Gov. Nathan Deal’s Judicial Nominating Commission has forwarded the names of three judges and a prosecutor as finalists to fill a vacancy on the Gwinnett Superior Court bench.

The governor will soon interview Chief Gwinnett Magistrate Judge George F. Hutchinson III, DeKalb Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney John Melvin, Gwinnett State Court Judge Randy Rich and Gwinnett Magistrate Robert D. Walker Jr. The vacancy was created by the recent elevation of Judge William M. Ray II to the state Court of Appeals.

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Julian Conley listens during opening statements in his trial at Fulton County Superior Court in Atlanta on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. The 25-year-old is accused of fatally shooting 8-year-old Secoriea Turner in July 2020. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

Credit: abbey.cutrer@ajc.com