Three new judges elected to Berkeley County seats

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCBD)- Three new judges will soon ascend to the bench in South Carolina’s Ninth Judicial Circuit following elections at the Statehouse this week.

Both chambers of the legislature met in a joint assembly Wednesday to vote on filling dozens of open judgeships across the state.

South Carolina is one of only two states that appoint its judges through the legislature, a system many believe needs to be reformed. Currently, the 10-person Judicial Merit Selection Commission (JMSC) screens candidates and then presents a pool of up to three qualified candidates to the General Assembly to be voted on.

JMSC Chairman Micah Caskey (R-Lexington) presented the nominees — found qualified at public hearings in November — on the floor Wednesday.

Three judgeships were up for election in the Ninth Judicial Circuit, which covers Charleston and Berkeley counties.

Judge Dale E. Van Slambrook was elected to a newly created seat on the circuit court. Slambrook’s term will begin on July 1, 2024, and expires on June 30, 2030.

Blakely Cahoon was elected to succeed Judge Wayne Creech in family court. Creech retired from the bench in December and Cahoon will serve the rest of his term which expires on June 30, 2025.

Gina J. McAlhany was elected to succeed Judge Jack Landis in family court. McAlhany will serve the remainder of Landis’s term which expires on June 30, 2028.

The circuit’s top prosecutor, Solicitor Scarlett Wilson, called the appointments “great news” and applauded the Berkeley County delegation for “fighting” for resident judges.

“I am thrilled that Berkeley County Courts are getting relief with judges actually living in Berkeley County,” Wilson said in a statement to News 2.

Wilson previously expressed frustration over the lack of resident judges in Berkeley County, saying it was causing slowdowns in the court system and creating headaches for law enforcement, in some cases.

“Judge Van Slambrook has great experience with our drug court and with criminal cases,” Wilson said. “We hope he will be able to help us move more cases by giving us more court time and will help with law enforcement’s ability to obtain search warrants.”

Additionally, Wilson said having local judges should alleviate the burden on other at-large and resident judges who have been filling in for family court.

“The new family court judges should help ease the pressure on other judges from around the state having to cover our court time,” she said.

Each of South Carolina’s 16 judicial circuits must have at least one resident judge who has an office in the judge’s home county within the circuit, according to state law.