Judge Thompson is a native of Floyd County, Kentucky. She graduated from Wheelwright High School and has a 1975 bachelor’s degree in communications and a 1992 law degree, both from the University of Kentucky.

Judge Thompson began her career as assistant prosecuting attorney in Mingo County in 1992. She also ran her own law practice, Thompson Law Office, until 2008.

She was elected family court judge in the Eighth Family Court Circuit (Mingo County) in 2008 and was appointed circuit judge for the Thirtieth Judicial Circuit (Mingo County) in 2014 by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin. Judge Thompson had won the 2014 primary for the circuit judge position before being appointed by Governor Tomblin and she went on to win the 2014 election and was re-elected in 2016.

She is a member of the West Virginia Judicial Association.

She and her husband, West Virginia native Gary Thompson, have two daughters (one of whom is deceased), and one granddaughter.