Criminal Justice
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Athens Clarke-County Plans to Eliminate Cash Bail System
The Athens-Clarke County Commission and mayor plan to eliminate bail for local ordinance violations. “We’re talking about the elimination of bail and bond for crimes that are generally a misdemeanor, non-violent, non-problematic sorts of things where we’re not putting the public at risk,” said Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz. He…
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Georgia Justice Project Seeks to Provide Life-Changing Opportunities
It looked like April LaLand-Sentmanat had no way out. Terrified for her 10-year prison sentence, LaLand-Sentmanat decided to put her faith in the Georgia Justice Project. After 30 years, the Georgia Justice Project (GJP) continues to provide legal defense, social support, and employment opportunities to people convicted of crimes in…
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Half Of All Inmates are Mentally Ill, So Why Are They In Jail?
Just to be clear, if you’re in jail, chances are you are accused or have been convicted of committing a crime. What may not be clear is whether you suffer from mental illness. On Tuesday, March 19, a Georgia appellate judge told a room full of criminal justice students, civil…
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Use of Death Penalty in Georgia is Declining
Georgia jurors have not handed down a death sentence in the past five years as the prevalence of capital punishment in the state continues to decrease. Not only are juries supporting the death sentence less often, prosecutors aren’t seeking it nearly as much either. Over the past two decades, prosecutors…
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Use of Unpaid Inmate Labor Scrutinized in Athens-Clarke County
On March 22, Athens for Everyone released a statement reaffirming their position against unpaid inmate labor in Athens-Clarke County. The group contends that the city should pay people to do the jobs that inmates are doing for free. In a work session on March 20, ACC’s mayor and commission discussed…
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Clarke County Crime at 10-Year Low, Still Above National Average
Data analyzed from the Athens-Clarke County crime report webpage reveals that crime has hit an all-time low over the past decade. Since peaking in 2008, overall crime incidents have decreased 42.8 percent in Clarke County. In total, 20,403 crime incidents occurred in 2008, compared to 11,666 in 2018. When adjusted…
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All-Seeing Eyes: Surveillance Tech is Getting More Efficient
For some, it comforts them to know that if someone in their community commits a crime, police officers in the area could use the technology available to them to catch them. For others, advances in surveillance technology means that their privacy could be in danger. There are approximately 30…
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Sports Reducing Youth Crime Becomes a Reality
Not everyone will be able to keep away from crime but with sport programs available to the youth, crime rates have a chance to decrease and kids will have a chance to have a future. The name of this organization can be heard at many events with a DJ,…
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Number of Georgia Offenders Returning to Prison Decreasing
The Georgia Department of Corrections reports that 30 percent of Georgians with criminal backgrounds get reconvicted within three years of their release from prison. The GDC published a press release in June 2018 that notes that recidivism rates are decreasing among offenders who complete programs aimed at helping prevent offenders from…
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UGA Students Follow Trends Signaling Decreased College Alcohol Use
For the first time in years, researchers at the University of Georgia observed the majority of its students were choosing not to drink alcohol in 2018. Instead, UGA has followed national trends researched by the American College Health Association through annual surveys at over 100 universities around the country. According…