Presiding Municipal Court Judge Andra Sparks will retire in May after years of distinguished service to the residents of Birmingham. Mayor Randall L. Woodfin has appointed Judge LaResha D. Cade-Spearman to serve as the next Presiding Judge of the Birmingham Municipal Court.
“Judge Sparks has served the people of Birmingham with integrity, fairness, and a deep respect for the rule of law,” said Mayor Randall L. Woodfin. “On behalf of our entire city, I want to thank him for his steady leadership and unwavering commitment to justice. His work has strengthened our municipal court system and left a lasting impact on our community.”
During his tenure as Presiding Judge of the Birmingham Municipal Court, Judge Andra Sparks transformed the court into a nationally recognized model of innovation, accountability, and compassion. He modernized operations by converting the court from a paper-based mainframe system to a fully paperless and virtual platform, saving taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. Under his leadership, the court established groundbreaking specialty dockets — including Drug Court, Gun Court, Mental Health (HOPE) Court, Homeless Court (Turning Point), Community Court, Bilingual Court, and Alabama’s first-ever Veterans Court — securing more than $7.2 million in federal funding to support treatment and accountability initiatives…