FRANKFORT — The Kentucky House of Representatives has formed an impeachment committee to review citizen petitions against elected officials, including Justice Pamela Goodwine.  The committee met for the first time during the 2026 session on Wednesday, largely to discuss rules for its review and accept the petitions.  Goodwine said “the petition has no merit and should be dismissed” in a statement to the Lantern shared by her attorney.  The impeachment petition against Goodwine stems from a case that the high court reversed to strike down a 2022 law after initially upholding it before Goodwine joined the court in 2025. Sen. David Givens, center left, and Sen. Lindsey Tichenor, right, gather after the Kentucky Senate adjourned Wednesday. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Liam Niemeyer) Meanwhile, Republican senators introduced a bill that mirrors the law deemed unconstitutional. Senate Bill 1, carried by Senate President Pro Tempore David Givens, R-Greensburg, would shift powers of the elected local school board to the appointed superintendent in Jefferson County Public Schools.  Givens told reporters that the bill would “strike the balance of what (justices were) saying was not constitutional before.”  “They found it unconstitutional because they felt like we didn’t give sufficient reason for treating Jefferson County differently,” Givens said, adding that the bill opens with 42 reasons why the state’s largest district should be treated differently than others.  State law requires the House to review petitions for impeachment it receives from citizens. Other Kentucky officials facing an inquiry this session are Marshall County Family Court Judge Stephanie Perlow and Ballard County Jailer Eric Coppess. An attorney for Goodwine, Carmine Iaccarino, said in a statement to the Lantern that the justice was aware of the petition.  “Justice Goodwine takes seriously her obligations to the Court, the Rule of Law, and the People of Kentucky, as well as her personal and professional reputation, and rejects the baseless allegations in the petition,” he said. “Justice Goodwine will respond to the petition if asked to do so by the House committee, but the petition has no merit and should be dismissed.” In a 4-3 decision last month, the Kentucky Supreme Court overturned the 2022 law, which only applied to JCPS under specific criteria. However, both sides in the case argued a decision for or against the law could impact other state policies.  The attorney for the school board, David Tachau, argued that if the court’s original ruling stood, it could pave the way for lawmakers to widely use “special legislation,” or narrow state legislation that impacts a county or city and is prohibited under the Kentucky Constitution. Matthew Kuhn, solicitor general in the state attorney general’s office, declaring the law unconstitutional argued it could have broad implications, such as undoing the laws that allow merged city-county governments in Lexington and Louisville. The court had ruled 4-3 in favor of the law in 2024, with former Chief Justice Laurance VanMeter voting with the majority. Goodwine replaced VanMeter on the court after he did not seek reelection.  The latest ruling is in line with previous decisions by the Jefferson Circuit Court and the Kentucky Court of Appeals, which found the law unconstitutional.  Goodwine faced criticism ahead of the court’s December decision in the case. Goodwine’s campaign for Supreme Court received support from Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and his political action committee. In October, a Louisville attorney and GOP official, Jack Richardson, filed a petition with the clerk of the Kentucky House calling for Goodwine’s impeachment for not recusing herself from the case. According to a report from Louisville Public Media, Richardson said it was improper for Goodwine to rule on the case after an independent political action committee heavily funded by the Louisville teachers’ union backed ads to help elect her in 2024. Impeachment committee meets House Majority Whip Rep. Jason Nemes, R-Middletown, sent a letter to Republican House Speaker David Osborne Tuesday to recuse himself from the impeachment proceeding into Goodwine, as his campaign had accepted donations from Richardson previously. Nemes is the chair of the House committee. Vice Chair Rep. John Blanton, R-Salyersville, will oversee in Nemes’ stead. A Lantern reporter observed Nemes exiting the meeting room while the committee remained in executive session Wednesday to continue discussions about the rules and petitions. Nemes also later had Blanton lead the vote on accepting the petition against Goodwine and making it public.  The three petitions, as well as rules the committee adopted, would be online later Wednesday evening, Nemes said.  Before the court’s latest ruling, Nemes wrote an op-ed for the Louisville Courier Journal saying that the court’s ruling against the law would “not only determine the future of Jefferson County’s schools but could also unravel critical local policies that benefit urban, suburban and rural communities.” Other officials who have faced petitions calling for their impeachment in recent years include Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, but the House committee voted to dismiss them.  In 2023, the Kentucky Senate voted to impeach a former prosecutor, Ronnie Goldy, who asked a defendant for nude images in exchange for prosecutorial favors in its first impeachment trial in more than a century. The Senate can begin an impeachment trial after the House approves charges.  Nemes said the House Impeachment Committee would meet again Thursday after the House adjourns. The post Kentucky legislature reviews impeachment petition for state Supreme Court justice appeared first on The Lexington Times. ...read more read less