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{{Short description|American judge (born 1971)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2011}}
{{Infobox judge
|name = Caleb Stegall
|office = Justice of the [[Kansas Supreme Court]]
|appointer = [[Sam Brownback]]
|term_start = December 5, 2014
|term_end =
|predecessor = [[Nancy Moritz]]
|successor =
| office1 = Judge of the [[Kansas Court of Appeals]]
| term_start1 = January 3, 2014
| term_end1 = December 5, 2014
| appointer1 = [[Sam Brownback]]
| predecessor1 = Seat established<ref>{{cite web |last1=Carpenter |first1=Tim |title=Stegall takes seat on Court of Appeals |url=https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/state/2014/01/03/stegall-takes-seat-court-appeals/16684558007/ |website=[[The Topeka Capital-Journal]] |date=January 3, 2014}}</ref>
| successor1 = [[Kathryn A. Gardner]]
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1971|9|20}}
|birth_place = [[Topeka, Kansas]], U.S.
|death_date =
|death_place =
|education = [[Geneva College]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])<br>[[University of Kansas]] ([[Juris Doctor|JD]])
}}
'''Caleb Stegall''' (born September 20, 1971)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kscourts.org/kansas-courts/court-of-appeals/judge-bios/Stegall.asp |title=Honorable Caleb Stegall |accessdate=2 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140708214008/http://www.kscourts.org/kansas-courts/court-of-appeals/judge-bios/Stegall.asp |archive-date=July 8, 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> is an American attorney and writer who resides in [[Perry, Kansas]]. He has served as the [[district attorney]] for [[Jefferson County, Kansas]], and chief counsel to Governor [[Sam Brownback]]<ref>{{cite web |author=David Klepper |url=http://midwestdemocracyproject.org/blogs/entries/caleb-stegall-be-brownbacks-general-counsel/ |title=Caleb Stegall to be Brownback's chief counsel |publisher=Midwest Democracy Project |accessdate=October 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727082718/http://midwestdemocracyproject.org/blogs/entries/caleb-stegall-be-brownbacks-general-counsel/ |archive-date=July 27, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Hanna |first=John |url=http://www.kansas.com/2010/12/29/1651010/brownback-names-general-counsel.html |title=Brownback names general counsel | Wichita Eagle |publisher=Kansas.com |date=December 29, 2010 |accessdate=October 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713134611/http://www.kansas.com/2010/12/29/1651010/brownback-names-general-counsel.html |archive-date=July 13, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> before he was appointed to the [[Kansas Court of Appeals]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Tim Carpenter |url=http://cjonline.com/news/state/2014-01-03/stegall-takes-seat-court-appeals |title=Stegall takes seat on Court of Appeals |publisher=Topeka Capital-Journal |accessdate=July 28, 2014}}</ref> On August 29, 2014, Stegall was appointed by Governor Brownback to the [[Kansas Supreme Court]], replacing [[Nancy Moritz]], who had been appointed by President [[Barack Obama]] to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Brian Lowry |url=http://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article1323768.html |title=Gov. Sam Brownback names Caleb Stegall to Supreme Court |publisher=Wichita Eagle |accessdate=August 29, 2014}}</ref>

== Early life ==
Born in [[Lawrence, Kansas]], Stegall is a lifelong resident of [[Douglas County, Kansas|Douglas]] and Jefferson counties, in northeastern [[Kansas]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Health Care Access Clinic 785-841-5760 |url=http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2004/nov/20/local_conservatives_web/ |title=Local conservative's Web site catching on nationally / LJWorld.com |publisher=.ljworld.com |date=November 20, 2004 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref>

In Douglas County, Stegall attended and graduated from [[Lawrence High School (Kansas)|Lawrence High School]] in [[Lawrence, Kansas]].

