Robert E. Armstrong III served as the District Court Judge of Dallas County from January of 2005 until October 2021. He presently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Dallas County System of Services. Judge Armstrong’s visionary leadership through these two organizations has brought transformation to youth and families in the Selma/Dallas County area. These programs have a proven track record in: juvenile crime reduction; increased youth job readiness; assist fathers to more effectively fulfill their role as parents, partners and workers; introduced a secondary abuse intervention program; as well as programs to assist those in poverty to become financially independent.
Judge Armstrong received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Alabama in 1981 and his Juris Doctor for the University of Alabama Law School in 1984. He also graduated from the ABA Trust School at Northwestern University in 2003.
Judge Armstrong is also a leader of Blue Jean Selma, which is a ministry whose mission is to transform and revive people and the Selma community.
Dallas County System of Services (DCSOS) evolved through a name change from Dallas County Children’s Policy Council the summer of 2021. The leadership and infrastructure remained the same. The Dallas County System of Services is designed to address the specific needs of individuals coming into contact with the Dallas County District Court. In 2005, Dallas County was ranked 67th in violent juvenile crime in the state of Alabama.
Since the implementation of these programs under the leadership of Judge R.E. Armstrong III with a focus on being fair, but firm, Dallas County is now ranked 10th in violent juvenile crime and the DYS commitment rate is down 71%. This network of services includes programs in the following areas: job training and placement, counseling and therapy, after school, tutoring and mentoring,entrepreneurship, arts, music, and writing.
As a result, Juvenile crime is down 73% along with violent juvenile crime being down 89.4% and the percent of children going directly to prison is down 93.3%. Arsenal Place at 22 Church Street in Selma serves as the main HUB for all DCSOS operations. This allows all programs to serve under one covering for all services available in one location.