News
Senate Candidate Loeffler Attacks Collins for Work as a Defense Attorney
In a recent ad, incumber Senator Kelly Loeffler has attacked challenger Doug Collins for purportedly being a criminal defense attorney, having a website that advertised for clients, and for accepting appointed cases. Her campaign website posted a list of Georgia sheriffs who condemned Collins for his “criminal defense history.” Sen. Loeffler presumably had the assistance…
Read MoreWhy the Upcoming Amendment to the Georgia Court of Appeals Rules is a Good Idea
Beginning on August 1, a single dissent in a three-judge Court of Appeals case will no longer remove its value as precedent for future cases, nor will one judge’s disagreement with the reasoning of the case. Here is the text of new Court of Appeals rule 33.2: If an appeal is decided by a division…
Read MoreToward the Post-Monument Era
If you have practiced law for any time in Georgia, you have walked by Confederate monuments. The smaller and more remote the jurisdiction, the greater the likelihood that you walked beneath the shadow of a Confederate soldier, general, or political figure on your walk to court. Recently, the county commission in Henry County, Georgia, voted…
Read MoreQualified Immunity: The Ultimate Product of Judicial Activism
Congress will soon take up multiple bills to pull back the doctrine of Qualified Immunity. In the House, a bill has been introduced that would roll back Qualified Immunity as it relates to law enforcement and corrections officers. In the Senate, a bill is pending that would roll back qualified immunity as applied to an…
Read MoreIt’s Okay to Turn off the News
Before all the CoVid-19 stuff, I read the news exactly once per week. I experienced the entire Trump impeachment episode in weekly installments at brunch. I allowed myself the Sunday New York Times and the Sunday Atlanta Journal. Also, I did not allow myself to click on any “news” shared over social media. My only…
Read MoreIt’s a Gray Day in Georgia for Motions to Modify Sentence
There is an important new case that changes the law concerning motions to modify sentence in Georgia. In Gray v. State, a case published on August 26, 2019, the Court of Appeals held that trial courts lose jurisdiction, under O.C.G.A. Section 17-10-1(f), to modify criminal sentences following either 120 days after the remittitur where there…
Read MoreThe Era of Attacking the Referee
It’s not an easy gig to be a ref. And it gets harder every day. That is the thesis of “Ref, You Suck!” an episode in Michael Lewis’s new podcast series, Against the Rules. The episode explores a set of dilemmas, summarized in a perfect tagline courtesy of Lewis’s child: “Don’t pick sides, unless it’s…
Read MoreThe AJC Doubles Down on its Flaws from the Original Ralston Piece
In a follow up story to the one published in last’s weeks AJC, Chris Joyner and Johnny Edwards have doubled down on some of the flaws from the original story. The writers continue to blame defense counsel Speaker Ralston solely for delays in his criminal cases. They take the additional step of taking him to…
Read MoreRoundup and Update on a Recent Amicus Success
I’ll write more on this case later, but I wanted to provide a quick update on a recent case. This week, the Supreme Court of Georgia held that the State cannot use against defendants in DUI trials evidence of their refusal to take a chemical test. While the United States Supreme Court has held otherwise,…
Read MoreThe Law School Admissions Game
The weekend edition of USA Today leads with a story on the sanctions law schools are facing based upon poor bar passage rates. The ABA will convene a conference to require accredited schools to ensure that at least 75% of graduates pass the bar within two years. Right now 75% of student must pass the…
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