Ernest C. Hornsby also known as Sonny Hornsby (born October 8, 1936) was chief justice of the

Supreme Court of Alabama The Supreme Court of Alabama is the highest court in the state of Alabama. The court consists of a chief justice and eight associate justices. Each justice is elected in partisan elections for staggered six-year terms. The Supreme Court is hous ...

from 1989 to 1995.

Biography

He was born on October 8, 1936, and he received his

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree from Auburn University and his J.D. from the

University of Alabama School of Law The University of Alabama School of Law, (formerly known as the Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. School of Law at The University of Alabama) located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama is a nationally ranked top-tier law school and the only public law school in the st ...

in 1960. From 1960 to 1988, He had a private law practice in

Tallassee, Alabama Tallassee (pronounced ) is a city on the Tallapoosa River, located in both Elmore and Tallapoosa counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. At the 2020 census, the population was 4,763. It is home to a major hydroelectric power plant at Thurlow ...

. He served as a state senator for

Tallapoosa County, Alabama Tallapoosa County is located in the east-central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama."ACES Tallapoosa County Office" (links/history), Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES), 2007, webpageACES-Tallapoosa As of the 2020 census, the populati ...

and

Elmore County, Alabama Elmore County is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 87,977. Its county seat is Wetumpka. Its name is in honor of General John A. Elmore. Elmore County is part o ...

from 1962 to 1966. He served as president of the Elmore County Bar Association, president of the Alabama Trial Lawyers Association, and as

City Judge from 1972 to 1978. From 1977 to 1978, he was president of the

Alabama State Bar The Alabama State Bar is the integrated (mandatory) bar association of the U.S. state of Alabama. The Alabama State Bar was established in 1923 and is governed by th1975 Alabama Code, Title 34, Chapter 3 It is the "licensing and regulatory a ...

. He served as Chief Justice of the

from 1989 to 1995. He was narrowly defeated for re-election in 1994 by Perry O. Hooper Sr., who became Alabama's third Republican chief justice and the first GOP member to hold the post in 120 years when Thomas Minott Peters (1872–1874) left office during Reconstruction.

References

1936 births Living people People from Tallassee, Alabama Alabama state senators Alabama state court judges Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of Alabama Auburn University alumni University of Alabama School of Law alumni {{Alabama-state-judge-stub