Chief Magistrate Judge Candidates Meet Cherokee County Voters

CANTON — Candidates for Cherokee County chief magistrate judge met with voters April 25 to make their case to lead the Magistrate Court.

Chief Associate Magistrate Greg Douds and Associate Magistrate Jack “Trey” Goodwin III have qualified to run as Republicans for Cherokee’s chief magistrate. No Democrats signed up to run for the post.

Chief Magistrate James E. Drane III is retiring at the end of the year.

Douds and Goodwin participated in a forum at the historic Cherokee County Courthouse in Canton April 25, hosted by the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce and Cherokee County Farm Bureau. The forum had about 120 attendees, Cherokee Chamber President and CEO Pam Carnes said.

Douds, a full-time associate magistrate serving his 16th year on the bench, said he is running to give the court a seamless transition. He added that he worked side-by-side with Drane for 15 years.

He said he helped save taxpayer dollars through “responsible budgeting and spending.”

“When our chief magistrate was out this year sick for months, you did not have to worry about the operation of your court because we are prepared,” Douds said. “We can’t lose 15 years of steady progress overnight.”

Goodwin, a Canton family attorney who has worked as a part-time associate magistrate judge in Cherokee County for eight years, said that if he is elected, he will make sure any vacant positions are filled. He added that he wants to make sure individuals hired to fill the positions are well educated, qualified, have experience in criminal law and know how to deal with warrants.

He added that he “is the right man for the job” and that he is “ready, willing and able to serve the community he grew up in and loves.”

Both candidates shared their experience and why they feel they are qualified to run for this position.

Douds said that in addition to being a trial and appellate lawyer with 28 years of experience, he is a certified public accountant, and serves as a deputy staff judge advocate for the Georgia State Defense Force. In his role in the magistrate court, he said he used zero-based budgeting to return a surplus to the county every year. He said he wants to continue moving the court’s cases forward and efficiently manage taxpayer money and resources.

Goodwin is the owner of Atlanta Adoption and Family Law in Canton. He said he has been in private practice for over 12 years, and his firm focuses on estate planning, adoption, family, and juvenile law. He also worked as the senior staff attorney for Judge Frank C. Mills, III in Cherokee’s Superior Court for five years, where he reviewed and advised attorneys on adoptions, researched and drafted legal opinions, attended budget meetings with local leaders and more.

The candidates were also asked about what can be done to reduce the eviction case backlog.

Goodwin referenced House Bill 1017, which was signed by Gov. Brian Kemp April 24 in an effort to address illegal squatting.

The bill creates the offense of unlawful squatting when someone enters upon the land or premises of the owner without the owner or rightful occupant’s knowledge or consent. The bill makes it so violators will receive a citation advising them to present documentation within three business days authorizing their presence on the land or premises. If the person does not present the documentation, they will be charged with misdemeanor criminal trespassing.

Douds said there is no backlog in Cherokee because “we just move the cases.”

“We don’t stray outside of our lanes like other magistrates in different courts who do Superior Court work when they should be in their own courtrooms handling these limited jurisdiction cases,” he said.

Asked about some Cherokee County citizens not being able to afford a lawyer, Douds said the magistrate court is designed to have simplified and accessible procedures and forms so people can come to court without a lawyer. Goodwin said the magistrate court is often referred to as “the people’s court” because it provides more help and access to help move the cases along if a person can’t afford a lawyer.