Former St. Clair County District Attorney Richard Minor was elected to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals and sworn in at a ceremony in Montgomery on Jan. 11.

Richard Minor served as District Attorney of St. Clair County from 2005 until his election to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals. He graduated from Auburn University with a B.A. in Criminal Justice in 1990 and Cumberland School of Law, Samford University in 1993. Prior to his election as District Attorney for St. Clair County, he served as Chief Trial Attorney in the St. Clair County District Attorney’s Office.

Richard Minor has 24 years experience as a career prosecutor, also serving as Assistant District Attorney in Tuscaloosa County and Jefferson County and serving as an Assistant Attorney General in the Violent Crimes Division of the Office of the Attorney General under both Jeff Sessions and Bill Pryor, Jr., a current judge on the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. 

He will now join his twin brother, Judge Robert Minor, in the traditional robes on the other side of the bench.

“Thank you to the citizens of St. Clair County and the State of Alabama for allowing me the privilege of being the District Attorney for St. Clair County for the last 14 years,” said Richard Minor. “As the quote on my desk reads, ‘It’s a luxury of a lifetime to be able to pursue only those things that are right. You are unencumbered by the bad ideas of a client paying you money. You are only encumbered by your own desire to do the right thing and make sure justice is done.’”

Judge Robert Minor has served as District Judge of St. Clair County since 2009 and became Presiding District Judge in 2011. He handles all civil cases in District Court, including small claims actions. He also serves as Juvenile Judge in juvenile actions. He presides in court in Ashville and Pell City.   

Gov. Kay Ivey appointed Lyle Harmon, who has served as St. Clair County Assistant District Attorney for the past two years, to the position of District Attorney left vacant by Richard Minor’s election. 

“I’m very honored and humbled that she has faith in me to fill this position,” Harmon said.

Harmon was sworn in on Wednesday, Jan. 16 at the St. Clair County Courthouse in Pell City by his predecessor, Judge Richard Minor.

“It is not everyday one gets to swear in their successor,” said Minor, “but it is an honor to do so.”

Alabama State Representative Jim Hill welcomed the large crowd of attendees. Circuit Court Judge Bill Weathington gave a vivid account of Lyle Harmon’s Pell City High School football career as well as the invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Circuit Clerk Annette Manning, and District Judge Alan Furr spoke to Harmon, stating, “Do what is right and seek justice above all else.”

“God blessed me with a family, friends, and surrounded me with people that hold me accountable,” said Lyle Harmon. “”We all know the difference between what is right in wrong, but being held accountable to what’s right and wrong, that makes a difference.”

Harmon has served in the St. Clair County chief assistant district attorney and worked in the district attorney’s office for the past two years. He is 1986 graduate of Pell City High School and earned his degree in business administration from Faulkner University and then the Birmingham School of Law.

He served as deputy district attorney with the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office and was city prosecutor for Pell City Municipal Court System. 

As well as serving in the courtroom, Harmon also serves in the Alabama National Guard. He was a U.S. Army helicopter pilot for the 101st Airborne Division 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry, during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

“When I came in [to the office] and saw my name on the door, I thought I had achieved something,” Harmon said. “But it’s not my door. It belongs to the people of St. Clair County. It is simply a privilege to have my name there. I pledge to you to do what ‘s best for the county.”

“The duties of a DA are not easy: to seek justice, protect the innocent, and convict the guilty,” stated Harmon. “Seeking justice is sometimes elusive but we must do it with purpose, honesty, and impartiality. We must do what is right all the time, every time.”