Bryan Selph Removed

Telfair County Chief Magistrate Judge Bryan Selph resigned effective immediately on January 14, 2026, as part of a deal resolving ethics allegations investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The allegations included that Selph invited parties with pending cases before his own court to a rental home he owned, where he engaged in what investigators described as "extrajudicial activity" in violation of judicial conduct rules, and that he separately discussed pending matters with two litigants outside the courtroom — a prohibited ex parte communication.

The GBI's investigation into Selph became public in August 2025; his resignation followed roughly five months later, before formal charges were pursued.

A judge inviting people with active cases before him to his own private property, and talking about their pending matters with them outside court, collapses the separation between the bench and the parties it's supposed to judge impartially — regardless of what the "extrajudicial activity" specifically involved.