Jim  Vollers

VOLLERS, JIM (1931 ~ 2023). The following is an obituary for Jim Vollers, former judge of the state Court of Criminal Appeals. The obituary was provided by Weed, Corley, Fish Funeral Home of Austin.

Jim Vollers, husband, father, prosecutor, judge, friend, mentor, storyteller extraordinaire, and avid golfer, passed away on September 25, 2023 at the age of 92. Jim was an eternal optimist who thrived on being with family and friends. If a particular phrase could be associated with Jim it would be…”Have I ever told you?” Jim was born in Goliad, Texas on April 20, 1931 to Ira and Mildred Vollers. He graduated from Goliad High in 1948, and attended The University of Texas at Austin where he graduated from law school in 1954. Jim met and married his wife of 69 years, Margrette Thompson, in Austin.

After service in the U.S. Army, Jim had a brief stint in a Houston law firm. Deciding that tax law was too boring, he moved to Beaumont to become a prosecutor, finding his lifelong passion for criminal law. It was in Beaumont that Jim and Margrette began raising their two children, Mike and Marty. Following that decade as a prosecutor, the family moved back to Austin in 1967 when Jim accepted a position with the Texas Attorney General’s Office. Leaving the AG’s office to become the State’s Prosecuting Attorney for the Court of Criminal Appeals, Jim began a relationship with criminal appellate work that carried him through the next 48 years of his practice, including his service to the Court of Criminal Appeals as State’s Attorney and as a judge on the Court. After leaving the Court Jim’s practice focus was in assisting district attorneys with their appellate needs. Jim truly loved what he did and was extremely generous with his time and attention to his peers. Within the world of criminal law he was a “lawyer’s lawyer” who was a valuable resource to his professional colleagues.

Jim is survived by his loving wife and life-long partner, Margrette; by his son Mike and wife Cindy of Little Rock, Arkansas; daughter Marty and husband Derry of Austin, Texas; grandson Philip Swanger and wife Brittany of Raleigh, North Carolina, grandson Reid Swanger and wife Crissy of Chicago, Illinois, grandson Charlie Vollers of Baltimore, Maryland, and granddaughter Maddie Vollers Bailey and husband Joe of West Palm Beach, Florida; and by numerous other beloved family members and friends. Jim was preceded in death by his parents, his brothers Warren and Eddie, and his granddaughter Emily Vollers.

Jim will be interred in the Texas State Cemetery in a small private burial. A Celebration of Life will be held at Weed Corley Fish Parkcrest on October 28, 2023, from 4:00-7:00 p.m. All are welcome to attend to share memories and stories from Jim’s life.

In lieu of flowers the family requests that contributions be made to the Texas District & County Attorneys Association, to a Texas chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, or to a charity of your choice.