A Lifetime of Service
If elected, Keith Hampton will be the only judge who has handled death penalty cases in all stages of litigation – from accusation, trial, appeal, and all post-conviction proceedings, including appearing before the Supreme Court of the United States. A life-long Democrat, Keith began his career at age 17 as the youngest precinct chairperson for the Texas Democratic Party.
For the last twenty years, Keith has defended the Texas Constitution and the Constitution of the United States in hundreds of cases. As an active member of the criminal defense bar, a Fellow of the Texas Bar Foundation, and a member of the Pro Bono College of the State Bar of Texas, Keith has tirelessly worked for fairness, integrity, and justice for all Texans.
A native of Burkburnett, Texas, Keith now lives in Austin with his wife Cynthia and their daughter Rebekah.
A Celebrated Career
Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization
Voted “Best Qualified” by the lawyers of Texas in the 2010 and 2012 Judicial Bar Polls
2002-2012 - Texas Monthly “Super Lawyer”
Seven-Time Winner of the annual Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) President’s Award
2008 - State Bar of Texas “Percy Foreman Lawyer of the Year”
2007 - Declared Austin’s “Best Unsung Hero” by The Austin Chronicle
1998 - Member, Governor Bush’s Ad Hoc Advisory Committee to revise the Code of Criminal Procedure
1989-1990 - Briefing Attorney, Judge Sam Houston Clinton, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
Law Journal Articles
Stranded in the Wasteland of Unregulated Roadway Police Powers: Can “Reasonable Officers” Ever Rescue Us?, 35 St. Mary’s L. J. 499 (2004)
Children in the War on Crime: Texas Sex Offender Mania and the Outcasts of Reform, 42 S.Tex.L.Rev. 781 (2002)
Hampton, K.S., C.L. Lanning-Hampton, The Parole Law Instruction and Jury Misconduct, 23 Tex.Tech.Law Rev. 773 (1993)
Hampton, K., Should Texas Join Other States’ Rejection of Illinois v. Gates in the Post-Heitman Era?, 34 S.Tex.L.Rev. 251 (1993)
Books
Co-Author, Criminal Offenses and Defenses in Texas (West Publishing) 2007 – present
Co-author, Texas Punishment: A Source Book for Defense Lawyers (TCDLA 2007)
Author, Texas Writs: A Practical Guide to the Basics of State Writ Practice for the Busy Criminal Defense Lawyer (TCDLA 2006)
Other Writings (partial listing)
Mental Health Politics & Legislation, National Alliance on Mental Illness Texas (2011)
Legislative Update, Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (2011)
Voir Dire, Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (2010)
Sentence Commutations and Executive Clemency, Rusty Duncan Advanced Criminal Law Course (2008)
Open Letter to Justice Scalia, National Law Journal (2007)
Latest Developments in Expert Testimony, Capital Trial for the Defense, Center for International & American Law (2006)
Notices of Appeal, Motions for New Trial and in Arrest of Judgment, Rusty Duncan Advanced Criminal Law Course (2006)
Lethal Injections in Texas, State Bar of Texas, Texas Bar Journal, 67 Tex. B.J. 60 (2004)