James Donald Clifton was born on November 6, 1955, in San Antonio, Texas. His recorded family connections include his father, James; his mother, Shirley Ann; his wife, Sharon Marie; and his children, Jonathan and Douglas. His early adult working life included farming and ranching in Loraine, Texas, before he entered law enforcement.
Clifton studied plant science at Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University, where he completed a Bachelor of Science in 1978. He later attended West Texas College and received an Associate in Applied Science in 1988. He continued his education at Southwest Texas State University, earning a Master of Science in 1994. While attending West Texas College, he was named to the spring 1989 Merit List.
Clifton began his documented professional life as a farmer and rancher in Loraine, Texas, working from 1979 to 1986. He subsequently entered law enforcement with the Mitchell County Sheriff's Department as a deputy sheriff from 1989 to 1990. In 1990 he joined the Comal County Sheriff's Department, where he served as a sergeant deputy sheriff from September 1990 to September 1991 and then continued as a lieutenant deputy sheriff from September 29, 1991. His career therefore progressed from agricultural work into increasingly senior county law-enforcement positions.
Clifton's professional affiliations include the Guadalupe Valley Peace Officers Association, the Sheriffs' Association of Texas, the International Narcotics Officers Association, and the Texas Peace Officers Association. These memberships connected his work in county law enforcement with regional, statewide, and broader professional police associations.
Clifton's recorded family relationships include his father, James; his mother, Shirley Ann; his wife, Sharon Marie; and his children, Jonathan and Douglas.
