Wheale stepping down as juvenile court judge
She will resign effective March 8 citing ‘pending litigation’ against Polk and Haralson counties.
A new juvenile court judge for the Tallapoosa Judicial Circuit will need to be appointed after current judge Laura Lundy Wheale confirmed her resignation last week.
In a resignation letter provided to media on Wednesday, Feb. 23, Wheale wrote to Tallapoosa Superior Court Chief Judge Meng Lim to inform him she would be stepping down from her post as the judicial circuit’s juvenile court judge effective March 8, exactly three years since she was sworn in after being appointed by Lim.
Wheale filed a lawsuit against Polk and Haralson counties soon after her appointment to the bench and later added the state. It accused the governments of discrimination because her pay was set lower than that of her male predecessor.
She also alleged that officials had kept her out of the loop on budget discussions, that she was not given proper access to equipment and she wasn’t given proper funding to hire proper staff.
The suit was dismissed by a federal district court judge in September, but Wheale pledged to appeal the ruling.
In her letter to Lim, dated Feb. 7, Wheale referred to her “pending litigation” and cited the problems listed in her lawsuit as the reason for her resignation.
“I’ve tried my best to ferry this court and the selfless staff members who were willing to work with me during the covid pandemic. I also have tried to live up to my commitment to the community, but I feel the refusal of the counties to treat me — and by extension, this court and staff — equally does a disservice to the interests of this court and the families of this community at an unjustified cost to me, personally, and to my family,” Wheale stated.
“To protect against the
appearance of impropriety or personal interest, I publicly pledged, in writing, at the inception of these claims nearly three years ago to donate any and all proceeds from this litigation to fund scholarships to foster children. I took an oath of office when I was appointed, and I have tried to honor that oath through these efforts.”
Wheale said that she has agreed to remain on as judge pro tem for the juvenile court following her resignation, to help allow for a smooth and efficient transition.
Appointed in March 2019 to serve as the head of Polk
and Haralson counties’ juvenile courts, Wheale had no previous experience as a judge but had been practicing law for several years. She was appointed following Judge Mark Murphy’s appointment to Tallapoosa Superior Court judge after he had served as the circuit’s juvenile court judge for over 20 years.
The Cedartown native highlighted some of the accomplishments she felt the juvenile court had achieved during her time on the bench, including clearing a backlog of cases, establishing the family treatment court, and ending “rubber stamping” indigent counsel timesheets.
“To give credit where
credit is due, these successes were not the result of any herculean efforts on my part. Instead, it was the culmination of efforts from the people who work
in, with, and around the court, determined to see families succeed,” Wheale wrote. “Everyone in Juvenile Court has worked tirelessly and selflessly, shouldering
more responsibility than is fair to expect from them.”
Qualifying for the May primaries, which includes the seat currently held by Lim, is set for March 7-11.