Ginger K. Gooch, of Springfield, is again one of three judges whose names have been sent to Gov. Michael L. Parson for a seat on the Missouri Supreme Court.
The vacancy is due to the retirement earlier this month of Judge Patricia Breckenridge, 70.
The Appellate Judicial Commission submitted the names of Gooch, Judge Michael E. Gardner and Judge John P. Torbitzky to Parson after nearly three hours of public interviews, more than two hours of deliberations and 10 rounds of balloting.
Gooch serves on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District. If selected, she would be the third Springfield judge in 100 years to serve on the state Supreme Court.
Gooch was nominated in August, as well, but that appointment went to Judge Kelly C. Broniec of Montgomery City.
Gooch was born in 1975. She earned her bachelor of arts in English and philosophy, law and rhetoric in 1997 from Stephens College in Columbia and her law degree in 2000 from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law.
Gardner, like Gooch, was one of the three names submitted back in August.
Gardner is a judge on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, in St. Louis. He was born in 1979 and resides in Cape Girardeau. He earned his bachelor of arts in political science in 2001 from the University of Missouri-Columbia and his law degree in 2004 from the MU School of Law.
Torbitzky also is a judge on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, in St. Louis.
He was born in 1984 and resides in Webster Groves. He earned his bachelor of arts in English in 2007 from the University of Missouri-Columbia and his law degree in 2012 from Saint Louis University School of Law.
The governor has 60 days to fill the vacancy. Should he fail to do so, the commission makes the appointment.
The commission is chaired by Chief Justice Mary R. Russell and is composed of Neil Chanter of Springfield, Sally Hargis of Springfield, Connie Cierpiot of Lee’s Summit, Timothy M. Drury of St. Louis, Thomas K. Neill of St. Louis and Kirk R. Presley of Kansas City.
