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help people navigate their way to getting an
appointment.
With Biden taking office and the poten
tial for a more efficient and better-funded
national effort to better distribute the
vaccine, it may take a few more weeks, but
many health experts are hopeful that states
will get help and top-down direction in
getting the vaccine to more people in the
near future. In the meantime, follow pub
lic-health guidelines and be mindful of your
actions. [Jessica Luton]
New DA Announces Reforms
Western Circuit District Attorney
Deborah Gonzalez—who was elected on
a platform of criminal justice reform—is
wasting no time, sharing news of dozens of
changes she instituted on her first day in
office.
A legal memo she released Jan. 1
described more than 40 new policies that
took effect immediately, addressing issues
like systemic bias, racial inequity, the
precarious status of undocumented immi
grants and the school-to-prison pipeline.
Among those new policies: Gonzalez
said the DA’s office will no longer seek the
death penalty; will not press charges for
simple possession of marijuana, instead
urging police to issue citations; will drop
charges of simple possession of other drugs
or refer them for pre-trial diversion; won’t
press charges for possession of drug-related
objects; and will end the common prosecu
torial practice of piling on multiple charges
to encourage defendants to take a plea
bargain.
The pretrial diversion program—which
allows first-time offenders to perform
community service and have their records
expunged—will be expanded. Prosecutors
will no longer seek cash bail for nonviolent
defendants or those charged with making
threats, and defendants charged with vio
lent crimes will also be considered for a rec
ommendation of “own recognizance” or OR
bonds on a case-by-case basis.
Gonzalez said she is shifting resources
to determining whether cases should be
brought to trial at all, and will conduct a
review of all open cases within the next
60-90 days. Her office will also review
sentences that have already been imposed.
When plea bargaining or recommending
sentences going forward, prosecutors will
take into account both the victim’s need for
justice and the defendant’s rehabilitation
needs (such as mental health issues), and
will consider alternatives to incarceration
like house arrest. Sentencing recommen
dations will include a statement of cost to
taxpayers for incarceration or probation.
Gonzalez is also seeking to limit proba
tion, which she said does little to make the
community safer. In addition, she opposes
revoking probation for technical violations
like missed curfews.
For juveniles, Gonzalez said the DA’s
office “will be guided by the fundamental
principle that kids in the juvenile system
are minors who are still cognitively devel
oping and should not be transferred to
adult court” unless required by law. The
presumption will be that students should
not be prosecuted for school conduct except
assault with a deadly weapon or felony sex
ual assault.
“These are the first of many reforms
that we know will improve both equity and
safety in our community,” Gonzalez said
in a news release. “When you’re repairing
more than two decades of neglect and
injustice, it can’t all be fixed at the stroke of
midnight. However, we have an aggressive
plan in place to follow through on every
promise I have made to this community
to transform the Western Judicial Circuit.
That means not only addressing the known
issues, but shining a light on every aspect of
the criminal justice system in this circuit to
address challenges that a lack of transpar
ency may have hidden from public view.”
On the transparency front, Gonzalez
said the DA’s office will publish statistics
monthly that will detail felony arrests,
cases brought to trial, the outcome of those
cases, the average bond, incarceration rate
and length of stay in
prison for each type
of offense, and data
broken down by age,
race and gender.
Gonzalez also
announced that
Rebecca Fogal, a
15-year veteran prosecutor, will serve
as chief assistant DA. Gonzalez’s tran
sition team is being led by David Lyle,
senior counsel for communications at the
American Constitution Society, a pro
gressive civil liberties group; and Travis
Williams, a public defender featured in the
HBO documentary Gideon’s Army. [BA]
Watkinsville Mayor Wants to
Secede From Judicial Circuit
The mayor of Watkinsville, Bob Smith,
wrote an open letter to state legislators last
week asking for a new judicial circuit to be
created solely for Oconee County.
Oconee County is currently in the
Western Circuit, which it shares with
Athens-Clarke County. The new circuit
would be called the “Oconee North Circuit”
if approved by the Georgia legislature. It
would be one of the smallest circuits in
Georgia by land area; most judicial circuits
in Georgia span multiple counties. Similarly
sized circuits, such as the one serving
Clayton County, typically have a much
larger population.
Smith’s stated reasoning for this change
is to reduce the expense of a new county
administration building being constructed
at the intersection of Macon Highway
and Georgia Highway 15. The current
courthouse may be sufficient for Oconee
County’s needs if the new circuit is created,
since it would have a smaller caseload. This
would mean “substantial savings” and a
“win for the taxpayers of Oconee County,”
Smith wrote.
Smith did not quantify the savings he
believes taxpayers would receive by con
structing a smaller administration building.
He also did not account for the additional
expense of new salaries, such as for judges
and a new district attorney’s office, and for
other expenses that would arise during such
a change.
With the 2021 legislative session start
ing this week, Smith must have felt some
urgency to make this request before the full
budget impact was known.
Not mentioned in Smith’s letter is
the new district attorney of the Western
Judicial Circuit, Deborah Gonzalez, who
issued the aforementioned memo detailing
40 policy changes that became effective on
Jan. 1, her first day as district attorney. Her
memo was not well-received by members of
the Athens-Clarke County Republican party
or by others who fear rising crime rates
and favor a punitive approach to criminal
justice. Smith, a former state representa
tive, is a Republican, and discontent with
Gonzalez’s recent victory could have fac
tored into his request. [Chris Dowd]
Athens Transit Will Stay Fare-Free
Athens buses will remain fare-free at
least through the end of June, Athens-
Clarke County commissioners unanimously
decided Jan. 6.
