Bill on prosecutor oversight moves forward at Georgia General Assembly

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A Georgia House bill introduced to bring new oversight of local prosecutors moved forward on Monday, joining a similar Senate bill that passed last week. Both bills were backed by Athens area Republicans.

Monday was crossover day, the last day for legislation to pass either the House or the Senate in order to have a chance at passage this session.

Other bills brought forward by Athens area legislators, including a new cold-case commission, grants for students with intellectual disabilities, and resolutions celebrating the achievements of the University of Georgia bulldogs football team, had all passed prior to Monday.

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Rep. Houston Gaines, R-Athens, co-sponsored House bill 231 on prosecutorial oversight. Both the House and the Senate bills would create a commission overseeing prosecutors with the ability to discipline local prosecutors, including for "willful and persistent failure to perform his or her duties" in the words of the House bill. The Senate bill, SB 92, contains similar language and was co-sponsored by Sen. Bill Cowsert, R-Athens.

"This bill does nothing to take away the discretion of elected solicitors and district attorneys," Gaines told his colleagues during the debate on the bill.

Instead he outlined what he thought the bill would do, using the Western Judicial Circuit — which covers Athens — as an example.

"On day one, when our district attorney was elected she put out a memo outlining what cases and what issues she was simply not going to prosecute," Gaines said.

That district attorney, Deborah Gonzalez, issued a memo committing to not prosecuting certain drug offenses, including simple marijuana possession and user quantities of drugs.

Gaines also cited other issues he has with Gonzalez, including declining to prosecute certain cases in recent months, or cases he claimed the office mismanaged.

The House bill passed 98-75.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Prosecutor oversight bill passes state House, Gaines targets Gonzalez