Three Locals On Shortlist for Judgeship

Three locals were named to a shortlist given to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp to fill the spot left open in the Cherokee Judicial Circuit by late Judge Carey Nelson’s passing. District Attorney Rosemary Greene, Cherokee Judicial Circuit Chief Public Defender Christopher Paul and local attorney Jeff Watkins were the three names given to Governor Kemp from the commission. They were selected from a group of five interviewed by the commission on Monday.

Nelson, who died on March 18^th, served as a judge in the Cherokee Judicial Circuit, which covers Gordon and Bartow counties, up until his death. Nelson primarily worked out of Bartow County and was appointed to his Superior Court post in 2001 by then Georgia Governor Roy Barnes.

The person chosen will be up for election in 2020.