2004 Annual Report: Georgia Courts Judicial Council of Georgia Administrative Office of the Courts 2004 Annual Report: Georgia Courts July 1, 2003 -- June 30, 2004 Table of Contents Judicial Council of Georgia ................................................................................ 1 Supreme Court ......................................................................................................2 Court of Appeals...................................................................................................4 Superior Court ......................................................................................................7 State Court......................................................................................................... 11 Juvenile Court.................................................................................................... 17 Probate Court .....................................................................................................24 Magistrate Court .................................................................................................30 Municipal Court..................................................................................................40 Serving the Courts ..............................................................................................44 Judicial Appointments and Elections.................................................................47 Published by the Judicial Council of Georgia and the Administrative Office of the Courts in compliance with OCGA 15-5-24 and by Order of the Supreme Court of Georgia dated June 12, 1978. All rights reserved. Director, David L. Ratley Assistant Director for Communications, Billie Bolton Editor, Ashley G. Stollar Judicial Council of Georgia Administrative Office of the Courts 244 Washington Street, SW Suite 300 Atlanta, GA 30334 404-656-5171 www.georgiacourts.org Judicial Circuits, Districts, & Counties DADE CATOOSA Conasauga FANNIN TOWNS UNION RABUN WALKER Lookout WHITFIELD MURRAY Mountain CHATTOOGA Cherokee GORDON Appalachian 9 GILMER WHITE Enotah LUMPKIN HABERSHAM Mountain STEPHENS PICKENS DAWSON North- FRANKLIN BANKS HART Georgia Judicial Districts Circuit Boundary County Boundary 0 50 miles FLOYD Rome 7 BARTOW CHEROKEE Blue Ridge FORSYTH Bell- Forsyth eastern HALL JACKSON Northern MADISON ELBERT FULTON Piedmont Tallapoosa POLK Paulding HARALSON PAULDING Cobb COBB Gwinnett GWINNETT Stone BARROW CLARKE OGLETHORPE Western OCONEE WALTON WILKES Atlanta ROCKDALE 5 4 10 CARROLL DDOoUugGlLaAsS Mtn. DEKALB CCltLaoAYynTO-N FAYETTE HENRY NEWTON MORGAN GREENE Toombs TA L I AF ERRO WARREN Flint MCDUFFIE LINCOLN COLUMBIA RICHMOND HEARD COWETA Griffin SPALDING BUTTS JASPER PUTNAM HANCOCK GLAS C O C K Augusta MERIWETHER Coweta TROUP 6 PIKE MONROE LAMAR Towaliga Ocmulgee BALDWIN JONES JEFFERSON WASHINGTON BURKE UPSON BIBB WILKINSON JENKINS HARRIS TALBOT Chattahoochee CRAWFORD Macon TWIGGS JOHNSON LAURENS Middle EMANUEL MUSCOGEE MARION TAYLOR PEACH Dublin HOUSTON BLECKLEY 8 TREUTLEN CANDLER CHATTAHOOCHEE 3 MACON SCREVEN Ogeechee BULLOCH EFFINGHAM Houston MONTGOMERY SCHLEY STEWART Southwestern WEBSTER SUMTER DOOLY PULASKI Cordele CRISP WILCOX DODGE WHEELER Oconee TELFAIR TOOMBS EVANS Atlantic TATTNALL Eastern BRYAN CHATHAM LIBERTY QUITMAN TERRELL LEE RANDOLPH CLAY Pataula CALHOUN DOUGHERTY Dougherty EARLY MILLER BAKER 2 MITCHELL SEMINOLE South Georgia DECATUR GRADY TURNER BEN HILL Brunswick JEFF DAVIS APPLING WORTH IRWIN Tifton TIFT COFFEE COLQUITT BERRIEN ATKINSON Alapaha COOK LANIER BACON PIERCE WARE Waycross LONG 1 WAYNE McINTOSH BRANTLEY GLYNN Southern CLINCH CHARLTON CAMDEN THOMAS BROOKS LOWNDES ECHOLS Judicial Council of Georgia June 2004 Chief Justice Norman S. Fletcher Supreme Court Presiding Justice Leah Ward Sears Supreme Court Chief Judge J.D. Smith Court of Appeals Judge F. Gates Peed First District Administrative Judge Savannah Judge A. Wallace Cato Second District Administrative Judge Bainbridge Presiding Judge John H. Ruffin, Jr. Court of Appeals Judge G. Bryant Culpepper Third District Administrative Judge Macon Judge Daniel Coursey Council of Superior Court Judges Judge Linda Warren Hunter Decatur Judge H. Gibbs Flanders Fourth District Administrative Judge Decatur Council of Superior Court Judges Judge Doris Downs Dublin Fifth District Administrative Judge Judge Edward E. Carriere Atlanta Council of State Court Judges Judge William H. Craig Decatur Sixth District Administrative Judge 1 Judge John F. Salter, Sr. McDonough Council of State Court Judges Albany Judge George Kreeger Seventh District Administrative Judge Judge James E. McDonald Marietta Council of Juvenile Court Judges Athens Judge Phillip R. West Eighth District Administrative Judge Judge Robin S. Nash Eastman Council of Juvenile Court Judges Decatur Judge Fred A. Bishop, Jr. Ninth District Administrative Judge Judge Michael Bracewell Lawrenceville Council of Probate Court Judges Judge Marvin W. Sorrells Madison Tenth District Administrative Judge Judge Susan Tate Monroe Council of Probate Court Judges Athens Judge Jerry Day Council of Magistrate Court Judges LaFayette Judge Haynes Henton Townsend Council of Magistrate Court Judges Dalton Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Georgia, the state's highest court, is composed of a Chief Justice, a Presiding Justice, and five Justices. The court's primary function is to review decisions made in a lower trial or appellate court. Cases are assigned to one of the seven justices for preparation of opinions. The draft opinion is circulated to all other justices for study; after discussion en banc the opinion is adopted or rejected by vote of the justices. Supreme Court: Cases Filed 2 Filings 2002 2003 Direct Appeals Petitions for Certiorari Certified Questions Applications for Appeal Habeas Corpus Discretionary Interlocutory Interim Review Attorney Disciplinaries Judicial Qualifications Bar Admissions Original Petitions Emergency Motions 512 466 596 567 4 6 315 385 237 248 40 55 5 6 161 129 1 4 8 5 2 2 8 9 Total 1,889 1,882 Supreme Court: Cases Disposed Dispositions 2002 2003 By Opinion 356 364 Affirmed without Opinion 10 9 Stricken from Docket 3 8 Allowed Withdrawn 15 11 Transferred to Court of Appeals 83 93 Appeals Dismissed 54 91 Petition for Certiorari Granted 43 43 Denied 677 470 Other 50 37 Habeas Corpus Applications Granted 37 31 Denied 278 237 Dismissed 62 51 Other 15 4 Discretionary Applications Granted 30 59 3 Denied 156 104 Transferred to Court of Appeals 19 23 Other 36 50 Interlocutory Applications Granted 4 12 Denied 12 25 Transferred to Court of Appeals 23 7 Other 6 7 Interim Review Granted 3 3 Denied 4 4 Extraordinary Motions Granted 2 1 Denied 4 9 Attorney Discipline 58 74 Bar Admissions 4 5 Judicial Qualifications 0 0 Total 2,044 1,832 Court of Appeals The Court of Appeals, made up of twelve judges, has constitutional jurisdiction over appeals from superior, state, and juvenile courts in all cases where exclusive jurisdiction is not reserved to the Supreme Court of Georgia. Each case appealed to the court is heard by a panel of three judges. The Chief Judge of the court appoints a Presiding Judge to head each panel and assigns two other judges to the panels each year. If a judge of a panel dissents, the case is assigned to a larger panel for decision. 