CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Karen Willis is an assistant district attorney for the 19th Judicial District Attorney’s Office and specializes in DUI-related cases.
Willis, 50, was sworn in as an ADA in October 2012. In November 2006, she became the eighth Black attorney in Clarksville history since the first Black male attorney in the early 1890s. She is the first Black woman to be an assistant district attorney in Clarksville.
CNow: When did you know this was your dream career, and what inspired you?
“I knew as a pre-teen I wanted to be an attorney. I loved watching law shows and loved to solve crimes. It gave me my first passion.
“Even though I knew I wanted to be a lawyer from 11 or 12, I didn’t see people who looked like me. I didn’t see it as attainable. To me, it was not reachable. When I decided to go to college, being a lawyer wasn’t an option in my mind. I picked something I thought I could do and wouldn’t fail at, so I decided to be an accountant.”
When her mentor asked her what she really wanted to do, Willis struggled to admit her dream.
“I was 30 years old; she asked if money and time wasn’t an object, what would you do? I’d never told anyone, not even family, that I wanted to be a lawyer. I had a hard time saying the words and tell her my crazy dream. I started crying and said, ‘I’d want to be a lawyer.’ From the moment I spoke those words, something happened. It was a fire that couldn’t be burnt out. I’d spoken something into existence instead of keeping quiet. Once I said it, I knew I had to do it.”
CNow: What was your motivation and process to reach the goal?
“I wanted to provide a better life for my son. My son, Terrale, is 28 now. I had him when I was in the military. He’s always been by my side. He’s never complained. I wanted to keep him motivated not to get discouraged during our hard times. We’d sit on the couch and dream together and I’d let him know it was all for a purpose and that we weren’t sacrificing for nothing. He always had a great spirit and believed in me. When I got my Bar exam results, he was right there.”
CNow: What obstacles did you have to overcome and how did you do so?
Willis was born into a wide-ranging military family. Her father was Air Force, her mother and stepfather were Army, and she decided after high school to go into the Navy.
“I went the long way around. I went into the Navy and I was an electrician. When I got out of the Navy, I went to Louisiana where my dad was and worked loss prevention and undercover. I applied and got hired at the Sheriff’s Department in New Orleans as a deputy sheriff. Then I got hired as a police officer in New Orleans.”
In 1996, she faced a big obstacle when coming to live in Clarksville where her mother was. She’d been hired at the Clarksville Police Department, but she was turned away when she reported for duty. “They never returned my phone calls. When Clarksville Police had the discrimination lawsuit, they called me to come to join the force. I was discouraged and decided to go to college. I didn’t know what I wanted to go to college for.”
After her revelation, she applied to Nashville Law School. “I looked at the statistics of enrollment. They had no minorities for the last couple of years. I was looking outward instead of inward. When I started there were 10 Black people in the class. When I graduated four years later, there were three of us.”
Willis worked her way through law school, taking jobs at gas stations and stores, and then as a dispatcher at E-911. “I worked every weekend and nightshift and went to school on my off days. That third year in law school, I had to go to school three days a week, so I had to quit and I did substitute teaching.”
After passing the Bar she was met by discouragement from colleagues. “I was told I’d never be able to practice in Clarksville because Clarksville wasn’t ready for a Black attorney, and I should go to Nashville or Memphis. Things like that you battle constantly trying not to feel inferior.
“I said if this isn’t for me, I’m going to open my own law office. I went to Office Depot and got some business cards and I passed them around. I was able to open my office within three months and practiced criminal and family law for six years before applying to be an assistant district attorney.”
Two long-time assistant district attorneys, Helen Young and Steve Garrett, encouraged her to apply.
“I gave Mrs. Young my resume to turn in to Mr. John Carney, and they called me for an interview. The rest is history.”
CNow: What do you like about your profession?
“I love the law. What I love is that I’m speaking for people who can’t speak for themselves. I speak for victims hurt by DUI drivers, people killed in DUI wrecks. I’m the person who speaks for them. I stand up and get justice for them and their families.”
CNow: What advice would you give to others who have dreams to fulfill?
“No matter what you see around you, believe in yourself, regardless if you are the first or few to accomplish that goal, go for it anyways. Follow your dreams. Don’t listen to the naysayer, believe in yourself, and go for it.”
Celebrating Black “HerStory” is a Black History Month series celebrating women who are living their dream and making a difference as professionals and entrepreneurs.