Fred B. McKinley

Fred B. McKinley is a fifth-generation Texan, a descendant of Revolutionary War, War of 1812, War for Texas Independence, and Confederate soldiers, a Texas Ranger, and whose father served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. He embarked on a long and distinguished career in the credit industry and retired with the Louisiana Department of Justice, where he served as a supervisory criminal investigator with the Attorney General's office. A native of Beaumont, Texas, McKinley graduated from Lamar State College of Technology (1964) and Lamar University (1987). He attended Louisiana State University (1995), where he received a law enforcement certification. He is the author or co-author of four books: A Plea For Justice: The Timothy Cole Story; Chinqua Where? The Spirit of Rural America, 1947-1955; Devil's Pocket, a novel; and the critically-acclaimed Black Gold to Bluegrass: From the Oil Fields of Texas to Spindletop Farm of Kentucky (co-authored with Greg Riley). McKinley has also contributed numerous articles to national and professional publications, and he is a strong supporter of the Innocence Project of Texas in Lubbock. He is the father of three, grandfather of three, and lives with his wife Dottie in Burleson, Texas.