08/27/2026
⚖️🕊️ SEARCY NATIVE AND FORMER ARKANSAS SUPREME COURT JUSTICE DARRELL HICKMAN DIES AT 91
Arkansas is remembering Searcy native and former Supreme Court Justice Darrell Hickman, who died Thursday, August 20, in his hometown following an esophageal cancer diagnosis.
Hickman spent nearly 22 years serving as a trial-court judge and justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court.
His historic career included:
⚖️ Becoming the 1st person from White County elected to statewide office since Reconstruction
🎓 Attending Harding College in Searcy before earning his law degree from the University of Arkansas in 1958
⚓ Serving 6 years in the United States Navy, including 2 years aboard the USS Constellation
🏛️ Serving on the Arkansas Supreme Court from 1977–1990
📜 Writing decisions that helped lead to voter-approved constitutional amendments
👩🏾⚖️ Hiring Joyce Williams Warren as the Arkansas Supreme Court’s 1st Black law clerk in 1977
🗳️ Helping establish the Arkansas Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission through Amendment 66
Hickman believed courts should enforce the Constitution as written and leave changes to lawmakers and voters.
He later returned to White County and continued serving as a circuit judge through appointments by Acting Governor Jim Guy Tucker and Governor Mike Huckabee.
Hickman requested that no funeral be held. His family plans a private graveside service.
He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Kerry, along with his children, grandchildren and other family members.
Hickman leaves a lasting legacy of military service, judicial independence and dedication to the Arkansas Constitution.
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