On April 30, 2018, the Georgia Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC), (which I co-chair with the Honorable Pete Robinson), will convene to continue the process of selecting nominees to recommend to the governor as he fills judge vacancies on the Georgia Court of Appeals. Never in the history of Georgia will a single governor have a greater impact on Georgia’s appellate courts—with as many as five appointments on the Georgia Court of Appeals, and two on the Georgia Supreme Court in just this year.
As noted in “Georgia Judicial Appointments Are at a Crossroads Concerning Diversity“—a letter authored by Advocacy For Action Inc. and PAC; retired Judge Thelma Wyatt Moore; Judge Bettianne Hart; Wayne Kendall; and Suzy Ockleberry last week in this paper—this is an important time for our state. Indeed, the upcoming JNC meeting will take place in the wake of recent events in a Gwinnett County trial in which I was involved that amply proves just how far we still have to go and how important diversity on our bench remains.
