Steven Taylor

From Judgepedia

Steven W. Taylor is a Justice on the Oklahoma Supreme Court, the state's high court for civil matters. Taylor represents the state's second district. He has served in that capacity since 2004, and has strong community ties to the state.

Contents 1 Education 2 Military Experience 3 Experience 4 Awards and Recognition 5 See Also 6 References

Education

Taylor is a product of his native state's public schooling system, graduating from McAlester Public Schools in 1967. From there, he went on to receive his B.A. in Political Science from Oklahoma State University in 1971. Taylor stayed in the state to earn his J.D. as well, graduating from the Oklahoma College of Law in 1974.

Military Experience

Following the completion of his legal education, Taylor enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1970. He served on active duty from 1974-1978, eventually reaching the rank of Major. He was trained as an infantry platoon commander and later served as a prosecutor and Chief Defense Counsel. In 1977 he became the youngest judge in the U.S. Armed Forces.^[1]

Experience

• Following his active duty service in the Marines, Taylor practiced law in McAlester from 1978-1984.

• In 1980 he was elected to the McAlester City Council and in 1982 was elected Mayor of McAlester, making him the youngest Mayor in that city’s history.

• In March 1984 Governor George Nigh appointed Taylor Associate District Judge for Pittsburg County. In 1991 he was the first Associate District Judge ever to be elected President of the Oklahoma Judicial Conference.

• In 1994, Taylor was elected District Judge of the 18th Judicial District. In 1997 and 2003 he was elected Presiding Judge of the ten county East-Central Judicial Administrative District. As a trail judge he gained over 20 years of experience, presiding over 500 cases--most notably the trail for Oklahoma City bomber Terry Nichols.

• On September 24, 2004, Governor Brad Henry appointed Taylor to be a Justice of the Supreme Court of Oklahoma.

Awards and Recognition

• He was named one of Three Outstanding Young Oklahomans for 1983
• In 1985, in recognition of Taylor’s leadership in economic development, the City of McAlester named a multi-million dollar industrial park for him where many industries now employ several hundred Oklahomans.
• In 1997 he was named “Citizen of the Year” in McAlester
• In 2002 Taylor was recognized by Oklahoma State University as a “Leadership Legacy” and 2003 “Distinguished Alumnus”
• In 2007 Justice Taylor was inducted into the Oklahoma State University Hall of Fame
• During the 2007 Oklahoma Centennial year Oklahoma magazine named Justice Taylor as one of the “100 Who Shaped Us”

See Also

• Oklahoma
• Oklahoma Supreme Court

References