Georgia House votes to name new courts building ‘Nathan Deal Judicial Center’

A new building for Georgia’s highest courts could be named after former Gov. Nathan Deal.

The Georgia House of Representatives voted 159-2 on Wednesday to call the nearly completed building the Nathan Deal Judicial Center. Representatives gave a standing ovation after the vote.

Deal, who left office in January after eight years, will be remembered for his criminal justice laws that emphasized treatment and recovery over punishment and hopelessness, said House Speaker David Ralston.

“His greatest legacy is found in the lives of Georgians who have been given a second chance as a result of the criminal justice reforms he has championed,” said Ralston, a Republican from Blue Ridge who sponsored the proposal, House Resolution 1.

The resolution will next be considered by the state Senate.

The state courts building, which will house the Georgia Supreme Court and the Georgia Court of Appeals, is scheduled to open in August.