Sharon lawyer William G. McConnell Jr. has announced his intention to run for Mercer County Common Pleas judge.

McConnell, 38, a Mercer County native and Sharon High School graduate, received a degree from Westminster College.

He received his law degree in 1989 from Duquesne University School of Law, where he was selected to join the staff of the Duquesne Law Review. While attending law school, he completed Officer Candidate School at Quantico, Va., and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps.

After receiving his law degree, McConnell worked for the Pittsburgh law firm of Wayman, Irvin and McCauley before he was assigned to active duty. In 1990, he graduated from the Naval Justice School in Newport, R.I.

While in the Marine Corps, McConnell served as a criminal defense counsel and legal assistance officer while stationed in Okinawa, Japan, and Parris Island, S.C. He served in Operation Desert Storm as an aide de campe to Gen. Norman Ehlert in Saudi Arabia.

After being honorably discharged from the Marines with the rank of captain, McConnell practiced law in South Carolina. He returned to Mercer County in 1996 and joined what is now the law firm of Ekker, Kuster, McConnell and Epstein, where he practices law with an emphasis in civil and criminal litigation.

McConnell has represented clients before Mercer County courts and in surrounding counties. He also has argued cases before U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania and before the Pennsylvania Appellate Courts.

McConnell is a member of Covenant Presbyterian Church, Sharon, where he serves as a deacon. He is an officer and a director of Hickory Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6166 in Hermitage and a member of American Legion Post 299 in Sharon.

McConnell was appointed to Sharon Industrial Development Authority and is a director of the ARC Foundation of Mercer County. He is a member of both the Mercer County and Pennsylvania bar associations.

"My legal knowledge, broad lifetime experiences and leadership abilities, combined with my strong belief in the importance of fairness and integrity will serve me well on the bench," McConnell said.