Amelia Carter, who was competing in a runoff for a local judicial election just two weeks ago, died Monday in a tragic and shocking loss of a local attorney and former municipal judge. She was 42.
A cause of death was not immediately available.
Representatives from Mississippi Center for Legal Services in McComb, where Carter was a staff attorney, confirmed her death Tuesday morning after receiving a call from a relative.
Michael Shareef, an attorney and regional manager for Mississippi Center for Legal Services, was Carter’s supervisor for the three years she worked there.
He said Carter was initially hired to represent crime victims.
"She was dependable, definitely as far as filling in for me when I wasn't able to make my appointed court dates at any given time,” Shareef said. “She never refused to make an appearance for me. I found that to be remarkable. She did the work that was required around here.
“I did not have many complaints about her job performance. As far as I know, she was always respectful to the clients, diligent in her work and she was capable when it came time to represent them."
Carter ran for Pike County judge this year and advanced to a Nov. 29 runoff against David Lee Brewer after they finished atop a four-candidate field. Brewer went on to win the election.
She had previously served as Magnolia city judge.
Attorney Angela Miller of the Miller & Miller law firm hosted Carter’s election night party for the Nov. 8 general election. Miller said she met Carter when Carter was a freshman at Southern Miss. Carter earned her law degree from Ole Miss.
"She was a good friend,” Miller said. “We shared a lot of things in common, actually, and I met her when she was a freshman in college and she was excited about the future — an exuberant personality. She was family oriented and, actually, we were in a women's organization together called THE LINKS Inc. She served as an officer in THE LINKS.
"She was a good person and I'm glad I had the opportunity to get to know her. This will be a loss for the community."
Former McComb Selectman Devante Johnson, who campaigned for Carter during the judicial election expressed his condolences.
“Amelia was a friend whom we loved and respected. She will be deeply missed,” Johnson said. “I’ll never forget our time on the campaign trail, I’ll cherish those forever. My heart is broken, but God does all things well.”
Shareef said he was proud of Carter for running for county judge.
“I think she was a good candidate when she ran for the county court position,” Shareef said. “I would say she really wanted the position, too. I think she did just about everything she possibly could have done under the circumstances to try to get better results. We were all very excited when we found out she had at least made it to the runoff. We knew there was more work that had to be done to get her across that finish line, but it didn’t work out that way. “
Carter focused on the youth throughout her campaign. Shareef said he hopes all county judges follow a similar platform in the future.
“Whatever it is she felt could have been helpful as far as youth court and contributing to the betterment of the youth in the community,” Shareef said.
Miller said Carter worked hard on her campaign and was hopeful.
“Whoever’s on the bench will focus on the well-being of the youth in the community,” Miller said. “She understood that. She had confidence in the fact that the person who was elected would do well, even though she worked hard for the position. It just unfortunately didn’t work out and I know she wished David well and things worked for him and that he would be good for the youth of the community. Even though the loss was a disappointment, she wished David, the incoming judge well.”
