DALTON, Ga. — Whitfield County Magistrate Court now has two new judges as well as a new chief magistrate.

The four Superior Court judges announced Monday they had named Magistrate judge Chris Griffin as chief magistrate to fill the unexpired term of Haynes Townsend, who retired effective Sunday. Griffin has been a Magistrate judge since 2009, having been elected to three four-year terms. Prior to becoming a Magistrate judge, Griffin served 16 years in law enforcement as a Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office deputy and as assistant police chief in Tunnel Hill.

Griffin’s appointment as chief magistrate created an opening, and the judges appointed Thomas Lee Phillips II, a captain with the Dalton Police Department, to fill Griffin’s unexpired term as Magistrate judge. Phillips has been with the police department since 1988 and also served 10 years with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy.

The judges appointed Rodney “Rod” Weaver to fill the unexpired term of Shana Vinyard. Weaver served for 25 years with the Georgia Department of Corrections as a counselor, probation officer and administrator. Vinyard, who had been on “voluntary paid leave” since October as the result of an investigation by the state’s Judicial Qualifications Commission, submitted her resignation to Gov. Brian Kemp in February, effective Monday. Townsend said last month that Vinyard’s resignation effectively ended the investigation by the Judicial Qualifications Commission.

Weaver has a bachelor’s degree from Georgia State University and a master of divinity degree from the Interdenominational Theological Center. He is an ordained Methodist minister.

The appointments of Griffin and Phillips were effective on Monday, and the appointment of Weaver is effective on Tuesday. All three terms end on Dec. 31, 2020.

The qualifications to be a Magistrate judge are at least one year of residency in the county, the individual must be at least 25 years old and must have a high school diploma or its equivalent.

More than 14,000 cases came through Magistrate Court in 2018, and a judge is on call 24 hours a day to handle arrest and search warrants for law enforcement. The court handles a variety of cases, including evictions, civil disputes up to $15,000, violations of county ordinances and some misdemeanor crimes. The judges also handle first appearances, hearings in which defendants are informed of the charges against them and can make a plea or be referred to Superior Court, depending on the severity of the charges.