Ray Wheless
Court of Criminal Appeals Place 2
Court of Criminal Appeals Place 2
Judge Wheless
I am a native Texan, born in Abilene to a working class family. Like every family member before me, I left school early and began work in the oil fields of West Texas.
At age 18, determined to take responsibility for my own success, I enlisted in the U.S. Air Force during the height of the Vietnam era. By day, I worked on fighter aircraft in California and, after taking the GED, I attended college at night. After four years, I was Honorably Discharged from the Air Force as a Staff Sergeant with three years of college completed.
After earning a B.B.A. in Business at the University of California at San Bernardino (the first in my family to finish college) I returned home to Texas and received my law degree from the University of Texas at Austin.
I have been married for twenty-seven years to my wife, Cyndi. We have two sons, Ryan, 21, and Dylan, 18. We are members of the Custer Road United Methodist Church in Plano, Texas.
For almost thirty-five years, I have been actively involved in the Collin County Republican Party. I served as a Precinct Chairman, Election Judge, Vice-Chairman of the Collin County Republican Party and Co-Chair of the Lincoln Day Dinner. In 2000, from a field of sixteen candidates, I was honored by the Collin County Executive Committee to serve as a County Court at Law Judge. In 2009, I was appointed by Governor Rick Perry to the District Court. I have never had an opponent. I was elected by my fellow judges to serve as the Local Administrative Judge for the County Courts at Law and I have been rated in
I was appointed by Governor Bill Clements to serve as a public member of the State Board of Chiropractic Examiners. I was appointed by Governor Rick Perry to serve on the Parental Rights Advisory Panel and the Specialized Courts Advisory Council. My service to our community has included serving as President of the Plano Metro Rotary Club and I now serve as President Elect of the Texas Association of Drug Court Professionals.
Before taking the bench, I was:
AV rated, placing me in the top five percent of all lawyers for ethics and legal ability,
Board Certified in Civil Trial Law and Personal Injury Trial Law,
served as the President of the Plano Bar Association and the Collin County Bar Association and
served as the City of Plano Texas Municipal Prosecutor.
Since 2000, I have presided over thousands of criminal and civil cases and also established Collin County's first misdemeanor and first felony drug court programs. I am the first person in the history of Texas with a drug court background to run for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
I asking for your vote on March 1, 2016 to serve Texas on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 2.
Thank you,
Judge Ray Wheless
I am a native Texan, born in Abilene to a working class family. Like every family member before me, I left school early and began work in the oil fields of West Texas.
At age 18, determined to take responsibility for my own success, I enlisted in the U.S. Air Force during the height of the Vietnam era. By day, I worked on fighter aircraft in California and, after taking the GED, I attended college at night. After four years, I was Honorably Discharged from the Air Force as a Staff Sergeant with three years of college completed.
After earning a B.B.A. in Business at the University of California at San Bernardino (the first in my family to finish college) I returned home to Texas and received my law degree from the University of Texas at Austin.
I have been married for twenty-seven years to my wife, Cyndi. We have two sons, Ryan, 21, and Dylan, 18. We are members of the Custer Road United Methodist Church in Plano, Texas.
For almost thirty-five years, I have been actively involved in the Collin County Republican Party. I served as a Precinct Chairman, Election Judge, Vice-Chairman of the Collin County Republican Party and Co-Chair of the Lincoln Day Dinner. In 2000, from a field of sixteen candidates, I was honored by the Collin County Executive Committee to serve as a County Court at Law Judge. In 2009, I was appointed by Governor Rick Perry to the District Court. I have never had an opponent. I was elected by my fellow judges to serve as the Local Administrative Judge for the County Courts at Law and I have been rated in
I was appointed by Governor Bill Clements to serve as a public member of the State Board of Chiropractic Examiners. I was appointed by Governor Rick Perry to serve on the Parental Rights Advisory Panel and the Specialized Courts Advisory Council. My service to our community has included serving as President of the Plano Metro Rotary Club and I now serve as President Elect of the Texas Association of Drug Court Professionals.
Before taking the bench, I was:
AV rated, placing me in the top five percent of all lawyers for ethics and legal ability,
Board Certified in Civil Trial Law and Personal Injury Trial Law,
served as the President of the Plano Bar Association and the Collin County Bar Association and
served as the City of Plano Texas Municipal Prosecutor.
Since 2000, I have presided over thousands of criminal and civil cases and also established Collin County's first misdemeanor and first felony drug court programs. I am the first person in the history of Texas with a drug court background to run for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
I asking for your vote on March 1, 2016 to serve Texas on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 2.
Thank you,
Judge Ray Wheless