Thomas Patterson Maney (born May 1948) is an American politician. He served in the United States Army, retiring in 2007 with the rank of brigadier general. Maney was appointed to a county judgeship in Florida in 1989, and retired from the position in 2018. He has served as a member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

since 2020.

Early life, education and military career

Patt Maney was one of seven children born to parents Charles Thomas Maney and Mary Bewlay Steele Maney. Born in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

, Maney attended the University of Kentucky in his hometown where he was a member of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps program. Maney completed his undergraduate education in 1970, and pursued legal studies at the University of Louisville School of Law. He formally joined the United States Army in 1970, and obtained his degree in law in 1974. While serving in the military, Maney also studied at the Army War College, graduating in 1989. He served during Operation Just Cause in Panama, Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti, as well as Operations Joint Guard and Joint Endeavor in Bosnia. Maney was injured by an improvised explosive device in August 2005, while in Afghanistan as a part of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...

. The explosion tore cartilage in both shoulders, sprained his knees, broke his nose, cracked 27 of his teeth, and caused a traumatic brain injury. He spent twenty months in recovery at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and subsequently ended his military career in April 2007, having served nearly 37 years in the army and advancing to the rank of brigadier general. The University of Kentucky awarded Maney an honorary doctorate in law in 2016.

Judicial and political career

Maney began his legal career in Louisville, Kentucky, then moved to Okaloosa County, Florida in 1975, and continued the practice of law in Fort Walton Beach. Maney practiced law for fifteen years prior to his appointment as a county judge in Florida's First Judicial Circuit for

Okaloosa County Okaloosa County is located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Alabama state line. As of the 2020 census, the population was 211,668. Its county seat is Crestview. Okaloosa County ...

in 1989. In May 2007, Maney tentatively resumed his judgeship, having recovered from wounds related to his tour of duty in Afghanistan. On January 31, 2016, Maney became the longest-serving county or circuit judge to preside within the First Judicial Circuit. He retired from the bench in May 2018, the same month he turned seventy, Florida's mandatory retirement age for judges. Eventually, Maney settled in

Shalimar Shalimar or Shalamar refers to three historic royal gardens (or Baghs) of the Mughal Empire in South Asia: * Shalimar Bagh, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India; built in 1619 * Shalimar Gardens, Lahore, Pakistan; a UNESCO World Heritage Site built i ...

. By September 2019, Maney had already expressed interest in contesting an open seat in the state legislature. Maney pre-qualified his candidacy for the

2020 Florida House of Representatives election The 2020 elections for the Florida House of Representatives took place on Tuesday, November 3, 2020 to elect Florida House of Representatives, representatives from all 120 districts. The Republican Party of Florida, Republican Party has held a H ...

with the Florida Division of Elections in October 2019. Alternative URL
12
/ref> Maney finished first in a field of four candidates during a

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

primary, held on August 18, 2020, to nominate a candidate for Florida's 4th House of Representatives district, a seat left open by Mel Ponder. He defeated

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

candidate John Plante and write-in candidate Lance Lawrence in the general election. Maney was sworn in as a member of the

on November 17, 2020.

References

External links

Patt Maney Florida House Rep's Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maney, Patt 1948 births Living people 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American judges 21st-century American judges 21st-century American politicians Republican Party members of the Florida House of Representatives United States Army War College alumni University of Kentucky alumni University of Louisville School of Law alumni Politicians from Lexington, Kentucky People from Fort Walton Beach, Florida United States Army generals United States Army personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Florida lawyers Florida state court judges County judges in the United States Military personnel from Lexington, Kentucky Military personnel from Florida Lawyers from Louisville, Kentucky