Shanta Craig Owens
Democratic · AL · Circuit Judge, 10th Judicial Circuit of Alabama
Shanta Owens has been a Jefferson County circuit judge in the criminal division since a 2019 appointment, after ten years as a district judge who presided over the Birmingham drug court. She is a former deputy district attorney with law degrees from Louisiana State University.
Track record
Track record — General
General · 3 records
Denied defense motions to bar the death penalty for Damien McDaniel in the Trendsetters Lounge mass shooting case, and ruled on how jurors would be screened for ties to victims.
June 17, 2025
Source: trussvilletribune.com
Was named to Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin's commission to study ways to reduce homicides.
October 15, 2024
Source: birminghamwatch.org
Granted Ronald McKeithen's petition for release from a life sentence for a 1984 Birmingham robbery with no injuries, with backing from the victims and the district attorney; he left prison on Dec. 16, 2020, after 37 years.
December 16, 2020
Source: spaceoneeleven.org
Track record — Legal Competence
Legal Competence · 1 favorable
Was appointed by Gov. Kay Ivey to Jefferson County Circuit Court Place 2 in the criminal division, after a decade as a district judge running the county's drug court.
January 3, 2019Favorable on Legal Competence
Source: alreporter.com
Past race Shanta Craig Owens ran in:
- Circuit Court Judge, 10th Judicial Circuit, Place No. 2 · November 3, 2026 · Jefferson County, Alabama · incumbent