James M. Crowl was appointed as District Court Judge in 2023. He grew up in Osawatomie, Kansas. He attended the University of Missouri-Columbia and graduated in 1991 with a degree in Economics and a minor in Political Science. He graduated from the University of Kansas, School of Law in 1994. He worked in private practice in Topeka with the law firm of Dickson & Pope, P.A. for seven years. In private practice he was involved in general civil litigation in both state and federal courts and administrative tribunals. He became an Assistant County Counselor for Shawnee County, Kansas in 2001. He was Human Resources Director for Shawnee County in 2014 through 2016. In 2016, he moved to the position of Shawnee County Counselor and served as chief legal counsel for Shawnee County, Kansas. He is a member of the Topeka Bar Association, the Kansas Bar Association, and the Missouri Bar Association. He is married and has four children.