KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — UPDATE (July 24, 8:25 p.m.): The Knox County Commission accepted the resignation of Ray Jenkins and appointed Spencer Reed on Monday night to complete his term. It i set to expire on June 30, 2025.
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Knox County commissioners Monday afternoon will choose between two nominees to replace a magistrate who resigned in June.
The county's General Sessions Court judges nominated Troy Jones and Spencer Warren Reed to take the place of Ray Jenkins, who resigned amid a suspension imposed by Judge Chuck Cerny after he was discovered to be drinking on the job.
Commission's meeting starts 5 p.m. in the Main Assembly Room.
General Sessions Court judges took applications this summer before narrowing their picks to Reed and Jones. It's County Commission's job to proceed from there.
Magistrates generally are paid $114,768.94 a year, according to the county.
Jones has a bachelor's degree from Tusculum College and a law degree from the University of the District of Columbia, his resume states.
He served in the U.S. Marines six years, and was honorably discharged as a sergeant.
Prior legal work includes a stint in the office of J.D. Lee before Lee retired. Jones, a past candidate for the Tennessee House from Knoxville, acquired Lee's practice in 2015 and now handles civil and criminal cases in the state and federal courts.
Reed has a bachelor's degree from the College of Charleston and a law degree from the Charleston School of Law in Charleston, according to his resume.
He focuses on criminal law in Knox County. Since October 2020, he's been sworn in and approved to work as a substitute magistrate in the Knox County system, his letter to General Sessions Court judges states.
The county has five magistrate positions. The magistrate works with law enforcement on arrest warrants and oversees bond arraignments.
A magistrate is on duty around the clock to assist in the smooth operation of the judicial process.
Cerny suspended Jenkins, a former Knox County GOP chair, indefinitely after an employee saw him drinking alcohol while on duty. Jenkins resigned and has undergone treatment for recovery.