Athens Transit has not charged during
most of the pandemic, partially to protect
drivers by allowing passengers to board
through the rear
door, and partially
because people who
are still riding tran
sit tend to be low-in
come and rely on
the service to get to
work. UGA ridership
has dwindled to nearly nothing because
most classes have been online or have had
a virtual option, and many employees con
tinue to work from home or are driving to
campus.
Funding includes $150,000 from the fed
eral CARES Act passed in March, $316,000
from county reserves and $400,000 worth
of service cuts. Buses will continue to
run hourly and stop at 7 p.m. More help
could be coming from the most recent
coronavirus relief bill Congress passed last
month, although most of the $14 billion it
included for transit appears to be destined
for big cities, which have been hit hardest.
Several commissioners—most notably Tim
Denson—have been pushing for fare-free
transit for years, so there is a possibility
that the mayor and commission could opt
to keep the policy when they approve a
2022 budget that takes effect July 1.
A split commission also rejected a pro
posed apartment complex off Lexington
Road near Ben Epps Airport. The devel
oper had agreed to set aside 12 of the 112
units as “affordable,” with rents ranging
from $650 for a one-bedroom to $775
for a three-bedroom, which enticed some
commissioners, but critics noted that
the commitment is unenforceable under
current county laws. They also cited noise
from planes passing overhead as an issue,
as well as safety concerns if a plane should
crash in the airport’s flight path, where
development is generally restricted. Both
the county Planning Commission and the
Airport Authority recommended denial.
Denson and commissioners Mariah Parker,
Melissa Link, Jesse Houle and Patrick
Davenport voted in favor of the develop
ment; Allison Wright, Russell Edwards,
Carol Myers, Ovita Thornton and Mike
Hamby voted against it; and Mayor Kelly
Girtz broke the tie.
In other business, the commission
approved a contract with student-hous
ing developer Landmark Properties to
convey county-owned land to the Athens
Downtown Development Authority to
build a new parking deck for a new Classic
Center arena approved by voters as part
of SPLOST 2020. In addition to parking,
the deck will also provide a revenue stream
to help fund its construction. Long-term
leases for a hotel and senior-living facility
are also planned for county-owned property
to the east of the Classic Center to provide
additional funding. The deck will be built by
Landmark Properties, which will also use
the parking during the day for Landmark’s
corporate headquarters at its development
The Mark across East Broad Street. Edwards
dissented from the 9-1 vote.
In addition, commissioners selected
Edwards to serve as mayor pro tem for a
second year. The mayor pro tem consults
with the mayor on meeting agendas, leads
budget hearings and fills in when the mayor
is unavailable.
It was also Myers’ first meeting after
being sworn in to represent District 8 on
the Eastside. She won a three-way race in
June to replace former commissioner Andy
Herod, who opted not to run again after 13
years on the commission. Houle started his
first four-year term as well, although he has
been on the commission since November,
when he won a special election triggered
by the death of his incumbent opponent in
the June election, Jerry NeSmith, to serve
out the last few weeks of NeSmith’s term.
[BA] ©
THIS MSIIIU WSILI
HOW COULD POLICE POSSIBLY HAVE
PREPARED FOR AN ANGRY MOB THAT
HAD BEEN OPENLY PLOTTING TO
STORM THE CAPITOL For WEEKS?
ANY RECENT EXAMPLES
OF PROTESTS BEING MET
WITH AN OVERWHELMING
SHOW OF FORCE! \
ij CER-
JTAINLY
1 CAN'T
[think OF
[one;
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HEY EVERYONE.' here we are,
L1VESTREAMING WITH OUR FACES
FULLY EXPOSED WHILE WE COMMIT
FELONIES IN THE UNITED STATES
CAPITOL.'
1 THERE'S MY 1.0. IN CASE
I ANYONE NEEDS TO FIND ME!
by TOM TOMORROW
DEMOCRATS WHO WANT US To
RESIGN FOR ENCOURAGING SEDITION
SHOULD STOP BEING So DIVISIVE!
HOW TRUE, SENATOR |
HAWLEY! WE'LL NEVER I
HEAL AS A NATION IF >
THE LEFT INSISTS ON s
HOLDING PEOPLE AC- 1
COUNTABLE FOR THE W0R0S i
THEY HAPPEN TO SAY! ;
nmsmxasmm tmammzam mmmmsssm
WITH TWO WEEKS LEFT IN THIS
ADMINISTRATION, WE ARE ALL R£-
SIGNING AS A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE!
DECENT PEOPLE SUCH
AS OURSELVES MUST
DRAW THE LINE
SOMEWHERE!
CONSPIRACY-ADDLED WHITE SUPREMA
CISTS INCITED TO VIOLENCE BY A
DERANGED PRESIDENT WHO HAS
NO RESPECT FOR LAWS OR DECENCY?
THAT IS NOT THE AMERICA X KNOW. 1
also, I JUST WOKE UP FROM A
FIVE YEAR COMA. DID I MISS
ANYTHING?
THE WHITE-HAIRED GUY BETRAYED
ME, DEMOCRATS WANT TO IMPEACH
ME AGAIN, AND WORST OF ALL,
TWITTER PERMANENTLY
BANNER ME!
HOW CAN THIS BE HAPPENING'!
DOESN'T ANYONE REMEMBER THE
BOAT PAR ARES'!'!!
These are the first of many
reforms that we know will
improve both equity and safety
in our community.
JANUARY 13, 2021 | FLAGPOLE.COM 5
-f 0 M "IcMoRffaWiDlOllI ...www.thismodernworld.com...twitter.com/tomtomorrow