Part I: It’s Time for Muscogee County to Control Its Own Judicial Destiny

For too long, we have talked around the issue instead of talking directly about it. So let me say it plainly: It is time for a serious public conversation about whether Muscogee County should have its own judicial circuit.

This is bigger than who gets the next judgeship. It is bigger than whether the next judge is Black or white, male or female, Democrat or Republican. The fundamental question is much simpler: Should the citizens of Muscogee County have a greater voice in determining who sits in judgment over the people of Muscogee County?

I believe the answer is yes.

Our current judicial structure means voters outside Muscogee County can influence the outcome of races for offices that have an enormous impact on the lives of people here. As the discussion that prompted this column pointed out, a candidate can carry Muscogee County and still lose once votes from other counties in the circuit are counted.

That deserves more than a passing conversation.

Representation Matters

We constantly say government should reflect the people it serves. Why should the judiciary be exempt from that principle? A courtroom may be governed by statutes, precedent and constitutional law, but judges are still human beings. Every person brings life experiences to the bench.

That does not mean a Black judge will always rule one way or a white judge another. It does not mean women dispense justice differently simply because they are women. It means perspective matters.

We all see the world, at least in part, through the lens of what we have experienced. That was one of the most important points raised in the conversation behind this column: A judicial bench should include life experiences that more closely reflect the community appearing before it.

Look at Muscogee County. Look at the racial and gender diversity of this community. Then look at the judicial bench. Are the two truly in alignment? I don't believe they are.

The concern is not that every judge must look like every defendant who walks into a courtroom. That would be both impossible and undesirable. The goal should not be replacing one form of imbalance with another. The goal should be opportunity, diversity and public confidence.

Elections Should Matter

There is another issue we cannot ignore: the power of appointment.

When judicial vacancies occur between elections, governors can gain enormous influence over who occupies those seats. Once an appointed judge becomes the incumbent, that person can enter the next election with the advantages that come with already holding the office.

That may be legal. That may be the process. But citizens still have every right to question whether the process gives voters the strongest possible voice in choosing their judiciary.

The underlying discussion was direct about this concern, arguing that judicial positions should, whenever possible, be decided by the electorate rather than effectively determined through appointments created by the timing of vacancies.

I agree. Judicial seats belong to the people — not political parties, not governors, not lawyers, not courthouse insiders and not the people who already occupy the bench. If we believe in elections, then let the people elect.

Put It on the Legislative Agenda

This cannot remain another conversation whispered in hallways, discussed over lunch or complained about after another appointment is announced. It needs to become a public policy discussion.

The Columbus Consolidated Government should examine the issue. Our local legislative delegation should examine it. Attorneys should weigh in. Judges should weigh in. Community organizations should weigh in. And most importantly, the people should weigh in.

The source conversation specifically raised the possibility of putting the judicial circuit issue on the city's legislative agenda and holding a public discussion about it. I believe that is exactly where we should begin.

What would it take legislatively for Muscogee County to establish its own circuit? What would be the financial implications? How many judges would be required? What happens to the existing circuit? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Put the facts on the table. Then let the community decide whether this is a fight worth having.

But There Is Another Side to This Conversation

We cannot demand greater opportunity for African American attorneys and then discover nobody is willing to step forward. That challenge was also raised in the discussion: If opportunities for judicial office are expanded, qualified African American attorneys must be willing to put their names on the ballot and run.

That point cannot be ignored. We need qualified Black attorneys, women attorneys and attorneys from different backgrounds who are willing to prepare themselves, build community relationships, develop strong professional reputations and ultimately say: “I am willing to serve.”

Representation doesn't happen simply because we complain about its absence. Somebody has to step forward. Somebody has to qualify. Somebody has to campaign. And somebody has to vote.

This Is About More Than Race

Some people will read this column and immediately reduce the conversation to race. They will miss the point. I am not arguing that every judicial seat should be occupied by a Black judge. In fact, a truly representative judiciary would include people of different races, genders, backgrounds and life experiences.

What I am arguing is that Muscogee County deserves a judicial bench that more closely reflects the community it serves and an electoral structure that gives local voters a meaningful opportunity to shape that bench.

The source conversation captured the principle clearly: The courts are not presently viewed as being in alignment with the population they serve, particularly when considering racial and gender representation.

That is a conversation worth having publicly. Not after the next vacancy. Not after the next appointment. Not after the next election. Now. Because the people who stand before our judges come from every neighborhood, every economic class, every race and every walk of life in this community.

The judiciary that sits above them should demonstrate that justice belongs to all of them.

Perhaps a single Muscogee County judicial circuit is the answer. Perhaps after careful study we will determine there is a better solution.

But doing nothing should no longer be acceptable. It is time for Muscogee County to have the conversation. It is time to put the issue on the legislative agenda. And most of all, it is time for the people whose lives are affected by our courts to have a stronger voice in determining who sits on the bench.

Justice may be blindfolded — but the system that administers it should never be blind to the community it serves.