A Fulton County judge has denied a motion to block action by the Prosecuting Attorneys Qualifications Commission.
Augusta Circuit District Attorney Jared Williams is one of four Georgia DAs who filed suit to stop the newly-formed, appointed commission from acting in its assigned oversight role.
The plaintiffs said the legislature overstepped its authority in creating the panel. They sought a preliminary injunction to stop it from initiating investigations or disciplinary proceedings.
Eighty-four current and former prosecutors and attorneys general recently filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the Georgia DAs.
The brief argued that DAs are elected and can be replaced by voters. The appointed panel undermines the separation of powers between branches of government, it said.
By infringing on prosecutorial discretion, the panel will force prosecutors to shift focus away from more serious or bothersome crimes to fixate on prosecution of every crime on the books, such as adultery and simple marijuana possession, it said.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Paige Reese Whitaker denied the motion for an injunction Friday.
In the order, Whitaker said plaintiffs had failed to show any injury by the panel but were alleging “unspecified future harm.”
She said the injunction demand hadn’t overcome the panel’s claim of sovereign immunity, which protects “state officials acting in their official capacity.”
The order stated that plaintiffs had not demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits of the case.
Reasons she cited included that the Georgia Constitution authorizes the General Assembly, members of which “represent the will of the people,” to “impose duties on district attorneys to create the grounds and processes to remove districts attorneys” who fail to meet those legal duties.
