DeKalb County State Court Judge Mike Jacobs has come out as LGBTQ, according to Project Q. Jacobs, a former state lawmaker, is the first openly LGBTQ trial judge to serve on the DeKalb State Court bench. By comparison, Fulton County has two identified members of the community: Jane Barwick, a Superior Courty Judge, and Jane Morrison, a State Court Judge.
Project Q reported that Jacobs e-mailed the site a statement identifying himself as a bisexual. The news organization quoted Jacobs as saying:
“Two weeks ago at an event hosted by the Stonewall Bar Association, I came out publicly for the first time. I am bisexual. My wife Evan and I have made a mutual decision that it would be a positive step for me to come out, and she proudly stood with me at the Stonewall Bar event. … I see LGBTQ citizens in my courtroom on a regular basis, particularly as prospective jurors, and in other courtroom roles as well. DeKalb County has never had a trial judge who openly identifies as LGBTQ. This is something I can change simply by sharing this part of who I am with the public.”
An attorney by profession, Jacobs has been on the DeKalb bench since 2015, when he was appointed to that position by Governor Nathan Deal. Prior to that, he represented the 80th District in the Legislature for ten years, from 2005 to 2015. He is a Republican.
In his statement, Jacobs said he hoped that the decision he and his wife had made would “help others.”