Woodard sworn in as State Court Solicitor General

GAINESVILLE - Hall County's new State Court Solicitor General was sworn in Friday afternoon.

Stephanie Woodard is the court's new chief prosecutor, appointed to the post by Gov. Sonny Perdue late last year to replace Larry Baldwin, who had been named to a new State Court judgeship in Hall County.

Woodard, with her children and husband by her side, took the oath using a Bible given to her grandmother 64 years ago.

"I am most honored to be part of Hall County and have the opportunity to serve a community that loves the least among us," Woodard said, recalling that concern and compassion for the "least among us" was something she learned from her late father growing up in South Carolina.

Chief Hall County State Court Judge Charlie Wynne, who administered Woodard's oath of office, said the 2009 caseload demands its third new judge and new solicitor general.

"We have plenty of business to keep all three judges busy. We'll have to share two courtrooms," Wynne said.

Woodard said she plans to deal with that caseload efficiently in the face of limited revenues because of the economy.

"With the current state of the budget we have to try to be creative, but State Court generates a significant amount of revenues for Hall County," Woodard said.

Woodard, in private practice since 2000, has worked in the Fulton County District Attorney's Office as Senior Assistant District Attorney, in the Carroll County District Attorney's Office and in the DeKalb County Solicitor General's Office.

She serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Friends of Recovery, which supports alternative sentencing courts, and on the board of 3 Dimensional Life, a Christian substance abuse rehabilitation program.

Woodard is a founding member of WomenSource, a nonprofit organization that empowers women with personal and professional resources. Woodard earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Georgia State University and a juris doctor from Georgia State University Law School.