lit a candle 7h agoI only moved to Jackson a few years ago and heard about him through a neighbour who'd been through a custody case in his court. She said he actually listened to her kids. That stuck with me even though I never met him. Nineteen years on that bench is a long time to keep caring like that.
Their story
J. Dewayne Thomas was a Mississippi lawyer, legislator and judge who spent nearly two decades as chancellor of the Fifth Chancery District in Hinds County, the court that handles divorce, custody, guardianship and estate matters for the Jackson area. He died unexpectedly at his home in Byram, Mississippi, on the…
J. Dewayne Thomas was a Mississippi lawyer, legislator and judge who spent nearly two decades as chancellor of the Fifth Chancery District in Hinds County, the court that handles divorce, custody, guardianship and estate matters for the Jackson area. He died unexpectedly at his home in Byram, Mississippi, on the evening of 16 September 2026. He was 72. The Hinds County Sheriff's Office and the Hinds County Board of Supervisors announced his death; local reporting said the county coroner believed it resulted from natural causes.
Thomas earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Mississippi in 1977 and a law degree from Mississippi College School of Law in 1980, then was admitted to the Mississippi bar. He practised privately, served eleven years as an assistant Hinds County attorney, and spent nine years in the Mississippi Legislature representing House District 71 in the Jackson area. Mississippi judiciary coverage later summarised that legislative service as nine years in the House of Representatives; some earlier secondary summaries had described Senate service, but the official Beacon of Justice profile identifies the House.
He was elected to the Fifth Chancery District bench in 2006 and took his seat in 2007, winning re-election without opposition in 2014. By the time of his death he was senior chancellor and the longest-serving sitting chancellor on that court. Over his tenure he presided over a wide range of family and equity cases, including proceedings tied to House Bill 1020, the state law that created a separate court district covering parts of Jackson. Colleagues remembered a judge who paid particular attention to the welfare of children and vulnerable people who came before his court.
In January 2024, Thomas and fellow Hinds chancellors Crystal Wise Martin, Tiffany Grove and Tametrice Hodges received the Beacon of Justice Award from the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project for work improving access to the courts. Board President Robert Graham called him a hardworking, dedicated public servant who cared deeply about Hinds County and its people. Retired Chancellor Denise Owens, who served alongside him for sixteen years, described him as an exceptional judge devoted to the people before him, and a devoted Ole Miss fan. Chancellor Crystal Wise Martin said the Hinds County Chancery Court family was heartbroken.
Funeral arrangements were being handled by Lakewood Funeral Home; full service details had not been publicly announced in the first day after his death. Details of his survivors had likewise not been released in available local reporting.
Biography adapted from WAPT; WLBT; Mississippi Judiciary / MVLP Beacon of Justice coverage; Hinds County Board of Supervisors; Ballotpedia career summary; death first reported via darkhorsepressnow.com.
In their own words
“Chancellor Thomas was a hardworking, dedicated public servant who cared deeply about Hinds County and its people.”
Robert Graham, Hinds County Board President, September 2026
“His sudden passing is a tremendous loss, and his commitment to this community will not be forgotten.”
Robert Graham, Hinds County Board of Supervisors statement
Photos
4Chancellor J. Dewayne Thomas on the Hinds County bench
by People Forever
WAPT graphic announcing the death of Chancellor J. Dewayne Thomas
by People Forever
Judge Dewayne Thomas in a WLBT report on his death
by People Forever
WLBT3 graphic: Hinds County Chancery Court Judge dies of natural causes
by People Forever
he did, my sister went through his court too and said the same thing