Fulton County Courthouse

Gov. Nathan Deal's Judicial Nominating Commission has given him a shortlist of recommended candidates to fill a vacancy on the Superior Court of the Atlanta Judicial Circuit.

The governor will choose from that list, or outside it if he chooses, to fill the opening created by the resignation of Fulton County Superior Court Judge Alford Dempsey, Jr.

The JNC said in its shortlist announcement that the governor's staff will contact the candidates to schedule interviews. The recommended candidates for Dempsey's seat are:

  • Judge Shukura I. Millender, Fulton County Magistrate Court
  • Richard Moultrie Jr., assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia
  • Rebecca Crumrine Rieder, owner, Hedgepeth, Heredia & Rieder

Dempsey, 71, confirmed May 1 that he plans to retire after 23 years of service. His last day at work will be May 31.

A Morehouse College graduate, Dempsey earned his J.D. at Harvard Law School in 1976. His first job, according to a biography on the History Makers website, was handling legal work for a political campaign. The slogan was “Why not the best?” The candidate was former Gov. Jimmy Carter, who was running for president.

After Carter went on to the White House, Dempsey returned to Atlanta and worked as an assistant city attorney from 1977 to 1992. He became a judge first on the Fulton County Magistrate Court. Gov. Zell Miller appointed him to the Fulton County Superior Court in 1995.