Biography
Allen Vaught, his wife Donna, son Jonathan and daughter Morgan live in Lakewood Heights in Dallas. Allen was re-elected to the Texas House of Representatives for his second term on November 4, 2008 to represent District 107, which covers the area in east Dallas surrounding White Rock Lake–including Lakewood and parts of Lake Highlands, Garland, and Mesquite.
During his current term as State Representative, Allen was appointed Vice Chairman of the House Committee on Defense and Veterans’ Affairs and is a member of the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence.
Having grown up on a ranch west of Fort Worth in Wise County, Allen graduated from Bridgeport High School in 1990, and graduated from Baylor University in 1995 with a B.B.A. in accounting. He obtained his law degree from the South Texas College of Law in 1997 . Allen is a native Texan and the great-great-great-grandson of Sergeant Andrew Myers, a German immigrant who served in the 6th U.S. Cavalry, U.S. Army at Fort Richardson, Texas and then homesteaded in Jack and Wise Counties in the 1870s.
As a lawyer and a soldier, Allen has spent his life fighting to protect the rights and freedoms of others. He takes that same common sense, compassion, and determination to Austin in representing all of the citizens of District 107.
Lawyer Fighting for Victims of Environmental Toxins
Allen is an attorney in the Dallas office of Baron & Budd, P.C., and has a diverse practice which includes representing cancer victims in environmental toxin cases. Allen was himself a roughneck on drilling rigs in the early 1990’s while working to pay for college, and his family has a long history of working in the oilfields of north Texas. So it is with much pride that he fights for seriously injured workers today.
Soldier Fighting in Operation Iraqi Freedom
Allen attended the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, NC, graduating in 2001. He was a reserve Captain and was assigned to the U.S. Army Special Operations Command performing civil affairs and psychological operations missions. Allen served in Iraq from April 2003 to March 2004. He commanded one of the first units to enter Fallujah, assigned to rebuild that city and win the hearts and minds of its citizens. He was responsible for operating the local government and supervising programs to help its people. While there, Allen served as the de facto mayor of Fallujah.
After six months of operations in Fallujah while under fire from insurgents, Allen was transferred to Sadr City, Baghdad, to teach legislative process to multiple tribal and neighborhood councils, each of which was designed to operate much like an American city. While transporting two daughters of a local tribal leader to an American hospital, Allen’s convoy was hit by an improvised explosive device and small arms ambush. His back was fractured in the fight.
Allen was awarded the Purple Heart for his injuries and was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army Reserve. In addition, Allen was awarded the Combat Action Badge, Valorous Unit Award and numerous other awards for his service.
Allen’s service in Fallujah is being highlighted in an documentary called Road to Fallujah, which is currently being shown at film festivals in the U.S. He also has a role in the movie Green Zone, a feature length film starring Matt Damon and directed by Paul Greengrass, director of The Bourne Ultimatum, The Bourne Supremacy, and United 93.