4 Court of Appeals: Cases Filed Filings 2002 2003 Direct Appeals 2,479 Discretionary Applications 435 Interlocutory Applications 346 Total 3,260 2,589 453 402 3,444 Court of Appeals: Cases Disposed Dispositions 2002 2003 Direct Appeals By Opinion Non-Published Opinion Rule 36 Order Total 1,540 263 155 643 2,601 1,488 294 78 672 2,532 Discretionary Applications Granted 77 112 Denied 227 239 Dismissed 84 102 Transferred 23 27 Withdrawn 0 0 Other 4 3 5 Total 416 483 Interlocutory Applications Granted 94 135 Denied 227 232 Dismissed 37 43 Transferred 8 6 Withdrawn 0 0 Other 4 4 Total 370 420 Total 3,387 3,435 The Georgia Court System (showing appellate routes) Capital felonies. Constitutional issues. Title to land. Wills, equity, and divorce. Supreme Court 7 justices. Jurisdiction: Appellate jurisdiction over cases of constitu- tional issue, title to land, validity of and construction of wills, habeas corpus, extraordinary remedies, convictions of capital felonies, equity, divorce, alimony, election contest. Certified questions and certiorari from Court of Appeals. Court of Appeals 12 judges (4 divisions). Jurisdiction: Appellate jurisdiction over lower courts in cases in which Supreme Court has no exclusive appellate jurisdiction. Counties with population over 96,000 where probate judge is attorney practicing at least seven years. Jury trials. Superior Court 49 circuits, 188 judges. Jurisdiction (general): Civil law actions, misdemeanors, and other cases. Exclusive jurisdiction over cases of divorce, 6 title to land, equity. Exclusive felony jurisdiction. Jury trials. State Court 70 courts, 109 judges. Jurisdiction (limited) Civil law actions except cases within the exclusive jurisdiction of superior court. Misdemeanors, traffic, felony preliminaries. Jury trials. Juvenile Court 159 courts, 120 judges and associate judges. Jurisdiction (limited): Deprived, unruly, delinquent juveniles. Juvenile traffic. No jury trials Probate Court 159 courts, 159 judges. Jurisdiction (limited): Exclusive jurisdiction in pro- bate of wills, administration of estates, appointment of guardians, involuntary hospitalizations, marriage licenses. Traffic in some counties. Truancy in some counties. Hold courts of inquiry. Search warrants and arrest warrants in certain cases. Some misdemeanors. Magistrate Court 159 courts, 159 chief magistrates; 341 magistrates. Jurisdiction (limited): Search and arrest warrants, felony and misdemeanor preliminaries, misdemeanor bad check violations, county ordinances. Civil claims of $15,000 or less, dispossessories, distress warrants. No jury trials. Municipal Courts 374 courts active, 382 judges. Jurisdiction (limited) Ordinance violations, traffic, criminal preliminaries. No jury trials. County Recorder's Court 4 courts, 20 judges. Jurisdiction (limited): County ordinances, criminal warrants, and preliminaries. No jury trials Civil Court 2 courts, 5 judges. Jurisdiction (limited): Warrants. Misdemeanor and felony preliminaries. Civil tort and contract cases under $7,500 for Bibb County; under $25,000 for Richmond County. Jury trials. City Court 1 court in Columbus 1 judge Jurisdiction (limited): Civil law and landlord- tenant cases (civil) under $7,500. Misdemeanor guilty pleas and preliminary hearings. Warrants. Jury trials in civil cases. As of July 2004. Superior Courts The 159 superior courts are general jurisdiction trial courts exercising both civil and criminal jurisdiction. Superior court judges hear all felony cases, as well as, divorce cases and other civil matters. The superior courts are organized into 49 judicial circuits created by act of the General Assembly. The number of superior court judges per circuit is also determined by the state Legislature. Circuits are made up of one or more counties. Superior court judges are constitutional officers who are elected to four-year terms in circuit-wide nonpartisan elections. Superior court judges who have retired and taken senior status may hear cases as assigned in any circuit at the request of a local judge or the governor. 7 Superior Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 Circuit Number of Judges Total Criminal Dockets Filed Defendants Filed Alapaha 2 Alcovy 4 Appalachian 2 Atlanta 19 Atlantic 4 Augusta 8 Bell-Forsyth 2 Blue Ridge 2 Brunswick 4 Chattahoochee 6 Cherokee 3 Clayton 4 Cobb 9 Conasauga 4 Cordele 2 Coweta 5 Dougherty 3 Douglas 3 Dublin 2 Eastern 6 Enotah 2 Flint 2 Griffin 4 8 Gwinnett 8 Houston 2 Lookout Mountain 4 Macon 5 Middle 2 Mountain 2 Northeastern 4 Northern 3 Ocmulgee 5 Oconee 2 Ogeechee 3 Pataula 2 Paulding 2 Piedmont 3 Rockdale 2 Rome 4 South Georgia 2 Southern 4 Southwestern 3 Stone Mountain 10 Tallapoosa 2 Tifton 2 Toombs 2 Towaliga 2 Waycross 3 Western 3 Total 188 2,223 3,270 2,197 15,487 1,746 5,044 678 1,642 2,475 2,455 3,455 2,689 8,626 2,146 1,524 3,091 2,520 1,797 1,817 4,076 1,759 1,276 3,115 4,844 1,740 2,180 3,746 1,001 1,331 2,987 1,889 4,109 1,580 1,541 1,353 1,174 2,264 837 4,161 986 3,189 1,832 6,197 1,007 803 1,196 1,048 1,551 2,399 132,053 2,234 3,280 2,388 17,495 1,827 5,546 732 1,782 2,556 2,820 3,753 2,997 9,341 2,340 1,617 3,590 2,768 2,147 1,944 4,076 1,849 1,473 3,151 5,193 1,854 2,180 4,064 1,104 1,430 3,166 2,050 4,252 1,734 1,738 1,440 1,318 2,463 967 4,556 1,111 3,489 1,945 6,842 1,181 895 1,236 1,137 1,751 2,569 143,371 Total Felony Dockets Filed Defendants Filed Unified Appeals Defendants Filed 1,210 1,214 0 1,302 1,312 0 773 883 0 11,928 13,936 1 1,352 1,431 1 2,493 2,951 3 366 408 0 898 1,036 6 2,037 2,110 5 1,388 1,687 1 1,104 1,334 3 1,819 2,127 0 5,384 6,089 0 1,156 1,216 0 730 803 0 2,231 2,714 0 1,222 1,468 0 1,269 1,603 0 845 954 0 2,511 2,511 1 654 716 2 936 1,127 3 2,071 2,100 0 2,997 3,346 0 999 1,098 0 1,234 1,234 0 1,772 2,081 1 856 958 0 629 719 0 1,696 1,868 2 876 1,016 0 1,774 1,883 1 819 934 0 1,091 1,288 1 599 668 0 469 582 1 939 1,103 0 513 643 0 1,348 1,589 0 643 765 0 2,212 2,509 0 777 861 0 3,942 4,587 2 595 745 0 516 608 0 414 446 0 680 748 0 1,290 1,461 0 1,260 1,402 0 76,619 86,872 34 Felony Dockets Filed Defendants Filed 1,210 1,302 773 11,927 1,351 2,490 366 892 2,032 1,387 1,101 1,819 5,384 1,156 730 2,231 1,222 1,269 845 2,510 652 933 2,071 2,997 999 1,234 1,771 856 629 1,694 876 1,773 819 1,090 599 468 939 513 1,348 643 2,212 777 3,940 595 516 414 680 1,290 1,260 76,585 1,214 1,312 883 13,935 1,430 2,948 408 1,030 2,105 1,686 1,331 2,127 6,089 1,216 803 2,714 1,468 1,603 954 2,510 714 1,124 2,100 3,346 1,098 1,234 2,080 958 719 1,866 1,016 1,882 934 1,287 668 581 1,103 643 1,589 765 2,509 861 4,585 745 608 446 748 1,461 1,402 86,838 Average per judge* *Based on 188 judges. 702 763 0 407 462 104 110 Superior Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 Misdemeanor Dockets Filed Defendants Filed Probation Revocation Petitions Filed 752 1,098 848 0 45 594 102 217 190 505 1,013 60 95 791 387 362 45 87 663 102 801 43 370 41 279 721 137 17 354 496 348 1,030 442 16 490 643 1,079 0 1,711 74 95 620 0 335 27 566 335 195 338 19,559 759 1,098 929 0 47 638 114 219 198 571 1,081 60 105 925 407 378 47 103 681 102 829 49 377 41 294 721 146 18 363 503 369 1,064 481 16 508 674 1,114 0 1,865 77 98 649 0 359 27 574 356 224 366 20,624 261 870 576 3,559 349 1,957 210 527 248 562 1,338 810 3,147 199 407 498 1,253 441 309 1,463 304 297 674 1,806 462 225 1,837 128 348 795 665 1,305 319 434 264 62 246 324 1,102 269 882 435 2,255 77 260 216 33 66 801 35,875 Total Civil Dockets Filed 2,187 5,944 2,793 15,533 3,372 8,894 2,595 2,945 4,504 8,141 5,885 5,614 9,867 3,731 2,718 7,353 2,870 3,846 3,096 3,904 2,559 6,025 5,180 14,565 3,312 4,073 5,851 2,475 2,413 4,038 3,281 4,886 2,427 2,388 1,548 2,493 1,700 2,119 4,813 1,661 6,665 2,492 12,043 2,867 2,857 2,026 2,537 4,063 3,354 222,503 General Civil Dockets Filed 867 2,837 1,570 3,972 1,173 2,793 1,054 749 1,469 2,673 3,222 531 1,835 1,550 1,015 2,464 1,012 2,000 1,118 2,048 1,232 2,202 1,721 3,911 817 1,231 2,121 748 828 1,625 1,267 2,032 888 908 779 1,283 863 651 2,151 668 1,972 1,175 2,076 1,531 946 646 1,089 1,683 1,508 76,504 Domestic Relations Dockets Filed 1,320 3,107 1,223 11,561 2,199 6,101 1,541 2,196 3,035 5,468 2,663 5,083 8,032 2,181 1,703 4,889 1,858 1,846 1,978 1,856 1,327 3,823 3,459 10,654 2,495 2,842 3,730 1,727 1,585 2,413 2,014 2,854 1,539 1,806 769 1,210 837 1,468 2,662 993 4,693 1,317 9,967 1,336 1,911 1,380 1,448 2,380 1,846 146,325 Total Dockets Filed 4,410 9,214 4,990 31,020 5,118 13,938 3,273 4,587 6,979 10,596 9,340 8,303 18,493 5,877 4,242 10,444 5,390 5,643 4,913 7,980 4,318 7,301 8,295 19,409 5,052 6,253 9,597 3,476 3,744 7,025 5,170 8,995 4,007 3,701 2,901 3,667 3,964 2,956 8,974 2,647 9,854 4,324 18,240 3,874 3,660 3,222 3,585 5,614 5,753 354,328 104 110 191 1,184 407 778 1,885 Circuit Alapaha Alcovy Appalachian Atlanta Atlantic Augusta Bell-Forsyth Blue Ridge Brunswick Chattahoochee Cherokee Clayton Cobb Conasauga Cordele Coweta Dougherty Douglas Dublin Eastern Enotah Flint