Supreme Court taps Monroeville's Judge Sam Welch to oversee Greg Gunn case

Since Montgomery police officer Aaron Cody Smith was charged in March 2016 with the on-duty killing of Greg Gunn, six Montgomery circuit judges have recused themselves and one was forced out by the Alabama Supreme Court. 

With no Montgomery judges left to serve, the Alabama Supreme Court has appointed Monroeville native Samuel Henry Welch, former presiding judge for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals.

Welch did not seek re-election and in January gave up the seat he had held since 2007. He is most recently known for writing the 154-page opinion upholding 11 of 12 ethics charges levied against former Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard. 

Prior to the Court of Criminal Appeals, Welch was the 35th Judicial Circuit judge overseeing Monroe and Conecuh counties from 1989-2007, according to his page on the Court of Criminal appeals website.

Welch is also a retired colonel in the United States Army Reserve Judge Advocate General's Corps and a Gulf War veteran who served from 1990-1991 in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq, according to his bio.

Still to be determined is where and when the trial will be held. 

Smith was charged with murder days after he shot and killed Gunn, who was walking home from a neighborhood card game when Smith conducted a random stop-and-frisk. Midway through the patdown, Gunn fled from Smith who chased, tased and beat Gunn before shooting him five times.

The killing of a black civilian by a white police officer ignited tensions in the city, tensions quelled by the swift arrest of Smith. But the path to trial has been anything but quick.

Presiding Judge Johnny Hardwick was the first assigned to the case, but he recused himself in December 2016 due to an unstated "personal conflict," court records show. 

Circuit Judge James Anderson recused himself next in March 2017 after being made aware of a potential appearance of impropriety; Anderson's son was working for the law firm representing Smith against a federal lawsuit brought by relatives of Gunn.

Former Circuit Judge Roman Shaul recused himself next. He declined comment as to why. Shaul would soon step down from the bench altogether to serve as general counsel for the Alabama State Bar in May 2017.

Judges Truman Hobbs and J.R. Gaines recused themselves at the same time as Shaul, and the trial fell into the hands of Judge Greg Griffin, who at the time, was the last available Montgomery judge following Shaul's resignation. 

Smith's defense asked for Griffin to recuse himself because of a social media post they said showed he could not rule impartially on the case. Griffin declined and the Supreme Court upheld his decision. 

But last summer, the defense again asked for a new judge and venue after Griffin said, "I don't find the officer's testimony today to be credible," while delivering a ruling that Smith was not immune from prosecution. 

The Supreme Court agreed that Smith had to stand trial, but granted both the change in judge and venue. In allowing the change in venue, the high court broke longstanding precedent that had barred it from changing venue during criminal mandamus petitions like Smith's. 

After Griffin's ouster, the case fell to Circuit Judge Jimmy Pool, who was appointed to fill Shaul's spot in November 2018 while Griffin was presiding over the case.

Pool recused himself earlier this month, giving no reason. 

News tips? Questions? Call reporter Andrew Yawn at 334-240-0121 or email him at ayawn@gannett.com.