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Published Tuesday, January 31, 2012 in Local

Special

Allen Keeble (left), and Kevin McMurry

McMurry candidate to replace Keeble as Coweta judge

By Alex McRae

The Newnan Times-Herald

Senior Assistant District Attorney Kevin McMurry has announced he will run for the office of Superior Court Judge in the Coweta Judicial Circuit.

McMurry is running for the office currently held by Superior Court Allen B. Keeble, who is resigning at the end of the current judicial term. Keeble has served since January 1987.

The election will be held on July 31. The Coweta Judicial Circuit includes Coweta, Carroll Heard, Meriwether and Troup Counties.

This is McMurry's first run for elected office, but he said he looks forward to the challenge.

"I am excited about the opportunity," McMurry said. "I feel like I have a chance to do something meaningful and I look forward to serving the community in this capacity.

McMurry has been endorsed by Coweta Judicial Circuit District Pete Skandalakis. "Kevin McMurry is one of the best prosecutors I have had the pleasure of working with," said Skandalakis. "Kevin is driven by a passion for justice and victims and a fundamental belief that the law should be administered fairly."

McMurry says he is motivated by his faith and said, "As a judge, I will seek justice in every case just as I did as a prosecutor, but I also believe that mercy and humility are essential to the role judges serve in our community."

McMurry, his wife and four children live in Newnan. They attend Southside Community Church and are active in the community.

Before joining the District Attorney's Office, McMurry was a civil attorney at the litigation firm of Hollberg & Weaver. He has more than a decade of trial experience in civil and criminal law.

McMurry earned a joint J.D./M.B.A. degree from Georgia State University in 2000. He holds an undergraduate degree in business from Baylor University.

McMurry is admitted to practice law before the United States Supreme Court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, the Georgia Supreme Court, Georgia Court of Appeals, and all Georgia State and Superior Courts.

McMurry has argued cases before the Georgia Supreme Court and Georgia Court of Appeals and has never had a case overturned by an appellate court.

McMurry has 18 cases that resulted in published decisions by the Georgia Court of Appeals and the Georgia Supreme Court.

In civil practice, McMurry represented a wide variety of state agencies, including the University of Georgia, as special assistant attorney general. He has also taught prosecutors and law enforcement officers at the National Internet Crimes Against Children Conference in 2011 and 2012.

McMurry and his cases have been featured CNN and on TV shows including "48 Hours" and "Snapped." Recently, McMurry prosecuted and tried Robert Ewell for repeated acts of child molestation and Alec McNaughton for the murder of McNaugton's wife. Both cases resulted in convictions.

McMurry will argue McNaughton's case before the Georgia Supreme Court on Feb. 6.

In other notable local cases, McMurry tried and convicted Michelle Hall for the murder of her husband Britt Hall.

He tried and convicted Thomasina Mack and Demario Smith for the murder of a two-year-old child. This case was affirmed by the Georgia Supreme Court.

McMurry has also tried and convicted several criminals for crimes more than a decade old, including Robert Duke for the rape of a family member. Duke received a life sentence for the crime.

More information about McMurry's candidacy is available at a website established for the campaign -- www.votemcmurry.com . McMurry will kick off his campaign with a free BBQ dinner for first one hundred supporters at the Twilight Bar and Grill in Newnan Feb. 16 at 5:30 p.m.

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