Asst. District Attorney Steve Crump is running for the 10th District Attorney General post long held by Jerry Estes.
Mr. Estes announced recently he does not plan to seek re-election.
Steve Crump was born an only child to Vance and Wanda Crump. Though born and raised in Bradley County, his family hails from Polk County. He was educated in the public schools of Bradley County, going to North Lee Elementary, Bradley Junior High School and Bradley High School. He graduated Cum Laude from Carson-Newman College in 1989 and the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1993.
Following the death of his father in 1992, he returned home to practice law in 1994. He opened his first office on First Street in Cleveland. His mother, Wanda Crump, bought his first set of the Tennessee Code, and "told him that all she asked in return was for him to always do his best and to do what he thought was right, whatever the cost."
His office moved to Ocoee Street when he joined the firm of Chancey, Kanavos and Crump.
Mr. Crump joined the District Attorney General’s Office in 1997. He prosecuted in Bradley County until 2002, when he volunteered to prosecute in Polk County and did so for two years until he was named supervisor of the South Team by District Attorney General Estes in 2004.
As Team Leader, he has oversight over six lawyers and the majority of the caseload for the 10th Judicial District. He has prosecuted numerous homicide cases and obtained the first death penalty verdict in Bradley County in many years in the case of State v. David Lee Smith.
Mr. Crump taught at Cleveland State Community College in the Legal Assistant Program while in private practice. He also teaches in the Law Enforcement Officers Training Academy at Cleveland State Community College after joining the Office of the District Attorney General. He taught Fourth Amendment Law, The Law of Arrests and Detention, and Testifying in Court. He has taught in-service programs for several local law enforcement agencies. During the past year, he has also assisted the Lee University Mock Trial Team.
Mr. Crump and his family attend First Baptist Church, where he is active in the music program. He coaches soccer and basketball in the local Upward Sports Program. He formerly served on the board of directors of Bradley/Cleveland Keep America Beautiful. He currently serves as chairman of the Bradley County Republican Party, though he has taken a leave of absence to run for District Attorney General.
He is married to Theresa Crump, also of Cleveland. Mrs. Crump owns her own business in Cleveland, Professional Respiratory Services. They have two children, Sarah Beth, 8, and Emily, 5, both students at Stuart Elementary School.