Ken Anderson (R)

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Personal Information

Judge Anderson was sworn in as a District Judge on January 2, 2002, following his appointment to that position by Gov. Rick Perry. He serves as the Juvenile Court Judge and also hears a wide variety of civil, criminal, and family law cases.

Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Anderson was Williamson County’s longest tenured District Attorney. He served as District Attorney for 16 ½ years and as an assistant district attorney for 5 ½ years before that. The State Bar of Texas Criminal Justice Section named him “Prosecutor of the Year” in 1995. He received a similar statewide honor in 2000 when he was named “Outstanding Prosecutor Upholding Victims’ Rights” by the Texas Crime Victim’s Clearinghouse. Judge Anderson is a Board Certified Criminal Law Specialist and Past President of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association.

Judge Anderson graduated from Westchester High School in Houston in 1970. He earned his B.S. degree with Honors in 1973 from the University of Texas at Austin and his J.D. in 1976 from the University of Texas School of Law. Before coming to Williamson County he worked at the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, as a research assistant to Judge Leon Douglas and as a Staff Attorney at the Texas Department of Corrections.

Judge Anderson is the author of Crime in Texas, a layman’s guide to the criminal justice system and Texas Crime Victims Handbook. He is the co-author of two legal reference books, Texas Sentencing (Lexis 1998) and the Predicate Questions Manual. He is also the author of a series of young adult biographies the latest of which is George Bush: A Lifetime of Service, which chronicles the life of our 41st President. The series also includes Nolan Ryan: Texas Fastball to Cooperstown and You Can’t Do That, Dan Moody! which tells the fascinating story of how former District Attorney Dan Moody fought the Ku Klux Klan and political corruption to become the state’s youngest governor.

As both District Attorney and Judge, he has made it part of his duties to talk with students. He has made over 300 school appearances and spoken to more than 85,000 students. He speaks about local history, the dangers of drugs and alcohol, and the criminal justice system. He also conducts “The Great Stolen Peanut Butter and Jelly Caper” which is a mock trial in which 5th graders act out the roles of the judge, prosecutor, defense attorney, witnesses and jury in a real courtroom setting.

Judge Anderson lives in Georgetown with his wife Martha and sons Daniel and Karl. He is an active volunteer and merit badge counselor with the Boy Scouts. He and Martha teach a sixth grade Sunday school class at Palm Valley Lutheran Church in Round Rock.