Reeves began his legal career in 1991 as a staff attorney for the Supreme Court of Mississippi; later that year, he entered private practice as an associate at the Jackson, Mississippi office of regional law firm Phelps Dunbar. From 1995 to 2001, Reeves served as Chief of the Civil Division for the Office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi. In 2001, Reeves returned to private practice to found his own firm, Pigott Reeves Johnson. During his time in private practice, Reeves served on the boards of a number of civic organizations, including the ACLU of Mississippi, the Mississippi Center for Justice, and the Magnolia Bar Association.
Federal judicial service
On April 28, 2010, Reeves was nominated by President Barack Obama to fill a seat on the Southern District of Mississippi vacated by William Henry Barbour, Jr. Reeves was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 19, 2010 by voice vote. Reeves is the second African-American to serve on the federal judiciary in Mississippi. He received his commission on December 20, 2010.
Notable decisions
''Campaign for Southern Equality v. Bryant''
On November 25, 2014, Reeves ruled in the case of Campaign for Southern Equality v. Bryant that Mississippi’s same-sex marriage ban violated the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. Reeves' opinion noted the connection between racism and homophobia, and how that connection had long operated to oppress both black and LGBT Mississippians. Reeves held that, just as the state's views on race had led it to oppress blacks for generations, "Mississippi’s traditional beliefs about gay and lesbian citizens... away fundamental rights owed to every citizen. It is time to restore those rights."
''United States v. Butler''
On February 10, 2015, Reeves sentenced three young white men for their roles in the death of a 48-year-old black man named James Craig Anderson. They were part of a group that beat Anderson and then killed him by running over his body with a truck, yelling "white power" as they drove off. In handing down sentences of between 7 and 50 years in prison for the defendants, Reeves gave a widely publicized speech that remarked on how the killing of Anderson fit into Mississippi's "tortured past" of lynchings and racism. While noting that the defendants had "ripped off the scab of the healing scars of Mississippi," Reeves asserted that the integrated, race-neutral operation of Mississippi's modern-day justice system was "the strongest way" for the state to reject the racism of the past.
''Barber v. Bryant''
On June 30, 2016, Reeves issued a ruling that halted Mississippi's Religious Liberty Accommodations Act from going into effect. The Act provided protection to entities and individuals who refused to provide marriage-related goods and services to LGBT individuals. Reeves' holding noted that "eligious freedom was one of the building blocks of this great nation, and after the nation was torn apart, the guarantee of equal protection under law was used to stitch it back together. But does not honor that tradition of religiou freedom, nor does it respect the equal dignity of all of Mississippi's citizens. It must be enjoined." In June 2017 a panel of judges from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed Judge Reeves ruling in a 3-0 decision, finding that the plaintiffs lacked standing. The Religious Liberty Accommodations Act was reinstated.
''Moore v. Bryant''
On September 8, 2016, Reeves issued a ruling dismissing a lawsuit seeking to have the Mississippi state flag, which contains the Stars and Bars emblem of the Confederacy declared unconstitutional. The basis of the dismissal is the plaintiff's failure to allege a specific injury and thus an inability to demonstrate the standing necessary to bring an action in federal court.
''Jackson v. Currier''
On November 20, 2018, Reeves issued a written ruling in Jackson Women's Health Organization v. Currier. The ruling struck down a Mississippi law, passed in March 2018, that outlawed most abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy. Reeves had previously issued an injunction, effectively preventing the law from taking effect. His ruling included strong statements about the law, calling it "pure gaslighting" as well as an unconstitutional limitation on women's due-process rights. His ruling also invalidated a similar Louisiana law, which had been written as contingent on the outcome of the Mississippi lawsuit.
Current cases
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant signed a law scheduled to go into effect on July 1, 2019, that would ban abortions later than six weeks of pregnancy. The Center for Reproductive Rights in Jackson challenged the law. Because of his decision finding the prior, less restrictive, "15-week" law in the Currier case to be unconstitutional, Reeves began his decision by writing, "Here we go again. Mississippi has passed another law banning abortions prior to viability." He inquired, "Doesn't it boil down to six is less than fifteen?", adding that the new law "smacks of defiance to this court." Reeves noted that although there were exceptions for situations where the mother's life or health is endangered should pregnancy be taken to term, the law does not allow for exceptions in the cases of pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.
