Colbert County Judge race

I got no horse in this race, but doesn't all the snaps of Brown look like Chekov on Star Trek?

Kyle Brown

The following is a profile of Kyle Brown, candidate for Colbert County District Court Judge.
TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF (BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION)
I was born on February 10, 1968 at Helen Keller Hospital to Gene and Jan Brown. I grew up in Tuscumbia and attended Tuscumbia City Schools. I graduated from Deshler High School in 1986 and grew up attending First Baptist Church in Sheffield. I am currently a member of Calvary Baptist Church in Tuscumbia where I serve as a Deacon and youth Sunday School teacher. My family and I helped implement the Upward Basketball program at Calvary and have worked closely with the program since its beginning.
I am a member and past president of the Tuscumbia Kiwanis Club. With this I have participated in fund raisers to assist with numerous community project and associations such as Big Brothers Big Sisters. I am also a member and past president of the Colbert County Bar Association.
I enjoy running and have completed two marathons and one � marathon. The first was in Memphis, Tennessee, in December 2007. This marathon was a fund raiser for St. Jude�s Children�s Hospital. My sister, Gina Smith, and I completed the St. Jude�s marathon together. The second marathon I ran was in Birmingham in February, 2009. I also completed the half marathon in Florence in October of 2009. This marathon was a benefit for the CP Center of the Shoals.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR FAMILY
My father, Gene Brown, grew up in Cherokee, Alabama. He was a graduate of Cherokee High School and was employed by TVA for many years. After retiring from TVA in 1996, he continued to work as a nuclear energy consultant for the next 11 years. Jan Thompson Brown, my mother, grew up in Sheffield where she graduated from Sheffield High School. My Mom had one of the toughest jobs around. She was a homemaker for our family. She has one sister, Glenda Carter who still resides in Sheffield.
I am married to Patrice Kitchens Brown. Patrice is a graduate of Cherokee High School and the University of North Alabama. She lived in Cherokee with her parents, Bobby and Louise Kitchens and brother Phillip, until moving to Florence to attend UNA. Bobby was a barber in Cherokee for many years and also worked at TVA until his retirement. Louise was a home maker and seamstress. Patrice grew up attending First Baptist Church in Cherokee with her family. She worked for State Farm Insurance as a Claims Representative for 7 years and is currently a teacher at Covenant Christian School where she teaches Music and Technology classes. I met Patrice on a blind date while we both were students at UNA. She is a former Ms. UNA from 1999. We have two children, Anna and Tye. They are both very active in sports, music, and our church.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
I attended Tuscumbia City Schools from Kindergarten through graduation at Deshler High School in 1986. I then attended the University of North Alabama where I received a BS Degree with a major in Political Science and a minor in History. While in high school and college I worked for the Tuscumbia Recreation Department as well as other local businesses including Tri-Cities Manufacturing. After graduating from UNA, I moved to Birmingham to attend Cumberland School of Law where I obtained my Juris Doctorate. I was admitted to the Alabama Bar Association in the fall of 1993.
While in law school, I worked for Jaffe, Burton, and DiGiorgio law firm in Birmingham. After graduation, we moved back to Tuscumbia, and I began working as a prosecutor in the District Attorney�s office. I am currently the Chief Assistant District Attorney in Colbert County and have been in the office for almost 17 years. I have prosecuted almost every type of criminal case from running a stop sign to capital murder. I have prosecuted in every Colbert County court including juvenile, traffic, district, and circuit. I have also handled domestic cases involving child support enforcement and child paternity. On the civil side, I have been involved in civil condemnations arising out of criminal prosecutions. I learned my earliest lessons as an attorney in District Court. My first years as a prosecutor were spent almost exclusively in District Court.
I had the privilege of being involved in the formation of Colbert County�s Drug Court, which holds non-violent offenders accountable while attempting to address the cause of their crime, drug addiction. I am still involved in Drug Court today. I know the damage that drug addiction is doing to our families. Drug court is an attempt to put lives back together and reduce crime in our community. My involvement in that program is very rewarding. As a prosecutor I have been able to work closely with many other county agencies including the Juvenile Probation Office, the Department of Human Resources, the Health Department, and Colbert County Community Corrections..
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BOOK?
I really enjoy reading. It is hard to pick just one favorite as I enjoy biographies, historical fiction, and novels. The historical fictions by Jeff and Michael Shaara are some of my favorites. Two books I will mention are Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley and Truman Capote�s In Cold Blood.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR RELIGIOUS BELIEFS
I am a Christian who believes we are saved by grace through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE WORDS THAT YOU LIVE BY?
�Honesty is the best policy.� I have always felt that you�re either honest or you�re not. I believe if you are an honest person, you are honest in all things; even in the little things that may not seem that significant. I think I feel this way, not because of what other people may think of me, but because of how my personal convictions tell me to live. I will never misrepresent myself to the citizens of this county. I will not misrepresent myself as a candidate for District Court judge.
WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR THE DISTRICT COURT JUDGE�S OFFICE?
As a prosecutor I have been able to work closely with victims of violent and non-violent crimes and understand the impact it has on their lives. I believe our courts should be places where the rule of law is always followed regardless of the parties or issues involved. Judges decisions should be based on the facts of the cases before them and law as it applies to those cases. I have conducted myself that way as a prosecutor and will continue to do so as a District Court judge.
Where possible, the court should not only impose punishment for the crime committed, but attempt to address the underlying cause of the crime. This especially important in juvenile cases which are heard before District Court. Justice for the victims of crime and, if possible, rehabilitation for the offender should be the goal of our District Court. I will use every resource available to me to accomplish these goals, including those in our local community. This community has always been my home, and it is my vision for our District Court to enhance the quality of life here in Colbert County

