special to the advance

 

District Judge Jeff White has announced his intent to run for election to the post he now holds.

White was appointed by Gov. Robert Bentley in June of 2014.

“I was humbled and excited to be appointed to the position, and now I will ask the people of Escambia County to elect me to serve a full term” White said

He is the son of Harvey and Betty White of Flomaton. He has one daughter, Jena Marie Turner, son-in-law, Keath Turner, and four grandchildren.

White resides in Flomaton and attends church at Little Escambia Baptist Church.

White is running as a Republican.

White is a 1983 graduate of Flomaton High School. He received a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Alabama in 1989, and graduated from Jones School of Law in Montgomery in 1994. He was licensed to practice law in 1995 and was in general practice for several years with his uncle, Earnest Ray White. He opened a sole practice in 2005. In 2008, he became an assistant district attorney responsible for the prosecution primarily of felony drug cases. He also prosecuted misdemeanors in district court.

White remained in the District Attorney’s Office until his appointment to the bench in 2014. During his time with the district attorney’s office, he was lead counsel on several jury trials and served as the district attorney representative in multiple grand kury proceedings.

White was a member of the Alabama Army National Guard for 26 years and retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2008.

White enlisted at age 17 in the 638th Ordnance Company of Brewton in 1982. He served as a platoon leader in Operation Desert Storm in 1991, and received the bronze star medal for meritorious service for that campaign along with the Defense of Saudi Arabia Medal and the Liberation of Kuwait Medal.

White was mobilized again in 2003 as a member of the 167th Theater Support Command in Birmingham, and served with Joint Task Force Civil Support at Fort Monroe, Va.

White was awarded the Joint Services Commendation Medal for his service at Fort Monroe.

In 2004, White volunteered to serve as the logistics officer for the 231st Military Police Battalion in Prattville.

The battalion was deployed to Baghdad, Iraq, from March 2004 until March 2005. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service along with the Combat Action Badge for his service there.

“I am humbled daily when I enter the courtroom,” he said. “I have been entrusted with a job and responsibilities that I take very seriously.

“My parents raised me to work hard and to treat people fairly. I have tried to bring that philosophy to this job. I had my first job when I was 12.

“I worked at a gravel pit that summer picking trash out of freshly washed gravel. My goodness, those were some long days. When I went to Jones Law School, they had classes at night. I would work until about noon at my father’s concrete plant and then drive to Montgomery to attend class.

“Sometimes I was worried that I still smelled like 90-weight oil after changing the wheel seal on a gravel trailer. I have never lost that connection to hard work. I have had the opportunity through the years to meet some great people; dignitaries, war heroes, but some of the people that I admire the most are those that go to work every day and toil in obscurity. They are the lifeblood of our community and of our country.

“I feel that my experience in the legal field and in life in general qualify me to continue to serve as the district judge for the wonderful people of this county.”