James D. "Buddy" Caldwell was born May 20, 1946, the fourth of seven children, in Columbia, Caldwell Parish, Louisiana. The family moved to rural Madison parish in 1949, when Buddy was three years old, and has lived there ever since. Buddy's father, J.D. Caldwell, obtained a Master's Degree in music from LSU, and was initially an opera singer by profession with the Metropolitan Opera of New York. After moving to Tallulah, his father became a farmer and merchant in the clothing industry. Buddy's mother, Genevieve Caldwell, a registered nurse with a degree from Touro Infirmary of New Orleans, was public health nurse in Caldwell and Madison parishes, and served as a Madison Parish school health nurse. She gave over 30 years of service in that capacity alone. Buddy has five sisters, three of which graduated from LSU, the other two graduated from Sophie Newcomb College in New Orleans. His brother also attended Tulane University. His oldest sister graduated from LSU Medical School and became a practicing pediatrician.

Buddy Caldwell attended Tallulah High School and graduated with honors. He lettered in basketball, football, and track, and played semi-professional baseball in North Louisiana. Buddy Caldwell earned his Bachelor's degree from Tulane University where he also played football and ran track. He received a law degree from Tulane Law School in 1973.

	Buddy Caldwell with his wife Pat

Buddy Caldwell was elected to the office of District Attorney for the parishes of East Carroll, Madison, and Tensas in September of 1978, and has been reelected to that office ever since. Buddy was elected to the Board of Directors of the Louisiana District Attorney's Association in 1983, and served on that Board an unprecedented thirteen years in a row, until 1996. He has been elected President of the Board and has since been elected three additional years as the Past Presidents' representative.

Buddy has a broad range of legal experience and has established credibility as a tough prosecutor and an honest and reliable public servant. As District Attorney, Buddy has trained and assisted other attorneys, District attorneys, Assistant Attorneys-General, Sheriffs, Chiefs of Police, School Boards, and many others on a variety of legal matters. He has held conferences that specialized in criminal law and procedure, civil board representation, grand jury matters, state and federal reapportionment, judicial ethics, crime scene investigation, and justice of the peace and constable issues. Buddy is the only known official in the State of Louisiana to have been invited to speak on relevant matters to Justices of the Peace and Constables for twenty years in a row.

Buddy personally tries most major felony cases in his three-parish district. He continues to personally advise police juries, port commissions, school boards, hospital service districts, and law enforcement on many other legal matters.

In addition to these duties, Buddy continues to actively administer his judicial district which spans three parishes and over 1700 square miles of the State. Buddy believes in the value of personal involvement in administration. His office is largely supported and financed by fines and court fees assessed on criminals and offenders, not by taxpayer dollars.

Buddy's dedication is made clear by the successes of his office. Buddy has achieved a 99% conviction rate over the past 28 years, and he holds the highest per capita collection rate for back child support in the State. He helped establish pre-trial diversion programs for adult and juvenile first-time offenders, and he has increased funding for the indigent defenders program in the 6th Judicial district.

Buddy's commitment to public service is further made clear by his actions in the community. He is an accomplished singer, entertainer, and published songwriter, and has used these talents to perform philanthropic work for many national, state, and local charities and civic groups. These include the National Association of Educators, various other teacher groups, coaches and administrators, clerks of court, police jury associations, cancer awareness groups, Relay for Life, United Way venues, the Louisiana District Attorney’s Association and many others. Like many other public officials, Buddy has been active in local civic organizations, and has also actively coached baseball and softball. He has supported and continues to speak on behalf of youth programs across the State. Buddy has also served as the Past President of the Tallulah Lions Club.

Buddy is a dedicated family man. He and his wife Pat are presently living in Tallulah, Louisiana, in Madison Parish. Together, they have seven children, all grown, and six grandchildren. He knows the importance of making Louisiana a place that our children and grandchildren will want to call home. He has spent his life pursuing that goal, and will continue to do so as our Attorney General.