ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEYS

       Assistant District Attorneys are lawyers who work for the District Attorney, prosecuting and trying cases.  They are:

  LAUREN BARNES HARLESS
        Lauren Barnes Harless graduated from Hancock High School in 1993, earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Southern Mississippi in 1997, and received her Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi in 2000.

       Mrs. Harless is licensed to practice law in the State of Mississippi.  Her prior experience includes clerkships with both the Mississippi Supreme Court and the Mississippi Court of Appeals.  She has served as an Assistant District Attorney in the 15th Circuit Court District since 2002 and currently serves as an Assistant District Attorney in Pearl River County prosecuting various felonies and crimes of violence committed against women and children.   She also participates in annual conferences addressing the prosecution and prevention of violence against women and monthly team meetings with social services and law enforcement agencies in Pearl River County to facilitate prosecution of violent crimes among those agencies.  Mrs. Harless has received the Multidisciplinary Team Award for her participation in the Multidisciplinary Team in both 2003 and 2004.  She has also been appointed by the Governor to serve on the Children’s Justice Act Task Force which meets quarterly in Jackson, Mississippi.

  MANYA CREEL BRYAN
     Manya Creel Bryan obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Southern Mississippi,  where she earned a major in history and minor in English and secondary education.  She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Mississippi.  During her second year of law school, she earned a staff position on the  Mississippi Law Journal based upon her grade point average and writing ability.  She also served on the editorial board as associate editor of the  Mississippi Law Journal.  While attending law school she was also a member of the Moot Court Board and Phi Delta Phi honorary fraternity.

       She began her legal career as law clerk to Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Joel Blass.  Mrs. Bryan has practiced law in both the private and public sector.  While in the private sector, she practiced in both chancery and circuit courts.  She has practiced criminal law since 1991, and has been a felony prosecutor for ten years.  She is currently employed as an Assistant District Attorney for the 15th Circuit Court District of the State of Mississippi. 

       At the present time, Mrs. Bryan is on the faculty of the National Advocacy Center located at the University of South Carolina.  The National Advocacy Center is the teaching arm of the National District Attorney’s Association.  She teaches trial advocacy at the center to other less experienced state prosecutors, who practice across the United States.

       She is a member of the National District Attorney’s Association, the Mississippi Bar Association, the Mississippi Prosecutor’s Association and the Pearl River County Bar Association.  She has served as treasurer and secretary of the Pearl River County Bar Association and presently holds the office of vice-president.

       For the past three years, she has volunteered as a mock trial coach for the Picayune Memorial High School forensics and debate team.  The team has been very successful, placing third in the state during its first year of mock trial competition.

       As a fifth generation Pearl River countian, she makes her home in its Henleyfield Community.  She is married to Charles Clark Bryan and they have four children and three grandchildren.  She attends the First Baptist Church of Picayune where she teaches preschool Sunday school.

  DOUGLAS E. MILLER
      Mr. Miller graduated from Sumrall High School in 1980, graduated from Pearl River Community College with an Associate in Arts Degree in 1982, graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi with a Bachelor in Arts in 1984, and received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Mississippi in 1987.

      Mr. Miller currently handles all of the felony prosecutions in Lawrence County and Jefferson Davis County and part of the Felony prosecutions in Pearl River County.  Also he is the City Prosecutor in the City of Purvis,  the City Prosecutor in the City of Lumberton, and the City Prosecutor in the Town of Bassfield.

      Prior to being appointed Assistant District Attorney he was Elected County Prosecutor for Lamar County in 1992 and 1996 where he served until being appointed Assistant District Attorney for the 15th Circuit Court District in 1997.  He was in Private Practice in Purvis prior to being appointed Assistant District Attorney.

      He is a member of Hickory Grove United Methodist Church in Sumrall Mississippi and is married to Rebecca Anderson Miller, and has one son and twin daughters.  He has been a life time resident of the 15th Circuit Court District.

  J. MICHAEL HORAN
      Mr. Horan graduated from Water Valley High School, Water Valley, Mississppi, then earned a Banking and Finance Degree from the University of Mississippi, and received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1981.  During law school he was a member of the Phi Delta Phi honorary fraternity.

