Debra Bennett Winston

Debra Bennett Winston, a Circuit Court Judge, Domestic Relations (Bessemer Cut Off), grew up in Alabama before integration with very few resources. She had to support herself and work her way through UAB to receive her Bachelors Degree. She persisted, and then felt the calling to go to law school. By then she was a single mother and had no choice but to take her daughter with her to Southern University Law Center while she got her JD. It is a testimony to her faith and determination that she ran the course, as school was hard and money was scarce. There were a few times that she and her daughter would have gone hungry had it not been for the kindness of others.

After law school, Winston started her own law firm, which she ran for 25 years before serving as a municipal judge for twelve years, both for the city of Midfield and the city of Fairfield. In 2016 she was elected Circuit Court judge. She has also been involved in Grace House, the Sickle Cell Foundation, Midfield Chamber of Commerce, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and the NAACP.