While Kentucky lawmakers prepare for a Senate trial next month over whether to remove a Lexington judge from the bench, a separate effort to impeach a state Supreme Court justice appears to have ended without action. The development comes as the legislative session nears its conclusion and time runs out for additional proceedings.
Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, who chairs the House Impeachment Committee, said the matter involving Supreme Court Justice Pamela Goodwine is effectively closed. “The work has been done,” Nemes told The Courier Journal on March 25, The Courier Journal reported.
The committee previously advanced an impeachment petition against Fayette Circuit Court Judge Julie Muth Goodman to the full House. Lawmakers voted to send the case to the Senate, where a trial is scheduled to determine whether Goodman should be removed from office.
However, the committee did not take similar steps in the case against Goodwine. Lawmakers did not call witnesses, hold a full hearing, or move the petition to the House floor before the session began winding down.
With no further action taken, the effort to remove Goodwine appears to have stalled. The lack of movement signals the legislature is unlikely to revisit the issue before adjournment.
The impeachment petition against Goodwine was filed by Louisville attorney Jack Richardson IV, a longtime Republican official. He accused her of failing to recuse herself from a case in which he alleged a conflict of interest existed.
Goodwine’s attorney, Carmine Iaccarino, pushed back on those claims in a response filing. He argued she was not required to step aside and said the petition appeared to be politically motivated.
Goodwine was elected to the Kentucky Supreme Court in 2024 with backing from the Kentucky Education Association and the Jefferson County Teachers Association. Shortly after taking office, she cast the deciding vote in a 4-3 ruling striking down a 2022 law that would have shifted power from the Jefferson County Public Schools board to the superintendent.
“Call your Senate and Congress to impeach this woman! Representatives made the call. Only a vote by Congress will ensure she is removed. Fayette Circuit Court Judge Julie Muth Goodman (Lexington, Kentucky): On March 20, 2026, the Kentucky House of Representatives voted 73-14 to approve five articles of impeachment against her,” wrote Julie Godfrey on X.
That law, known as Senate Bill 1, was invalidated by the court’s decision. A similar proposal is currently pending before lawmakers in Frankfort.
The House Impeachment Committee also reviewed several other petitions this session. Efforts to remove Fayette County Public Schools board Chair Tyler Murphy, Ballard County Jailer Eric Coppess, and Marshall Family Court Judge Stephanie Perlow were either not advanced or dropped.
Goodman’s case now moves forward as the only impeachment proceeding still active. The Kentucky Senate is expected to take up the matter in April.
In a rare move, the KY House voted to impeach a sitting judge for abuse of power, and defying binding precedents, defying Kentucky statutes, and interfering with the rights and powers of the grand jury, trial jurors and attorneys to perform their roles.
The vote came after a…
— Kentucky Girl (@Notwokenow) March 21, 2026
ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT: The Kentucky House of Representatives has introduced Articles of Impeachment against Fayette County Circuit Judge Julie Muth Goodman, recommending her removal from office for alleged misdemeanors. https://t.co/aMq9OP6HXT
— LEX 18 News (@LEX18News) March 19, 2026
Meanwhile in Frankfort, the state Senate is set to take up an impeachment trial (a *very* rare step) related to a Lexington judge. Politics beat copilot @keely_doll has the details here: https://t.co/dfEtnHKvpv
— Lucas Aulbach (@LucasAulbach) March 20, 2026
Fayette Circuit Judge Julie Muth Goodman on Thursday filed a motion for emergency relief after a lower court declined to intervene and halt a state lawmaker’s impeachment proceedings against her.https://t.co/tRP8lueBIe
— Taylor Six (@TaylorSixHL) March 23, 2026
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