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About the Candidate

Education

  • Duke University, BA, 1979
  • University of North Carolina School of Law, 1984

Personal/Family

  • I reside in Jonesboro with my husband Ted. We have an adult daughter age 36 who is married and resides in Jonesboro also.
  • I am a member of First Baptist Church of Jonesboro. I am an avid Pickleball player.
  • I graduated Summa Cum Laude from Duke in the double majors of Psychology and Sociology, with distinction therein, and as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. As a juvenile court judge in Clayton County, I was on the Child Advocate Committee for the state. As District Attorney I was President of the District Attorney’s Association and named District Attorney of the Year in 2015.

Professional Background, Bar Activities, Civic Activities

  • I have been in private practice in Jonesboro for four years handling both criminal and civil cases in addition to writing wills and doing some probate work.
  • 1984-1985 Law Clerk for the Honorable Floyd Propst, Probate Court of Fulton County
  • 1985-1995 Assistant District Attorney in the Clayton Judicial Circuit
  • 1995-1999 Associate Juvenile Court Judge in Clayton County
  • 1999-2008 Juvenile Court Judge in Clayton County
  • 2009-2019 District Attorney for the Clayton Judicial Circuit
  • Member of the State Bar of Georgia since 1984
  • Previous Mock Trial Coach for Riverdale High School; participated as a juror and judge for Mock Trial numerous times

Main Issues Facing the State Bar/Position

  • There needs to be greater access to attorneys in the rural areas of our state. There are some counties with no lawyers. Perhaps offering a form of financial support from the state, tax credits for attorneys practicing in those circuits, stipends for attorneys in the public defender or district attorney’s offices or law school scholarships to attorneys who agree to go and practice in certain areas for a specified number of years, would encourage attorneys to work there.
  • Similarly, accessible CLE training needs to be offered across the state. The Bar could host training or encourage law firms to do so in the more rural areas of our state.