---
title: "Ben H. Brooks | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/ben-h-brooks-circuit-court-judge-alabama-thirteenth-judicial-circuit-court-al"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Ben H. Brooks

Alabama Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court · Circuit Court Judge

## Profile

- Court: Alabama Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court
- State: Alabama
- Role: Circuit Court Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-29

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Before you appear

- Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.
- Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.
- Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

## Courtroom Rules

### media recording photography broadcasting

Scope: statewide

Alabama Rule of Criminal Procedure 9.4 permits televising, photographing, or radio broadcasting of judicial proceedings only as provided by Alabama judicial ethics canons, law, or another court rule.

Evidence excerpt: The taking of television pictures or other photographs in or of the courtroom during the progress of judicial proceedings or the radio broadcasting of judicial proceedings may be permitted as provided in Canon 3(A)(7) and (7B), Canons of Judicial Ethics, promulgated by the Alabama Supreme Court, or as otherwise may be permitted by law or other rule of court.

[Alabama Rule of Criminal Procedure 9.4: Televising, photographing, or radio broadcasting of judicial proceedings](https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr9_4.pdf)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://mobile.alacourt.gov/circuit-court/)
- [Official roster](https://mobile.alacourt.gov/circuit-court/)
- [Alabama Administrative Office of Courts official judicial roster](https://mobile.alacourt.gov/circuit-court/)
- [Alabama Rule of Criminal Procedure 9.4: Televising, photographing, or radio broadcasting of judicial proceedings](https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr9_4.pdf)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- Elected as a Mobile County Circuit Court judge in November 2012 and was sworn in January 2013

### Education

- Undergraduate degree from the University of South Alabama in 1980 and his J.D. from the University of Alabama in 1983.

### Additional information

- Before becoming a judge, Brooks served on the Mobile City Council from 2001 to 2006 and then as a Republican member of the Alabama State Senate representing the 35th District from 2006 until his resignation in December 2012.
- Ben Brooks was born on August 11, 1958.
- He presides over cases in the Mobile County Circuit Court, which handles civil and criminal matters at the circuit level.
- His courtroom rulings include high-profile cases, such as the trial of Marco Perez, where Brooks made key decisions on evidence and procedural matters before the jury was seated.
- He also made decisions regarding which aspects of the officer’s work history could be introduced, demonstrating his role in managing complex and sensitive criminal cases.
- In the Perez trial, Brooks ruled on the admissibility of evidence related to the defendant’s alleged faked kidnapping and the timeline of events leading to the death of a police officer.



## Published courtroom rules

### Shared court rules

- [Alabama Rule of Criminal Procedure 9.4: Televising, photographing, or radio broadcasting of judicial proceedings](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-2bb56569e2cd3665169eeff4) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim. Criminal proceedings only.  Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr9_4.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26.