Even the DA Is Worried About a Plan to Close a Georgia PD Office
A plan to save money by eliminating an office of public defenders handling some Atlanta cases has raised the ire of the chief judge and prompted concerns by the local district attorney.
The Georgia Public Defender Standards Council plans to shut down a public defender office that handles cases posing a conflict for local PDs. But Chief Judge Doris Downs of Fulton County says the plan is irresponsible and could cause a legal crisis, the New York Times reports.
Critics say paying private lawyers to handle conflicts cases results in poorly paid advocates with little criminal justice experience handling cases they don’t want.
Even Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard has reservations. He notes that his office is currently trying a case involving nine gang members. Ethics rules would prevent the public defender’s office from handling more than one or two of the defendants’ cases, since their defenses may conflict.
When the Times reporter asked Howard how his office would handle cases without conflicts counsel, he answered, “We’re hoping, in the future, that if people are going to commit crimes in Fulton County, they’ll do it singly.”
