Richmond County Superior Court Judge Jesse Stone has agreed to issue an order giving George Attorney General Christopher Carr 60 days to get a prosecutor in court to take responsibility for a near six-year-old pending gang and racketeering case in Augusta.
If the attorney general fails to make the appointment, several alleged members of the Loyalty Over Everything gang could be released with charges dismissed.
Stone agreed on Thursday, Jan. 27 to sign the order that requires the state attorney general or his representative to be in court in 60 days to show cause why the case shouldn’t be dismissed.
Stone, who inherited the 2017 gang case when he was appointed to the bench last year, was asked to take that measure Thursday when defense attorneys complained that repeated efforts to move the case against their clients have been met with prosecutorial silence.
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In January 2017, a 54-count indictment returned by the Richmond County grand jury accused 17 people of taking part in various crimes, including murder, as part of the LOE gang. Sheriff’s Department officials believe the gang started in the 1980s as the Shirley Avenue Boys.
“I have a gentleman who has a great defense,” said Kevin Hanna’s attorney Jacque Hawk. But Hawk cannot get the case before a jury because there is no prosecutor assigned to the case. Meanwhile, Hanna and several of his co-defendants have been stuck in jail without bond for five years and nine months, Hawk said.
Thursday’s hearing for Hanna, Charles Gillians III and Darrell F. Hill was postponed again. Eight others also have charges pending in the case.
While a number of logistical problems has caused delays – law enforcement were still working on the case for over a year after indictment so discovery couldn’t be provided to the defense, the judge assigned to preside over the case abruptly retired and more than a year passed before the governor appointed Stone to replace him, and then there was the pandemic. Since Jan. 1, 2021, the case could not move forward because the newly elected district attorney, Jared Williams, worked with Hawk on the defense of Hanna and those of many other clients.
Williams’ office sent the attorney general a list of more than 80 cases that his office cannot prosecute because of the professional and ethical conflict. Some prosecutors have been assigned in other cases, but as the attorney general responded through a spokeswoman last year, finding prosecutors for so many cases at once has been a challenge. As of last week, a prosecutor still has not been assigned.
Georgia law directs district attorneys who believe they have conflicts that prohibit them from prosecuting cases to report the conflicts to the attorney general who is responsible for appointing others to prosecute.
Thursday, Stone said the delay in the case has been frustrating for him, too. But he wants to hear from all the defense attorneys in the case and from whoever becomes the prosecutor before taking any action.
Sandy Hodson is a staff reporter covering courts for The Augusta Press. Reach her at sandy@theaugustapress.com.
