Georgia Appeals Court Judge Dies After Hospital Stay

ATLANTA, GA — Georgia Court of Appeals Judge Clyde Reese died Saturday after a short hospital stay, the court said Monday.

The court did not say how he died. A replacement has not been announced.

"Judge Reese has been as wonderful a colleague and member of our court family as anyone could be," Chief Judge Brian Rickman said in a news release. "He was kind, gracious, hardworking and a gentleman in every sense of the word. He will be deeply missed."

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Alfonso Dawson Mortuary in Atlanta.

According to the court, Reese was appointed to the Court of Appeals by Gov. Nathan Deal in December 2016. In January 2019, he began a six-year term.

Gov. Brian Kemp ordered Monday flags fly at half-staff in Reese's honor.

"Marty, the girls and I were deeply saddened to learn of Judge Clyde Reese's passing. A dedicated public servant, he led multiple state agencies under two administrations before his appointment to the Court of Appeals and served in many other capacities," Kemp said in a statement.

"We are thankful for his years of service and contributions to the people of our state, as well as his thoughtful approach to leadership. The Kemp family is praying for his loved ones during this time of mourning. We ask that our fellow Georgians give them their support as his family and friends say goodbye this beloved father and grandfather."

Prior to his election to the appeals court, Reese was the commissioner of the Department of Community Health, where he oversaw a combined state and federal budget of more than $14 billion and more than 1,000 employees.

"Judge Reese spent considerable time traveling the state, visiting hospitals and other health-care providers. He took a particular interest in the challenge of access to health care in rural areas of Georgia," the court said in the release.

Reese has also been the commissioner of Georgia Department of Human Services, deputy general counsel and general counsel of Community Health and general counsel of the State Health Planning Agency, which merged into Community Health.

Reese is credited with integrating Pace Academy in 1969 in Atlanta, alongside two of his cousins, according to the court. He was a 1976 graduate from Pace and was later a Board of Trustees member for the academy.

The Clyde L. Reese III '76 Book Award was established in 2019 by the Association of Black Pace Academy Alumni, the court said. The award is given to a sophomore or junior who has exhibited a "commitment to a diverse and inclusive community at Pace Academy, as well as other exemplary qualities," the court said.

Other accomplishments include:

• Being a member of the Georgia Supreme Court's Chief Justice Commission on Professionalism
• Being co-chair of the State Bar's SOLACE Committee
• Being a member of the Mercer Law School Board of Visitors
• Establishing the Judge Clyde Reese Book Award at the Mercer University Law School in honor of his parents, Clyde and Dorothy Reese

Reese received a bachelor of arts from Georgia State University. He worked in residential real estate for 13 years in southwest Atlanta. His family were operators of Brown and Reese Realty, one of the first African-American-owned residential brokerage firms in Atlanta, the court said.

He earned a juris doctorate from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer in 1996 and jumpstarted his legal career as an assistant attorney general in the Georgia Department of Law. He was a private attorney from 2003-07.

He had five children and three grandchildren. He lived in Douglas County and had been a member of the Friendship Community Church for more than 36 years, the court said.