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INDIANAPOLIS – Gov. Eric J. Holcomb announced his three appointments to the Marion County Superior Courts for the upcoming retirements of Judges Barbara Crawford Cook, David Dreyer and Marilyn Moores.
Marshelle Dawkins Broadwell currently serves as a magistrate judge in the Marion Superior Court, where she hears criminal, civil and family law matters. Before beginning her service as a magistrate judge in 2015, she served as a master commissioner for the Marion Superior Courts. Broadwell is a Butler University graduate and earned her law degree from the Indiana University McKinney School of Law. She began her legal career as a trial and appellate attorney for the Marion County Public Defender Agency. She also worked for the City of Indianapolis’ Office of Corporation Counsel and has been in private practice. Outside of the courtroom, Broadwell serves on the Protection Order Committee and Language Access Advisory Committee. Broadwell is also involved in the Boy Scouts of America, the Crossroads of America Council Pathfinder District, where she serves as the Pathfinder District Commissioner.
Ryan Kenneth Gardner currently serves as a magistrate judge in the Marion Superior Courts, Juvenile Division. Prior to his appointment as a magistrate in March 2019, Gardner was in private practice for 14 years, first at a firm and then as a solo practitioner. When he began his solo practice in 2008, he also served as a contract attorney in the Juvenile Division of the Marion County Public Defender Agency and following that, as a staff attorney with Child Advocates, Inc. Gardner serves on the Indiana Supreme Court’s Commission on Race and Gender Fairness and its Race, Equity and Inclusion Committee for the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative. Gardner was a founding board member of the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana and previously provided pro bono legal services through the Legal Aid Project, the Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic and the Marion County Bar Association. Gardner earned his undergraduate degree from Indiana University and his law degree from the Indiana University McKinney School of Law.
Geoffrey Arlyss Gaither is a senior magistrate with the Marion Superior Courts, Juvenile Division, where he has served since 1995. Gaither earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Cincinnati and his law degree from Howard University. Prior to becoming a magistrate, Gaither was a Marion County deputy prosecutor, deputy public defender and was in private practice. Gaither is also a former adjunct professor at IUPUI and Martin University. Gaither has devoted the past 25 years to being a youth mentor and motivational speaker, often developing and spearheading conferences for minority youth.
Broadwell, Gardner and Gaither will be sworn in as judges of the Marion County Superior Courts on a date to be determined.
