A Georgia state court judge died by suicide at the courthouse Monday night after leaving a letter to Governor Brian Kemp, according to an Effingham County Sherrif's Office post on Facebook.
Newsweek reached out to the Springfield Police Department by email and the Effingham County Sheriff's office by phone call for comment on Friday. The Georgia FBI told Newsweek they are not involved at this time.
Why It Matters
State Court Judge Steve Yekel, 74, died Monday and was found between 10 and 10:30 a.m. Tuesday by a deputy. The Effingham County Sheriff's Office posted on Facebook that Yekel appears to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a courtroom inside the Effingham County Courthouse.
Local news outlet WTOC obtained a letter from Kemp's office in which Yekel wrote to the governor attempting to resign from his position on December 30, one day before his term was set to end. The letter was penned on December 6.
"Please be advised, that I respectfully, submit my letter of resignation as State Court Judge of Effingham County effective: December 30, 2024," the letter said.
What To Know
Yekel, who had a 45-year legal career, wrote in his letter that he won two previous elections for his state court judge position. He noted that the 2022 election was won "by over 1,400 votes." Yekel filled the vacancy for state court judge was created after Judge Ronald Thompson was appointed to the Ogeechee Circuit Superior Court.
In the second election on May 21, 2024, Yekel received 900 more votes than any other candidate but not enough to avoid a runoff on July 18. He lost the primary runoff to Melissa Calhoun by less than 400 votes among nearly 6,000 cast.
"I feel that the office of State Court Judge of Effingham is too important to be decided by only 6 percent of the eligible voters of Effingham County," Yekel's letter said.
A letter Kemp wrote in return on December 12 shows he did not accept Yekel's resignation.
"However, regardless of the low turnout for this year's runoff election cited in your letter, the people of Effingham County have spoken once again, this time electing Ms. Melissa Calhoun to the State Court bench for a term beginning January 1, 2025," Kemp's letter read. "The results of a fair election should not be nullified on the basis of a manufactured legal technicality."
Kemp ended his letter by thanking Yekel for his "service to the Court and our State."
When WTOV asked Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie about a suicide note, he referenced the letter sent to Kemp earlier this month.
Prior to becoming a judge, Yekel was an assistant district attorney in Chatham County and worked as a special agent in Georgia's Alcohol & Tobacco Tax Unit, as reported by local news outlets. He also had served as an investigator for the Cobb County District Attorney's Office.
What People Are Saying
Garrison Douglas, a spokesman for Governor Brian Kemp, told WOTV: "While we are unable to provide comment on an open investigation, Judge Yekel's family and loved ones are in all of our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time."
Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie, to WJCL: "This is never good for anybody. The family's distraught. This is supposed to be a happy time this time of year, and now they've got this. I can't imagine. If they have anything they need from us, we'll be available."
What's Next
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation will perform the autopsy, according to the post on Facebook by the Effingham County Sheriff's Office.
The sheriff's office's Criminal Investigation Division will conduct the investigation.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text "988" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org.
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