Justice Leslie D. King becomes the most recent addition to the Delta State University Colloquia: Distinguished Speakers Lecture Series March 4 at 6 p.m. in Jobe Hall Auditorium.The Delta State University Colloquia: Distinguished Speakers Lecture Series continues this semester with Justice Leslie D. King, Supreme Court of the State of Mississippi.
King will be on campus to present his speech “Perspectives on Social Justice in Mississippi” on March 4 at 6 p.m. in Jobe Hall Auditorium.
“Justice King is a native of Greenville, and he has had a distinguished career in both the legislative and judicial branches of government,” said Delta State President William N. LaForge, who established the lecture series in September of 2013.
King served in the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1980-1994, and his leadership roles included serving as vice-chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee. He was elected to the Court of Appeals in 1994, and Governor Haley Barbour appointed him to the Mississippi Supreme Court in 2011.
Other legislative committees on which King served include: Judiciary, Insurance, Environmental Protection Council, Housing Finance Oversight, and Universities and Colleges.
King began practicing law in Greenville in 1973. He graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1970 and from the Texas Southern University School of Law in 1973.
He was chairman of the Mississippi Black Legislative Caucus in 1988, and previously served as Youth Court Counselor for Washington County, Public Defender, Youth Court Prosecutor, and Municipal Court Judge for the Town of Metcalfe.
Justice King and his wife, the former Patricia Smith of Greenville, have two daughters and a granddaughter. They attend the St. Matthew African Methodist Episcopal Church in Greenville.
LaForge encouraged Delta State professors to alert their students of this unique opportunity to hear King speak.
“This is a university-wide program that will bring a unique and diverse array of people — from judges, former government officials, lawyers and business people,” said LaForge. “These are all folks our students can look up to.”
The event is free and open to the public, and there will be a reception in his honor immediately following the event.
Each Colloquia lecture is streamed live online through the official Delta State University uStream channel. Learn more at www.deltastate.edu/colloquia.
