Education
Auburn University; University of Georgia.
Auburn University; University of Georgia.
He was appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue on July 1, 2005, to fill the vacancy on the bench created by the retirement of Justice Norman South. Fletcher. His appointment marked the first time a Republican governor had made an appointment to the Supreme Court since 1868 when Governor Rufus B. Bullock selected Justices Joseph East. Brown and H. K. McCay. Prior to joining the Court, Justice Melton served as Executive Counsel to Governor Perdue.
Before serving as Executive Counsel, Justice Melton spent eleven years in the Georgia Department of Law.
A 1984 graduate of Joseph Wheeler High School in Marietta, Georgia, Justice Melton received a Bachelor of Science degree from Auburn University and his Juris Doctor from the University of Georgia in 1991. While at Auburn University, Melton served as the Student Government Association President for the 1987-1988 academic year.
He was the first African-American student elected to that position in the history of the university. He was also the first ever "independent" (non-fraternity member) to be elected to that position.
A native of Washington, District of Columbia, Melton grew up in East Point, Georgia, and Marietta.
He previously served as a Volunteer Leader of Young Life Ministries for 11 years, is currently a Board Member of Atlanta Youth Academies and the Director of Teen Ministry at Southwest Christian Fellowship Church.