Second Judicial Circuit Judge David K. Overstreet, 51, of Mount Vernon has been assigned to the Fifth District Appellate Court to fill a vacancy created following last November's election.
His assignment, made by Chief Justice Lloyd Karmeier and the Illinois Supreme Court, takes effect Feb. 27 and will remain in effect until further order of the court.
Overstreet fills the vacancy created when Justice James R. Moore, who previously held the special assignment, was elected to the Fifth District Appellate Court on Nov. 8.
"I thank Chief Justice Karmeier and the Illinois Supreme Court for entrusting me to serve on assignment as an appellate judge in the Fifth Appellate District," Overstreet stated in a press release.
"It has been an honor to serve the public as a circuit judge in the Second Judicial Circuit for the past almost 10 years. I look forward to the challenge of serving the public on the Appellate Court and I am humbled by this wonderful opportunity."
Overstreet has served on the Second Judicial Circuit in Mount Vernon since 2007 when he was appointed by the Supreme Court. He was subsequently elected to the position in 2008 and retained by voters in 2014.
Prior to his judicial career, Overstreet served as a partner at the firm Neubauer & Overstreet in Mount Vernon.
Karmeier stated that during his time on the bench, Overstreet has exhibited "precisely the type of temperament, wisdom and strong work ethic we hope all our judges will demonstrate."
“He has done an outstanding job on the circuit bench," Karmeier stated. "As the Supreme Court’s unanimous assignment order reflects, the Court has every confidence that he will continue to distinguish himself as a member of the appellate court.”
Overstreet currently serves on the Supreme Court Judicial Mentoring Committee and the Illinois Judges Association executive committee in addition to serving as the Chair of the Second Judicial Circuit's professionalism committee and program administrator for its lawyer-to-lawyer mentoring program, the press release notes.
He also serves as an adviser to the YMCA Illinois Youth and Government program. He had previously served on the Supreme Court Committee on Juvenile Justice from 2009 to 2015, on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Judges Association from 2010 to 2016, and as president of the Jefferson County Bar Association.
He earned a bachelor of science degree, magna cum laude, from David Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn. and his juris doctorate from the University of Tennessee College of Law.
His charitable activities include serving on the board of Mentors 4 Kids in addition to coaching a variety of youth sports teams in Jefferson County.
The Fifth Judicial District is composed of 37 counties in the southernmost part of Illinois, including: Alexander, Bond, Christian, Clay, Clinton, Crawford, Edwards, Effingham, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Lawrence, Madison, Marion, Massac, Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, Richland, Saline, Shelby, St. Clair, Wabash, Wayne, Washington, White, Williamson, and Union.