Complex sentence: He was an attorney in private practice from 1985--1996, when he became Chief Assistant District Attorney for the 12th Judicial Circuit of Alabama, and was then elected District Attorney of the 12th Circuit in 1996 where he served until his appointment as a federal judge.
Split into simpler sentences: He was an attorney in private practice from 1985--1996, when he became Chief Assistant District Attorney for the 12th Judicial Circuit of Alabama. In 1996, he was elected District Attorney of the 12th Circuit where he served until his appointment as a federal judge.