Metro Atlanta judge arrested at Buckhead nightclub, faces felony charge

Credit: Fulton County Sheriff’s Office

Credit: Fulton County Sheriff’s Office

“I can only confirm that a Christina Janae Peterson was arrested for battery in response to a 911 call at 3179 Peachtree Rd NE,” a police spokesperson told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday. “The incident report is still being processed as the incident appears to have occurred early this morning.”

An unofficial police report provided to the AJC states that an officer was alerted to an incident near the club’s valet parking area, where he encountered a woman crying. While attempting to speak with the woman, the officer “was struck in the head by the arrestee identified as Ms. Christina Peterson, who refused to identify herself and appeared to be under the influence.”

“MS. Peterson was charged with obstructing and battery on an officer,” the unofficial report states.

Peterson, who was elected to the bench unopposed in 2020, lost the Democratic primary in May. His successor will be Douglasville attorney Valerie Vie, who faces no Republican challengers in the November general election.

Peterson faces 30 ethics charges brought by the Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission, which recommended in late March that she be removed from office. The Georgia Supreme Court has not yet decided whether and how Peterson should be punished.

The JQC said Peterson violated the Georgia Code of Judicial Conduct in various ways.

Peterson, a University of Georgia Law School graduate who practiced law for several years before becoming a judge, was accused of inappropriate social media posts, unnecessarily imprisoning and fining a woman who sought to amend its marriage license and let wedding attendees enter Douglas. County courthouse after hours, without permission. She also was abusive toward a fellow judge and other county officials, obstructed access to public records and had inappropriate contact with a litigant, among other things, the JQC alleged.

Commission members also took issue with Peterson’s conduct as a judicial candidate: she publicly made ribald jokes, solicited birthday money, and promoted events at Atlanta bars in connection with her candidacy for the 2020 election. They also criticized her behavior at a meeting of her homeowners association in 2022, saying she mocked several attendees and made “mean-spirited and sarcastic retorts” while by inappropriately attempting to influence an ongoing lawsuit she had filed against the association and its directors.

“And so she must go,” a JQC panel said in its March 31 report to the state Supreme Court, citing Peterson’s “systemic incompetence.”

Peterson and her attorney in the ethics case asked the state Supreme Court in late April to reject “erroneous factual findings contradicted by the records” and its recommendation to remove her from the bench.

The judge was first charged with code violations in July 2021. At one point, she faced 50 separate counts, but 20 were withdrawn or dismissed.

Throughout the ethics case, Peterson said she faced unfair criticism as the first Black probate judge in Douglas County. During a series of hearings before the commission committee last year, Peterson admitted to making mistakes during her first year as a judge while learning the ropes and said she tried to do better.

Peterson acknowledged it was “harsh” of her to jail and fine the woman who sought, without a lawyer, to change her marriage license in 2021. She also expressed regret for sending an April 2021 email to David Emerson, who at the time was the chief judge of the Douglas County Superior Court, questioning his judicial authority and competence and asking him to retire, saying : “this county has passed your mind”.

In its report, the committee said Peterson was misleading, if not downright dishonest, during the investigative process. His testimony during the hearings was misleading and evasive.