Biography
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Previously elected to
three consecutive terms as 35th District Judge (1996,2000, & 2004)
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Presided over thousands
of criminal and civil cases (1997-2008)
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His court has a clearance
rate in Brown & Mills Counties of over 95% this last fiscal year, disposing
of 1,723 cases (2007)
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Despite numerous appeals
over the years, Judge Ellis has been rarely reversed
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Created the A.D.A.P.T.
program for substance abuse offenders (2006)
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Primarily responsible
for creating CASA in the Heart of Texas, Inc. (1999), selected by Texas
CASA, Inc., as its "Lone Star Proud for Kids Judge of the Year" for the
entire state (2002)
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Implemented Children
& Divorce Program (1997), the Safe Exchange program for supervised
child visitation (1998), and an Alternative Dispute Resolution System through
the Family Services Center in Brownwood (2003)
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Named in Texas Lawyer,
a statewide weekly news magazine, as one of the Outstanding Judges in our
region of Texas (2004)
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Graduate of the Texas
College for Judicial Studies (2006) & a member of the Judicial Section
of the State Bar of Texas & of the American Judicature Society
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Received a Presidential
Commendation from the President of the State Bar of Texas (2006)
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Appointed as a visiting
justice on the 10th Court of Appeals in Waco (2006-2007)
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Worked to improve Courthouse
facilities & enhance security in Brown & Mills Courthouses (1997-2008),
pushed for the creation of the County Court at Law for Brown County (2003)
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Twice elected as 35th
District Attorney (1980 & 1984) & was Asst. D.A. for Brown, Coleman,
McCulloch and Mills Counties (1977-1980), helped create Brown County Crime
Stoppers (1984)
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Spent 20 years as a
successful trial attorney in thousands of civil & criminal cases, representing
either plaintiffs or defendants in civil cases or the State or the Defense
in criminal cases (1976-1996)
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Cattle rancher &
member of Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Assn.(1980-2008)
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Graduate of Baylor University
(1973) & Baylor School of Law (1976)
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Named Outstanding Man
of Year by Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce (2002)Member and Past President
Brownwood Kiwanis Club (1976-2008)
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Scoutmaster of Troop
14, Brownwood, Boy Scouts of America (1998-2002), awarded Silver Beaver
by Comanche Trail Council (2002)
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Deacon and Sunday School
Teacher at First Baptist Church, Brownwood for over 30 years
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Adjunct faculty member
at the Douglas MacArthur Academy of Freedom at Howard Payne University
(2007)
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Married for thirty years
to Debby Ellis, an estate planning lawyer, who died of breast cancer in
May of 2006. Have three children: Becca, a recent graduateof Texas
Tech School of Law who is an estate planning lawyer working for a law firm
in Dallas; John, a graduate of U.S.C. who is working for AT&T in Chicago;
and Joe, a senior cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado
(Pol. Adv. Paid for by District
Judge Steve Ellis Re-election Campaign, Mark Bradshaw, Treas. in compliance
with the voluntary limits of the Judicial Campaign Fairness Act.) |