J. Strom Thurmond, Jr. was born in Greenwood, SC and is the oldest son of Senator Strom Thurmond and Nancy Thurmond. A native of Aiken, Strom is a 1991 graduate of Aiken High School. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1995, and the USC law school in 1998. While in law school Strom was a law clerk for the South Carolina House of Representatives and the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Upon graduation, Strom worked briefly in Columbia before returning home to Aiken to join the Second Circuit Solicitor’s Office as a state prosecutor. Strom quickly established himself an aggressive, fair and hard-working lawyer, achieving numerous convictions at trial across a broad spectrum of crimes.
In 2001, President George W. Bush nominated Strom to serve as the 47th United States Attorney for South Carolina. Strom’s nomination was confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate and he became the chief federal prosecutor for the State of South Carolina, leading a staff of 130 employees in 4 offices across the state. The United States Attorney’s Office prosecuted federal crimes ranging from environmental polluters to white collar fraudsters to violent criminals. Strom was part of the trial team responsible for achieving the first federal death penalty conviction in South Carolina, and the first federal death penalty conviction in the United States where the victims’ bodies were never recovered. In 2003, then Attorney General John Ashcroft asked Strom to serve as one of fifteen United States Attorneys on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee and offer input on national federal law enforcement priorities and strategies.
Following President Bush’s first term in Office, Strom returned to the private practice of law in Aiken in 2005. There, he handled a high volume of state and federal criminal matters for individuals and corporations, as well as business and other civil litigation. Strom also consulted with companies in the area of government and community relations in Aiken, Columbia and in Washington, DC. Strom was heavily involved in serving his community, sitting on numerous non-profit boards and was a founding director of Southern Bank & Trust.
In 2008, Strom ran unopposed for the Solicitor for the Second Judicial Circuit (known as the District Attorney in most states), serving Aiken, Barnwell and Bamberg Counties. Strom led a staff of nearly 50 employees in multiple offices prosecuting cases from DUI to murder. Strom was re-elected without opposition in 2012 and 2016. In his 12 years in office, approximately 50,000 warrants crossed his desk. In 2014, Strom was appointed by Gov. Haley to serve on the S.C. Commission for Prosecution Coordination and re-appointed by Gov. McMaster in 2018. In 2016 Strom was named to the 13th Class of Liberty Fellowship and elected president of the South Carolina Solicitors’ Association by his other 15 elected colleagues. Strom has given countless speeches and lectures on various legal topics to law enforcement agencies, coroners, magistrates, circuit court judges, and to the general public.
In 2021, Strom retired from public office and formed the law firm of Young & Thurmond, LLC with his lifelong friend, Tom Young, Strom will focus primarily on state and federal criminal matters, as well business and civil litigation. Strom is the only private attorney in South Carolina to have served as both a presidentially appointed United States Attorney and an elected Circuit Solicitor. He is uniquely qualified to assist in a wide variety of criminal matters and brings 22 years of experience to the table in finding successful and creative solutions to complex problems.
Strom is married to Heather Holland Thurmond. The have 2 sons, J. Strom and Field. The Thurmonds are members of Aiken’s First Baptist Church.
To see a recent news story about Strom, go here: