JUDGE DAN STIDHAM

2207 Linwood Drive
Paragould, Arkansas 72450
Email: danstidham@msn.com
Phone: (870) 236-7600

Education:
Arkansas State University, (B.A., 1984)
University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, (J.D., 1987)

Biography:
Born: Harvey, Illinois, March 3, 1963
Admitted to Bar: 1988
Elected District Court Judge: 2000

 

Judge Stidham was engaged in the private practice of law prior to becoming a full-time District Court Judge on January 1^st, 2008. During his private practice he also served as a Public Defender. He is a past president of the Greene-Clay Counties Bar Association, a member of the Greene County Bar Association, and the Arkansas Bar Association. Prior to taking the Bench full time he was admitted to practice in all Courts in the State of Arkansas, the United States District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas, and the United States Supreme Court.

Judge Stidham is an active member of the Arkansas District Judge’s Council. In April of 2007, Judge Stidham was chosen by his fellow District Judges from around the State to serve on the Board of Directors of the District Judge’s Council representing the First Congressional District of Arkansas.

As an Attorney, Judge Stidham was twice selected as among the Best Attorneys by the readers of the Paragould Daily Press. He was selected as the Best Attorney in 1998. During his law practice, which spanned a period of twenty years, he accumulated a broad range of litigation experience in Domestic Relations, Personal Injury, Insurance and Criminal law. He was qualified to handle capital criminal cases and tried one of the most well-known criminal cases in Arkansas history in 1994.

That case, a triple homicide in West Memphis, Arkansas, was the subject of a 1996 HBO documentary film entitled Paradise Lost. A sequel to this film, Paradise Lost: Revelations was released by HBO in the spring of 2000. This murder case has resulted in Judge Stidham appearing on National television on several occasions including the NBC Nightly News, MSNBC and Court TV's Prime Time Justice. In 1996, Judge Stidham's experience in the West Memphis murder case was the subject of a cover story in the Arkansas Times Magazine (See the Articles section of this Web site).

Judge Stidham is a frequent speaker on college campuses and at professional meetings around the Country regarding criminal law issues and the West Memphis murder case. He is also currently serving as an Adjunct Professor at his alma mater, Arkansas State University, where he teaches classes on Evidence, Criminal Procedure and other legal issues. He has spoken at various Bar association and Trial Lawyer association sponsored seminars and was an invited speaker at the Inaugural meeting of the Academy of Behavioral Profiling in October of 1999 where he gave a presentation on the "West Memphis Case: A Case Study in Criminal Profiling and the Law."  In March of 2004, Judge Stidham was an invited speaker at the “Equal Justice Works Symposium for the Wrongfully Accused.” If you are interested in having Judge Stidham speak to your Class, Group or Organization, please see the Public Speaking section of this website.

 

Judge Stidham enjoys life with his family in Paragould, Arkansas. His personal interests include reading, forensic science and false confession issues, psychology, sociology, political science and philosophy. When he is not on the Bench, he can sometimes be found pursuing his passion for the ocean and offshore fishing in such venues as Venice, Louisiana, Panama, the Bahamas, Costa Rica, Belize and Guatamala. Judge Stidham is also an avid collector of antique fishing lures and vintage books. One book in his collection was published in 1635 and is entitled the Humiliation of the Son of God. It is one of only four known copies in the World. Two of his favorite authors are Ernest Hemingway and John Grisham. His favorite books by these writers offer some parallel, and reflect some of his real life experiences in such works as “The Client,” “A Time to Kill” and “The Old Man and the Sea.” Judge Stidham hopes to someday be able to fulfill a personal dream of his to be able to travel to, and fish the waters off of Cuba, one of Ernest Hemingway’s favorite places to write his short stories and pursue his own passion for fishing.