Griffin Gwinnett 9 Houston Lookout Mountain Macon Middle Mountain Northeastern Northern Ocmulgee Oconee Ogeechee Pataula Paulding Piedmont Rockdale Rome South Georgia Southern Southwestern Stone Mountain Tallapoosa Tifton Toombs Towaliga Waycross Western Total 10 State Courts State courts are county courts that exercise limited jurisdiction. State court judges hear misdemeanors including traffic violations and are authorized to hear applications for search and arrest warrants, to issue such warrants and hold preliminary hearings in criminal cases. These judges also hear civil matters not reserved exclusively for the superior courts. The General Assembly creates state courts by local leg- islation and establishes the number of judges and their status as full-time or part-time. State court judges are elected to four-year terms in countywide, non-partisan 11 elections. State Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of cases) County Appling Bacon Baldwin Bibb Brooks Bryan Bulloch Burke Candler Carroll Chatham Chattooga Cherokee Clarke Clayton Clinch Cobb 12 Coffee Colquitt Coweta Decatur DeKalb Dougherty Douglas Early Effingham Elbert Emanuel Evans Fayette Forsyth Fulton Glynn Grady Gwinnett Habersham Hall Henry Houston Serious Traffic Open Filed Disposed N/R N/R N/R 0 72 43 9 11 10 336 386 365 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 0 417 0 64 101 91 7 44 42 188 390 349 925 707 675 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 110 304 324 0 1,225 1,350 6 27 26 0 3,497 0 113 330 150 4 162 150 188 473 466 27 96 17 4,364 2,796 2,323 0 253 112 558 1,180 888 0 59 56 0 1,814 1,622 28 72 81 393 3,417 3,024 51 81 43 0 0 0 578 713 931 0 36,789 0 0 0 0 N/R N/R N/R 4,110 7,293 7,649 429 193 112 1,014 824 701 138 608 532 225 722 784 Non-Traffic Misdemeanors Open Filed Disposed N/R N/R N/R 0 120 95 440 1,891 3,001 2,102 2,572 2,385 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 0 1,070 0 49 584 625 5 78 70 111 811 819 2,757 1,788 1,773 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 1,853 1,828 2,050 0 18,742 16,024 29 338 335 0 6,691 6,184 90 115 35 145 1,230 1,048 1,026 1,852 1,660 52 236 229 4,417 9,572 9,933 300 2,910 1,633 270 1,292 781 3 170 170 0 667 438 206 715 699 56 178 122 125 99 65 0 1,091 0 1,696 3,993 4,185 0 26,034 0 1,245 11,048 9,803 N/R N/R N/R 44 70 90 300 408 377 2,667 8,011 9,377 363 904 678 170 2,056 1,953 Probation Revocations Open Filed Disposed N/R N/R N/R 0 5 5 0 0 0 0 401 401 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 0 64 0 0 0 93 0 1 1 0 425 295 28 596 408 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 160 665 795 0 4,575 0 0 0 0 0 7,176 0 0 0 0 5 120 112 552 307 210 1 17 17 0 2,028 2,028 0 0 0 208 1,031 939 0 1 1 0 0 0 6 101 98 0 0 0 0 4 4 0 1,636 0 0 450 399 0 2,584 0 603 309 819 N/R N/R N/R 35 1,583 1,535 0 30 30 47 510 293 0 445 445 0 271 271 Other Traffic Open Filed Disposed N/R N/R N/R 0 895 649 614 3,001 3,001 1,389 6,899 6,787 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 0 8,023 0 210 2,064 1,665 9 2,191 1,989 1,842 6,340 6,173 3,089 2,305 2,136 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R 7 0 109 0 29,914 29,155 10 726 723 0 107,788 116,772 1,035 4,456 3,250 245 2,266 1,909 7,769 13,392 12,361 315 2,631 2,470 119,992 69,374 47,785 0 5,103 451 4,543 9,880 9,212 29 880 833 0 2,039 1,524 644 2,592 2,395 0 0 0 856 892 850 0 5,200 0 2,440 1,846 2,059 0 1,653 0 0 0 0 N/R N/R N/R 0 0 0 169 2,380 2,472 47 10,989 8,992 1,741 14,914 12,836 855 11,787 12,133 State Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of cases) Landlord/Tenant Disp. Open Filed Disposed Other Civil Open Filed Disposed County Totals Open Filed Disposed County N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Appling 0 0 0 4 31 30 4 1,123 822 Bacon 2 6 5 318 318 109 1,383 5,227 6,126 Baldwin 167 66 60 2,863 2,249 2,063 6,857 12,573 12,061 Bibb N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Brooks N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Bryan 0 0 0 0 339 0 0 9,913 0 Bulloch 31 97 88 258 127 74 612 2,973 2,636 Burke 0 0 0 15 84 73 36 2,398 2,175 Candler 0 0 0 950 976 938 3,091 8,942 8,574 Carroll 88 136 177 4,166 3,786 4,977 11,053 9,318 10,146 Chatham N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Chattooga N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Cherokee 7 4 3 711 650 519 2,848 3,451 3,800 Clarke 0 25 22 0 7,001 6,631 0 61,482 53,182 Clayton 0 0 0 4 21 15 49 1,112 1,099 Clinch 0 16,740 16,677 0 15,435 25,193 0 157,327 164,826 Cobb 1 171 158 87 167 99 1,326 5,239 3,692 Coffee 13 0 0 0 98 187 163 497 3,965 3,382 Colquitt 1 2 0 380 1,006 841 9,916 17,032 15,538 Coweta 0 0 0 218 183 134 613 3,163 2,867 Decatur 111,211 36,910 18,412 0 18,068 15,089 239,984 138,748 95,570 DeKalb 0 26 24 114 882 710 414 9,174 2,930 Dougherty 0 5 2 241 563 372 5,820 13,951 12,194 Douglas 0 0 0 6 61 50 38 1,171 1,110 Early 0 171 79 0 19 15 0 4,710 3,678 Effingham 0 1 0 68 205 103 952 3,686 3,376 Elbert 0 0 0 0 0 0 449 3,595 3,146 Emanuel 0 6 5 33 69 63 1,065 1,151 1,030 Evans 0 0 0 0 762 0 0 8,689 0 Fayette 19 14 9 2,475 1,186 1,075 7,208 8,202 8,658 Forsyth 0 45,707 0 0 54,513 0 0 167,280 0 Fulton 0 32 32 179 507 330 2,027 11,896 10,984 Glynn N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Grady 15 66 63 7,437 13,080 14,103 11,641 22,092 23,440 Gwinnett 0 0 0 179 261 165 1,077 3,272 3,156 Habersham 11 51 46 1,649 1,605 1,876 5,435 21,990 21,285 Hall 0 2 1 27 1,307 908 2,269 18,180 15,400 Henry 1 54 57 984 956 725 2,235 15,846 15,923 Houston State Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of cases) Serious Traffic Non-Traffic Misdemeanors Probation Revocations Other Traffic County Open Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Jackson N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Jeff Davis 15 525 501 11 462 420 3 6 6 0 0 0 Jefferson N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Jenkins 21 183 156 40 231 201 0 3 3 93 1,505 1,433 Liberty 272 394 328 879 546 608 3 97 0 0 0 0 Long 0 0 0 219 890 821 0 0 0 0 0 0 Lowndes 33 542 446 121 3,116 2,680 65 396 373 3,306 22,161 19,783 McIntosh N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Miller N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Mitchell N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Muscogee N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Pierce 7 183 89 11 213 116 0 42 42 14 1,154 916 Putnam 97 969 862 36 474 406 0 0 0 0 2,951 2,926 Richmond 391 2,105 1,638 736 5,335 4,342 0 0 929 5,146 33,500 28,546 Rockdale 124 491 553 321 653 566 54 441 470 636 8,750 8,702 Screven 4 78 67 11 450 408 0 47 47 52 1,599 1,516 Spalding 0 672 434 0 1,656 1,036 0 1,267 1,267 0 7,659 4,978 Stephens 58 184 127 195 714 539 0 39 39 171 1,329 1,208 14 Sumter Tattnall 0 0 0 N/R N/R N/R 300 1,418 1,184 N/R N/R N/R 0 0 0 N/R N/R N/R 0 0 0 N/R N/R N/R Thomas 21 205 171 175 2,341 2,100 0 125 112 155 4,459 4,646 Tift 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 104 96 12,787 14,617 12,867 Toombs 29 227 2 350 647 2,476 2 17 17 606 2,183 584 Treutlen 3 36 33 7 67 60 0 71 71 460 2,018 1,558 Troup 17 356 349 664 1,383 1,338 0 0 0 2,114 6,053 6,403 Walker N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Ware 45 212 177 536 801 740 0 455 455 1,973 2,862 2,580 Washington 27 80 78 329 462 482 0 0 0 669 1,872 1,863 Wayne N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Worth 48 77 49 243 367 296 0 0 0 1,359 6,143 5,724 Total 15,077 72,575 28,976 25,705 131,390 97,456 1,772 28,445 13,126 177,391 453,235 396,924 State Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of cases) Landlord/Tenant Disp. Open Filed Disposed Other Civil Open Filed Disposed County Totals Open Filed Disposed County N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Jackson 0 0 0 0 71 48 29 1,064 975 Jeff Davis N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Jefferson 1 15 14 5 17 13 160 1,954 1,820 Jenkins 0 6 5 20 230 360 1,174 1,273 1,301 Liberty 0 0 0 0 0 0 219 890 821 Long 0 0 0 471 996 904 3,996 27,211 24,186 Lowndes N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R McIntosh N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Miller