== Law practice ==
When Stegall was appointed, the [[Kansas Democratic Party]] issued a release criticizing Brownback for the appointment because of his connection to the disbarred attorney [[Phill Kline]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Tim Carpenter |url=http://cjonline.com/news/state/2010-12-28/dems_question_gop_hiring |title=Dems question GOP hiring |publisher=CJOnline.com |date=December 28, 2010 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> He represented the State of Kansas in litigation with environmentalists over the permitting of coal-fired power plants.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/environment-usa-kansas-powerplant-dc-idUKN2920683020071129 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127012947/http://uk.reuters.com/article/environment-usa-kansas-powerplant-dc-idUKN2920683020071129 | url-status=dead | archive-date=January 27, 2016 | work=Reuters | title=Kansas rejection of coal plant fires up backlash | date=November 29, 2007}}</ref> Stegall represented eight American missionaries detained in Haiti following the [[2010 Haiti earthquake]] who were accused by Haitian officials of trying to take children to the Dominican Republic without proper documentation.<ref>{{Cite news| url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-02-18-missionaries-haiti_N.htm | work=USA Today | title=Eight freed missionaries welcomed home | date=February 19, 2010 | accessdate=April 28, 2010}}</ref> In 2008, he successfully defended the former executive director of the [[Kansas Republican Party]] in a dispute over Kansas campaign finance rules.<ref>{{cite web|author=Tim Carpenter |url=http://cjonline.com/news/legislature/2009-05-13/state_ethics_fine_reversed |title=State ethics fine reversed |publisher=CJOnline.com |date=May 13, 2009 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> In 2007, he was the lead counsel in the Kansas Supreme Court trial of former Kansas Attorney General [[Phill Kline]] based on perjury, an illegal file transfer, and misleading legal guidance.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.cjonline.com/stories/061308/sta_290170977.shtml|title=Supreme Court hears Kline dispute|author=Tim Carpenter|work=Topeka Capital-Journal|date=June 13, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Denis Boyles |url=http://article.nationalreview.com/print/?q=NzM3MGM4ODEyNTM0MTA2YWJhODNhNzRlYjZiZDgyNjQ= |title=Supremely Wrong – Denis Boyles – National Review Online |publisher=Article.nationalreview.com |date=May 30, 2008 |accessdate=October 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090602123912/http://article.nationalreview.com/print/?q=NzM3MGM4ODEyNTM0MTA2YWJhODNhNzRlYjZiZDgyNjQ= |archive-date=June 2, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mobile.ljworld.com/news/2008/dec/05/supreme-court-blisters-kline-orders-return-abortio/ |title=Supreme Court blisters Kline, orders return of abortion clinic records |publisher=Mobile.ljworld.com |date=December 5, 2008 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> In 2008, Stegall represented a group of residents against the public financing of casino operations in [[Kansas City, Kansas]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.bizjournals.com/wichita/stories/2008/03/24/daily23.html | work=Kansas City Business Journal | title=Residents sue to block KCK casino proposal | date=March 26, 2008}}</ref>

In 2008, he represented a church that challenged local regulations on the church's operations as a homeless shelter.<ref>{{cite web|author=Health Care Access Clinic 785-841-5760 |url=http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2008/oct/29/city_delays_decision_new_homeless_regulations/ |title=City delays decision on new homeless regulations / LJWorld.com |publisher=.ljworld.com |date=October 29, 2008 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> In 2009, he represented a teacher who claimed not to have been rehired because of his conservative political beliefs.<ref>{{cite web|last=Slater |first=Lindsey |url=http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2009/jun/18/superintendent-renews-contract-teacher-who-claimed/ |title=Superintendent renews contract of teacher who claimed he was fired because of his beliefs / LJWorld.com |publisher=.ljworld.com |date=June 18, 2009 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> As district attorney, he filed charges in 2009 against a county commissioner charged with theft by deception.<ref>{{cite web|author=Health Care Access Clinic 785-841-5760 |url=http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2009/sep/29/former-jefferson-county-commissioner-faces-theft-c/ |title=Former Jefferson County commissioner faces theft charges / LJWorld.com |publisher=.ljworld.com |date=September 29, 2009 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> In 2010, he was involved with a federal and state investigation of a distributor of "ethnobotanicals" who was accused of selling a [[synthetic cannabis]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Fray |first=Jesse |url=http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2010/feb/05/lawrence-man-charged-after-sacred-journey-investig/ |title=Lawrence man charged after Sacred Journey investigation / LJWorld.com |publisher=.ljworld.com |date=February 5, 2010 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref>

He has worked as general counsel for [[Americans for Prosperity]] and on the executive committee of Audubon of Kansas.<ref>[http://www2.ljworld.com/chats/2008/jul/29/caleb_stegall/ "Jefferson County attorney candidate Caleb Stegall chats about primary election"], ''[[Lawrence Journal-World]], July 29, 2008.</ref>

