Background
Cooper, Roy A. was born on June 13, 1957 in Nashville, North Carolina, United States.
Cooper, Roy A. was born on June 13, 1957 in Nashville, North Carolina, United States.
University of North Carolina (Bachelor of Arts, 1979. Juris Doctor, 1982). Morehead Scholar. Member, North Carolina House of Representatives, since 1987.
Chairman, House Judiciary Committee, 1989-1990.
He is known for Duke lacrosse case in 2007. Born in Nash County, North Carolina, Cooper was raised in a rural community and worked in tobacco fields during the summer as a teenager. He received the Morehead Scholarship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, serving as the president of the university"s Young Democrats, and then also earned a Juris Doctor (Juris Doctor) degree from University of North Carolina.
After practicing law with his family"s law firm for a number of years, Cooper was elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives in 1986 and named to the North Carolina Senate in 1991.
In 1997, he was elected Democratic Majority Leader of the state Senate.
Elections
Cooper was elected in November 2000 and took office on January 6, 2001. He was re-elected for a second term in 2004.
Cooper was mentioned as a possible Democratic candidate for North Carolina governor in 2008, but he decided to run for re-election as Attorney General instead. He was easily re-elected, garnering more votes than any other statewide candidate in the November 2008 elections.
Both state and national Democrats attempted to recruit him to run against Republican Senator Richard Burr in 2010, but he declined.
He was speculated as a possible candidate for Governor of North Carolina in 2012 after incumbent Governor Bev Perdue announced her retirement, Cooper declined to run. His political consultant announced in 2011 that Cooper would seek a fourth term in 2012. He was unopposed in both the Democratic primary and the general election.
In the November 2012 elections, Cooper received 2,828,941 votes.
Tenure
In January 2007, when Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong asked to be recused from dealing with the Duke lacrosse case, Attorney General Cooper"s office assumed responsibility for the case. On April 11, 2007, Cooper dismissed the case against the Duke lacrosse team players, declaring them "innocent" and victims of a "tragic rush to accuse."
Cooper"s third term was highlighted by controversy surrounding the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
Cooper argued his first case before the United States Supreme Court, J. Doctorate. B. v. North Carolina, in 2011.
The Court ruled 5–4 against North Carolina.
Cooper is running for Governor of North Carolina in the 2016 election. He has strongly criticised Republican Governor Pat McCrory for "tax giveaways for the top 1 percent instead of real tax breaks for working North Carolina families, an end to child-care tax credits, election law changes that made it harder for North Carolinians to vote, overcrowded classrooms for public school teachers and layoffs for teacher assistants.".
Member, North Carolina House of Representatives, 1987-1991. Chairman, House Judiciary Committee, 1989-1991. Member, North Carolina Senate, 1991.
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee.
Member: North Carolina Bar Association. North Carolina State Bar.
North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers.