Baton Rouge City Court runoff candidate Johnell Matthews can remain on Saturday's ballot despite turning 70 before last month's coronavirus-delayed primary election, a state judge ruled Tuesday.

Matthews is now older than the state's mandatory retirement age for judges. Her opponent, Whitney Higginbotham Greene, is 49.

Matthews was 69 when she qualified in January to run in what was to have been an April 4 primary election with a possible May runoff, but the pandemic and resulting statewide stay-at-home order twice pushed that date back.

Matthews, a Democrat, turned 70 in early June. She placed a close second to Greene, a Republican, in the July 11 primary. The runoff is Saturday.

"Mrs. Matthews is extremely pleased with the result today and the removal of any confusion about the election on Saturday," Matthews' attorney, Mary Olive Pierson, said after District Judge William Morvant issued his ruling following a hearing Tuesday.

"She's in for good. She's on the ballot," Pierson added.

The Louisiana Constitution sets a mandatory retirement age of 70 for judges but allows them to serve out the remainder of their terms if they reach that age while in office.

Last week, local resident and taxpayer Donald Luther Jr. filed a state court lawsuit seeking to halt the election, remove Matthews' name from the ballot and have Greene declared the winner.

In denying that request, Morvant said any challenge to Matthews' candidacy had to be filed by Jan. 17, a week after she qualified, but no challenge was filed by that deadline.

Luther's attorneys have not indicated what their next move will be.

Matthews, who has 18 years of legal experience in Louisiana and Mississippi, has insisted she should not be penalized for a pandemic pushing the election date beyond her 70th birthday.

Greene, who has been on leave from her position as an assistant state attorney general during the campaign, contended Matthews would not be able to serve, because of restrictions based on her age, if Matthews wins.

Greene is the daughter of state 1st Circuit Court of Appeal Judge Toni Higginbotham and retired Judge Leo Higginbotham, and sister of 19th Judicial District Court Judge Beau Higginbotham.

Matthews is the wife of former East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Councilman Johnnie Matthews.

The Louisiana Supreme Court last month upheld the state's mandatory judicial retirement age, a ruling that caused Toni Higginbotham to withdraw her candidacy for another 1st Circuit term because she is 74.

The Supreme Court's decision came in the consolidated cases of 19th Judicial District Court Judge Janice Clark, 73, and New Orleans Magistrate Judge Harry Cantrell, 72, who were hoping to run again despite their ages. The high court said they could not seek another term.

In the case of a 19th JDC judge who has been hospitalized with the coronavirus since early July and was unable to personally sign his qualifying papers by the July 24 deadline, the Supreme Court ruled that day that the extraordinary pandemic should not knock Richard "Chip" Moore out of his reelection bid.

The high court said Moore only had to sign his papers by Nov. 2, the day before the Nov. 3 election for the 19th JDC seat. Moore has since signed the papers. One of his two opponents has dropped out of the race.

Pierson said Morvant cited the Supreme Court's reasoning in Moore's case in ruling in Matthews' favor.

Greene received 32% of the vote in the July primary. Matthews received 28%. The other candidates in that race were Greg Cook, Donald Dobbins and Jonathan Holloway, Sr.

The City Court Division C seat was vacated last fall when City Court Judge Tarvald Smith won the 19th JDC Division A seat that was left open when Judge Todd Hernandez retired last year. The term expires at the end of 2024.

Email Joe Gyan Jr. at jgyan@theadvocate.com.

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