== Politics ==
Stegall has been identified as an advocate for [[traditionalist conservatism]] and a "prairie populist."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/01/a_populist_prairie_fire_from_t.html |title=A Populist Prairie Fire From the Right? |publisher=[[RealClearPolitics]] |date=January 12, 2009 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> In 2004, he was profiled on the front page of ''[[The New York Times]]''<ref>{{Cite news| url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E0DE123AF934A25754C0A9629C8B63 | work=[[The New York Times]] | title=Young Right Tries to Define Post-Buckley Future | first=David D. | last=Kirkpatrick | date=July 17, 2004 | accessdate=April 28, 2010}}</ref> as one of a young generation of conservatives questioning Republican Party orthodoxy. On January 12, 2009, Stegall began his first term as Jefferson County District Attorney. He has been characterized by the blog [[Firedoglake]] as a "rising religious-right political star,"<ref>{{cite web|last=Tillow |first=Kay |url=http://seminal.firedoglake.com/diary/30567 |title=Rising Religious-Right Political Star Representing Released Baptist Missionary | MyFDL |publisher=Seminal.firedoglake.com |date=February 19, 2010 |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref> has been suggested as a possible candidate for US Senate in 2010 by [[Rod Dreher]],<ref>[http://blog.beliefnet.com/crunchycon/2009/01/populist-prairie-fire-from-the.html populist prairie fire]{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090420011135/http://blog.beliefnet.com/crunchycon/2009/01/populist-prairie-fire-from-the.html |date=April 20, 2009}}</ref> and has been described as representing a new path for the Republican Party in the post-Bush years.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2009/01/a_wilderness_vacation_1.cfm | newspaper=The Economist | title=A wilderness vacation | date=January 13, 2009}}</ref>

In 2022, Stegall left his adjunct position at the [[University of Kansas School of Law]], citing handling of a controversy over a conservative campus speaker.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shorman |first1=Jonathan |last2=Bernanrd |first2=Katie |title=KS Supreme Court Justice Stegall leaves KU, cites uproar over conservative campus speaker |url=https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article269399522.html |access-date=14 December 2022 |work=[[Kansas City Star]] |date=30 November 2022}}</ref>

==Religion==
Stegall is a [[Presbyterian polity#Elder|ruling elder]] in the [[Evangelical Presbyterian Church (United States)|Evangelical Presbyterian Church]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Stegall|first=Caleb|title=The Restless Evangelicals|url=http://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=21-07-013-v|publisher=[[Touchstone Magazine]]|accessdate=27 July 2013}}</ref> He has been described as a "lifelong conservative Presbyterian" whose faith and life are "strongly countercultural to mainstream [[Evangelicalism]]" although he still identifies himself as an evangelical.<ref>{{cite book|last=Dreher|first=Rod|author-link=Rod Dreher|title=Crunchy Cons: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, Gun-Loving Organic Gardeners, Evangelical Free-Range Farmers, Hip Homeschooling Mamas, Right-Wing Nature Lovers, and Their Diverse Tribe of Countercultural Conservatives Plan to Save America (or At Least the Republican Party)|year=2006|page=189}}</ref>

== Writings ==
In 2003, Stegall created and founded, with others, an online journal of religion, politics, and culture called ''The New Pantagruel''. In 2006, Stegall and ''The New Pantagruel'' were featured in [[Rod Dreher]]'s book, ''[[Crunchy Cons]]'', as leaders in the resurgence of traditionalist conservatism. Though ''The New Pantagruel'' was discontinued at the end of 2006, Stegall's writing continues to appear in conservative papers, magazines, and journals including ''[[National Review Online]]'', ''[[Christianity Today]]'', ''[[The Intercollegiate Review]]'', ''[[The American Conservative]]'', ''[[Taki's Magazine]]'', and ''[[Touchstone Magazine]]''. Stegall authors a semi-regular column on Kansas politics for the independent publication ''Kansas Liberty''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kansasliberty.com/opinions/country-party |title=Country Party – Kansas Liberty |publisher=Kansasliberty.com |accessdate=October 20, 2011}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140708214008/http://www.kscourts.org/kansas-courts/court-of-appeals/judge-bios/Stegall.asp Official Kansas Courts Biography]

{{s-start}}
{{s-legal}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Nancy Moritz]]}}
{{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|Justice of the [[Kansas Supreme Court]]}}|years=2014–present}}
{{s-inc}}
{{s-end}}

{{Current Kansas statewide political officials}}
{{KansasSupremeCourt}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stegall, Caleb}}
[[Category:1971 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:21st-century American judges]]
[[Category:21st-century American male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:21st-century Presbyterians]]
[[Category:American evangelicals]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:American Presbyterians]]
[[Category:District attorneys in Kansas]]
[[Category:Geneva College alumni]]
[[Category:Justices of the Kansas Supreme Court]]
[[Category:Kansas Court of Appeals judges]]
[[Category:Kansas Republicans]]
[[Category:People from Perry, Kansas]]
[[Category:Politicians from Topeka, Kansas]]
[[Category:University of Kansas faculty]]
[[Category:University of Kansas School of Law alumni]]
[[Category:Writers from Topeka, Kansas]]

Caleb Stegall - Revision history

imported>VietPride10 at 17:15, 27 April 2025