Blackburn

Davidson County General Sessions judges have unanimously elected Judge Melissa Blackburn to serve as presiding judge through Sept. 2019. Blackburn has been serving as presiding judge since Dec. 2017 when Judge Angelita Blackshear Dalton was elevated to the 20th District Criminal Court by Gov. Bill Haslam.

Blackburn was elected to serve as judge of the Division II General Sessions Court in 2014.

“I am grateful to my colleagues for the faith they have expressed in my work as Presiding Judge,” she says. “The General Sessions Courts are always looking to be at the forefront of innovations that make public interaction with the justice system less intimidating while always respecting that our first duty is to the public safety through the administration of equal justice. I look forward to the year ahead and the progress we will make toward that goal.”

A Nashville native, Blackburn is a graduate of David Lipscomb High School, Lipscomb University and the Nashville School of Law.

Blackburn also serves as presiding judge of the Mental Health and Veterans Courts. She works through the court program to provide assistance to the mentally challenged and works with Nashville’s Veterans who have encountered legal difficulties resulting from trauma suffered in the service.