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FILE PHOTO I CJ
Newly sworn in, Judge Jerry Cox addresses the crowd as retired
Justice Dan Venters looks on.
He himself still travels to the
three counties that make up the
circuit.
“The caseload is a little higher in
Pulaski than it is in Rockcastle or
Lincoln,” Cox observed, “but we
have to travel to each courthouse.”
The judge did note that most
hearings now do involve criminal
proceedings. Civil litigation is being
largely postponed unless an action
is agreed to by all parties.
“They can still mediate but most
of the civil work has been put
off,” Judge Cox said. “And we’re
not having any trials — probably
won’t have until this thing is over
with — because jurors can’t sit six
feet apart. So the workload is very
light.”
One might think a lighter
workload would be helpful to a new
judge, but Cox said he would much
rather interact with the individuals
coming before him in person. “It’s
just not practical right now,” he
M ay 2020
added.
Cox was appointed by Governor
Andy Beshear to replace Judge
David A. Tapp, who resigned last
November after the United States
Senate confirmed his nomination
to the bench for the U.S. Court
of Federal Claims. He will serve
through the General Election this
November 3, at which time, the
voters of Pulaski, Lincoln and
Rockcastle counties will determine
who will serve out Tapp’s unexpired
term through 2022.
Judge Cox is also a candidate in
that judicial race along with Pulaski
attorneys Teresa Whitaker and
A.C. Donahue, retired Family Court
Judge Walter Maguire and current
Lincoln County Attorney Daryl
Day. The pandemic has also forced
Kentucky’s Primary to be moved
back from this month to Tuesday,
June 23. The top two vote-getters in
the judge’s race will then square off
the General Election this fall.
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