Jackson wins Heflin Award
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, November 7, 2006
In October, District Judge Ron Jackson was awarded the 2006 Howell Heflin Award at the Court Referral Officer (CRO) Program awards ceremony.
He was nominated for the award by Trey Richardson, a court referral&8217;s officer. Richardson wrote in his nomination, &8220;Judge Jackson has provided year after year of dedication to the success of the [CRO] program. He has been an advocate to the continued growth of the program … [he is] the standard as what other judges should strive to meet.&8221; J. Michael Joiner, presiding circuit judge in Shelby County and Associate Justice Patricia M. Smith of the Alabama Supreme Court wrote in letters of support for Jackson&8217;s nomination.
&8220;I&8217;m very pleased,&8221; Jackson said. &8220;I&8217;m surprised, pleased and honored. There were a number of judges nominated for this award.&8221;
Jackson is currently the presiding district judge with a varying caseload. He hears all traffic cases in the Shelby County District Court as well as many of the traffic and misdemeanor cases involving substance abuse. Smith wrote about Jackson, &8220;[He] understands that by personally investing time in monitoring compliance he insures the integrity of the court system and he demonstrates follow through with a population that has a history of avoidance and non-compliance.
According to a recent report, last fiscal court year (October to September) Jackson saw 17,161 cases.
&8220;It&8217;s a record high for me,&8221; he said. &8220;The numbers are increasing year to year.&8221;
Jackson, a Montevallo resident, has been working as a judge for 16 years.
Trey Richardson, who nominated Jackson for the award, was also honored at the ceremony. Richardson received a newly established award recognizing his outstanding work as a CRO. His duties include evaluating people convicted of substance abuse related crimes, referring them to the appropriate program and following their progress.