Gov. Kemp appoints Katy Paulk to State Court bench

Katy Paulk is Coffee County’s new State Court Judge.

Gov. Brian P. Kemp has announced his appointments to the following judicial posts: the Honorable Ryan Hope to the State Court of Clarke County, filling a vacancy created by the resignation of the Honorable Ethelyn Simpson; Claire Chason and Lawton Heard to the South Georgia Judicial Circuit, filling vacancies created by the resignation of the Honorable Kevin Chason and the passage of House Bill 624; District Attorney Chris Arnt to the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, filling a vacancy created by the resignation of the Honorable Ralph Van Pelt, Jr.; Clayton Fuller to the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney vacancy created by the appointment of Chris Arnt; the Honorable Michael Hubbard to the Carroll County State Court, filling a vacancy created by appointment of the Honorable Erica Tisinger to the Superior Court of the Coweta Judicial Circuit; and Katherine Paulk to the Coffee County State Court, filling the vacancy created by the resignation of the Honorable Robert H. Preston.

Paulk has served as Solicitor General of Coffee County since 2012. She also serves as a Solicitor for the Municipal Court of Douglas, Georgia, where she prosecutes all misdemeanor cases. Previously, she served as an Assistant District Attorney for the Waycross Judicial Circuit and continues in this role on a part-time basis, aiding in felony cases to assist in the backlog of serious, violent offenses. She also worked as a paralegal before obtaining her law degree. Paulk earned her J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law and B.B.A. from Valdosta State University. She and her family reside in Ambrose.