J. Douglas McCullough is an American lawyer and former judge of the

North Carolina Court of Appeals The North Carolina Court of Appeals (in case citation, N.C. Ct. App.) is the only intermediate appellate court in the state of North Carolina. It is composed of fifteen members who sit in rotating panels of three. The Court of Appeals was created ...

. McCullough retired in 2017.

Education and career

After earning a history degree from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

in 1967 and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree from the University of South Carolina in 1970, McCullough served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

, retiring as a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in the Marine Corps Reserves. McCullough worked as legislative counsel for

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

Senator

Harrison Schmitt Harrison Hagan Schmitt (born July 3, 1935) is an American geologist, retired NASA astronaut, university professor, former U.S. senator from New Mexico, and the most recent living person—and only person without a background in military aviation ...

, as a counsel to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

, and finally as an

Assistant United States Attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

in the eastern district of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

from 1981 through 1996, when he left to enter private practice. In November 2000, McCullough was elected to the

with just over 50 percent of the vote, defeating incumbent Clarence Horton.

Personal life

He is married to Lucci McCullough and has two children. He resides in

Atlantic Beach, NC Atlantic Beach is a town in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. It is one of the five communities located on Bogue Banks. The population was 1,495 at the 2010 census. History The idea of Atlantic Beach was first envisioned in the 187 ...

. On October 7, 2006, McCullough was charged with

drunk driving Drunk driving (or drink-driving in British English) is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash. In the United States, alcohol is invo ...

. He pleaded

guilty Guilty or The Guilty may refer to: * Guilt (emotion), an experience that occurs when a person believes they have violated a moral standard Law *Culpability, the degree to which an agent can be held responsible for action or inaction *Guilt (law) ...

to driving while impaired on April 3, 2007.

2008 re-election campaign

McCullough is a registered Republican, but in his 2008 bid for re-election, he cited bipartisan support from notables such as former NC Supreme Court Chief Justices

Burley Mitchell Burley Bayard Mitchell Jr. (born December 15, 1940) is an American jurist and former Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. He received his bachelor's degree from North Carolina State University and his J.D. degree from the Universit ...

(a Democrat) and

I. Beverly Lake Jr. Isaac Beverly Lake Jr. (January 30, 1934 – September 12, 2019) was an American jurist and politician, who served as chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. Early life I. Beverly Lake Jr. was born on January 30, 1934, in Raleigh, No ...

(a Republican). He also enjoyed support from former North Carolina Court of Appeals Judges S. Gerald Arnold, Sidney S. Eagles, K. Edward Greene, and Albert S. Thomas Jr. McCullough was criticized in 2007 for implying that he and other incumbent Republican incumbents should be re-elected because they would favor Republicans in an anticipated lawsuit over

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

. An ethics complaint was filed against him as a result of his comments. In response to the complaint, the state Judicial Standards Commission said it would not punish McCullough, but it also said that it had made "an effort to ensure such conduct is not repeated." McCullough was defeated in the November 2008 election by state District Court judge Cheri Beasley.

2010 election

McCullough won a new term on the Court of Appeals in 2010, when he came in second in the first round, but won the second round, of the first use of

instant runoff voting Instant-runoff voting (IRV) is a type of ranked preferential voting method. It uses a majority voting rule in single-winner elections where there are more than two candidates. It is commonly referred to as ranked-choice voting (RCV) in the Un ...

for a statewide election in North Carolina. He narrowly defeated appointed incumbent judge

Cressie Thigpen Cressie H. Thigpen, Jr. is a North Carolina lawyer and jurist who served on the North Carolina Court of Appeals. Early life and education Thigpen was born August 12, 1946. He received his bachelor's degree in business administration from North ...

.News & Observer: Thigpen concedes after still behind in NC recount
/ref>

External links

Official biography

Sea of Greed (book by Doug McCullough)

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCullough, Douglas Living people Assistant United States Attorneys North Carolina Court of Appeals judges United States Attorneys for the Eastern District of North Carolina United States Marine Corps officers University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni University of South Carolina alumni Year of birth missing (living people)