The chief Magistrate Court judge in Rabun County resigned Tuesday while under investigation by the state's judicial watchdog agency for committing repeated errors on the bench.
Lawrence M. "Rocky" Ford becomes the fourth judge from the Mountain Judicial Circuit to step down in recent years amid investigations by the Judicial Qualifications Commission. In a court filing, the JQC said it began investigating Ford after receiving complaints that he failed to follow "appropriate criminal procedure."
Clayton lawyer Michael Cummings II, who represented Ford during the inquiry, acknowledged there were allegations that Ford committed mistakes on the bench.
"Even if true, they were unintentional and there was nothing nefarious going on, not even a hint of dishonesty," Cummings said. "He always tried to do the right thing. His heart was always in the right place."
Ford, who served more than three decades as a law enforcement officer in Florida, became a magistrate after retiring and moving to North Georgia. Ford did not have a law degree, which was not a prerequisite for the job, and had never been trained in the law in any meaningful way, Cummings said.
"He took the job to help out in our small area," Cummings said. "He just felt like it'd be better for himself and his family for him to step down instead of facing this type of scrutiny."
In 2010, three judges from the circuit -- comprised of Habersham, Rabun and Stephens counties -- stepped down after the JQC had launched investigations: Superior Court judges Ernest "Bucky" Woods and James Cornwell Jr. and Habersham County Probate Judge Sue Bottoms.
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