Popular local judge’s name among those drawn to hear Roy Moore appeal

Covington County’s retired District Judge Frank L. (Trippy) McGuire is one of seven retired judges who is expected to serve on a special Supreme Court to hear ousted Chief Justice Roy Moore’s appeal of his ethics conviction.

In September, the Court of the Judiciary found Moore guilty of violating six Canons of Judicial Conducts over his order to probate judges telling them they had a “ministerial duty” to not issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

The Court of the Judiciary suspended Moore for the remainder of his term, which ends in 2019. Alabama does not permit judges to stand for election after age 70, so his suspension means he cannot return to the court.

The court wrote in its opinion that “the undeniable consequence of the January 6, 2016 order was to order and direct the probate judges to deny marriage licenses in direct defiance of the United State Supreme Court.”

The Court of the Judiciary found that Moore failed to act impartially; promote confidence in the law and uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary.            All seated members of the Alabama Supreme Court recused from Moore’s appeal, which led to the appointment of a special Supreme Court. Clerks in the state’s high court drew names from a pool of retired judges yesterday.

McGuire served as district judge in Covington County from 1993 until April of 2014. During his tenure, he served as president of both the Alabama District Judges’ Association and the Alabama Juvenile Judges’ Association. He also serves as a director of the Solon and Martha Dixon Foundation; a director of Mizell Memorial Hospital; and the Mizell Memorial Hospital Foundation. He also continues to work with the Children’s Policy Council in Covington County.

Others expected to serve on the special court are former Montgomery Circuit Judge Charles Price, who is a current member of the state Ethics Commission; retired Circuit Judge H. Edward McFerrin, who presided over Butler, Crenshaw, and Lowndes counties; retired Madison County District Judge Susa T. Moquin; retried Jefferson County Circuit Judge Daniel J. Reynolds Jr.; retired Lee County District Judge Michael A. Nix; and retired Baldwin County Circuit Judge Robert E. Wilters.

Fifty names were drawn, and the first seven are being asked to serve; should anyone decline, the next person on the list will move up.