Rachelle Carnesale (Courtesy photo)

Gov. Brian Kemp has chosen a Cherokee County prosecutor to fill a vacancy on the Fulton County Superior Court.

Kemp's office announced Wednesday afternoon that he'd picked Rachelle Carnesale, Cherokee County's chief assistant district attorney, for the post.

Carnesale was on a short list with Melynee Leftridge, a Fulton County Magistrate Court judge and Richard Moultrie Jr., an assistant U.S. attorney in Atlanta, that was selected by Kemp's Judicial Nominating Commission. The seat was vacated by the retirement of Judge Gail Tusan.

“Rachelle Carnesale's experience, temperament, and leadership style are ideal for the Atlanta Judicial Circuit Superior Court,” Kemp said in a statement.

He added that as “a successful prosecutor and fierce advocate for our most vulnerable,” Carnesale “will lead by example and excel on the bench.”

Carnesale is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Emory University School of Law. Before joining the Cherokee DA's office, she was director of the Division of Family & Children Services, acting director of the Office of the Child Advocate and deputy chief district attorney in DeKalb County, where she supervised the Crimes Against Children Unit.

Carnesale lives in Fulton County with her husband, Keith, and two children, according to Kemp's statement.

The Cherokee Tribune & Ledger-News reported that Carnesale in 2017 successfully prosecuted a former police officer and soldier for lying about being a Purple Heart recipient. He was sentenced to 60 days in prison and nearly 10 years of probation for six felony counts of making false statements for submitting a falsified documents to obtain a tax-exempt Purple Heart license plate.

The defendant also sued a TV news station over its reporting of the matter. The Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of his libel suit.