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THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2008
COURT SCENE ON TUESDAY
Banks County Board of Commissioners chairman Gene Hart (L) took the stand Tuesday during the court hearing for former district attorney Tim Madison. Madison was sentenced to six years in jail.
Photo compilation by April Reese Sorrow
Madison continued from page 1A
majority of the funds were taken
from Banks County. Madison
must also serve one year in an
alcohol treatment program.
The state sought an eight-year
sentence for Madison, in addi
tion to probation and restitution.
Madison’s attorneys asked for
no prison sentence. Instead, they
asked for a two-year stay at an
alcohol treatment center, such as
the one he is currently living at,
as well as community service and
restitution.
“This is a very tragic day for
the Piedmont Judicial Circuit...
and for a person who had a bril
liant career in the circuit and was
well respected by most everyone
he came into contact with,” the
judge said.”
Mallis said he received many
letters of support about Madison
that included “glowing statements
on your honesty and integrity.”
Madison will turn himself
into the Banks County Jail at
9 a.m. Saturday. The Georgia
Department of Corrections will
determine where Madison will
be housed during his prison sen
tence. Officials with the state
have already discussed placing
Madison in a federal prison for
his own safety.
Brett Williams and Linn Jones
have also been charged in the
case. Their court dates have not
been set.
Madison resigned last June
as district attorney following a
series of investigative newspaper
articles published in The Jackson
Herald, Jefferson. Georgia
Attorney General Thurbert Baker
subsequently launched an inves
tigation into the DA’s office. That
probe led to the theft indictments
in Banks County last August.
“Today’s sentencing will go a
long way towards removing the
tarnish from the judicial system
in the Piedmont circuit,” said
Baker. “The criminal actions of
a few have cast a pall over many,
but the prison sentence given
MALLIS PRESIDES
DeKalb County judge Robert Mallis presided over the sentenc
ing of former district attorney Tim Madison. The senior judge
was selected after the judges in the Piedmont Judicial Circuit
recused themselves from the case. Photos by April Reese Sorrow
BANKS SHERIFF TESTIFIES
Banks County Sheriff Charles
Chapman testified at the sen
tencing hearing of former dis
trict attorney, Tim Madison,
Tuesday in Homer.
to Madison today reflects that
the corruption was attributable
to individuals, not the entire sys
tem.”
Prosecution of this case was
handled by Senior Assistant
Attorneys General David
McLaughlin and Kimberly
Schwartz. The investigation was
handled by Georgia Bureau of
Investigation Special Agent in
Charge John Cagle and Special
Agent Brian Whidby.
MADISON COMMENTS
Before he was sentenced,
Madison addressed the court:
“I’m deeply sorry for what I’ve
done,” Madison told the judge.
“I’m ashamed of what I’ve done.
I’ve already surrendered my law
license. I was ready to commit
suicide. I was embarrassed. I was
ashamed. I’m at your mercy. I’m
very sorry that I did this.”
During testimony from sever
al witnesses and from Madison
himself, a story of alcoholism,
mental illness and a gambling
addiction was revealed. Madison
has been treated for alcoholism
related issues and has attend
ed AA meetings since the mid-
1990s, although he had not been
in treatment for several years
“I was living a secret life,”
Madison said.
EIGHT COUNTS
AGAINST MADISON
Madison was charged in Banks
County for two felony theft
charges, one felony count of vio
lation of oath of office, four felo
ny counts of false statements and
writings and one felony count of
conspiracy to defraud a political
entity. He was not charged in
Jackson and Barrow counties in
exchange for his plea in Banks
County. However, the restitution
includes money taken from the
other counties.
Three of the criminal counts
against Madison dealt with his
scheme to bill Banks County for
a full-time salary for Williams,
who was already being paid a
full-time salary from the state.
The money from Banks County
was paid to Williams, who then
passed it on to Madison.
Madison put the money into a
personal checking account and
used it for a variety of things,
including purchasing a $7,000
motorcycle.
The other counts against
Madison center around the falsi
fying of time cards for his wife,
Linn Jones, who was employed
to work 20 hours a week in
Banks County and 40 hours a
week in Jackson County. Several
time cards she submitted were
for time when she was out of
the county, including a trip to a
casino cruise ship based out of
Brunswick, Ga., and a visit to
San Diego, Calif.
LONG DAY OF TESTIMONY
The sentencing hearing got
under way Tuesday in Banks
County Superior Court with three
witnesses called by prosecutors.
Banks County Board of
Commissioners chairman Gene
Hart, Banks County Sheriff
Charles Chapman and former
Piedmont Judicial Circuit chief
assistant district attorney Allison
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Mauldin testified on the impact
of the crime.
Hart said the actions caused his
staff to lose their respect for the
office of district attorney. He said
they also now more closely mon
itor and question any financial
issues dealing with the office.
Chapman said the theft caused
a lot of distrust for everyone in
the law enforcement community.
“In the minds of many people,
it cast suspicions that we might
be guilty of the same thing,” he
said.
Mauldin, who was very emo
tional during her testimony,
said she was shocked and disap
pointed when the charges against
Madison were reported.
“It was shocking,” she said.
“We read about it in the paper
like everyone else. No one want
ed to believe it. It was devastat
ing to the morale in the office.
There is an embarrassment fac
tor. There is a cloud of suspicion
that we should have known, or
that we were involved. It com
pletely destroyed the office.”
WITNESSES CALLED
BY DEFENSE
Madison’s lawyer Ed Tolley
called 17 witnesses, including
long-time friends, family mem
bers, Alcoholics Anonymous sup
porters and people who worked
with Madison on domestic vio-
lence issues.
Family and friends testified
about long-standing family
issues dealing with mental ill
ness and alcoholism. They also
testified about Madison’s own
struggles with alcoholism and
how it “clouds your entire think
ing.”
“He had an erosion of morals
while he was under the influence
of alcohol,” one friend testified.
Others who testified included a
doctor who has treated Madison
and the director of the alcohol
abuse center where he has been
living for the past three months.
At the alcohol treatment center,
Madison has been required to
have a full-time job. He worked
for Fieldale Farms for a while
and now works at an animal
shelter where he cleans out dog
pens and takes the animals for
walks. He is also required to go
to group therapy and individual
counseling.
Members of the legal commu
nity and directors of agencies
Madison worked with testified
about his “brilliance as a prose
cutor” and his work for domestic
abuse victims.
“I never met a more formi
dable adversary,” said long-time
Commerce attorney Greg Perry,
who faced Madison in court many
times over the past few decades.
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City of Maysville
Notice of Property Tax
Increase/Decrease
The City of Maysville has proposed the
adoption of a millage rate which will require
an increase in property taxes by 14.08% for
Banks County residents living in Maysville,
and a reduction in property taxes of 14.59%
for Jackson County residents living in
Maysville. These changes are due to
differences in sales taxes received. The gross
millage rate will remain unchanged. The net
millage rate is based upon the amount of
reduction from sales taxes.
All concerned citizens are invited to public
hearings on this tax increase/decrease to be
held at Maysville Library at 6:00 P.M. on
March 13, 2008, and March 20, 2008, and
at 6:30 P.M. on March 24, 2008.
The Maysville City Council plans to consider
final adoption of the millage rates at a special
called meeting to be held at the Maysville
Library at 7:00 P.M. on March 24, 2008.