Jefferson D. Hughes III, the son of Bogalusa residents Jeff and Betty Hughes, was inducted into the Louisiana Justice Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Hughes, a justice on the Louisiana Supreme Court, received the honor Friday, Aug. 28, at Boudreaux’s in Baton Rouge.

He is a Denham Springs native who excelled in both athletics and academics. At Denham Springs High School, Hughes was a four-sport athlete, playing football, baseball, basketball and track.

He was twice named all-district in basketball and was the Livingston Parish Most Valuable Player in 1970. His academic accomplishments were complemented by his academic record. A National Merit Scholar, Hughes spurned an athletic scholarship to the Univeristy of Southern Mississippi to attend LSU on an academic scholarship. At LSU, he graduated with honors with a bachelor’s degree in history before being accepted to LSU Law School. He earned his juris doctorate. While there, he was selected to the prestigious Louisiana Law Review.

Hughes began his legal career as a law clerk for former federal U.S. District Court Judge Frank Polozola of the Middle District of Louisiana. He began private practice with the firm of Adcock, Dupree and Shows in Baton Rouge, before deciding to start his own law office in the Livingston Parish town of Walker.

He was the first practicing attorney in the town, and represented clients in both civil and criminal matters for 12 years.

The call to public service led him to seek a judgeship in the state’s 21st Judicial District, where in 1990 he won election to the bench. He was re-elected in 1996 and 2002.

As a trial judge, he presided over civil, criminal and family law cases.

He was elected to the Baton Rouge-based First Circuit Court of Appeal in 2004, and to a seat on the Louisiana Supreme Court from the 5th District in 2012. The district encompasses Ascension, East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, East Feliciana and West Feliciana parishes.