Newly elected circuit judge Sonny Reagan was formally sworn into office Friday morning during an investiture ceremony at the Pike County Courthouse.

Reagan had already taken the oath of office in Enterprise earlier this week, but the judge said he wanted to be sworn in before his constituents in Pike County as well.

Reagan said retiring circuit judge Tom Head convinced him to have the investiture ceremony.

“I really didn’t want to have one, a big deal, because as you all know I have a military background and there’s a tradition in the military with the change of command ceremony the focus is on the outgoing commander and not the incoming commander, so that was how I approached this,” Reagan said. “ But Judge Head, in his very judicial way, told me ‘a,’ that this is not the military and ‘b,’ there would be a ceremony.

“I thought about it and I said, ‘You know, he’s absolutely right’ because this isn’t about Sonny Reagan; this about the people of Pike County and the people of Coffee County. This your courthouse, this your courtroom and this is your judicial system; I’m just someone that’s been honored and privileged to assume the role that you’ve bestowed upon me to take this position.”

Reagan said there are three things that Pike County residents should expect from him as a circuit judge.

“One, you should expect your next circuit judge to follow the law,” Reagan said. “You should expect your next circuit judge to be fair and patient, to have the capacity for compassion but the ability to be firm when the situation requires him to be firm; and every person that walks through that door and comes up here, you should expect your next circuit judge to treat them with fairness and respect and to be unbiased when approaching any case. And finally, you should expect your next circuit judge to have the judicial temperament that you would expect of someone who is assuming this position of great respect and authority. Every morning when I wake up that is exactly what I will strive to do.”