Chad Coker

We're pleased to present the vision statement of Chad Coker, candidate for Colbert County District Judge, along with additional biographical material:

Biographical Information:


This year I will celebrate my seventh wedding anniversary with my wife, Catherine. She teaches nineteen first graders at G.W. Trenholm Primary School in Tuscumbia, Alabama. Catherine loves her job and the children that she inspires. This is her sixth year to teach. Catherine and I have not been blessed with children yet but we are the proud aunt and uncle to our four nephews (soon to be five) and one niece, all under the age of ten. We await God’s blessing and fully understand that his plan always works.

My parents are Don and Arweeda Coker. Both of my parents were born in different communities outside of Tupelo, Mississippi. Both were reared on farms and were the first in their families to graduate from college. My dad graduated from Florence State University and my mother from Blue Mountain College and Mississippi State University. My parent’s degrees were in education. My father started his career teaching and coaching basketball in Lexington. His career led him to Sulligent and then to Pell City, Alabama. After 26 years of teaching and educating, my parents retired from the Alabama public school system. They then returned home to care for their aging parents and began teaching in Mississippi. My parents are now retired after 40 years of teaching numerous children throughout Alabama and Mississippi.

Vision Statement:


Upon graduating from the University of Alabama School of Law, I moved to Tuscumbia to serve as the law clerk. For a year and a half I researched the applicable law and wrote briefs for the two circuit court judges and Judge Carpenter. I believe that work experience prepared me for my own practice. On January 1, 2001, I began my law practice. I’m proud of the practice I have built representing clients in civil, criminal, domestic, probate and juvenile matters. I am also pleased with my work as Municipal Court Judge for the City of Russellville and the Town of Cherokee.

I have practiced in most of the courts throughout our area. I have seen good judges and I know their traits. They are fair, firm and yet compassionate when the situation calls for it, and most importantly, curious about the law. The best judges are those that are as equally prepared to discuss the merits of the case when the lawyers approach the bench. I believe that the District Court in Colbert County, under Judge Carpenter’s leadership, is well run and as fair a courtroom as you will find in the Shoals area. I want to continue in that tradition.

I feel that too often any candidate running for office espouses change when they might not really fully grasp why the system is working the way that it is. There are over 15,000 cases filed each year in the District Court of Colbert County. The system that is in place in that office has evolved over time to address that increase in volume. There are certainly things that can be improved upon to make things more efficient such as the move to go paperless. Judge Carpenter, despite being one of the longest serving judges in the state, has embraced this move whole heartedly. I could not agree more. It will save the state resources, time and taxpayer’s dollars. I would hope that the county might consider implementing video conferencing whereby criminal arraignments and bond hearings could be held via a video monitor from the jail thus negating the need of the sheriff’s department using manpower and resources in transporting the criminal defendants to the courtroom. I think these are small measures which can be expanded to make the court more efficient and cost effective.

