Hazel B. Jones – Biography

Hazel B. Jones is proud to have been born and reared in Houston, Texas. Ms. Jones developed a sense of commitment to the Houston community by witnessing the examples of her parents, the late Mr. and Mrs. Robert and Larnita Jones, who served as educators and administrators in North Forest ISD and Houston ISD, respectively, for more than thirty years.

Hazel Jones owes a portion of her educational success to the foundation she received at Mary Brantly Smiley High School in North Forest Independent School District, where she was voted “Miss Smiley” and graduated Magna Cum Laude. Ms. Jones received a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology from the University of Texas at Austin, where she was a Texas Achievement Award Scholar and became a lifelong member of Delta Sigma Theta Public Service Sorority, Inc.

After graduation, Ms. Jones worked as a research assistant in the Hematology/Leukemia division of the University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. She prepared drug study experiments with cancer cells; she performed DNA extraction for amplification in polymerase chain reactions and isolation in gel electrophoresis. While Ms. Jones found her work in cancer research extremely rewarding, she heeded a personal calling to pursue a career in law.

While attending Howard University Law School, in Washington, D.C., Ms. Jones worked at the Howard Law Criminal Justice Clinic, defending citizens charged with misdemeanors and representing prisoners in disciplinary hearings. During her summers as a law student, Ms. Jones was fortunate to have had the opportunity to hone her legal skills by interning in the 151st Civil District Court, Harris County, TX with the Honorable Judge Carolyn Clause Garcia presiding, and in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas with the Honorable Judge Vanessa Gilmore presiding. In addition, Ms. Jones interned in the office of Attorney Wendy A. Cartwright, a solo practitioner, of Bowie, Maryland.

Ms. Jones received a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Howard University Law School in 1996 and returned to Houston where she studied for and passed the Texas Bar Examination in that same year.

Hazel Jones has been an active member of Houston’s legal community since 1996. She served the Harris County District Attorney’s Office as an Assistant District Attorney from 1996-2003 obtaining extensive trial experience handling misdemeanor and felony cases in addition to handling juvenile and family violence cases. From 2003-2005, Ms. Jones worked as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Texas; her primary focus was to pursue the federal government initiative of “Project Safe Neighborhoods” which focused on the prosecution of armed felons and felons carrying firearms during drug trafficking crimes. As a result, Ms. Jones prosecuted numerous firearms cases involving convicted felons, in addition to cases involving theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee, and false statement to a federal firearms dealer.

Ms. Jones is a licensed attorney, and has been admitted to practice law in the United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Ms. Jones is currently in private practice as a criminal defense attorney. In her spare time, she enjoys athletic fitness and studying genealogy. She is also an avid dog lover. Ms. Jones is presently a member of South Union Church of Christ, where she serves on the Greeter’s Committee.

While Ms. Jones feels blessed to have obtained significant educational and career goals, her most heart felt blessing is being a mother to her daughter Lauryn and a sister to her brother, Robert B. Jones, III, a Network Engineer with NASA.