N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Mitchell N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Muscogee 0 0 0 4 72 45 36 1,664 1,208 Pierce 0 0 0 0 0 0 133 4,394 4,194 Putnam 0 0 0 627 1,569 531 6,900 42,509 35,986 Richmond 8 14 8 832 1,043 817 1,975 11,392 11,116 Rockdale 3 26 23 20 90 52 90 2,290 2,113 Screven 0 0 0 0 579 255 0 11,833 7,970 Spalding 0 0 0 97 404 307 521 2,670 2,220 Stephens 1 0 0 252 294 171 553 1,712 1,355 Sumter 15 N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Tattnall 3 25 20 18 299 269 372 7,454 7,318 Thomas 0 26 26 0 165 113 12,787 14,912 13,102 Tift 0 0 0 32 136 105 1,019 3,210 3,184 Toombs 0 0 0 2 37 35 472 2,229 1,757 Treutlen 0 0 0 445 419 336 3,240 8,211 8,426 Troup N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Walker 0 0 0 282 208 203 2,836 4,538 4,155 Ware 0 0 0 96 83 71 1,121 2,497 2,494 Washington N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R N/R Wayne 1 1 1 111 104 69 1,762 6,692 6,139 Worth 111,571 100,405 36,017 26,778 133,420 82,147 358,294 919,470 654,646 Total 16 Juvenile Courts Jurisdiction of the juvenile courts extends to delinquent and unruly children under 17 years of age and deprived and neglected children under 18 years of age. Juvenile court judges have jurisdiction over minors who commit traffic violations or request consent to marry or enlist in the armed forces. Juvenile courts have concurrent jurisdiction with supe- rior courts in child custody and child support cases and in proceedings to terminate parental rights. The purpose of juvenile courts is to protect the well- being of children, provide guidance and control con- ducive to child welfare and the best interest of the state, and secure care for children who have been 17 removed from their homes because of abuse or neglect. Juvenile court judges are appointed by the superior court judges of the circuit to four-year terms. Juvenile Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of children) Delinquent County Filed Disposed Open Appling NR NR NR Atkinson NR NR NR Bacon 43 17 26 Baker NR NR NR Baldwin 335 Banks NR NR NR Barrow 518 522 124 Bartow 576 537 393 Ben Hill 221 206 56 Berrien 166 153 13 Bibb 2,020 1887 784 Bleckley 79 78 1 Brantley NR NR NR Brooks 55 47 8 Bryan NR NR NR Bulloch NR NR NR Burke NR NR NR Butts 185 90 95 Calhoun NR NR NR Camden 384 369 301 Candler NR NR NR Carroll NR NR NR Catoosa 374 359 149 Charlton 54 47 50 Chatham 2,025 2,095 2,028 18 Chattahoochee NR NR NR Chattooga NR NR NR Cherokee 615 483 460 Clarke 820 689 0 Clay 23 22 1 Clayton 4,293 3,636 656 Clinch 70 61 9 Cobb 3,810 3,642 1247 Coffee 314 193 121 Colquitt 282 160 122 Columbia NR NR NR Cook NR NR NR Coweta 500 500 0 Crawford NR NR NR Crisp 305 281 23 Dade 98 55 43 Dawson 112 107 5 Decatur 138 115 8 DeKalb 4,804 4,515 289 Dodge NR NR NR Dooly 39 37 2 Dougherty 1,154 987 481 Douglas 1,295 1,211 330 Early 97 91 6 Echols NR NR NR Effingham 152 90 20 Elbert NR NR NR Emanuel NR NR NR Evans 136 91 21 Filed NR NR 38 NR 55 NR 150 295 13 31 245 20 NR 57 NR NR NR 112 NR 154 NR NR 185 17 365 NR NR 304 374 5 482 15 738 51 111 NR NR 133 NR 75 33 46 7 1,755 NR 58 231 336 6 NR 102 NR NR 32 Unruly Disposed NR NR 17 NR Open NR NR 21 NR NR NR 149 21 281 239 11 3 29 2 258 52 20 0 NR NR 56 1 NR NR NR NR NR NR 45 67 NR NR 147 109 NR NR NR NR 162 57 17 22 368 730 NR NR NR NR 221 191 278 0 5 0 480 158 14 1 703 199 35 16 99 12 NR NR NR NR 133 0 NR NR 70 4 18 15 46 0 5 1 1,531 224 NR NR 58 0 209 41 357 203 6 0 NR NR 242 37 NR NR NR NR 14 6 Termination of Parental Rights Filed Disposed Open NR NR NR NR NR NR 1 0 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 15 9 35 18 4 17 0 0 3 18 0 0 33 27 6 0 0 0 NR NR NR 4 4 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 3 1 2 NR NR NR 8 4 6 NR NR NR NR NR NR 8 7 7 0 0 4 33 19 48 NR NR NR NR NR NR 15 22 10 47 49 0 2 2 0 38 35 8 4 4 0 122 102 62 1 1 0 7 5 2 NR NR NR NR NR NR 35 18 17 NR NR NR 14 9 4 3 0 3 5 1 4 1 0 0 51 43 8 NR NR NR 0 0 0 8 7 21 41 24 9 1 0 1 NR NR NR 0 0 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 1 0 Filed NR NR 23 NR 241 NR 194 403 42 15 1,553 14 NR 53 NR NR NR 253 NR 67 NR NR 132 50 766 NR NR 548 389 16 1,406 19 1,583 40 161 NR NR 507 NR 167 37 38 114 1,795 NR 57 236 536 31 NR 0 NR NR 47 Deprived Disposed NR NR 0 NR Open NR NR 21 NR NR 183 364 7 0 1,005 10 NR 53 NR NR NR 27 NR 61 NR NR 119 49 555 NR NR 552 278 13 1,477 12 1,445 11 51 NR NR 483 NR 112 24 35 86 1,583 NR 37 206 283 29 NR 5 NR NR 34 NR 105 239 90 0 818 4 NR 0 NR NR NR 226 NR 37 NR NR 84 50 1,694 NR NR 162 0 3 265 7 425 29 110 NR NR 24 NR 61 13 3 13 212 NR 20 77 300 2 NR 7 NR NR 23 Juvenile Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of children) Filed NR NR 8 NR 127 NR 48 247 27 21 162 12 NR 35 NR NR NR 43 NR 35 NR NR 206 8 669 NR NR 542 175 6 357 10 1573 143 81 NR NR 280 NR 45 64 41 46 612 NR 12 146 100 5 NR 123 NR NR 22 Traffic Disposed NR NR 8 NR Open NR NR 0 NR NR NR 47 5 248 274 26 4 20 1 169 30 12 0 NR NR 35 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 22 21 NR NR 31 33 NR NR NR NR 188 66 12 13 538 827 NR NR NR NR 533 177 145 0 6 0 348 263 10 0 1564 464 62 81 62 19 NR NR NR NR 228 52 NR NR 45 2 42 22 36 5 43 3 483 129 NR NR 12 0 151 12 141 21 5 0 NR NR 128 12 NR NR NR NR 11 2 Special Proceedings Filed Disposed Open NR NR NR NR NR NR 3 1 2 NR NR NR 14 NR NR NR 28 26 11 31 31 0 0 0 0 0 0 79 44 117 2 2 0 NR NR NR 1 1 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 0 0 NR NR NR 57 46 63 NR NR NR NR NR NR 2 2 0 0 0 0 79 72 298 NR NR NR NR NR NR 56 43 46 59 37 0 0 0 0 89 107 57 6 5 1 103 83 52 0 0 0 0 0 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 16 7 9 NR NR NR 0 2 0 5 3 2 2 0 2 0 0 0 213 139 74 NR NR NR 0 0 0 57 58 10 17 3 10 0 0 0 NR NR NR 0 0 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 1 8 0 Filed NR NR 116 NR 772 NR 953 1,570 303 251 4,092 127 NR 205 NR NR NR 596 NR 705 NR NR 907 129 3,937 NR NR 2,080 1,864 52 6,665 124 7,929 549 642 NR NR 1,471 NR 606 240 244 306 9,230 NR 166 1,832 2,325 140 NR 377 NR NR 238 Total Disposed NR NR 43 NR 0 NR 936 1,465 250 202 3,390 122 NR 196 NR NR NR 185 NR 658 NR NR 837 125 3,647 NR NR 1,854 1,452 48 6,083 106 7,539 302 377 NR NR 1,369 NR 519 142 225 249 8,294 NR 144 1,618 2,019 131 NR 465 NR NR 159 Open NR NR 70 NR 0 NR 301 1,162 156 16 1,807 5 NR 9 NR NR NR 411 NR 549 NR NR 363 139 5,625 NR NR 1,046 0 4 1,407 18 2,449 247 265 NR NR 102 NR 94 98 19 25 936 NR 22 642 873 9 NR 76 NR NR 52 County Appling Atkinson Bacon Baker Baldwin Banks Barrow Bartow Ben Hill Berrien Bibb Bleckley Brantley Brooks Bryan Bulloch Burke Butts Calhoun Camden Candler Carroll Catoosa Charlton Chatham Chattahoochee 19 Chattooga Cherokee Clarke Clay Clayton Clinch Cobb Coffee Colquitt Columbia Cook Coweta Crawford Crisp Dade Dawson Decatur DeKalb Dodge Dooly Dougherty Douglas Early Echols Effingham Elbert Emanuel Evans County Fannin Fayette Floyd Forsyth Franklin Fulton Gilmer Glascock Glynn Gordon Grady Greene Gwinnett Habersham Hall Hancock Haralson Harris Hart Heard Henry Houston Irwin Jackson* Jasper 20 Jeff Davis Jefferson Jenkins Johnson Jones Lamar Lanier Laurens Lee Liberty Lincoln Long Lowndes Lumpkin Macon Madison Marion McDuffie McIntosh Meriwether Miller Mitchell Monroe Montgomery Morgan Murray Muscogee Newton Oconee Juvenile Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of children) Delinquent Filed Disposed Open NR NR NR 808 773 130 788 733 153 310 306 343 0 0 0 5,362 5,106 2,601 NR NR NR 3 3 0 NR NR NR 363 312 51 NR NR NR NR NR NR 3,047 2,876 1,367 213 209 4 906 861 384 NR NR NR 182 144 38 129 128 1 NR NR NR NR NR NR 1,557 1,376 181 1,842 1,726 114 28 28 0 0 0 0 87 62 25 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 88 64 13 173 75 98 NR NR NR NR NR NR 148 134 14 415 256 159 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 121 71 50 71 68 3 123 100 45 NR NR NR 141 154 10 129 81 75 131 132 2 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 97 85 12 312 293 19 2,077 2,130 701 953 991 311 124 133 8 Filed NR 243 583 148 0 890 NR 0 NR 188 NR NR 1,158 90 340 NR 120 49 NR NR 409 1,065 1 0 20 NR NR NR NR 38 24 NR NR 20 336 NR NR NR 150 24 97 NR 46 15 21 