MONROE, Ga. — The district attorney for Newton County began his first full term in the position Jan. 1 after his election in November.

Randy McGinley has served as the acting district attorney since June 2 after working as chief assistant district attorney for more than three years. 

Under state law, he moved up to replace former DA Layla Zon on an interim basis after Gov. Brian Kemp named Zon as a Superior Court judge in May. 

McGinley now takes office as the district attorney for a four-year term after winning the job outright in the Nov. 3 General Election.

He began his career in the Alcovy Judicial Circuit district attorney's office after Zon, who served as DA from 2010 until May 2020, hired McGinley as an assistant DA in 2011.

Zon swore in McGinley at the Walton County Historic Courthouse in Monroe. McGinley's wife, Charly, and their two daughters joined him for the event. 

Superior Court Judges John Ott, Eugene Benton, Ken Wynne, Cheveda McCamy and Jeff Foster, as well as family members, members of local law enforcement and friends also attended, stated a posting on the Alcovy District Attorney’s office’s Facebook page.

McGinley said in the posting, "I look forward to continuing to serve the people of Newton and Walton Counties as I have for almost 10 years.

"Our offices are full of wonderful individuals that work day in and day out to achieve justice and help victims of crimes in our communities. I assure you that we will continue to be DA's Office that always strives to do the right thing and works harder than anyone to achieve that,” he said. 

“I remain committed to working with the community to ensure that Newton and Walton Counties are a place where we want to raise our families,” McGinley said.

He thanked his wife and family “for their love and support” in seeking the office. 

“I also want to thank everyone that came (Dec. 31) and all those that could not but have supported and helped me along the way,” he said.

"Thank you to the people of Newton and Walton County who have entrusted me in this job. And finally, I want to thank everyone in the Newton and Walton DA's Offices for their hard work and dedication in serving our communities."

McGinley will manage the day-to-day operations of both the Newton and Walton County DA offices with about 60 total employees and almost 25 attorneys. 

He also will prosecute the most serious cases in both counties such as murders, rapes and child molestations and complex racketeering cases involving white collar crimes and drug distribution rings, he said. 

McGinley earned an undergraduate degree in business management from Georgia Tech and his law degree from Mercer University.

He was named as the chief assistant district attorney in January 2017.

McGinley is the first Walton County resident to serve as district attorney since Ott left the job upon his appointment as a judge in 1990.