Eight seek seat vacated by Judge Casey Moreland

The deadline for nominations to fill the seat of disgraced Judge Casey Moreland, who was forced to

Sam Coleman

resign his seat, passed Tuesday of this week.  Moreland is under investigation by the FBI on corruption charges. Of the things Moreland is being accused of is dismissing criminal charges in exchange for sex.

Eight candidates have been nominated to fill the seat. Nomination could be made by the candidate himself or by any member of the public. The Metro Council has the responsibility of choosing Moreland's repacement, which they will do at the May 16th meeting. On May 2, nominees will be interviewed by the Council's Rules Committee.

Adam Dread

One of the nominees is Antioch-area Councilman Sam Coleman.  In the past, Metro Council members have had the inside track on filling these type vacancies.  Other nominees include former Metro Councilman Adam Dread who unsuccessfully ran for General Sessions Judge as a Republican in 2014.  Dread ran as a Republican after being denied the opportunity to run for the seat as a Democrat by the Davidson County Democrat Party.

Another candidate who I had would think would be a leading contender would be Ana Escobar.  She was is an assistant prosecutor at the District Attorney’s Office and was Metro clerk from 2011 to 2013. That is an advantage in that she gets known by the Courthouse crowd.  Also, I would suspect that having a Spanish surname and being female would be a benefit.

Other nominees include Michael Clemons, Barry Gearon, Martesha Johnson, Nick McGregor and Tillman Payne.  For more on this see this link and this one.  Powerful factions line up behind various candidates and Councilmen may be subject to intense lobbying to fill this seat. Look for an update on this story.  If I learn more about who is supporting whom, I will post it.

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