RUSTON, La. — Lewis A. Jones has qualified to run for Division B Judge of Louisiana’s Third Judicial District Court. After months of campaigning, Lewis A. Jones has qualified as a Republican candidate for Division B Judge of the Third Judicial District Court, which serves Lincoln and Union parishes.
For Jones, the decision to seek the bench is the continuation of a legal career spent on virtually every side of the courtroom — as a private attorney, longtime public defender and, for nearly 12 years, Chief Felony Prosecutor for the Third Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
“I have spent my career in the courtroom, working with victims, families, law enforcement officers, attorneys and people facing some of the most difficult moments of their lives,” Jones said. “I believe a judge should know the law, understand the courtroom and have the experience and temperament to treat every person who enters that courtroom fairly and with respect.”
Jones is a lifelong member of the north Louisiana community, having called Ruston home since 1976. He graduated second in his class from Ruston High School before attending Louisiana Tech University on scholarship, where he graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting.
While attending Louisiana Tech, Jones worked full time, first with the Ruston Police Department and later with the Ruston Marshal’s Office.
After graduating from Louisiana Tech, Jones attended LSU Law School on scholarship and earned his law degree in 1989. He then returned home to Ruston to begin practicing law.
Over the decades that followed, Jones built a broad legal career that included both civil and criminal law. His practice has included criminal defense, personal injury, medical malpractice, defective products, real estate matters, wills and successions, divorces and child custody cases. Importantly, Jones has tried both civil and criminal cases before juries.
Before becoming a prosecutor, Jones served for approximately 25 years as District Public Defender, representing people accused of crimes who could not afford an attorney and supervising public defenders serving Lincoln and Union parishes.
That experience gave Jones firsthand knowledge of the responsibilities carried by both sides of the criminal justice system.
He later joined the Third Judicial District Attorney’s Office, where he has served for nearly 12 years as Chief Felony Prosecutor. In that role, Jones has prosecuted serious felony cases in Lincoln and Union parishes and has also been called upon to prosecute cases in Ouachita Parish when that district attorney’s office had a conflict.
Jones believes that combination of experience — defense attorney, prosecutor, civil attorney and jury trial lawyer — has prepared him uniquely for the responsibility of serving as district judge.
“A judge is not supposed to be on one side or the other,” Jones said. “The responsibility of a judge is to follow the law, listen carefully, be fair and make decisions based on the facts and the law. My career has allowed me to see our justice system from many different perspectives, and I believe that experience matters.”
Jones’s service has extended well beyond the courtroom.
He has served two terms as president of the Lincoln Parish Bar Association and was a founding member of the Lincoln and Union Parish Drug Court Team, serving the program at different times as both a defense attorney and prosecutor.
He has served as an adjunct professor at Louisiana Tech University and has provided legal representation to public bodies including the Lincoln Parish School Board, Lincoln Parish Police Jury, Union Parish Police Jury, Lincoln Parish Library Board and Lincoln Parish Fire Protection District.
Jones has also taught and trained members of the legal and law enforcement communities. He has taught law enforcement officers in Lincoln and Union parishes, as well as graduates of the FBI National Academy, on subjects including courtroom testimony, report writing, searches and seizures and diversity. He has taught attorneys locally and statewide on jury selection, jury trials, ethics and other areas of the law.
His community involvement includes more than a decade as a Lincoln Parish Adopt-A-School partner, for which he was named Outstanding Adopt-A-School Partner in 2011. He is also a member of the Ruston Rotary Club and First Baptist Church of Ruston.
Now, after decades of practicing law in the communities he calls home, Jones said he is ready to bring that experience to the bench.
“This community has given so much to me and my family,” Jones said. “It would be an incredible honor to serve the people of Lincoln and Union parishes as their district judge. If elected, I will work every day to be prepared, to be consistent, to treat people with dignity and respect, and to administer justice fairly and according to the law.”
Jones is the father of Jordan and Jillian Jones and is married to his wife, Nati. Jones is a longtime member of First Baptist of Ruston.
The election will be held November 3, 2026.
The above information has been provided by a political campaign. Unless otherwise noted, the Lincoln Parish Journal publishing staff does not endorse specific candidates or ballot measures.
