Former judge returns to the courtroom as public defender

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Practicing law can be difficult on many different levels, from assistants to judges and everything in between fighting for justice can be almost an addiction, and for one local man, it seems to be just that.

Retired Warren County Circuit Court judge Steve Wilson is taking a step back into the courtroom in a new role. This time, as a public defender. However, his love for the legal practice began as a young lawyer first getting a glimpse into the legal world.

“County Attorney’s Office was a good experience because it threw me into a courtroom every day. One of the things looking back is every day I was in the courtroom, and I got to see lawyers. I got to see judges. I got to see prosecutors. I got to see all kinds of different, people in the profession. I got to see the legal secretaries. I got to see the the clerks. I got to know everybody’s role,” Wilson said of his early career in law.

Soon he found himself as a Commonwealth’s attorney, trying bigger cases where he found himself creating a positive impact in the community.

“Working with the police, getting those cases ready, trying those cases was just one of those. It was an outstanding feeling of using my profession in a very positive and meaningful way, and I very much enjoyed it,” Wilson said.

But after 13 years, an opportunity opened up to become the Warren County Circuit Court judge, and Wilson ran unopposed, securing that seat. Wilson said he never saw himself as a judge, but his time as one was a humbling experience.

“When you walk out onto a bench and you got a black robe on, it is humbling and it is scary and you think you’re in a lot of ways, you know, playing some kind of dress up, you know, I’m going to have to play the role of a judge because I never envisioned myself being here,” Wilson said of his time as a judge.

After nearly 20 years behind the bench, Wilson decided not to run and in 2023 officially left the bench behind. But he soon found himself missing the exhilarating feeling of the courtroom and decided to make a comeback, this time as a public defender.

“I wanted to be back in the the the game, not not merely being a referee. Being a referee’s important, but there’s nothing quite like being in the game, and trying your best to seek justice,” Wilson said.

Wilson says he looks forward to something his mentors taught him when he was a young lawyer that is, providing the best services to his clients to the best of his abilities.

When he brought up the possibility of a return to his family, Wilson says they were resoundingly supportive of his efforts to re-enter the courtroom. But it wasn’t just his family who supported him, his new coworkers at The Bowling Green North DPA Trial Office are excited as well for his decades of experience and leadership.

“The Bowling Green North DPA Trial Office is beyond excited that Judge Steve Wilson has decided that his return to the courtroom will be with our office.  I appeared before Judge Wilson as a public defender for about 10 years before his retirement, and it was never anything but a pleasure to be in his courtroom.  In his capacity as a judge, he has served as a mentor to many public defenders, including myself, and will now be able to continue doing that as a colleague.  He brings a tremendous wealth of experience to our office, and our clients will greatly benefit from having him advocating on their behalf.  He is an absolute treasure in the local criminal justice system, and we are incredibly lucky that he approached us interested in the opportunity to serve the community in this new capacity as a public defender. We cannot wait to see him standing with our clients in the courtroom,” said Alyson McDavitt, the directing attorney for The Bowling Green North DPA Trial Office.