      Upon graduation from law school, Mr. Horan entered private practice with his father, Ben F. Horan, handling both criminal and civil matters.  In 1988, he took the position as Assistant District Attorney with the 17th Circuit Court District, where he remained until September of 2000, when he moved to the Hattiesburg area.  In December of 2007, he was hired as an Assistant District Attorney for the 15th Circuit Court District, a position he maintains to date.  His assigned duties are handling felony cases in Marion, Jefferson Davis and Lawrence Counties, with emphasis on pending homicide cases.  He is a member of the Mississippi Bar Association and the the Mississippi Prosecutors Association as well as a former board member of the later.

      Mr. Horan is a 3rd generation lawer, following his grandfather, the late John P. Horan, and his father, Ben F. Horan.  His daughter, Heather Horan Miller, is a practicing attorney in Atlanta, Georgia.  Mr. Horan is married to Patsy Williams Horan, and he has four children, Heather Miller, Heath Horan, Alayna Horan and Audra Horan. They reside in Oak Grove, Lamar County and attend Magnolia Baptist Church, Oak Grove, as well as Clear Creek Methodist Protestant Church in Brooklyn, Mississippi.

  MORRIS SWEATT
      A native of Clarksdale, Mississippi, Morris Sweatt earned a Bachelor of Music Education Degree in 1963 at the University of Mississippi.  He was awarded a Master of Music Degree from Northwestern University in 1968.  A teaching career included stints in schools of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, Biloxi, Mississippi, Mobile, Alabama, Meridian Junior College, Hinds Junior College, Livingston University in Alabama and others.  He graduated with honors from Mississippi College School of Law in 1983.

      Mr. Sweatt was a law clerk and associate with the Waller & Waller office in Jackson, Mississippi for approximately three years.  In 1985, he opened a solo office for the general practice of law in Columbia, Mississippi, and in 1995 he was appointed Public Defender for Marion County.  In February 2007, Mr. Sweatt was appointed Assistant District Attorney for the Fifteenth Judicial District.

      Mr Sweatt is married to Dorothy, and they have raised three successful children.  They presently enjoy doting on three grand children.

  KIM THOMAS HARLIN
      Kim Thomas Harlin received her Bachelor of the Arts Degree with Honors in History and a Minor in the Classics from the University of Southern Mississippi in 2004.  During her tenure at Southern Miss, Kim served as a member of Southern Style, a University Leadership Scholar, and President of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority.  Kim was also involved in a variety of honor and leadership societies including Omicron Delta Kappa, Golden Key, and Lambda Sigma, and was awarded Who’s Who Among American College Students.  Upon completion of her undergraduate degree, Kim attended the University of Mississippi, School of Law and obtained her Juris Doctorate Degree Cum Laude in 2007.  While at Ole Miss, Kim was involved in the Civil Legal Clinic, the Public Interest Law Foundation, and Phi Delta Phi Honor Fraternity.

      Presently, Kim serves as an Assistant District Attorney for all five counties in the Fifteenth Circuit Court District.   Kim’s position is federally funded under the Violence Against Women Grant and she primarily prosecutes sexual assault and domestic violence cases.   Prior to Kim’s position with the District Attorney’s Office, she served as a Judicial Law Clerk for the Honorable R.I. Prichard for the Fifteenth Judicial District.  Kim currently resides in Hattiesburg and has become active in the Mississippi Bar Association, serving on the Mock Trial Competition Committee; is a member of the Area Development Partnership Leadership Pinebelt Class of 2009; serves as Chapter Advisor of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority at Southern Miss; is a member of Pinebelt Young Professionals; and serves as a volunteer instructor for the Lamar County Sheriff’s Department.

  CLAY CRANFORD
      Corey Clayton “Clay” Cranford - is a life long resident of the Hattiesburg, Mississippi area.  Mr. Cranford graduated from Oak Grove High School, then earned a B.S. degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Public Health at the University of Southern Mississippi. He subsequently earned his Juris Doctorate Degree from Southern University in Baton Rouge, LA.  Mr. Cranford is dually licensed to practice law in the states of Mississippi and Louisiana.

      Upon graduation from law school Mr. Cranford entered private practice.  In October of 2008, he was appointed as an Assistant District Attorney for the 15th Circuit Court District, a position he maintains to date.  His assigned duties are handling felony cases in Pearl River County.  He is a member of the Mississippi Bar Association, Louisiana Bar Association, and the Mississippi Prosecutors Association.