House Speaker David Ralston appointed a former North Georgia state representative to his advisory group on the law that lets legislators delay court cases indefinitely.
Tom Weldon, an attorney who represented Ringgold in the State House from 2009-16, will join a 12-member panel that studies the current law. Ralston, who is also a lawyer, was criticized for frequently using the current law to push back his clients' cases - even when the state legislature was out of session.
Tom WeldonOn Monday, Ralston announced he would form an advisory group to study the current law. He called Weldon on Thursday, asking him to join the group.
"They want to look at potential revisions to the bill," Weldon said this afternoon.
He doesn't know when the group will meet for the first time. He also isn't sure how many times they will meet.
Weldon believes the key issue will be whether to put some sort of limit on the use of legislative leave. The law allows a member of the legislature to push back his or her clients' cases if a scheduled court date conflicts with state business.
House Speaker David Ralston takes to the well during Morning Orders Monday, February 25, 2019 to address accusations that he has abused his authority. Several Republican lawmakers signed onto a resolution calling for Ralston to resign over his use of power to delay court proceedings for his clients as a criminal defense lawyer. (Bob Andres/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
For most lawmakers, who earn $17,000 a year, the part-time work only lasts from the beginning of January to the end of March. There are also some study committee hearings in the offseason.
But with a prominent leader like Ralston, the state duties extend to almost every week. Scheduling court hearings with him can be difficult. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News investigation found that he invoked the legislative leave law 57 times in two years, continually pushing back his cases.
One client told the journalists that he hired Ralston precisely because it would indefinitely delay his trial.
"This is one of those issues that transcends parties," Weldon said. "And it's a good one to bring up. I hope there will be some bipartisan agreement. It's going to be fun. There are some really good guys on the panel."
The other members of the advisory group are:
- Former State Representative Edward Lindsey – Co-Chair
- Former State Representative Ronnie Mabra – Co-Chair
- House Majority Leader Representative Jon Burns
- House Minority Leader Representative Bob Trammell
- Georgia Supreme Court Justice John Ellington
- Georgia Court of Appeals Judge Brian Rickman
- Former State Representative & Judge Tom Cauthorn
- Chatham County District Attorney Meg Heap
- Attorney James Butler, Jr. (Columbus)
- Former State Representative Curtis Jenkins
- Cobb County District Attorney's Office Victim Witness Unit Director Kim McCoy