Gov. Sonny Perdue on Tuesday picked the head of the state's public defender agency and a former district attorney to replace two Fayette County Superior Court judges who resigned earlier this year amid allegations of sexual misconduct.

The governor filled the vacancies by naming Mack Crawford, a former state lawmaker who is director of the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council, and W. Fletcher Sams, the former DA who is now a Fayette State Court judge. Perdue named Atlanta lawyer Carla McMillian to replace Sams on the State Court bench.

In April, Judge Johnnie Caldwell resigned after a local lawyer accused him of repeatedly sexually harassing her with crude comments. The following week, Judge Paschal English resigned after disclosures he was having an affair with a public defender who appeared before him in court.

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Carleigh Knight (left) and her sister, Natalie Rogovin, look at Christmas ornaments while shopping at Kudzu Antiques + Modern in Decatur on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Natrice Miller/AJC)

Credit: Natrice Miller