WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama nominated William Conner Eldridge Jr., a bank president and prosecutor, to serve as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, in an announcement sent out Wednesday afternoon.
Eldridge, chief executive officer of Summit Bank, is also a special deputy prosecutor for the prosecuting attorney’s office of Clark County.
Arkansas’ two Democratic Senators, Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor, recommended the Arkadelphia resident to Obama in May 2009.
In addition to working in various management positions at the bank for six years and serving as a clerk for U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Eisele of the Eastern District of Arkansas from 2003-2004, the University of Arkansas School of Law graduate also served as a member of Lincoln’s staff.
“I have known Conner for years and was impressed by his work on my legislative staff,” Lincoln said. “I believe he has the experience, intellect and integrity to serve the people of Arkansas with distinction.”
Said Pryor: “Conner Eldridge is a strong leader in his community and our state and his legal and legislative experience make him a good fit” for the position.
In addition to Eldridge, Lincoln and Pryor recommended Shawn Johnson of Little Rock, an assistant attorney general for the state of Arkansas, and Christopher Plumlee, an assistant U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas.
The vacancy was created when Robert C. Balfe stepped down in January 2009 to take a job in private practice.
If confirmed, Eldridge will lead a staff of 18 attorneys. The attorney’s office, in Fort Smith, is responsible for conducting all criminal and civil litigation in the district involving the U.S. government. The district covers 34 counties and includes the cities of El Dorado, Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Harrison, Hot Springs and Texarkana.
Arkansas, Pages 12 on 09/30/2010