Criminal cases and family law
The two candidates for a vacant Superior Court judge seat talk qualifications ahead of the May 22 election.
Two experienced local attorneys are vying for the open judgeship in Floyd County Superior Court — a contest that will be decided in the May 22 election.
Advance voting will start on Monday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Floyd County Elections Office, 12 E. Fourth Ave., and Garden Lakes Baptist Church, 2200 Redmond Circle.
The nonpartisan race to succeed retiring Chief Judge Tami Colston is an important one.
“People who sit in these seats will be here a long time. It’s very unusual for an attorney to run against a sitting judge,” said Emily Matson.
The general practice attorney specializing in family law is facing off against Kay Ann Wetherington, an assistant district attorney in Colston’s courtroom.
Wetherington touted her experience with jury trials during a forum hosted last week by the Floyd County Republican Party that drew close to 100 people.
A judge’s job, she said, is to filter the evidence — to protect juries from hearing inadmissible testimony or risk seeing the verdicts overturned on appeal.
“And we don’t like to try cases twice,” Wetherington said. “The only way to learn the rules of evidence is to get in the trenches and do it.”
Matson underscored her varied background, handling cases from divorces and insurance claims to adoptions and property divisions. She said her initial interest in how laws are made and later work advocating for clients gives her an insight that’s needed on the bench.
“The judicial role is where the law most immediately and powerfully affects a person’s life,” she said.
Both candidates voiced support for the recent trend toward specialty courts, such as the county’s drug and mental health courts, and the alternative sentences offering offenders a chance at rehabilitation instead of jail.
Both also parried questions aimed at their qualifications and suitability for the position, which is one of four judgeships in the county’s highest criminal and — to a lesser extent — civil court.
For Matson, it was her lack of experience as the lead attorney in a jury trial. But she cited Superior Court Judge Billy Sparks’ similar background and his successes on the bench. Sparks is unopposed for re-election this year.
“Guilt is determined by the jury,” Matson said. “What you want from the judge is the temperament, the knowledge of the law, the ability to manage people and the courtroom and a vision for what this world should be.”
Wetherington’s 20 years in the district attorney’s office sparked a question about her ability to be impartial. She named several previous judges who had first served as DAs, including her old boss Colston.
“We’re all professionals and we all know each of us has a job to do,” Wetherington said, referring back to a previous statement about her current office: “We are prosecutors, but we are not persecutors. We’re not there to win cases; we’re there to protect people’s rights.”
Voters in the May 22 election will have a choice of three ballots, including a nonpartisan one that lists only the candidates for local and statewide judgeships. The ballots for the Democratic and Republican primaries also include the nonpartisan races.
Visit the Georgia My Voter Page online to check registration status and see sample ballots.