Chief State Court Judge Linda S. Cowen told The Clayton Crescent Thursday that she will retire as of December 31.
Cowen said she was considering a senior judgeship, which would allow her to come back and help out as needed, but that she is ready to take a break and enjoy her family. In particular, Cowen said she wants to spend more time with her adult son who has severe autism. She also has a son in college.
Cowen, the first woman to preside as judge in Clayton County State Court, was appointed in December 1995. In 2006, she helped found the Clayton County DUI/Drug Court program. Cowen also was elected president of the Council of State Court Judges in 2013. That organization named her the winner of the Ogden Doremus/Kent Lawrence Award in 2014.
According to law.com, Cowen sent her written resignation to Gov. Brian Kemp on July 1:
Cowen appeared on The Real Story with Robin Kemp at the beginning of the COVID-19 epidemic. She talked about holding trial by YouTube Live, accountability courts as crimefighting tools, mental health, homeless people at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, and her election campaign.. You can listen to the interview here:
Listen to Cowen answer questions from the Clayton County Young Democrats during the 2020 campaign:
Because Cowen has two more years on her current term, that would allow Kemp to appoint her replacement. Nominations are due today, with applications due by October 7.
If you value The Clayton Crescent’s reporting, we ask you to consider making a monthly gift of support today. We are a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit newsroom allied with the Institute for Nonprofit News.
Unlike other local nonprofits, we do not take money from local or county government grants or from elected officials because doing so would compromise our ability to cover local government fairly.
Without independent news coverage in a given area, studies have proven that public corruption increases. We exist because other local news outlets do not consistently cover Clayton County with the same breadth and depth that we do. Nearly all other coverage you see elsewhere about Clayton County was broken first by The Clayton Crescent: events surrounding poll watchers during the 2020 Presidential election, questions about the Roman United proposed development, the COVID-19 outbreak at the Clayton County Jail, and so many other stories over the past two and a half years. Frequently, we run a story, then see it the next morning on local TV news shows or in the AJC. Our colleagues respect this operation and rely on it for planning their own news coverage.
The Clayton Crescent’s operations are funded by grants through the Institute for Nonprofit News and through your generous donations. Without the financial support of individual Clayton County residents, The Clayton Crescent cannot continue to operate.
Give now at https://donorbox.org/clayton-crescent by clicking the “Donate” button, then choosing “Monthly” and the amount that’s right for you. Then tell five of your friends about us.
We’re not a blog. We’re not Facebook. We are The Clayton Crescent, your nonprofit news source for Clayton County and the Southern Crescent. Thank you!
