GEORGIA - Covington City Attorney Frank B. Turner Jr. was appointed Thursday by Gov. Brian P. Kemp to the Judicial Nominating Commission alongside 24 other attorneys across the state. 

The JNC makes recommendations to the governor to fill vacancies in state, superior and appellate courts in Georgia. 

"As governor, I am honored to appoint this impressive coalition of attorneys to the Judicial Nominating Commission," Gov. Kemp said. "Together, we will work tirelessly to ensure that members of the state's judiciary branch represent our values and serve with integrity and humility. I thank each of these distinguished individuals for accepting this call to service on behalf of hardworking Georgians across our state."

Turner said he was honored by the governor's appointment to the board. 

"I look forward to working with the commission to make recommendations as to the very best candidates for judicial office," he said. "While judges in Georgia are elected, the Georgia constitution empowers the governor to appoint judges when vacancies occur.  The JNC reviews all applications from prospective judges and makes recommendations to the governor following an interview process.  The Governor has the ultimate responsibility for making the appointments."

Turner is a partner at Greer,Stansfield & Turner LLP in Covington and has served as the city attorney for Covington since 2017.

“We are very proud of Frank’s appointment to Gov. Kemp’s Judicial Nominating Commission," City Manager Leigh Anne Knight said. "We have always believed Frank does an excellent job representing the city of Covington and its citizens and to be appointed by Georgia’s Governor shows exactly the caliber of professional he is.”

Alongside Turner, the full list of Gov. Kemp's appointments is as follows:

Co-Chairs:

Mark Middleton - Atlanta, Ga. - Counsel, Gilbert, Harrell, Sumerford & Martin, P.C.

Vincent Russo - Atlanta, Ga. - Partner, The Robbins Firm

Shannon Wallace - Canton, Ga. - District Attorney, Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit

Members:

Neera Bahl - Atlanta - Attorney at Law, One Path Legal

Beth Beskin - Atlanta - Attorney at Law, Elizabeth A. Beskin, P.C.

Michael Boggs - Atlanta - Justice, Georgia Supreme Court

Derek Bottoms - Atlanta - Vice President, The Home Depot

Lance Cooper - Marietta - Partner, The Cooper Firm

Meg Heap - Savannah - District Attorney, Eastern Judicial Circuit

Robert Highsmith - Atlanta - Partner, Holland & Knight

Drew Hill - Athens- Shareholder, Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley, P.C.

Anne Kaufold-Wiggins - Vidalia - Partner, Balch & Bingham LLP

Shawn E. LaGrua - Atlanta - Judge, Fulton County Superior Court

Anh Le - Decatur - Director of Operations & Business Development, King Commercial Properties, Inc.

Quentin Marlin - Savannah - Partner, Ellis, Painter, Ratterree & Adams LLP

John Mroczko - Cartersville- Attorney at Law, John T. Mroczko, P.C.

Brooke Newby - Perry - Managing Partner, Walker Hulbert Gray & Moore, LLP

Natalie Paine - Augusta - District Attorney, Augusta Judicial Circuit

Darrell Sutton - Marietta - Partner, Sutton Law Group

Mack Taylor - Evans - Attorney at Law, Mack Taylor Law

Trey Taylor - Dublin - Attorney at Law, Taylor Law, LLC

Ryan Teague - Atlanta - Attorney at Law, The Robbins Firm

Frank Turner, Jr. - Covington - Attorney at Law, Greer, Stansfield & Turner, LLP

Josh Waters - Perry - Associate Attorney, Walker Hulbert Gray & Moore, LLP

Kathleen Wilkinson - Atlanta  - Attorney at Law, Hall Booth Smith, P.C.