In Colbert County, the District Court Judge serves as the Juvenile Court Judge. It is my involvement in juvenile court cases which have been the most rewarding to me. I’ve handled over 700 of these juvenile cases which have been either custody or delinquency matters. I have represented the rights of parents but also served as an advocate for children in the role of Guardian ad Litem. The State of Alabama now requires certification and continued retraining to serve as a Guardian ad Litem. I have continued to remain certified since the inception of that requirement. Through the role of Guardian ad Litem, I have worked with the Department of Human Resources on hundreds of occasions. In cases where the child has been removed from the home and placed into foster care, I believe that it is equally important that DHR be held accountable to make sure all available resources are being used to reunite that parent and the child. Just as the parents are to be held accountable and follow certain guidelines, so should the State of Alabama operating through the Department of Human Resources.

The next District Court Judge will have an incredible responsibility in hearing these juvenile cases. Often times that child is too young to express his or her own concerns. Too many cases continue to come before the court where the parents are choosing drugs over the safety of their children. You continue to see a cycle of children having children and they are immature and ill-prepared as parents. They are signing on for the toughest job in the world, to be a parent, and they do not have the basic skills to ever begin that journey. As a court, we need to make sure these parents are given an opportunity to gain these skills while keeping the children safe from any neglect. We do need to consider the implementation of additional parenting programs and continue to support the Court Appointed Special Advocate (C.A.S.A.) program which continues to grow in Colbert County. We also need to take full advantage of the Children’s Policy Council and use this group to enhance and increase the resources available to the children of our community. I believe the juvenile court should consider the establishment of a mentoring program for troubled youth that come before the court on truancy or delinquency charges. There are numerous homes throughout our communities where there are too few role models. By placing community leaders and volunteers into mentoring roles for these youth, it can only help the situation and hopefully break a cycle of delinquent behavior.

Finally, as District Judge, I’m going to be fair. The words “innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt” should mean something to all of us. Just because someone is charged with a crime does not mean they are guilty. It is the burden of the state to prove that guilt. The facts, applied to the law, must support the conviction. Our court system can never become a place where one side is favored over the other. The courtroom must remain a fair, neutral ground where cases are decided based upon the laws of this state and country.

As the next District Judge, I’m going to run my courtroom according to the rule of law. I’ll be firm but fair. I’ll rule quickly because I understand that each of those 15,000 files that I see every year impact our citizen’s lives. I understand that my rulings may carry drastic consequences for those individuals and their families. It is an incredible responsibility that I won’t take lightly.

Here's what I know...when I was robbed at gun point, Brown was more concerned with the "rights" of the robber than my rights as a victim. The robber was not prosecuted even though it was a slam dunk case.

Coker has been to my door and ask for my vote...he has it.

Thanks for sharing both profiles. I am sure they are both qualified. I just going to vote for Kyle Brown. He was practicing law when Chad was in high school and I want a judge that has experience under his belt. I also loved the part about running marathons, you really must be committed, determined and focused to do that run. I must say he is a fit man and you can tell by his photos.

Thanks again for sharing both profiles. It has really confirmed by decision. Best of luck to all that are still finalizing them.

Let me get this, you're going to vote for some one because he can run marathons?

You must have misunderstood me. I said I was to vote for Kyle due to his experience of the past 17 years in the DA's office. I admire his committment to running marathons. Sorry you misunderstood my comment.

Has Brown ever worked anywhere besides the DAs office?

quote:

Originally posted by Trutooit-II:
Has Brown ever worked anywhere besides the DAs office?

Brown didn't work much there...too concerned over the rights of criminals and NOT justice for the victims. I don't even know who is running against Brown but he has my vote.

quote:

Coke has been to my door and ask for my vote... he has it.

quote:

I don't even know who is running against Brown but he has my vote.

How are these two statements compatible with each other?

All I know is that Kyle has been with the DA's office for the past 17 years. Where else has Chad worked? I think he has only practiced privately. But not sure.

Chad is my attorney and while he is young, he has the respect of the other lawyers and judges.

He gets my vote.

quote:

Originally posted by Just my opinion:
All I know is that Kyle has been with the DA's office for the past 17 years. Where else has Chad worked? I think he has only practiced privately. But not sure.

Brown may have been around for 17 years but apparently he is confused about his roll of protecting the innocent victim and believes his sworn duty is to protect the accused...even when he has a signed confession and the perp is a well known offender and drug addict. Brown is supposed to be a prosecutor not a defense attorney for the criminal. Time for a BROWN OUT.