NR NR NR NR 32 167 914 299 57 Unruly Disposed NR 229 519 155 0 913 NR 0 NR 186 NR NR 975 88 316 NR 100 46 NR NR 277 1,014 1 0 18 NR NR NR NR 34 9 NR NR 20 211 NR NR NR 98 24 85 NR 35 18 21 NR NR NR NR 32 151 780 328 55 Open NR 45 125 169 0 324 NR 0 NR 2 NR NR 524 2 102 NR 22 3 NR NR 132 45 0 0 2 NR NR NR NR 11 15 NR NR 0 125 NR NR NR 52 0 26 NR 1 9 0 NR NR NR NR 0 16 585 78 3 Termination of Parental Rights Filed Disposed Open NR NR NR 7 7 3 43 34 33 2 4 4 0 0 0 374 353 211 NR NR NR 1 1 0 NR NR NR 9 6 3 NR NR NR NR NR NR 46 51 24 13 12 1 33 38 8 NR NR NR 2 0 0 1 1 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 14 31 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 6 6 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 16 13 5 12 8 4 NR NR NR NR NR NR 7 6 1 15 0 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 2 1 1 3 3 0 0 0 0 NR NR NR 2 2 5 6 6 0 5 5 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 4 4 0 24 21 3 33 33 0 6 1 6 1 1 1 Filed NR 309 797 169 0 3,485 NR 0 NR 327 NR NR 1,391 60 448 NR 75 51 NR NR 772 676 35 0 44 NR NR NR NR 49 123 NR NR 35 148 NR NR NR 102 26 66 NR 58 158 90 NR NR NR NR 59 418 915 343 41 Deprived Disposed Open NR NR 302 67 659 282 155 138 0 0 3,337 1,048 NR NR 0 0 NR NR 252 75 NR NR NR NR 1,081 852 39 21 405 78 NR NR 20 55 48 3 NR NR NR NR 734 38 566 106 28 9 0 0 32 12 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 67 16 89 34 NR NR NR NR 22 13 130 18 NR NR NR NR NR NR 43 59 18 8 45 33 NR NR 52 11 129 21 94 3 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 55 4 378 40 928 293 334 62 52 4 Juvenile Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of children) Traffic Special Proceedings Total Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Open County NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Fannin 425 434 47 43 46 12 1,835 1,791 304 Fayette 297 281 59 126 109 33 2,634 2,335 685 Floyd 188 178 133 40 33 25 857 831 812 Forsyth 0 0 0 0 0 0 216 0 0 Franklin 1,058 940 358 585 622 611 11,754 11,271 5,153 Fulton NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Gilmer 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 4 0 Glascock NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Glynn 168 163 5 1 0 10 1,056 919 146 Gordon NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Grady NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Greene 1,290 1,479 465 284 363 347 7,216 6,825 3,579 Gwinnett 65 60 5 0 0 0 441 408 33 Habersham 496 482 98 30 37 12 2,253 2,139 682 Hall NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Hancock 64 58 6 6 6 0 449 328 121 Haralson 40 39 1 6 0 6 276 262 14 Harris NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Hart NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Heard 390 392 0 3 1 2 3,145 2,811 353 Henry 460 431 29 10 6 4 4,053 3,743 298 Houston 13 13 0 0 0 0 78 71 9 Irwin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 682 Jackson* 13 11 2 7 7 0 177 136 41 Jasper NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Jeff Davis 21 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Jefferson NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Jenkins NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Johnson 47 46 7 89 69 20 327 293 72 Jones 33 26 7 0 0 0 365 207 158 Lamar NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Lanier NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Laurens 43 43 0 14 14 0 267 239 28 Lee 113 101 12 209 105 104 1,236 803 418 Liberty NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Lincoln NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Long NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Lowndes 41 32 9 22 8 14 438 253 185 Lumpkin 6 6 0 13 13 0 143 132 11 Macon 49 47 5 0 0 0 335 277 109 Madison NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Marion 53 52 3 1 0 1 301 295 31 McDuffie 6 7 3 0 6 1 314 247 109 McIntosh 24 24 0 139 137 2 410 413 7 Meriwether NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Miller NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Mitchell NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Monroe NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Montgomery 65 58 7 2 2 0 259 236 23 Morgan 66 52 14 76 61 15 1,063 956 107 Murray 302 277 105 89 80 76 4,330 4,228 1,760 Muscogee 100 92 20 37 36 6 1,738 1,782 483 Newton 30 32 0 3 4 0 256 277 16 Oconee County Oglethorpe Paulding Peach Pickens Pierce Pike Polk Pulaski Putnam Quitman Rabun Randolph Richmond Rockdale Schley Screven Seminole Spalding Stephens Stewart Sumter Talbot Taliaferro Tattnall 22 Taylor Telfair Terrell Thomas Tift Toombs Towns Treutlen Troup Turner Twiggs Union Upson Walker Walton Ware Warren Washington Wayne Webster Wheeler White Whitfield Wilcox Wilkes Wilkinson Worth Total Juvenile Court Caseload Calendar Year 2003 (number of children) Delinquent Filed Disposed Open 100 92 8 440 371 69 85 58 27 146 123 26 NR NR NR 124 0 124 324 257 32 NR NR NR 81 71 10 NR NR NR 94 62 32 58 57 1 3,009 2,804 205 435 336 112 17 17 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 423 410 13 NR NR NR 44 42 2 328 300 28 NR NR NR 11 11 0 111 94 39 7 2 5 NR NR NR 66 62 4 343 295 48 469 350 119 289 277 12 15 9 6 NR NR NR 902 825 1,117 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 289 262 27 NR NR NR 1,091 1,066 182 NR NR NR 17 17 0 239 214 48 NR NR NR 7 7 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 753 715 241 52 48 3 14 14 0 NR NR NR 181 147 78 57,384 52,198 17,402 Filed 26 156 6 102 NR 1 109 NR 42 NR 14 9 1,167 108 10 NR NR 66 NR 16 160 NR 0 60 8 NR 20 47 16 51 14 NR 152 NR NR NR 7 NR 219 NR 20 121 NR 0 NR NR 291 2 7 NR 18 17,220 Unruly Disposed Open 21 5 146 10 6 0 86 29 NR NR 0 1 56 18 NR NR 33 9 NR NR 8 6 9 0 990 177 109 30 9 1 NR NR NR NR 64 2 NR NR 14 2 159 1 NR NR 0 0 37 27 3 5 NR NR 20 0 37 10 12 4 51 0 9 5 NR NR 137 405 NR NR NR NR NR NR 5 2 NR NR 202 46 NR NR 20 0 122 18 NR NR 0 0 NR NR NR NR 269 78 2 0 7 0 NR NR 13 5 15,478 5,746 Termination of Parental Rights Filed Disposed Open 0 0 0 24 20 4 1 1 0 8 5 3 NR NR NR 3 3 0 15 10 7 NR NR NR 4 3 1 NR NR NR 0 0 0 5 5 0 18 14 4 42 30 1 1 1 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 58 19 39 NR NR NR 0 0 0 3 3 0 NR NR NR 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 NR NR NR 0 0 0 8 8 0 4 4 0 2 1 1 3 0 3 NR NR NR 5 5 17 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 18 17 1 NR NR NR 18 13 9 NR NR NR 1 1 0 0 0 0 NR NR NR 0 0 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 18 7 17 1 1 0 1 1 0 NR NR NR 14 6 8 1,500 1,225 706 Filed 11 441 54 135 NR 115 418 NR 95 NR 72 17 502 176 2 NR NR 1074 NR 9 38 NR 1 36 7 NR 28 149 19 144 44 NR 348 NR NR NR 112 NR 205 NR 13 50 NR 5 NR NR 385 14 40 NR 46 27,608 Deprived Disposed Open 11 0 315 126 47 7 73 113 NR NR 0 115 236 67 NR NR 76 19 NR NR 22 50 17 0 232 270 193 52 2 0 NR NR NR NR 1060 14 NR NR 3 6 23 15 NR NR 0 1 21 14 6 1 NR NR 28 0 126 23 3 16 97 47 9 35 NR NR 281 496 NR NR NR NR NR NR 37 75 NR NR 215 30 NR NR 12 1 16 83 NR NR 4 1 NR NR NR NR 385 74 10 4 40 0 NR NR 26 34 22,909 10,316 Juvenile Court Caseload Calendar Year 2002 (number of children) Traffic Special Proceedings Total Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Open Filed Disposed Open County 30 28 2 0 0 0 167 152 15 Oglethorpe 142 136 6 1 1 0 1,204 989 215 Paulding 51 50 1 61 56 5 258 218 40 Peach 51 48 5 7 4 5 449 339 181 Pickens NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Pierce 19 0 19 9 0 9 271 3 268 Pike 139 95 31 53 36 23 1,058 690 178 Polk NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Pulaski 44 41 3 3 0 3 269 224 45 Putnam NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Quitman 9 7 2 3 0 3 192 99 93 Rabun 7 6 1 0 0 0 96 94 2 Randolph 480 450 30 41 35 6 5,217 4,525 692 Richmond 171 140 23 30 34 2 962 842 220 Rockdale 7 7 0 2 2 0 39 38 1 Schley NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Screven NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Seminole 56 56 0 3 1 2 1,680 1,610 70 Spalding NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Stephens 0 0 0 6 6 0 75 65 10 Stewart 55 55 0 29 29 0 613 569 44 Sumter NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Talbot 