Douglas County’s probate judge was ousted by voters in Tuesday’s Democratic primary while facing removal from the bench as punishment for 30 ethics charges stemming from her first term in office.
Christina Peterson received just under 35% of the 14,041 votes counted in her election race against challenger Valerie Vie, a Douglasville attorney. There were no Republican candidates for Peterson’s seat, meaning Vie will run unopposed in the November general election.
Peterson’s time on the bench was cut short as she fights the Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission’s attempt to remove her from office. The judge, seated in an uncontested November 2020 election, is charged with 30 counts of violating the Georgia Code of Judicial Conduct.
The Georgia Supreme Court is considering what punishment, if any, Peterson should receive. Its decision could come in the next few months.
Peterson, a University of Georgia School of Law graduate who practiced as an attorney for several years before taking the bench, was accused of inappropriate social media posts, unnecessarily jailing and fining a woman who sought to amend her marriage license and letting wedding participants into Douglas County’s courthouse after hours without permission. She was also abusive toward a fellow judge and other county officials, obstructed access to public records and had improper contact with a litigant, among other things, the judicial commission alleged.
Commission members took issue with Peterson’s conduct as a judicial candidate — she publicly made ribald jokes, solicited money for her birthday and promoted events at Atlanta bars in connection with her 2020 election bid. They also found fault with her behavior at a 2022 meeting of her homeowners association, saying she mocked several attendees and lobbed “petty and sarcastic retorts” while inappropriately trying to influence a pending lawsuit that she had filed against the association and its directors.
“And so she must go,” a commission panel said in its March 31 report to the state Supreme Court, citing Peterson’s “systemic incompetence.”
Peterson and her attorney in the ethics case did not immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment. They asked the state Supreme Court in late April to reject the commission’s “erroneous factual findings contradicted by the records” and its recommendation that she be removed from the bench.
The judge was first charged with code violations in July 2021. At one point, she faced 50 separate counts, but 20 were withdrawn or dismissed.
Throughout the ethics case, Peterson has said that she has faced unfair criticism as the first Black probate judge in Douglas County. During a series of hearings before the commission panel last year, Peterson admitted to making mistakes in her first year as a judge while learning the ropes and said she was trying to do better.
Peterson acknowledged that it was “harsh” of her to jail and fine the woman who sought, without an attorney, to amend her marriage license in 2021. She also expressed regret about sending an April 2021 email to David Emerson, who at the time was the chief judge of the Douglas County Superior Court, questioning his judicial authority and competency and asking that he retire as “this county has outgrown your spirit.”
In its report, the panel said Peterson had been disingenuous, if not outright dishonest, during the investigation process. It said her testimony during the hearings was untruthful and evasive.
Vie said she looks forward to serving the county as its probate judge.
“Douglas County asked for new leadership and I obliged,” she said. “I will serve with proficiency, efficiency and empathy.”
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