Governor Brian P. Kemp today announced two appointments in the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. The Governor will appoint Carolyn “Tippi” Cain Burch to serve as a judge on the Superior Court of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit and Don Kelly to serve as the District Attorney of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit.

Ms. Burch will fill the vacancy created by the resignation of the Honorable Ron Mullins from the Superior Court of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. Mr. Kelly will fill the remainder of the Honorable Stacey Jackson’s term following District Attorney Jackson’s extended medical leave and untimely passing this month.

Don Kelly is a native of Columbus, Georgia and currently serves as the Acting District Attorney of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. He began his career as an assistant district attorney in the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. In 1996, Mr. Kelly opened his own law firm and practiced civil and criminal litigation for several years before returning to the Chattahoochee District Attorney’s Office in 2003. Mr. Kelly has served as a prosecutor consistently for the last 21 years. He was the leader of the Violent Crime Unit from 2014 until 2020, where he oversaw the prosecution of all serious violent felonies in Columbus and acted as the lead prosecutor in over 50 murder cases. The late District Attorney Stacey Jackson appointed Mr. Kelly to serve as the Chief Assistant District Attorney in July 2022. When District Attorney Jackson took medical leave in November 2023, Mr. Kelly stepped in as Acting District Attorney in his absence.

Mr. Kelly earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and his law degree from Georgia State University College of Law. Following law school, Mr. Kelly served as a law clerk for the Honorable Mullins Whisnant and the Honorable Bill Smith, both superior court judges in the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. He lives in Columbus with his wife, Allison, who is a teacher. The Kelly’s have four adult children and attend St. Paul United Methodist Church in Columbus.