor to serve as President, Vice-President, and Secretary/Treasurer of the Alabama District Attorneys Association. Currently, I am appointed by the Chief Justice as a member of the State of Alabama Rules of Criminal Procedure Committee. In addition, I currently serve on the Alabama Sentencing Commission Standards Committee, the Governor’s Advisory Council on Juvenile Justice & Delinquincy Prevention, the Governor’s Juvenile Crime Enforcement Coalition, the Board of Directors of VOCAL, and the United States Attorney’s Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee for the Northern District of Alabama. In the past, I served on the State of Alabama Pattern Jury Instructions (Criminal) Committee, the Review Committee for Alabama’s Protocol for the Examination and Treatment of Sexual Assault, and the Pell City Housing Authority. What was your first job before college/adulthood and after? My first job before college was serving ice cream at Baskin Robbins. In addition, I spent the summer before college working for my hometown painting fire hydrants and checking the nuts and bolts on all street signs. During law school, I served as a law clerk for then US Attorney Jeff Sessions in the Southern District of Alabama. During law school, I served as a paid law clerk in the United States Attorneys Office in Birmingham assigned to the Criminal Division and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.Upon graduation of Cumberland School of Law, I became an Assistant District Attorney for Tuscaloosa County where I was assigned to the District Court. After a short period of time, I was assigned to the West Alabama Narcotics Squad (WANS) where I prosecuted all felony drug offenses committed in Tuscaloosa County. In 25 words or less, why are you running for office? To offer the citizens an opportunity to have someone on the court who has 24 years of specializing in criminal law and who has followed the rule of law. That is, I am offering myself as a judge that will apply the law as it is written, not what it should be. In doing so, the people will have the opportunity to elect someone who has a proven conservative record and someone who will uphold the United States Constitution and founding principles of our Founding Fathers. Did you speak with anybody in your political party before deciding on running? Receive any encouragement? From whom? Before making my final decisions to run for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, I spoke to my family, close friends, and Judge Bill Pryor, Jr., Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Pryor is a former boss and someone whose opinion I deeply value. As someone with firsthand knowledge of running a statewide campaign and serving as an appellate judge, he provided valuable insight. Once I made my decision in late May 2017, I did call Chairwoman Terry Lathan of the Alabama Republican Party to tell her of my intentions. During the summer of 2017, I also spoke with members of the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals. Who do you count on for advice besides significant other or clergy? Other than my wife and pastor, the two people I count on most for advice are my father and my twin brother. Who is your political consultant? Campaign manager? My campaign consultant is Angi Horn Stalnaker. Who was the first person to contribute to your campaign? Why did they donate? My first contributor was my primary physician, Dr. Bill McClanahan. He understand the need that our elected officials have the utmost integrity and ethical standards. Furthermore, he understands the need for conservative judges who will follow the rule of law. That is, say what the law
