Atlanta, Ga. - There is a renewed effort to address issues with Georgia’s inefficient system for compensating People who were wrongly convicted of crimes nearly lost their lives. The issue was then added to a bill that proposed compensation for ex-President Donald Trump and over a dozen co-defendants for legal expenses after they faced charges for trying to reverse his electoral defeat in Georgia in 2020.
The combined bill , Senate Bill 244 secured final approval on Friday, which was the concluding day of Georgia’s legislative session.
Should Republican Governor Brian Kemp sign this legislation, it will permit criminal defendants to recover their legal expenses from prosecutors who get removed when a case is dropped. Additionally, the bill introduces a state statute mandating that an administrative law judge must provide $75,000 annually for each year spent incarcerated to individuals who were wrongly convicted but can demonstrate their innocence of both the original charge and any reduced offenses.
According to an analysis conducted by the Georgia Innocence Project, Georgia stands among the dozen states lacking legislation for compensating individuals wrongfully convicted of offenses. Currently, lawmakers have to introduce bills individually to provide compensation, which involves navigating through a politically charged process frequently resulting in financial hardship for those affected; notably, five such cases faced hurdles earlier this year.
The initial portion of the bill carries a distinct history. Trump along with 18 co-defendants was indicted in Fulton County In August 2023, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was disqualified from the case by a state appeals court due to a romantic relationship she was involved in special prosecutor Nathan Wade , who was brought on board by Willis to head the case.
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This prompted State Senator Brandon Beach, an Alpharetta Republican, to introduce the legislation. Having been appointed as the Treasurer of the United States by Trump following years of fervent backing for the president, he contended that the indictment was politically driven.
‘Punitive politics’
The legislation was approved by the Senate with a vote of 35-18, where every Republican voted in favor. The top three senior-most Democrats also supported the bill -- House Minority Leader Harold Jones II from Augusta, Senator Elena Parent, who chairs the House Democratic Caucus from Atlanta, and House Democratic Whip Kim Jackson from Stone Mountain.
However, numerous Democrats did not agree with this approach.
"I realize that certain individuals support the president and others voted for him; that is their prerogative. However, I ask that you refrain from making my constituents responsible for covering his legal expenses," stated Senator RaShaun Kemp, a democrat from Atlanta.
Atlanta Democratic Representative Shea Roberts denounced the legislation on Wednesday as "a repulsive example of political retaliation." The bill was approved with a vote of 103 to 61 in the House.
It places lawmakers and voters in an ethical bind," Roberts stated. "If you wish to advocate for justice for those wrongly convicted, you must simultaneously endorse shielding influential politicians from responsibility. This isn’t leadership; it’s holding people ransom.
A longstanding push
The approval of the bill occurred just one day following a four-hour early morning session led by Republican Senate Majority Whip Randy Robertson. This committee meeting took place at 6 a.m. regarding legislation aimed at compensating five individuals who had their convictions annulled after spending many years behind bars. However, by that time, it was not possible anymore for this particular proposal to be voted on.
Robertson, who previously served as a sheriff’s deputy, has consistently led opposition to proposals aimed at compensating individuals and enacting legislation that would allow legal professionals to make such decisions rather than elected lawmakers.
Individuals pursuing compensation this year have seen their convictions reversed due to revelations like DNA evidence, mistakes made by legal professionals and law enforcement, along with the uncovering of fresh evidence suggesting they didn’t perpetrate the offenses for which they served time.
However, Robertson stated that individuals who have been wrongly convicted might not actually be innocent since their convictions could be annulled owing to procedural mistakes. Additionally, he expressed reservations regarding the innocence of several people applying for compensation this year. Nonetheless, he acknowledged flaws in the present system and chose to back this year’s legislation aimed at transferring the compensation process from legislative control.
Republican sponsor State Representative Katie Dempsey from Rome stated that the bill will provide the wrongly convicted "a genuine opportunity, rather than a legislative reassessment."
Democratic Representative Scott Holcomb, a long-time advocate for the wrongfully convicted compensation bill, implored fellow Democrats across both legislative bodies to support a proposal he described as one of the few "extremely significant" pieces of legislation he had been involved with.
"There isn't a single person alive who would exchange the compensation these individuals are getting for the time they spent incarcerated in our state's prisons, often for several decades, for crimes they did not commit," he stated on Friday.