Magistrate Court Chief Judge Seeks Re-Election

Sign up for the Woodstock-Towne Lake Patch newsletter!

---

Woodstock, GA -- Cherokee County Magistrate Court Chief Judge James Drane on Friday announced his bid for re-election.

Drane will qualify as a Republican in the partisan primary in May.

“I look forward to continuing to serve the good people of Cherokee County, and working with the dedicated men and women of law enforcement to keep our county safe,” Drane said.

Drane is in his sixteenth year as a magistrate judge. Drane was first elected as chief magistrate in 2008. Prior to becoming chief judge, Drane served as chief associate judge from 2006 to 2008.

According to a July 2015 independent study by the National Center for State Courts, the population in Cherokee County will more than double over the next 20 years. The Magistrate Court’s workload is expected to grow by approximately 68 to 118 percent, requiring double the existing full-time staff.

Drane has put in place systems and procedures to prepare for the increase and keep staff needs and costs in check. During his current term, he was able to add part-time judges and shift to an all-attorney judicial team with only negligible cost to taxpayers.

“In 2008, we adopted a simple two-part motto,” he added. “Our goal continues to be simple. Valuable tax dollars have been returned to the Board of Commissioners from our budget each year, and we will strive to continue to save the taxpayers of Cherokee County those tax dollars. Second, we adopted a policy of doing more with less and being good stewards of taxpayer dollars.”

Drane, who earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Kennesaw State University and a law degree from Atlanta’s John Marshal School of Law, introduced the Electronic Warrant Interface System in 2010, which allows law enforcement officers to obtain warrants electronically without having to travel to the courthouse.

“Gas, oil and other related travel expenses have been saved, and the officer can remain in his zone doing police business, which translates into further savings to taxpayers,” Drane said.

He added that since this program was installed, some 22,509 arrest and search warrants have been taken, saving taxpayers approximately $2.814 million.

Drane, who is originally from Savannah, currently lives in Canton with his wife of 29 years, Cheryl. They have two children, Jamie, 13 and Rebekah, 10.

Drane is active in charitable organizations throughout Cherokee County. In 2003, the State Bar of Georgia awarded the judge its annual Justice Benham Community Service Award.

---

Image via James Drane