Executive Committee

This committee convenes regularly to share updates, coordinate initiatives, plan events and make key decisions that advance the mission of the Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health. The Executive Committee provides oversight and strategic direction to the primary standing committees: the Criminal Justice Committee, the Civil and Family Justice Committee and the Treatment and Access Committee. Each committee focuses on distinct yet interconnected areas of the judicial and behavioral health systems, ensuring a comprehensive, collaborative approach to the Commission’s ongoing work.

Official portrait of Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert.

Hon. Debra Hembree Lambert

Chief Justice
Executive Committee Member, Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health

Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert was elected to the Supreme Court of Kentucky in November 2018. Prior to that she served as a Judge at the Kentucky Court of Appeals. Chief Justice Lambert also served as a Circuit Judge in the Family Court Division for the 28th Judicial Circuit. While a Family Court judge, she created the first drug court in the area, beginning both a juvenile drug court and family drug court. For many years, Chief Justice Lambert volunteered in middle schools, dedicating ten weeks each semester to work with at-risk children and families. Today, she volunteers as a certified suicide prevention trainer. In 2022, retiring Chief Justice Minton appointed Chief Justice Lambert as Chair of the Commission on Mental Health. Her fellow justices elected her as Chief Justice of the Commonwealth for a four-year term that started on January 7, 2025.

Robert B. Conley

Deputy Chief Justice
Vice Chair, Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health

Justice Robert B. Conley was elected in Nov. 2020 to serve the 7th Supreme Court District, which comprises 32 Eastern Kentucky counties. Justice Conley joined the state’s highest court after 26 years as a trial court judge for Greenup and Lewis counties. Justice Conley was appointed as Deputy Chief Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court on Jan. 1, 2025 by Chief Justice Debra Hembree Lambert.

In 1994, Justice Conley was appointed by Governor Brereton Jones to fill a vacancy in the 20th Judicial District Court and then was elected to that seat for three successive terms. In 2006, he was elected to the 20th Judicial Circuit Bench, where he served until his election to the Supreme Court. While a circuit judge, he also presided over the Greenup/Lewis Drug Court, which was recognized by the National Drug Court Institute in 2010 as a mentor court to help train Drug Court personnel from all over the Eastern United States.

Prior to taking the bench, he worked in Ashland, KY as an associate in the law firm of McKenzie, Woolery & Emrick PSC, a corporate attorney with Addington Mining/Addington Environmental Inc. and as attorney for the Greenup County School Board.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and business from the University of Kentucky in 1981 and a juris doctor from Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University in 1984. He worked his way through UK and his first year of law school as a steelworker for ARMCO Steel Inc.

Official portrait of Judge Larry Thompson.

Hon. Larry Thompson

Chief Judge, Kentucky Court of Appeals

Vice Chair, Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health

Kentucky Court of Appeals Chief Judge Thompson has served as a judge in the Commonwealth of Kentucky for 30 years. He began his career in 1995 as a district judge in Pike County. In 1999, he was elected to the circuit bench, family court division, where he served for 20 years. Judge Thompson was elected to the Court of Appeals in 2018, where he now serves as Chief Judge.

Russell Coleman

Attorney General of Kentucky
Executive Committee Member

Russell Coleman was elected Kentucky’s 52nd Attorney General. Born in Paducah, Coleman was raised in Mayfield and then rural Daviess and Logan Counties. Over the last 20 years, Coleman has taken on violent crime and deadly drugs at the highest levels of law enforcement. He earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Kentucky. In 2017, he was nominated to be the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. Coleman previously served as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in Oldham County and as Senior Advisor and Legal Counsel to U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell. Currently, he serves on the Kentucky State Police Foundation Board.

Keith Jackson

Secretary of the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet
Executive Committee Member

In February 2024, Keith Jackson was appointed Secretary of the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, after serving as deputy secretary for over two years. His priorities include creating safer communities, protecting law enforcement, reducing recidivism, seeking justice for victims, fighting addiction, and expanding youth rehabilitation. Before joining the Cabinet, Secretary Jackson was the Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs. He served the U.S. Army Reserve, in numerous leadership capacities, for 27 years. In 1991, he began his public service career with the Lexington Fire Department. In June 2012, he made history by becoming the first African American appointed Chief of the Lexington Division of Fire and Emergency Services.

Zach Ramsey

Director, Administrative Office of the Courts

Zach Ramsey is the director of the Administrative Office of the Courts. Prior to joining the Judicial Branch, Zach Ramsey was a program management and technology consultant. He was more than 25 years of experience in government healthcare and is a licensed Kentucky attorney. He previously served in state government for 12 years before moving to the private sector, first as assistant general counsel for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and then director of the Medicaid Integrity Program. He received his bachelors from Purdue University and juris doctorate degree from the University of Kentucky College of Law.

Official portrait of Jeffeson County Circuit Court Clerk David L. Nicholson.

David Nicholson

Jefferson County Circuit Court Clerk
Executive Committee Member, Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health

David L. Nicholson, a lifelong resident of Jefferson County/Louisville, Ky., was elected Jefferson County Circuit Court Clerk in 2006 and re-elected in 2012, 2018 and 2024. Mr. Nicholson is actively engaged in a wide range of local, state and national organizations. He serves on the Board of Directors for Kosair for Kids and is the Ex Officio Librarian of the Jefferson County Public Law Library, where he also sits on the Board of Trustees. A past President of both the Kentucky Association of Circuit Court Clerks and the Kentucky Association of Counties, he continues to serve on the boards of both organizations. Nationally, he is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Counties, where he holds several key leadership roles, including Chair of the Audit Committee, Vice Chair of the Courts and Corrections Subcommittee under the Justice and Public Safety Steering Committee, and member of the Large Urban County Caucus.

Official portrait of Secretary Justice and Public Safety Cabinet Shawna J. Stack.

Steven J. Stack

Secretary, Justice and Public Safety Cabinet
Executive Committee Member, Kentucky Judicial Commission on Mental Health

Steven J. Stack was appointed Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services in May 2025. Prior to this, he served as Commissioner for Public Health and Chief Medical Officer for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He also serves on the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) Board of Directors and was ASTHO President in 2023-2024. Dr. Stack is a board-certified emergency physician with more than 20 years of emergency medicine clinical practice and emergency department management experience. Throughout his career, Dr. Stack has served in numerous health sector non-profit association leadership roles. In 2006, he was the first board certified emergency physician ever elected to the American Medical Association (AMA) Board of Trustees, and in 2015, he served as AMA President.