Howard Payne University criminal justice students were recently visited by Roy Robb, 1967 HPU alumnus and current member of the university’s Board of Trustees. Robb, whose career in the criminal justice field spanned more than 40 years, was responsible for taking care of the 400 people removed from the Yearning for Zion Ranch following the arrest of Warren Jeffs, former president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Jeffs was later brought to Texas to stand trial on charges stemming from the raid on the YFZ Ranch by law enforcement officers. He is currently serving a sentence of life in prison plus 20 years. Robb, then court master for the 51st Judicial District Court, was tasked with daily briefings and written reports in the investigation of Jeffs prior to the arrest.Lynn Humeniuk, associate professor of criminal justice and sociology and director of HPU’s criminal justice program, invited Robb to speak to HPU’s criminal justice students regarding the details of this politically and legally challenging case.
“Mr. Robb’s lecture was invaluable to our students who are planning to pursue careers in criminal justice,” she said. “We’re thankful for his dedication to the field and to HPU.”
Robb served as director of probation services for the 51st, 119th and 340th District Courts. He also served as secure program specialist with the Texas Youth Commission, a role from which he retired in 2005.
After earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from HPU in 1967, he went on to receive a Master of Criminal Justice degree from American Technological University in 1976.
Though HPU did not offer a criminal justice degree during Robb’s time as a student at HPU, he said the education he received encouraged him to enter his chosen profession.
“At Howard Payne, I experienced how Christian professors never gave up on students,” he said. “I witnessed lives being changed and grew to care deeply for youth who had problems. Howard Payne shaped what I did in my life by giving me the deep desire to help others.”
Pictured above: Roy Robb, HPU alumnus and trustee, recently addressed criminal justice students at the university.
