Jim Guy Tucker’s service to the public as Prosecuting Attorney and Attorney General is often overshadowed by his tenure as Governor. Tucker graduated from the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville School of Law in May 1968 and immediately began his law career. In June, he became an associate attorney with Rose, Barron, Nash, Williamson, Carroll, and Clay (now Rose Law Firm).
Prosecuting Attorney: “It is the second toughest job in Arkansas”
In 1970, he became a Democratic candidate for prosecuting attorney for the 6th Judicial District (Pulaski and Perry Counties). He campaigned on several points. His most important issue was to make the the office a 24/7 position where an attorney would be on call every day. Tucker stated that he took up the challenge of the office “with humility, but also with vigor and a willing spirit.”
Republican Arkansas State Representative H. Allan Dishongh challenged Tucker for the office. Dishongh insisted Tucker “falsely misrepresented” himself when discussing his experience in a United States Senate Subcommittee. Tucker set the record straight, saying that in 1963, his job as messenger (doorkeeper) for the Senate was in title only. During his 15-week stint with the subcommittee, Tucker became a researcher for the investigators. It was the experience he gained during this job that led him to seek political office. Tucker ran for Prosecuting Attorney because “of my intense concern over the quality and efficiency of the administration of criminal justice.” Tucker countered his opponent's claims by attacking Dishongh’s support of the casino bill in Garland County, Arkansas, in 1967. Tucker prevailed in the August 25 primary by winning 61% of the votes.
During his tenure as Prosecuting Attorney, Tucker revolutionized the office. At 27, he became one of the youngest to hold this position. He successfully made the office a full-time, 24-hour position with 11 deputy attorneys. He also reduced court backlog from a year to 90 days and launched investigations into gambling, prostitution, and police corruption.
Race for Attorney General
In 1972, he threw his hat into the ring for Attorney General. He campaigned on a 20-point platform. Some of the points were consumer protection, pollution control, legal education, assisting law enforcement, prosecutors and public defenders. He faced Republican Ed Bethune in the November general election. Bethune argued that Tucker was “soft on crime” and a flip-flopper on the positions of gun control and the death penalty. Tucker dismissed these attacks by promoting his record as prosecuting attorney. Tucker won 60% of the vote. As with Prosecuting Attorney, he became the youngest person to hold this position in Arkansas.
He hit the ground running once he took office in 1973. Tucker increased the activity of the Consumer Protection Division and created a full-time Criminal Justice Division. He also helped to curtail the amount of pollution in Arkansas rivers and streams by supporting legislation limiting coal fired plants and sand- and gravel-mining that would damage the ecosystem of the river. Tucker ran unopposed for reelection in 1974 and served until 1977, when he was elected to the U. S. House of Representatives.