Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has chosen a judge currently serving in Richmond County Juvenile Court to fill a vacancy on the Superior Court bench. Kemp selected Judge Amanda Heath to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of then-Chief Judge Carl Brown.
Heath is a board director of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. According to her bio on their website, Heath was appointed in Oct. 2016 and is the youngest sitting judge in the AJC and the first African-American female to serve in the position.
Chief Judge Danny Craig said Heath will begin serving after she is sworn in by the governor.
“She will be assigned a caseload that has been assigned to that division of Superior Court, but which has been presided over by all of the current judges as we awaited her appointment,” he said. “We all know Judge Heath’s work and her work ethic, and it is with that knowledge that we are all looking forward to her service as our colleague.”
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Heath will fill Judge Brown’s unexpired term. He was elected to a new term in 2020. Brown had served as a judge since 1994. Brown resigned effective June 30, 2021, citing health and family reasons.
The resignation was part of an agreement with the Judicial Qualifications Commission Investigative Panel and was filed with the Georgia Supreme Court. The commission was investigating Brown on three allegations of judicial misconduct.
Per Heath’s bio, she is Chairperson of the Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Committee for the Georgia Council of Juvenile Court Judges. She is also the Georgia Co-chairperson for the National Association of Women Judges and serves on the Georgia Supreme Court Committee for Justice for Children.
Katie Byrd, spokeswoman for Kemp, said a date has not yet been set for Heath’s swearing-in ceremony.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a Staff Reporter with The Augusta Press. You can reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com.
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