Veldore Young Graham

Professional career

• In 2026, Judge Young-Graham appeared before the Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors to discuss court security, funding, and staffing issues, including requests for an additional bailiff and improved security at the Youth Justice Center
• The first African American female public defender for Lauderdale County and the first African American assistant district attorney for Lauderdale County

Education

Additional information

• She has also held leadership roles, including Secretary of the Conference of County Court Judges (since 2012) and Secretary of the Council of Youth Court Judges (since 2017)
• In May 2024, she joined the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance, a body that investigates allegations of judicial misconduct and recommends discipline to the Mississippi Supreme Court.
• Young-Graham joined the Lauderdale County Court bench in 2007.
• Before that, she spent seven years as an Assistant District Attorney for the 10th Circuit and two years as a public defender for the same circuit.
• Judge Young-Graham presides over the Lauderdale County Court in Meridian, Mississippi, and also serves as Juvenile Court judge.
• Her legal career began in private practice in Jackson, Mississippi, before moving into public service
• Raised in Meridian, Mississippi, she is the daughter of the late Charles L. Young, Sr., a business owner and state legislator, and the late Doretha Young, a mathematics teacher