Judge Sanctions Chatham DA

Sunday Solutions — Oct. 29, 2023

We’re behind on picking out costumes for Halloween, because you can’t disguise a newsy week when a federal judge sanctions a prosecutor for misrepresenting facts to avoid a deposition, elected officials want to pay teachers to carry guns, a small town tries to keep its charter alive, and mass shootings keep us all wondering what’s next. This may require raiding the trick or treat candy early.

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Federal judge hands harsh sanctions to Chatham DA

It only took U.S. District Judge R. Stan Baker one paragraph into a 50-page order to explain last week’s jarring sanctions against Chatham County District Attorney Shaleena Cook Jones. The first two sentences explained the gravity and the third cut to the heart of the matter: “Cook Jones repeatedly and willfully disregarded her discovery obligations and the Court’s Orders even after the Court modified its deadlines to accommodate her.” The fourth sentence said Cook Jones provided false information to the court and the final one dealt the penalty: The DA’s responses to a discrimination lawsuit are stricken from the record and she must pay plaintiff’s costs, fees and expenses. For the next 49 pages, Baker set out a detailed timeline of transgressions and even more direct language to back up the ruling. While the order doesn’t end the case itself, it sets up problems for Cook Jones in fighting the rest of the case and down the road in other proceedings, not to mention credibility with voters. The Current’s Margaret Coker writes about the ruling, which comes at a time when the DA’s office is under tough scrutiny for a variety of reasons including case management and staffing. Read her story here.

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Safer drivers, more pay for teachers who carry?

The state legislature doesn’t gather until January for its 40-day session, and new bills will join those leftover from last year, including two very different approaches to teen safety. The first: Georgia Rep. Imani Barnes is filing a “Safe Teens Act” to authorize local public schools to offer driver education as an elective course. It would be funded by school fees or local funds and be worth a half-point class credit. Second: In a speech in Barrow County, Lieutenant Gov. Burt Jones says he wants to pay teachers $10,000 a year to carry guns in classrooms to prevent school shootings. State Sen. Max Burns of Sylvania said he’d sponsor the legislation, which isn’t yet available to view.

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Quiz, anyone?

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Walthourville residents face tough decisions

Here’s an update on the tough choices facing the small Liberty County town of Walthourville — they must decide by Dec. 31 to levy a property tax or collect some other type of revenue or risk losing the town charter and public safety services they now provide. The council’s work stalled out after meetings and disagreements among council members over when to set public hearings for consideration of taxes or fire fees and what types of revenue to propose to fill the wide gap between expenses and available funds. And last week, the council agreed on hearing dates — after the Nov. 7 election where all but one could be voted out. The Current’s Robin Kemp reports on the situation and has provided a primer on how residents are currently taxed, Liberty County taxes they pay and how the City of Walthourville spends its money. The detailed reporting is instructional for anyone who wants to learn more about how money is spent by cities and counties for their taxpayers.

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Current Conversation: Change the world

Join us on Friday for an in-person discussion with Omkari Williams on her new book, “Micro Activism: How You Can Make a Difference in the World Without a Bullhorn.” Williams, an activism coach, asks “What if an activist looks like you?” She’ll talk about ways you can spark change in ways that are realistic, reminding readers that what they can bring to the table — no matter how big or how small — is exactly the kind of change the world needs.

This event is being co-sponsored by The Current, The College of Coastal Georgia, and E. Shaver Booksellers as part of The Current Conversations series, which convenes conversations between nationally recognized authors and Coastal Georgia’s residents about critical social and environmental topics.

This event is free and open to the public. We hope to see you at 5 p.m. Friday at Marshes of Glynn Library, 208 Gloucester St., in Brunswick. Space is limited, so registration is requested — go to this link and let us know you’ll be there.

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Your second cup: Mass shootings myths

After a week where we’ve seen the pain from the mass shootings in Lewiston, Maine, it’s important to visit what we know and don’t know about these tragedies that continue to happen everywhere. So far, there have been 565 mass shootings this year. The data filters out shootings that are domestic in nature or part of other crimes like robberies or gang activity. If education on a topic is key to fixing its problems, then we all need to buckle down. The Trace, one of our favorite sources of data and credible information on gun policy, has put together an overview of myths and important things to know about mass shootings and gun violence. Here’s a link to their worthwhile update.

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And sometimes, it’s about us

• The Current’s Editor in Chief Margaret Coker was recognized recently by Georgia Watch as a “Champion for Shining Light on Title Lenders.” The honor was for her “ongoing series exposing the business practices of title lenders that trap Georgians in debt.” The series, supported by ProPublica’s Local Reporting Partnership with The Current, looked at Savannah-based TitleMax and how people ended up in the quicksand of debt. Here’s a link to the series.
• You’ll be getting a bit more mail in your inbox over the next few weeks, but it’s for a very good reason: NewsMatch, a powerful collaborative fundraising movement to support independent journalism, starts Wednesday. Contributions you make to The Current starting Wednesday — Nov. 1 — will be eligible for a triple match. So, while we’re looking forward to Halloween treats, we’re three times happier about the next day. Watch your email for details.

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