Dougherty chief Superior Court judge lays out case for additional judge
Aug. 29—ALBANY — While it's no surprise that COVID-19 backed up the country's court system, the numbers in Dougherty County are staggering.
Currently there are 10,000 pending felony cases in the county, and a quarter of those involve some of the most heinous charges imaginable, from murder to aggravated child molestation, Chief Dougherty Judicial Circuit Judge Willie Lockette told Dougherty County Commissioners on Monday.
Lockette said some 175 defendants who are either denied bail or cannot afford it have been in the county jail for two years at a cost of millions of dollars to taxpayers.
"Over two years, it cost $6 million to keep these individuals (jailed) that we ought to be able to dispose of cases more efficiently," the judge said. "It costs $18,000 to keep an inmate in jail for one year, $36,000 for two years.
COVID kept courts closed for more than a year after the pandemic hit in spring 2020, but the three Superior Court judges' workload would be among the highest in the state even without the COVID factor.
A state study, which filtered out the impact of the pandemic, estimated that each of the Dougherty judges shoulders the workload of 1.8 judges.
One factor that weighted the load for Dougherty County is the number of violent cases on local court dockets. The 2,500 violent felony cases awaiting disposition also include rape, armed robbery, kidnapping and aggravated sodomy.
"I have two cases that involve eight to 12 defendants, all of them accused of murder," Lockette said. "It's unsafe for them to be out in the community, even under house arrest. There are 38 defendants in a RICO (racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations) involving the Purps gang."
A fourth judge would not only allow innocent defendants to have their day in court and convict the guilty or approve plea deals so that they leave Dougherty County and go into the state system, but the addition also will make for a safer community overall, the judge said.
If legislation is approved and signed by the governor assigning a fourth judge to the county circuit, it also would receive an additional public defender, assistant district attorney, judicial and law clerk, with nearly all of the cost picked up by the state, he said. The county's cost would be about $200,000 per year.
"So you'd be looking at adding another $200,000, but if a judge eliminates 11 cases that are in jail for two years, it will easily pay for itself," Lockette said. "Even though we are losing population, we are increasing in violent crimes at a brisk rate."
One concern raised by Commissioner Russell Gray is that judges are only a part of the solution. Currently the district attorney's office has six or seven vacant prosecutor positions, he said, and those personnel are needed to move cases into the courtroom.
"(That) only brings a DA's position, it doesn't provide a body," Gray said. "It's about getting the cases prepared and getting them to you. If we don't have enough people to get these cases to you, it doesn't get them to you."
