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Governor Kay Ivey on Monday announced the appointment of Grace Jeter as Covington County Circuit Court Judge.

“Grace Jeter comes to the bench with a strong background as a prosecutor with extensive courtroom experience,” said Governor Ivey. “In addition to serving for nearly two decades as an assistant district attorney, her legal career also includes work as a staff attorney in state appellate court. She is well versed in the law and will serve the people of Covington County with distinction.”

“I am grateful for Governor Ivey’s appointment. Having worked for the people of Covington County for 20 years, I am humbled by the opportunity to continue serving them as Circuit Judge,” Jeter said.

Jeter will succeed former 22nd Judicial Circuit Judge Ben Bowden, who was appointed to serve on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals by Governor Ivey on May 21, 2025.

Jeter’s legal experience includes 19 years of service as Assistant and Chief Assistant District Attorney in the 22nd Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office in Andalusia, where she tried more than 100 jury trials; four years’ service as Staff Attorney for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals; and two years as an attorney with Merrell & Bryan, LLC in Andalusia.

A resident of Red Level, Alabama, Jeter and her husband, Jeff, have a son, Jake, and a daughter, Ginny. She is a 1996 graduate of Huntingdon College in Montgomery, and she received her Juris Doctor in 1999 from Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham.

Jeter is the first female Circuit Judge to serve in Covington County. She follows the footsteps of her mother, Judge Lucy McLemore, who served as a District Court Judge in Montgomery County, Alabama, from 2001 until 2007.

Jeter’s appointment is effective immediately. Presiding Circuit Court Judge Charles “Lex” Short swore Grace in during a ceremony at the Covington County Courthouse on Friday, June 20. Newly appointed Civil Court of Appeals Judge Ben Bowden read her appointment letter from Governor Ivey.