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TUPELO, Miss. (AP) — Chuck Hopkins has won the special election to become Lee County's newest Justice Court judge.
Once the results are certified on Monday, he can be sworn into office. But when he will be able to sit on the bench and hear cases is still uncertain.
"It's all up in the air right now," said Hopkins. "I figure we'll know a lot more after Thanksgiving."
The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reports (http://bit.ly/1Cqcsie) under state law, new judges are required to complete an 80-hour training course and a minimum competency exam through the Mississippi Judicial College of the University of Mississippi Law Center within six months of the start of their term.
But, the next time the two-week course is scheduled is December 2015.
Since the Judicial College is shut down for the Thanksgiving holiday, Hopkins and county officials won't be able to clarify the situation until at least Monday.
"Once the election is certified, he can be sworn in by either a circuit judge or Chancery Clerk Bill Benson," said Lee County's county administrator, Sean Thompson. "The training course is mandatory. I believe he will have to complete that before he can sit on the bench."
The Judicial College could offer the training course for Hopkins alone or it could allow him to attend the trial judge orientation the second week of December.
The training course is required because Justice Court is the only trial court in Mississippi that does not require judges to have a law degree.
"When we appointed Dennis Voge as the interim judge, he did not have to attend the course," said Thompson. "But he was an attorney."
Voge might have gotten a pass because of the way the law is written. The training course is required for justice court judges "elected for a full term of office."
Hopkins was elected to fill out the remaining year in the term of Pat Carr, who retired in May citing health issues. Hopkins might be allowed to hear cases on a probationary basis until he completes the training course.
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Information from: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, http://djournal.com
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