4 4 0 0 0 0 16 15 1 Taliaferro 31 22 10 6 0 7 245 174 98 Tattnall 18 10 8 12 12 0 52 33 19 Taylor 23 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Telfair 13 13 0 25 25 0 152 148 4 Terrell 158 155 3 5 5 0 710 626 84 Thomas 185 108 77 0 0 0 693 477 216 Tift 23 22 1 5 2 3 514 450 64 Toombs 11 7 4 2 2 0 89 36 53 Towns NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Treutlen 168 180 368 24 22 75 1,599 1,450 2,478 Troup NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Turner NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Twiggs NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Union 59 59 0 0 0 0 485 380 105 Upson NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Walker 133 119 35 32 23 17 1,698 1,638 319 Walton NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Ware 4 4 0 0 0 0 55 54 1 Warren 35 26 12 1 1 1 446 379 162 Washington NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Wayne 2 2 0 0 0 0 14 13 1 Webster NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Wheeler NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR White 434 432 32 429 407 132 2,310 2,215 574 Whitfield 5 5 0 0 0 0 74 66 7 Wilcox 16 16 0 3 3 0 81 81 0 Wilkes NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR Wilkinson 60 40 24 3 0 3 322 232 152 Worth 14,596 13,610 4,635 3,550 3,191 2,351 122,074 108,587 41,838 Total 24 Probate Courts County probate courts exercise exclusive, original jurisdiction in the probate of wills, administration of estates, appointment of guardians and involuntary hospitalization of incapacitated adults and other individuals. All probate court judges administer oaths of office and issue marriage licenses. They may hold habeas cor- pus hearings or preside over criminal preliminary hear- ings. Unless a jury trial is requested, probate court judges may also hear certain misdemeanors, traffic cases and violations of state game and fish laws in counties where there is no state court. When authorized by local statute, probate judges serve as election supervisors and 25 make appointments to certain local public offices. Probate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) County Letters of Admin. No Admin. Necessary Will Probate Year's Support Guardianship Petitions Custodial Citations Appling 28 3 40 1 20 2 0 0 Atkinson 0 1 18 0 22 0 0 0 Bacon3 7 0 23 0 1 3 0 0 Baldwin 53 9 108 8 77 12 4 8 Banks 9 1 56 7 33 2 2 0 Barrow 23 12 71 10 91 7 0 2 Bartow 87 12 275 5 113 7 0 0 Ben Hill 25 4 48 1 43 0 0 0 Berrien 5 2 26 2 6 1 0 0 Bibb3 106 9 337 54 83 48 4 10 Brantley 19 0 23 6 18 4 1 0 Brooks 24 7 52 2 32 4 0 0 Bryan 24 3 54 12 52 2 2 0 Bulloch 27 10 123 7 83 4 0 0 Burke 16 6 50 3 5 1 1 3 Butts 20 2 55 8 67 0 0 0 Camden3 26 3 32 3 33 2 0 2 Candler 12 1 34 3 15 2 0 0 Carroll 76 7 269 17 215 0 0 0 Catoosa2 9 1 45 2 15 0 0 3 Chatham 363 41 786 268 1,384 28 4 869 Chattahoochee 4 0 7 0 11 0 0 0 26 Chattooga3 Cherokee 84 3 162 3 30 3 0 3 79 10 308 24 119 8 0 16 Clarke 54 4 219 27 54 15 0 0 Clay3 7 2 17 0 1 0 0 0 Clayton 164 23 314 53 382 33 0 21 Clinch 8 0 20 1 2 2 0 0 Cobb3 262 32 890 57 602 30 0 0 Coffee 33 6 77 5 62 2 0 4 Colquitt 22 8 88 4 34 3 0 0 Columbia 0 0 0 62 0 0 0 0 Cook 14 4 53 1 7 0 0 0 Coweta 60 8 215 52 155 17 1 8 Crawford 14 1 26 3 19 0 0 0 Dade 14 0 27 1 28 0 0 0 Dawson1 1 0 10 2 3 0 0 0 Decatur 24 6 64 3 24 10 0 0 DeKalb 1,016 151 1,969 281 1,294 107 6 27 Dodge1 4 0 6 0 9 0 0 0 Dooly 12 8 20 8 16 1 0 0 Dougherty2 125 4 185 3 184 20 2 18 Douglas 47 25 155 12 61 8 0 0 Early2 4 2 33 0 11 5 0 0 Echols 1 1 9 0 7 1 0 0 Effingham 58 39 84 51 116 18 0 0 Elbert 15 3 67 3 20 2 0 0 Emanuel 17 5 65 5 16 1 0 0 Evans 15 0 34 3 12 1 0 1 Fannin 23 3 53 5 34 5 0 0 Fayette 32 3 202 34 105 12 0 0 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) Misc. Inventories Mental Health Habeas Corpus Total Dockets Licenses Marriage Firearm County 8 22 6 6 136 154 167 Appling 0 2 0 0 43 72 49 Atkinson 3 7 6 0 50 58 64 Bacon3 48 93 193 0 613 373 250 Baldwin 23 16 8 0 157 89 162 Banks 26 89 25 0 356 354 395 Barrow 20 42 75 0 636 595 646 Bartow 0 5 4 0 130 175 80 Ben Hill 0 2 2 1 47 115 123 Berrien 300 420 35 0 1,406 986 595 Bibb3 7 7 0 0 85 110 132 Brantley 15 20 1 2 159 105 77 Brooks 7 1 13 0 170 136 251 Bryan 48 0 33 0 335 451 320 Bulloch 6 18 0 0 109 146 131 Burke 0 0 7 0 158 160 248 Butts 38 56 5 0 200 779 199 Camden3 7 0 0 1 75 93 49 Candler 0 0 0 0 584 564 937 Carroll 14 23 0 0 112 1,033 162 Catoosa2 1,673 279 78 0 5,773 2,097 1,202 Chatham 0 15 1 1 39 63 37 Chattahoochee 18 11 53 0 371 212 282 Chattooga3 27 255 387 81 0 1,287 895 864 Cherokee 150 55 1 0 579 899 340 Clarke 0 1 1 0 29 11 33 Clay3 483 550 70 0 2,093 1,523 1,453 Clayton 14 10 6 0 63 56 27 Clinch 399 334 101 0 2,707 3,555 2,049 Cobb3 20 46 13 0 268 410 189 Coffee 76 70 26 0 331 399 184 Colquitt 0 0 0 0 62 423 413 Columbia 7 1 2 0 89 122 60 Cook 127 235 17 0 895 659 827 Coweta 0 2 7 0 72 74 88 Crawford 2 9 4 4 89 164 110 Dade 2 0 0 0 18 23 48 Dawson1 14 36 16 0 197 196 117 Decatur 7,023 1,678 469 0 14,021 4,324 2,979 DeKalb 0 3 0 0 22 17 26 Dodge1 0 32 0 12 109 76 88 Dooly 147 228 133 0 1,049 413 257 Dougherty2 149 355 0 1 813 870 728 Douglas 0 3 5 0 63 35 38 Early2 0 0 0 0 19 62 16 Echols 89 40 0 0 495 253 373 Effingham 2 11 12 0 135 134 158 Elbert 60 5 20 0 194 196 212 Emanuel 19 11 10 0 106 85 77 Evans 0 19 14 0 156 137 298 Fannin 20 169 9 0 586 648 765 Fayette 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) County Letters of Admin. No Admin. Necessary Will Probate Year's Support Guardianship Petitions Custodial Citations Forsyth 59 4 238 7 114 3 0 0 Franklin 18 3 73 4 30 1 0 0 Fulton 1,141 148 1,706 126 1,592 89 0 23 Glascock3 2 0 11 0 5 0 0 0 Glynn3 73 2 209 39 65 11 2 0 Gordon 24 0 72 2 24 2 0 4 Grady 23 4 64 1 16 1 0 0 Greene 17 4 48 2 65 3 0 1 Gwinnett 240 18 781 119 1,078 62 3 47 Habersham 36 0 105 12 66 0 0 0 Hall 137 8 412 40 229 15 0 0 Haralson 41 1 76 6 65 4 0 0 Harris 26 5 77 8 26 2 0 0 Hart 15 2 85 7 22 4 0 0 Heard 22 0 34 3 20 0 0 0 Henry 76 5 272 58 420 38 1 9 Houston3 54 13 230 17 126 5 4 6 Irwin1 3 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 Jackson 40 10 118 14 72 12 1 1 Jasper 8 1 35 4 29 1 0 0 Jeff Davis3 4 5 22 0 2 0 0 0 Jefferson1 1 1 20 5 1 1 0 0 28 Jenkins Johnson 9 0 16 0 12 1 2 4 7 0 27 2 10 4 0 0 Jones 24 0 70 6 41 2 1 1 Lamar 4 1 56 7 18 1 0 0 Lanier 6 10 15 2 28 1 0 0 Laurens 37 10 116 3 47 0 0 0 Lee 8 2 31 4 32 0 0 0 Liberty 117 1 209 19 319 106 0 1 Long 13 3 22 0 20 1 0 0 Lowndes 93 9 221 17 92 93 0 0 Lumpkin2 16 0 31 3 34 1 0 0 Macon 6 1 33 2 6 0 0 0 Madison3 17 7 47 13 30 1 4 0 Marion2 4 1 11 0 1 1 0 0 McDuffie 32 1 59 11 51 4 3 0 McIntosh2 7 0 20 0 3 0 0 0 Meriwether 23 5 71 3 26 1 0 0 Miller3 8 2 18 2 12 0 0 0 Mitchell 22 1 53 2 20 1 0 0 Monroe 18 1 58 5 34 7 0 0 Montgomery 17 7 14 0 10 0 0 0 Morgan 8 2 40 0 64 2 0 0 Murray 12 2 14 4 13 1 2 0 Muscogee 168 8 556 80 128 0 0 0 Newton 76 7 160 39 346 12 0 12 Oconee 21 9 66 6 27 0 0 0 Oglethorpe 12 1 38 6 24 5 2 2 Paulding 46 9 145 16 70 11 0 6 Peach1 11 0 19 1 2 0 0 0 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) Misc. Inventories Mental Health Habeas Corpus Total Dockets Licenses Marriage Firearm County 37 40 33 0 535 776 845 Forsyth 9 12 8 0 158 119 211 Franklin 8,050 3,235 119 0 16,229 5,877 2,165 Fulton 0 4 0 0 22 13 10 Glascock3 13 106 46 0 566 606 366 Glynn3 5 30 8 0 171 242 324 Gordon 26 37 26 0 198 166 124 Grady 14 22 16 0 192 122 214 Greene 611 983 164 0 4,106 5,114 2,833 Gwinnett 5 16 30 0 270 203 211 Habersham 143 215 84 0 1,283 987 813 Hall 33 8 34 2 270 136 288 Haralson 9 2 2 0 157 139 192 Harris 57 41 26 0 259 125 175 Hart 5 0 14 0 98 53 131 Heard 114 262 34 0 1,289 1,183 1,132 Henry 162 194 22 0 833 717 687 Houston3 0 0 0 0 6 9 29 Irwin1 50 32 21 0 371 290 416 Jackson 1 8 7 0 94 90 133 Jasper 0 5 0 0 38 106 74 Jeff Davis3 0 3 0 0 32 30 28 Jefferson1 7 10 1 1 11 12 0 62 74 66 Jenkins 4 78 55 95 Johnson 29 24 24 6 0 199 157 260 Jones 1 3 6 0 97 97 154 Lamar 6 1 10 0 79 100 54 Lanier 0 0 20 0 233 357 366 Laurens 10 3 9 0 99 199 203 Lee 1 62 23 0 858 740 274 Liberty 6 4 3 0 72 78 65 Long 75 43 26 0 669 934 370 Lowndes 0 5 12 0 102 142 109 Lumpkin2 12 3 2 5 70 69 58 Macon 12 5 3 0 139 