Gov. Phil Scott has nominated Superior Court Judge Karen Carroll to join the Vermont Supreme Court.
Carroll became a superior court judge in 2000, according to a news release from Scott’s office, and she served in family, civil and criminal courts in Windham, Windsor and Bennington counties. Before that, she was a prosecutor with the Southern Vermont Drug Task Force.
The release said Carroll was chosen from among eight candidates recommended to the governor by the state’s Judicial Nominating Board.
“Among a pool of very strong and capable candidates, Judge Carroll distinguished herself based on her depth of experience, character, integrity, and – most importantly – understanding and application of the law,” Scott said in the release.
Scott said at a press conference Thursday that he didn't subject Carroll to an ideological litmus test before making the selection, or try to get a sense of how she'd rule on specific cases that might come before the court.
If approved by the state Senate, Carroll would shift the majority of the five-member Supreme Court from male to female.
Scott's nomination of Carroll comes after the Vermont Supreme Court ruled in January that outgoing Gov. Peter Shumlin could not appoint a successor to outgoing Associate Justice John Dooley.
Correction: A previous version of the post misidentified her as "Karen Russell".
