Passion
Born and raised in Hamilton County, Chris Jeter learned the value of hard work and the importance of pursuing his passions at a young age. He developed a competitive nature on the football field at Hamilton Southeastern High School and gained a thirst for knowledge during his studies, particularly in speech and history. Chris’s parents challenged him to achieve goals and continue his education. Tragically, Chris lost his father when he was only seventeen, and immediately turned his focus to caring for his mother. But she insisted that he go to college without delay. Chris enrolled at Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee, Oklahoma, near where his Father grew up. He worked several jobs to earn spending money.
Purpose
Chris went on to earn his Juris Doctorate from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. where he realized that his purpose was to serve others. He was proud to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps when he earned a commission as a JAG officer in the United States Navy. During his military service, Chris held an array of legal positions with various military commands both at home and abroad. He served in the United States Navy’s Litigation Office in Washington, D.C. where he handled multi-jurisdictional, multi-million-dollar lawsuits involving the Department of the Navy. Prior to that, he served as Legal Advisor to the Commanding Officer of U.S. Naval Support Activity, Naples, Italy, where he provided legal advice to senior Navy officers and civilians on a host of legal issues including labor, fiscal, contract, international, and criminal law.
Chris deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom during the troop surge in 2006-2007, where he served in Task Force 134, a unit dedicated to the detention and prosecution of terrorists. While in Iraq, Chris was promoted to Officer-in-Charge and later awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal by the Secretary of Defense for exceptional leadership. He has served in several other legal positions during his time in the Navy, including as a Special Assistant United States Attorney, Deputy Legal Counsel to the Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy, and Department of the Navy liaison to the Department of Justice during the prosecution of Somali Pirates in the Eastern District of Virginia. He continues to serve in the United States Navy Reserve.
Promise
Chris has never been one to sit back and hope that others achieve the results he believes are best for his community and his country. Chris believes in the Promise of tomorrow and is committed to creating more opportunity for growth and development in our community.
Upon leaving active duty, Chris took a job at Barnes & Thornburg LLP, where his practice focused primarily on representing companies, governments, and financial institutions. In April of 2015, no longer able to suppress his entrepreneurial spirit, Chris and his two partners, Mario Massillamany and Amy Carson, founded the Fishers law firm Massillamany Jeter & Carson LLP, where he continues to practice.
Chris is a devoted family man who treasures time with his wife, Karen, their three children, Macy, Hayden, and Kali, and the family’s black Lab, Kona. The Jeter family are members at Northview Church. Chris is a member of the NRA, the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Inc.
In the Statehouse. In August 2020, Chris was selected to fill the House District 88 seat, and the district has re-elected him in every election since. As Chair of the House Judiciary Committee and co-chair of the Bail and Release Review Commission, Chris has led on public safety and victims’ rights, voted for two of the largest tax cuts in state history, and championed parents’ rights in education. He brings the same principles to the Statehouse that he has held from day one.