Born in McComb, Mississippi, Starrett received a Bachelor of Science degree from Mississippi State University in 1972 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1974.

On July 6, 2004, Starrett was nominated by President George W. Bush to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi vacated by Charles W. Pickering.

Starrett was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 20, 2004, and received his commission on December 13, 2004.

In May 2024, NPR revealed that Starrett had failed to disclose receiving free travel to the Beaver Creek Colloquium, a privately funded legal seminar hosted at a resort in Beaver Creek, Colorado in June 2021 on his annual financial disclosure form for that year, in violation of federal ethics law.

[1] In response, Starrett told NPR that the omission was an "oversight.