Tuscaloosa County District Attorney Hays Webb Announces Re-Election Campaign

Tuscaloosa County District Attorney Hays Webb will seek the office again in 2022, the veteran prosecutor announced Monday morning.

Webb, a West Virginia native and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, got his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Alabama in 1997 and spent four years as an assistant public defender for Tuscaloosa County before co-founding his own law firm, Turner & Webb, PC, in 2001.

Webb announced plans to seek the DA's office in the 2016 election cycle, but when incumbent Lyn Head stepped down to assume a role on the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles, then-Governor Robert Bentley appointed Webb to fill the vacancy she created.

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Webb was sworn in on September 6th, 2016, then went on to defeat his Democratic challenger Dennis Steverson to earn a full six-year term in the office.

"Six years ago we set out on this journey, not for its own sake but because of the good that we believed could be achieved in this position," Webb wrote in his re-election campaign announcement. "I promised to do my best; I promised effective, efficient and ethical leadership that would vindicate victims, respect all within our criminal justice system, and honor our nation's values and system of laws. Surrounded by exceptional staff and lawyers, and because of their hard work, we have accomplished these things."

Webb takes particular pride in clearing the massive grand jury backlog that existed when he took the office. There were 2,500 cases awaiting grand jury hearings when he became DA in 2016, which meant it often took more than four years from the time of arrest for a case to make its way through the system and see a jury trial.

Webb and his team of prosecutors cleared that backlog in a single year before the pandemic slowed the system down again.

"We established and have maintained contact with victims, assuring that their voices are heard. We demonstrate leadership in the courthouse and in the community, building relationships with business leaders, pastors, and school officials at all levels to better our Tuscaloosa County," Webb wrote. "We created very close relationships with our law enforcement agencies and with them work hard to assure that violent criminals and repeat offenders spend more time behind bars. For non-violent offenders and substance abusers, we provide alternatives to jail and prison and work with our business community to provide jobs and job training that will alter and improve their lives."

Stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread for more updates on the DA race as they become available.