A bitter family fight over a DeKalb County judge’s alleged forged will has grown so messy that every probate and superior court judge in the county is now off the case. The sweeping recusal comes after relatives accused the judge of filing a bogus will for her late brother, sparking a probate challenge, a complaint to the state’s judicial watchdog and a full stop to the estate proceedings while an outside judge is found.
As reported by FOX 5 Atlanta, the institutional recusal wipes out local handling of the dispute and has DeKalb officials asking the Atlanta Judicial Circuit to send in a judge from outside the county. FOX 5’s May 20, 2026 report notes that kind of blanket step is highly unusual for a routine in-county probate fight.
According to The Center Square, the judge at the center of the storm is Rhathelia Stroud, a DeKalb County magistrate and the chief judge of the Decatur Municipal Court. The Decatur Municipal Court lists Stroud as its chief judge. Family members say Stroud filed a last will dated Sept. 5, 2025 that names her as executrix and authorizes the sale of her brother’s Stone Mountain home, and her niece has formally challenged the filing in Probate Court, alleging the signatures are not the decedent’s.
Recusal Orders Freeze DeKalb’s Role
Chief DeKalb Superior Court Judge Shondeana Morris has asked the neighboring Atlanta Judicial Circuit to appoint a new judge to take over the matter, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. The decision to sideline every DeKalb probate and superior court judge stems from the fact that the person who filed the will is herself a DeKalb judicial officer, creating an appearance of conflict that judges concluded was too close for comfort…