Washington, DC (Aug. 4, 2014) – E.G. "Gerry" Morris of Austin, Tex., was sworn in as President-Elect of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) at the Association’s 57th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, Pa., on August 2. Morris has served on NACDL's Board of Directors since 2001. He has served as Co-Chair of NACDL's Indigent Defense and Fourth Amendment Committees, as chair of NACDL's Familial DNA Task Force, and as Vice Chair of NACDL's Audit Committee. Last year, Morris served as First Vice President of NACDL.

Morris is a Past President of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA), an NACDL state affiliate organization, and has served as the Chair of the Criminal Defense Lawyers Project. Morris has also served on the Board of Directors and as Presiding Director of the Austin Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (ACDLA).

A certified criminal law specialist, Morris has been practicing criminal defense law for more than 36 years. He is a 1977 graduate of University of Texas School of Law, Austin, and a 1973 graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University. He is admitted to practice in the State of Texas as well as in numerous federal trial and appellate level courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States.

Morris has been an active presenter and lecturer over decades at dozens of continuing legal education programs. Recognized in "Best Lawyers in America" every year since 1995, Morris has also been designated by Texas Monthly Magazine as among Texas' "Super Lawyers" in the field of criminal defense every year since the inception of that award in 2003. Best Lawyers publication named him as the 2012 Lawyer of the Year in Austin in the Criminal Law, Non-White Collar category. He is AV Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell and has been named as among the top 100 trial lawyers in the Southern Texas Region by The National Trial Lawyers.

Contacts

Ivan Dominguez, NACDL Senior Director of Public Affairs and Communications, (202) 465-7662 or idominguez@nacdl.org

The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is the preeminent organization advancing the mission of the criminal defense bar to ensure justice and due process for persons accused of crime or wrongdoing. A professional bar association founded in 1958, NACDL's many thousands of direct members in 28 countries – and 90 state, provincial and local affiliate organizations totaling up to 40,000 attorneys – include private criminal defense lawyers, public defenders, military defense counsel, law professors and judges committed to preserving fairness and promoting a rational and humane criminal justice system.