About Judge Martin

Judge Melanie Martin is the Circuit Judge for the Sixth Judicial Circuit, Seventh Division. She was elected without opposition to that seat in 2024 and took office on January 1, 2025. For the six years previously, she was the judge for Little Rock District Court Criminal Division.  Judge Martin was elected in 2018 to that position and served from January 1, 2019 until December 31, 2024. The jurisdiction of both the District and Circuit judgeships encompasses both Pulaski and Perry Counties.   

Judge Martin graduated from UALR Bowen School of Law in 1992 and became a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit upon her admission to the Arkansas Bar. She has extensive bench and jury trial experience in general, juvenile, drug, domestic violence/sexual assault, gangs, major crimes, and homicide/capital cases. She served as Division Chief of District Courts/Complaints Division, Division Chief of the Drug Division, and Division Chief of various general Circuit Courts. She was promoted in 2005 to a Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney position. As a Senior Deputy Prosecutor, she provided and assisted with staff oversight and policymaking decisions and with the development and implementation of prosecutorial policies and procedures. She also supervised the office’s training programs. She served as a representative to the United States Department of Justice’s Violence Reduction Network—a partnership with the Little Rock Police Department which sought to reduce violent crimes in all areas of the City. She also served as a Peer Reviewer for the United States Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance.

Judge Martin has been an Adjunct Professor at UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law, teaching Lawyering Skills and Trial Advocacy.  She has served as President of the Pulaski County Bar Association, the Pulaski County Bar Foundation, the Judge William R. Overton Inn of Court, and the UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law Alumni Board.   She is a board member and a Master of the Bench of the Judge William R. Overton Inn of Court, a board member of the Pulaski County Bar Foundation and a board member of UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law Alumni Board. She is a member of the Arkansas Bar Association, the Pulaski County Bar Association, the Pulaski County Bar Foundation, and the Arkansas Association of Women Lawyers.  She was a member of Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Greater Little Rock Class XXXII.  

While a district judge, Judge Martin served on the City of Little Rock H.O.P.E. Advisory Council, the Pulaski County Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee, and the Arkansas District Judges Council Legislative Committee. She was Arkansas District Judges Council representative to the Arkansas Crime Information Center (ACIC) Supervisory Board. As a circuit judge, she is now a member of the Arkansas Supreme Court’s Committee on Automation.

As Little Rock District Court Criminal Judge, Judge Martin oversaw a staff of 23 and presided over the largest district court criminal docket in the State of Arkansas. The Court, in session five days a week, averages 6000 new criminal cases annually. The court handles not only misdemeanor cases, but also daily felony arraignments. As a district judge, Judge Martin also reviewed all affidavits and approved the issuance of search warrants and arrest warrants. In addition, as a district judge, Judge Martin presided over various civil cases upon referral from the circuit courts. As a circuit judge, she presides over jury trials in felony cases. 

In August 2019, Judge Martin implemented a pilot specialty court, the Pulaski County Mental Health Court, after obtaining approval and designation as such by the Arkansas Supreme Court.  The Mental Health Court works with a team of community stakeholders in order to provide mental health services to defendants at the misdemeanor level.  The court now also has been approved by the Arkansas Supreme Court to operate a pilot program that screens and releases qualified inmates to pre-trial substance abuse treatment. Judge Martin has also conducted Leniency Courts, which give options to citizens with outstanding fines and warrants for failure to appear or failure to comply. During her tenure, Little Rock District Court became an eFiling court. The Court also implemented a daily text notification system, alerting parties by way of text or email notifications regarding court appearances. Judge Martin also revised policies of access to court records to make the business of the court more easily accessible to the public. The Court remained open and accessible to the public during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. When in-person trials resumed, the Court maintained and kept its trial docket current.  

A native of Mountain Home (Baxter County), Judge Martin graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1989. She is a longtime resident of Little Rock and is a member of Pulaski Heights Baptist Church. Judge Martin was named Pulaski County District Judge of the year by the Pulaski County Bar Association twice during her tenure.