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LOCAL March 24- 30, 2016 » Page 8A
Lawyer trades state house for courthouse
State Court Judge Mike Jacobs spent a decade as a state representative before becoming a judge in
DeKalb County last year. Photo by Andrew Cauthen
by Andrew Cauthen
Andrew@dekalbchamp.com
DeKalb County State
Court Judge Mike Jacobs
said it was a successful
2015 state legislative
session that led to his
decision to become a judge.
“I don’t think I could
have topped the 2015
legislative session in terms
of what we accomplished,”
Jacobs said. “It would have
been a tough act to follow
and certainly [was] a good
time to move on from the
General Assembly.
Jacobs received his
bachelor’s degree from
Georgetown University
in Washington, D.C., and
in 2003 received his law
degree from the University
of Georgia School of Law.
After graduating from
law school, Jacobs was an
associate at Alston & Bird,
where he worked in the
bankruptcy practice group.
Next he moved to Krevolin
& Horst to work in business
litigation. Moving to Hall,
Booth, Smith & Slover,
he worked in insurance
defense before starting a
solo practice focusing on
consumer bankruptcy and
representing defendant
debtors.
“Not long after I
graduated from law school
and moved to DeKalb
County from Athens, when
the federal courts redrew
the state House and Senate
lines for the 2004 election,
I found myself in an open
state house seat,” Jacobs
said. “So with my wife’s
patience and indulgence, I
qualified to run, walked the
entire district twice and was
elected.”
Serving in the legislature
for a decade, Jacobs said
he “developed a reputation
for listening to everyone,
being fair, and working well
with my colleagues even
when we did not agree.”
During the 2015
legislative session, which
he described as “the most
productive legislative
session” he worked in,
Jacobs was the primary
sponsor of HB 213, which
permanently repealed the
“50-50” spending restriction
that constrained MARTA’s
financial flexibility;
He sponsored HB 215,
which set up a SPLOST
referendum to address
DeKalb’s infrastructure
needs.
Additionally Jacobs
was “heavily involved”
with Reps. Mary
Margaret Oliver and Pam
Stephenson in HB 300,
creating the DeKalb State
Court Traffic Division and
eliminating the troubled
Recorders Court. He also
cosponsored HB 597, which
reformed the DeKalb Board
of Ethics and was involved
See Jacobs on Page 11A
State House passes Stonecrest city bill
by Carla Parker
carla@dekalbchamp.com
The proposed city of Stonecrest could
be on the May ballot after the bill passed
the Georgia House.
Senate Bill 208 passed the house
March 16 with a 144-17 vote. The bill
passed the senate last year. Jason Lary,
president of the Stonecrest City Alliance,
said it has been a long three years to get
to this point of becoming a city.
“I’m real excited about it,” he said
If Gov. Nathan Deal quickly signs
the bill, the referendum would be on the
May 24 ballot for voters residing in the
proposed city.
Stonecrest would incorporate
29-square mile of southeast DeKalb
County and have a population of more
than 50,000 residents—95.4 percent Black
and 4 percent White.
According to the proposed city’s
feasibility study, the city’s southern
boundary begins on the east side of
Snapfinger Road where it meets the
boundaries of DeKalb, Rockdale, and
Henry Counties. The southern boundary
continues east, tracking the Rockdale
border and stops at I-20. The area
includes property between I-20 and
Covington Highway to the west of Lithonia
and other areas north of Lithonia.
Stonecrest would have annual
From left, Jason Lary president of the Stonecrest
City Alliance receives congratulations from Gov.
Nathan Deal upon raising enough money for a
cityhood study. File photo
expenses of $7.91 million and revenues
of $9.85 million, leaving a surplus of
$1.94 million, according to the study. The
services the city would provide are code
enforcement, planning and zoning, and
parks and recreation.
Lary said he believes the proposed city
will be approved by voters.
“I can only go by our neighborhood
presentations and our public forum events,
and we’re at a 90 percent approval
rating,” Lary said. “We’ll continue to do our
neighborhood seminars, going around to
each home owners association.”
Stonecrest would incorporate 29 square miles of southeast DeKalb
County and have a population of more than 50,000 residents.