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Georgia House panel advances bill to allow judges to keep personal info out of public records • Georgia Recorder

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georgiarecorder.com – Stanley Dunlap – 2025-02-04 16:49:00

Georgia House panel advances bill to allow judges to keep personal info out of public records

by Stanley Dunlap, Georgia Recorder
February 4, 2025

A Georgia legislative committee voted Tuesday to establish a new process to protect judges from threats by keeping some of their personal information from appearing in public records.

The House Judiciary Committee unanimously advanced House Bill 199 Tuesday, which will allow judges to fill out a form that will be submitted to local governments, which will be required to remove judges’ names, addresses and phone numbers from public records.

The House bill is an update to last year’s Senate Bill 508, which allowed the Administrative Office of the Courts to collect and maintain personal information about judges.

The sponsor of this year’s legislation, GOP Rep. Trey Kelley of Cedartown, said the bill is intended to address concerns about the security of a single database containing information that is supposed to be confidential.

Under Kelley’s bill judges will access a form provided through the Administrative Office of the Courts and submit it to local governments so that personal information about judges, such as property tax information, will be removed from the local governments’ online systems

This bill will save taxpayers about $150,000 compared to the statewide system, Kelley said.

“Through conversations with different cybersecurity experts, we realized that having one website where everyone’s personally identifiable information was kept together may not be the best idea in case it got hacked,” Kelley said.

During his recent State of the Judiciary address, Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael P. Boggs mentioned the need for state leaders to protect judges from rising threats to their safety.

Georgia Supreme Court chief pitches need for better tech, safety across state’s judicial system

Boggs cited U.S. Marshals Service reports showing threats against federal judges tripled from 2019-2023, and anecdotal evidence suggests Georgia judges are increasingly being threatened.

Last year, there was bipartisan support in the Legislature behind increased criminal penalties against the so-called swatting of public figures after several Georgia elected officials’ residences were the target of hoax 911 calls claiming that someone’s life was in danger.

Representative Scott Holcomb, an Atlanta Democrat, asked Kelley if there are other government officials besides judges who are able to restrict the public from viewing certain information.

Kelley said the bill is intended to protect judges who make decisions in cases like child custody, divorces, and criminal sentencing that can cause people to overreact.

“I think there’s a policy decision that we’ll maybe expand at some point to different officials, but the measure last year and this year specifically focuses on our judicial branch because of the unique and sensitive nature of some of the things they do outside of policy decisions, which we make,” Kelley said.

The Georgia First Amendment Foundation, an open records advocacy group, said last year’s bill was an example of legislators balancing the rights of public access versus judge’s safety. However, it warned against future restrictions to public information that could infringe on open records law.

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Georgia Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Georgia Recorder maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor John McCosh for questions: info@georgiarecorder.com.

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Bond hearing for man accused of murdering pregnant ex | FOX 5 News

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www.youtube.com – FOX 5 Atlanta – 2025-04-03 18:11:58

SUMMARY: Jose Monroy, 20, appeared in Gwinnett County court for a bond hearing related to charges stemming from the murder of 16-year-old Mia Campos last July. Initially charged with false statements, the charges expanded to include felony murder, malice murder, and fetocide, as investigations revealed he was the father of Campos’s unborn child. Prosecutors oppose bond, citing Monroy as a flight risk, a danger to the community, and a potential witness intimidator. The case also includes allegations of child molestation and statutory rape. Monroy remains in jail following additional charges of sexual abuse. The hearing is ongoing.

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Jesus Monroy faces charges of malice murder and felony murder in the death of 16-year-old Mia Campos. On April 2, 2025, he had a bond hearing.

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Georgia, Tennessee moving diversity bills | Georgia

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www.thecentersquare.com – By Kim Jarrett | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-03 13:43:00

(The Center Square) – Georgia senators tacked a diversity, equity and inclusion bill into legislation initially addressing teacher leave while diversity bills are also moving through the Tennessee General Assembly.

In Georgia, the original version of House Bill 127 would have increased the number of sick leave days but didn’t make it to the Senate floor.

Sen. Max Burns, R-Sylvania, said decisions on “admissions, employment, promotion, work assignments, resource allocation and other fundamental decisions in whole or in part” are based on “race, color, sex, ethnicity, national origin, gender ideology or sexual orientation,” in a late Thursday night Senate session.

The comments drew the ire of Sen. David Lucas, D-Macon, who Burns called a friend.

“I used to be your friend,” Lucas said before questioning Burns and going to the well to oppose the bill.

“I am appalled that you have the mitigated gall to bring such a thing into this body,” Lucas said. “You’re drinking Trump Kool-Aid.”

Senate Democrats introduced multiple amendments. Sen. Nabilah Islam Parkes proposed the addition of a line that said, “Academic Freedom in the State of Georgia is under greater threat than ever. Please help.” The amendments were rejected and the bill passed 33-21.

It goes back to the House for reconsideration of its changes.

Tennessee Sen. Jack Johnson’s “Dismantle DEI Act” and “Dismantle DEI Departments Act” were given thumbs up by the Senate State and Local Government Committee and referred to the full Senate calendar.

Senate Bill 1083 prevents local governments and higher education institutions from making decisions based on diversity policies. State and local governments and higher education institutions would be prohibited from having diversity, equity and inclusion departments under Senate Bill 1084.

Sne. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, said the bills are “taking out things that prohibit people from discriminating against people.

“I think we are creating a mess that serves very little purpose,” Yarbro said during discussion of the bills on Thursday.

Johnson said the Lee administration did not bring the bills. He did reference President Donald Trump’s “Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing” executive order issued on Jan. 20 as a reason for the bill.

“Diversity is a wonderful thing but diversity for diversity’s sake alone and making diversity the No. 1 priority over merit and over running an effective and efficient state government, I think that is wrong,” Johnson said.

The House version of Johnson’s bills, sponsored by Rep. Aron Maberry, R-Clarksville, were deferred to the Wednesday meeting of the House State and Local Government Committee.

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Club Car Championship’s 156 player field set to tee it up in Savannah

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www.wsav.com – Genevieve Lund – 2025-04-03 07:03:00

SUMMARY: The Club Car Championship, Savannah’s only professional golf tournament, begins today at The Landings, featuring 156 emerging golfers from the Korn Ferry Tour. This is the eighth annual event, offering a chance to win a $1 million purse while supporting local charities through ticket sales. Highlights include military appreciation day, a Spin Doctors concert, and the Seersucker Blazer award. Tickets start at $10, with free admission for military and first responders. The tournament runs from April 3-6, showcasing top talent and providing networking opportunities for sponsors, making it a significant event for the community and golf fans alike.

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