108 230 Madison3 0 3 2 0 23 14 31 Marion2 12 26 8 0 207 193 143 McDuffie 0 0 8 4 42 51 18 McIntosh2 23 21 45 0 218 135 220 Meriwether 14 8 7 0 71 36 38 Miller3 16 2 14 0 131 145 89 Mitchell 22 48 13 0 206 160 243 Monroe 0 1 5 0 54 78 79 Montgomery 36 8 6 0 166 120 116 Morgan 7 8 20 0 83 57 51 Murray 0 0 104 0 1,044 1,272 924 Muscogee 66 56 72 0 846 632 697 Newton 0 0 0 0 129 132 201 Oconee 0 23 7 18 138 93 281 Oglethorpe 41 150 48 0 542 650 776 Paulding 0 0 5 0 38 27 58 Peach1 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) County Letters of Admin. No Admin. Necessary Will Probate Year's Support Guardianship Petitions Custodial Citations Pickens 16 10 82 2 12 4 3 3 Pike 12 1 36 8 22 0 0 0 Polk 46 4 127 5 67 5 0 0 Pulaski 9 2 28 2 10 1 0 0 Putnam 42 1 61 5 47 7 0 1 Quitman 2 4 9 0 0 0 0 0 Rabun 12 7 51 2 41 6 7 0 Randolph 10 0 28 0 15 0 0 0 Richmond 273 32 427 137 141 37 2 20 Rockdale 60 10 145 48 235 12 0 0 Screven3 12 7 40 2 16 6 4 0 Seminole 10 14 34 0 2 0 0 0 Spalding 56 4 150 30 107 11 0 1 Stephens 25 0 70 6 36 1 0 0 Stewart2 4 2 7 4 3 0 0 0 Sumter 23 12 104 7 32 8 0 0 Talbot 13 0 28 1 4 0 0 0 Taliaferro 64 0 4 0 1 0 0 0 Tattnall 26 5 55 6 24 6 1 1 Taylor3 10 2 12 0 9 0 0 0 Telfair2 3 2 15 2 6 0 0 0 Terrell 16 2 33 0 1 1 0 0 Thomas 35 0 127 2 29 7 0 0 Tift 30 Toombs Towns 31 5 88 2 33 6 8 1 31 5 66 6 36 3 1 0 18 3 52 3 10 2 0 0 Treutlen 1 0 12 2 0 0 0 0 Troup 59 23 193 13 72 21 10 4 Turner 6 0 28 4 16 1 0 0 Twiggs 9 2 27 1 8 0 0 0 Union 16 3 74 4 21 8 0 0 Upson3 33 2 85 5 7 3 0 0 Walker 42 4 149 15 94 1 0 0 Walton 43 10 170 23 148 10 0 8 Ware2 14 3 51 5 21 5 1 1 Washington 25 1 56 0 49 4 0 0 Wheeler3 1 0 7 0 0 0 0 0 White 16 0 56 7 28 1 0 0 Whitfield 86 7 244 5 33 14 2 2 Wilkes 14 0 39 0 16 3 0 0 Wilkinson 26 2 28 0 13 0 0 0 Worth 22 2 44 1 38 2 0 0 Total 7,346 1,014 17,970 2,214 12,917 1,139 91 1,154 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) Misc. Inventories Mental Health Habeas Corpus Total Dockets Licenses Marriage Firearm County 11 13 5 0 161 143 293 Pickens 0 0 10 0 89 82 190 Pike 36 45 56 0 391 268 263 Polk 28 0 0 0 80 87 81 Pulaski 40 40 12 0 256 115 215 Putnam 0 0 1 0 16 36 44 Quitman 24 48 16 1 215 133 216 Rabun 0 4 3 0 60 42 84 Randolph 307 186 108 0 1,670 1,224 898 Richmond 10 86 12 0 618 631 609 Rockdale 3 5 4 0 99 66 82 Screven3 0 10 0 0 70 284 72 Seminole 127 96 25 0 607 545 517 Spalding 23 19 17 0 197 174 207 Stephens 0 0 0 1 21 11 25 Stewart2 25 43 11 0 265 224 194 Sumter 0 3 1 0 50 28 57 Talbot 0 0 0 0 69 8 16 Taliaferro 33 0 13 0 170 158 130 Tattnall 1 3 19 0 56 50 58 Taylor3 2 0 0 0 30 75 41 Telfair2 4 8 12 1 78 54 91 Terrell 47 35 242 0 524 396 202 Thomas 17 10 16 0 217 381 217 Tift 24 30 18 12 232 234 204 Toombs 31 0 14 0 0 102 68 121 Towns 4 0 0 0 19 57 54 Treutlen 73 57 105 0 630 451 383 Troup 8 22 17 0 102 64 43 Turner 12 3 21 17 100 83 123 Twiggs 21 14 0 0 161 149 242 Union 19 10 13 0 177 148 153 Upson3 27 27 24 0 383 173 427 Walker 25 76 90 0 603 409 597 Walton 40 48 8 0 197 161 116 Ware2 19 7 14 0 175 139 143 Washington 1 0 0 0 9 44 23 Wheeler3 0 12 61 0 181 236 217 White 118 66 37 0 614 766 444 Whitfield 11 23 11 0 117 65 122 Wilkes 1 1 20 0 91 54 96 Wilkinson 57 19 7 0 192 153 199 Worth 22,253 12,284 3,782 93 82,257 58,256 45,554 Total 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) MISDEMEANOR TRAFFIC Disposed by: Guilty Cash Non Bench Trial Filed Plea Bond Trial Acquitted Convicted Disposed by: Guilty Cash Non Bench Trial Filed Plea Bond Trial Acquitted Convicted Total Filed Disposed Atkinson N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,966 0 1,726 20 0 0 1,966 1,746 Banks 106 28 82 15 1 2 1,309 702 616 770 3 17 1,415 2,236 Barrow 1,629 1,459 0 6 2 15 0 1,113 4,104 277 12 87 1,629 7,075 Bartow 2,680 2,231 129 177 0 0 6,776 6,219 443 691 0 0 9,456 9,890 Ben Hill N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,407 868 214 17 0 0 1,407 1,099 Brantley 66 17 20 29 0 0 1,422 624 511 287 0 0 1,488 1,488 Camden3 177 20 46 25 0 12 8,288 798 5,944 612 21 495 8,465 7,973 Catoosa2 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 4,956 2,252 2,041 655 6 22 4,956 4,976 Chattahoochee N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 5,181 50 2,465 136 18 71 5,181 2,740 Clay3 58 0 34 3 0 0 336 25 270 7 0 0 394 339 Columbia N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 0 4,503 3,474 0 0 163 0 8,140 Cook 34 0 34 0 0 0 7,177 95 7,020 28 1 33 7,211 7,211 Crawford 99 63 7 9 1 1 934 551 347 23 0 3 1,033 1,005 Dade N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 4,791 4,094 197 502 0 0 4,791 4,793 Dawson1 14 4 9 0 0 0 573 316 197 35 0 0 587 561 Dodge1 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,218 1,064 0 154 0 0 1,218 1,218 Dooly N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 7,760 7,096 1,696 8 8 80 7,760 8,888 Echols N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,016 259 400 124 0 0 1,016 783 Fannin 118 107 0 2 0 4 1,045 792 0 107 2 13 1,163 1,027 Franklin 1 1 0 0 0 0 2,899 1,097 2,361 89 0 0 2,900 3,548 Glascock3 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 201 47 154 0 0 0 201 201 32 Gordon Greene 67 63 0 4 35 21 1 2 0 0 0 2 5,322 4,573 243 268 4,721 293 2,870 178 8 36 0 0 5,389 4,756 5,195 3,367 Haralson N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,856 564 973 319 0 1 1,856 1,857 Harris 61 58 0 1 2 0 1,845 1,728 20 47 36 14 1,906 1,906 Hart 219 62 187 1 0 0 737 369 393 50 1 0 956 1,063 Heard 41 26 12 3 0 0 842 327 374 68 12 61 883 883 Jasper 307 9 290 8 0 0 1,318 159 1,117 42 0 0 1,625 1,625 Johnson 27 13 17 2 2 2 1,657 789 1,272 28 4 23 1,684 2,152 Jones 83 23 50 16 2 0 2,221 517 1,484 334 5 17 2,304 2,448 Lamar 378 145 142 2 3 12 2,392 766 1,624 36 1 16 2,770 2,747 Lanier 31 5 16 4 0 0 1,649 269 1,151 113 0 0 1,680 1,558 Laurens N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 11,906 9,021 85 263 0 0 11,906 9,369 Lee 72 28 5 5 0 0 2,846 2,044 439 237 1 131 2,918 2,890 Lumpkin2 1 0 0 0 0 0 914 225 189 14 2 5 915 435 Macon N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,331 1,084 0 29 0 0 1,331 1,113 Madison3 74 36 18 20 0 0 1,823 634 1,135 47 2 5 1,897 1,897 Marion2 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 406 86 270 48 0 1 406 405 McDuffie N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 5,118 1,677 2,733 222 6 13 5,118 4,651 Meriwether 91 44 22 11 0 1 1,788 981 641 88 0 5 1,879 1,793 Monroe 655 89 283 98 0 0 10,686 2,243 7,455 404 16 44 11,341 10,632 Montgomery N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 525 419 3 41 0 0 525 463 Morgan 156 28 52 12 0 0 5,464 412 4,328 128 2 20 5,620 4,982 Murray 3,121 2,049 925 147 0 0 3,121 2,049 925 147 0 0 6,242 6,242 Newton 158 72 32 17 13 19 5,140 4,000 558 61 71 142 5,298 4,985 Oconee3 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 0 378 1,467 93 1 9 0 1,948 Oglethorpe 120 4 109 6 0 0 1,779 156 1,321 406 3 10 1,899 2,015 Paulding 0 6 0 0 0 0 6,015 4,692 1,781 459 0 184 6,015 7,122 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Probate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 (docket entries) MISDEMEANOR TRAFFIC Disposed by: Guilty Cash Non Bench Trial Filed Plea Bond Trial Acquitted Convicted Disposed by: Guilty Cash Non Bench Trial Filed Plea Bond Trial Acquitted Convicted Total Filed Disposed Peach1 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,121 118 900 79 16 8 1,121 1,121 Pike N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,264 916 433 92 0 0 1,264 1,441 Polk 101 59 0 3 6 22 3,925 3,747 3 127 27 39 4,026 4,033 Pulaski 406 358 25 23 0 0 762 971 82 63 0 0 1,168 1,522 Quitman N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 160 0 0 0 0 0 160 0 Rabun N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 0 89 17 9 1 0 0 116 Randolph 33 31 31 2 2 31 1,703 1,638 1,638 65 65 1,638 1,736 5,141 Seminole 124 45 79 0 0 0 1,350 151 1,109 0 54 15 1,474 1,453 Stewart2 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,424 0 0 0 0 0 1,424 0 Talbot N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 2,598 450 2,015 131 0 3 2,598 2,599 Taliaferro 23 8 12 0 0 0 6,092 3,511 1,532 229 2 21 6,115 5,315 Taylor3 3 2 0 0 0 0 2,879 2,780 25 125 0 14 2,882 