Danville native to be sworn in as new North Carolina district court judge

Danville native Carolyn Yancey knew she wanted to be a lawyer from the time she was a child.

Yancey recalled working on a report when she was a sixth-grader at Glenwood Elementary School. She wanted to be a defender for women and children who were not getting help from their fathers.

“That was the first awakening, the first time I voiced it,” Yancey said Wednesday.

Yancey, 40, followed up on her dream to become an attorney by earning her law degree from North Carolina Central University School of Law after graduating from Hampton University. On Jan. 2, she will be sworn in as the new judge for District 9 in the North Carolina General District Court.

Yancey said friends and colleagues told her after the election that they didn’t think she would win. She was challenging the son of the judge who sat on that bench, and her election was seen as an uphill struggle.

Yancey defeated A. Chance Wilk-inson for the seat that covers the counties of Franklin, Granville and a part of Vance County. She beat Wilkinson 25,996 to 23,994 votes, according to unofficial returns.

“I think people … understood that this wasn’t a birthright or who your parent was — that it was a decision of the people,” she said.

Yancey has set high goals for herself even before she puts on her judge’s robe.

She wants to bring a sense of fair play and equality to the courtroom. Yancey said it bothers her when people go before the court and feel justice isn’t interested in them.

“Everyone has a right to a courtroom,” she said. “It belongs to the community.”

Yancey said she learned how much she wanted to fulfill her goal during her run for public office. There were the cold and rainy days she would stand in line greeting voters, and her newfound stamina would kick in. One time it sleeted, but that didn’t bother her. She made a point of greeting voters in the early voting lines.

Yancey said talking to people was enjoyable because voters wanted to know more about her than what was on the campaign flyer. People wanted to know what was on her mind and what was in her heart.

Yancey credits her mother with helping her to be the person she is today. Her mom worked two and three jobs at a time to help the family make ends meet.

“She’s the kind of woman who will find a way to make a circle fit in a square hole,” Yancey said.

Contact Bernard Baker at bbaker@registerbee.com or (434) 791-7986.