2,946 Telfair2 20 3 2 7 0 0 804 324 257 125 0 0 824 718 Terrell 34 9 0 1 0 0 1,199 945 1,298 26 0 1 1,233 2,280 Towns 107 80 16 3 0 0 457 529 19 22 3 0 564 672 Twiggs 93 87 0 5 1 0 2,973 2,887 0 83 1 2 3,066 3,066 Union 3 2 0 0 0 0 1,023 427 126 19 5 6 1,026 585 Upson3 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 989 503 2,812 174 0 2 989 3,491 Walton 478 265 133 61 6 26 5,894 3,196 2,448 1,166 32 127 6,372 7,460 Wheeler3 48 42 1 0 0 0 668 584 9 14 0 0 716 650 White N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,214 1,100 4 72 1 8 1,214 1,185 Whitfield Wilkes N/A N/A N/A N/A 54 7 45 3 N/A N/A 0 0 11,946 9,885 412 1,649 1,061 413 678 77 0 0 0 5 11,946 11,946 1,115 1,228 33 Wilkinson 16 1 9 5 0 1 737 66 440 184 1 5 753 712 Total 12,222 7,710 2,875 738 41 150 194,920 108,250 85,288 13,243 450 3,615 207,142 222,360 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Magistrate Courts Magistrate court jurisdiction includes: civil claims of $15,000 or less; certain minor criminal offenses; distress warrants and dis- possessory writs; county ordinance violations; deposit account fraud (bad checks); preliminary hearings; and summonses, arrest and search warrants. A chief magis- trate, who may be assisted by one or more magistrates, presides over each of Georgia's 159 magistrate courts. Most chief magistrates are elected in partisan, coun- tywide elections to four-year terms. In some counties, the chief magistrate is appointed by the superior court judges. Terms for other magistrate judges run concur- rently with that of the chief magistrate who appointed 34 them. Magistrate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 County Filed Appling 1,144 Atkinson 270 Bacon 490 Baker NR Baldwin 2,195 Banks 246 Barrow 996 Bartow 1,609 Ben Hill 1,026 Berrien 475 Bibb 4,230 Bleckley 540 Brantley2 192 Brooks 717 Bryan 87 Bulloch 1,420 Burke 651 Butts NR Calhoun NR Camden 961 Candler3 347 Carroll3 1,715 Catoosa 779 Charlton 310 Chatham3 3,974 Chattahoochee2 21 Chattooga 468 Cherokee 2,120 Clarke 2,039 Clay 90 Clayton 4,003 Clinch 213 Cobb 5,343 Coffee 1,928 Colquitt 1,690 Columbia3 1,326 Cook 575 Coweta 1,901 Crawford 294 Crisp 1,237 Dade2 105 Dawson 441 Decatur 1,335 DeKalb 7,376 Dodge 836 Dooly 654 Dougherty 4,208 Douglas 1,453 Early3 293 Echols 42 Effingham 632 Elbert 618 Emanuel 1,065 Evans NR Claims Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial 1,095 11 456 NR 1631 243 803 527 486 254 8,144 505 60 667 49 1,136 18 NR NR 810 81 1,077 322 271 2,131 10 272 125 742 66 3099 165 4,027 1,687 0 439 563 1,515 183 559 58 0 1,196 2,214 70 67 2,633 1,251 239 0 354 516 844 NR 21 8 34 NR 258 10 193 150 55 36 415 35 131 50 0 284 0 NR NR 151 13 638 56 8 468 4 75 608 462 5 297 48 856 108 135 342 12 230 30 205 16 150 139 1,332 49 10 719 178 54 0 119 61 118 NR Dispossessories and Distress Warrants Disposed by: Filed Non-Trial Trial 108 42 55 NR 623 110 1,073 1,516 413 113 2,453 51 31 155 57 1,512 199 NR NR 690 77 1,025 1,047 60 5,501 14 286 2,531 1,889 19 16,910 35 4,249 261 376 794 134 1,434 98 539 33 210 326 1,431 80 61 5,678 3,179 122 9 295 212 179 NR 86 2 35 NR 410 107 938 1,157 178 92 2,874 38 15 140 55 1,092 6 NR NR 581 50 698 793 71 1,731 12 252 661 6 13 14,946 33 4,460 218 0 230 125 1,528 64 383 23 0 322 0 0 10 3,484 3,419 111 0 218 89 82 NR 16 1 20 NR 119 4 135 224 31 5 343 3 16 15 4 420 0 NR NR 109 1 327 168 1 577 1 25 559 417 0 118 2 514 13 40 98 9 182 10 31 10 45 4 0 1 4 1,281 116 11 0 79 20 89 NR Garnishments Disposed by: Filed Non-Trial Trial Foreclosures and Attachments Disposed by: Filed Non-Trial Trial Total Civil Filings 54 54 0 18 14 4 1,324 64 17 0 5 1 0 381 213 212 1 23 19 4 781 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 1,202 0 4 84 75 9 4,104 51 51 0 16 18 0 423 183 179 4 136 128 8 2,388 227 67 2 49 30 1 3,401 492 286 1 25 13 5 1,956 223 55 2 21 12 2 832 2,911 2,484 34 162 95 18 9,756 86 86 0 3 3 0 680 21 4 17 13 5 8 257 32 32 0 0 0 0 904 20 11 0 1 1 0 165 628 624 4 68 52 16 3,628 163 108 0 33 0 0 1,046 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 255 253 2 56 47 9 1,962 109 30 0 20 10 0 553 251 247 4 93 73 20 3,084 161 161 0 63 63 0 2,050 96 60 1,370 947 0 80 6 0 546 2 57 14 2 10,902 35 3 2 1 22 20 1 60 130 129 0 28 17 3 912 277 62 5 32 7 19 4,960 857 0 39 122 0 20 4,907 23 14 0 7 7 0 139 440 342 1 325 126 2 21,678 84 84 0 13 13 0 345 844 475 20 4,111 4,074 4 14,547 978 822 6 26 25 1 3,193 816 0 7 139 0 112 3,021 283 153 5 27 15 1 2,430 101 101 0 10 10 0 820 363 170 3 63 48 7 3,761 43 20 1 9 9 0 444 504 95 5 131 54 10 2,411 14 12 0 0 0 0 152 42 0 0 4 0 0 697 605 604 1 46 30 0 2,312 0 0 0 5,711 0 0 14,518 231 120 0 8 0 0 1,155 289 55 0 7 0 0 1,011 1,925 1,501 28 469 214 49 12,280 173 211 0 166 179 13 4,971 15 15 0 15 15 0 445 0 0 0 0 0 0 51 85 0 0 44 25 14 1,056 198 69 2 60 31 2 1,088 441 398 0 0 0 0 1,685 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported County Magistrate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Dispossessories and Foreclosures and Claims Disposed by: Distress Warrants Disposed by: Garnishments Disposed by: Attachments Disposed by: Filed Non-Trial Trial Filed Non-Trial Trial Filed Non-Trial Trial Filed Non-Trial Trial Total Civil Filings Fannin2 208 163 45 63 47 15 24 24 0 23 23 0 318 Fayette 843 725 123 1,033 879 60 191 185 0 236 144 16 2,303 Floyd3 1,410 1,212 83 1,502 1,432 50 473 273 18 52 32 0 3,437 Forsyth 1,091 261 930 611 154 455 133 77 56 0 0 0 1,835 Franklin 564 214 10 191 98 34 151 13 0 14 7 0 920 Fulton 8,947 0 5,708 45,707 0 14,137 0 0 0 0 0 0 54,654 Gilmer 718 547 35 252 178 41 151 95 0 0 0 0 1121 Glascock NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Glynn NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Gordon3 795 251 69 563 271 119 340 287 2 29 15 8 1,727 Grady 1,323 818 49 244 8 15 216 41 1 41 1 3 1,824 Greene 500 1,258 69 111 70 21 236 161 11 14 8 2 861 Gwinnett 8,971 3,464 4,774 18,630 11,829 3427 2,540 1,445 35 2,596 2,643 94 32,737 Habersham 652 217 44 191 28 23 198 41 0 21 3 1 1,062 Hall3 2,275 1,780 782 1,814 1,618 489 559 154 17 205 170 12 4,853 Hancock3 245 203 42 6 6 0 79 79 0 10 10 0 340 Haralson 479 226 103 376 117 151 79 66 0 11 10 0 945 Harris 341 142 113 82 57 21 129 36 0 10 7 3 562 Hart 606 556 40 212 197 13 184 179 0 32 31 1 1,034 Heard3 184 110 39 92 54 21 24 17 0 5 4 2 305 Henry 2,133 1,489 216 2,863 881 86 293 54 2 327 0 0 5,616 Houston 2,364 2,049 476 2,038 1,836 274 922 953 20 299 278 25 5,623 Irwin 307 279 28 131 127 4 80 80 0 8 8 0 526 Jackson 36 Jasper3 911 1,052 153 701 641 25 370 53 1 88 14 6 171 174 118 10 0 500 264 108 0 23 6 0 2,283 599 Jeff Davis 698 642 88 158 148 7 248 241 1 19 15 6 1,123 Jefferson 747 552 195 111 111 0 219 219 0 73 73 0 1,150 Jenkins 317 297 13 31 27 1 112 86 0 13 9 0 473 Johnson NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Jones 654 335 87 252 154 43 126 92 0 13 9 0 1,045 Lamar 613 89 11 210 26 3 151 14 0 23 5 2 997 Lanier 219 2 0 85 1 0 34 1 0 4 0 0 342 Laurens 1,656 1,283 373 608 515 93 690 685 5 43 27 16 2,997 Lee 674 246 47 363 220 0 237 28 1 22 9 0 1,296 Liberty 1,453 1,014 253 985 353 117 395 120 2 152 101 20 2,985 Lincoln NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Long 255 7 1 120 1 0 12 0 0 16 0 0 403 Lowndes 2,688 1,689 153 2,580 1,224 56 999 1,205 1 410 410 0 6,677 Lumpkin3 385 381 133 178 178 83 45 42 0 0 0 0 608 Macon2 260 345 16 91 96 3 95 155 0 15 48 1 461 Madison NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Marion 233 69 14 60 51 6 103 45 2 12 9 3 408 McDuffie 563 110 79 443 111 25 220 52 0 0 0 0 1,226 McIntosh 289 168 67 72 44 23 48 15 2 25 9 0 434 Meriwether NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Miller 174 52 20 47 5 11 46 0 1 8 0 1 275 Mitchell3 924 195 71 264 16 15 411 8 3 20 0 0 1,619 Monroe 684 339 131 214 198 16 221 221 0 59 59 0 1,178 Montgomery 344 1 0 65 0 0 71 0 0 10 0 0 490 Morgan 520 316 115 161 115 38 271 143 0 23 17 9 975 Murray NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 Muscogee3 2,122 389 31 166 67 15 508 57 1 124 0 3 2,920 Newton 1,853 1,373 150 1,931 1,507 259 557 300 3 90 65 15 4,431 Oconee NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Magistrate Court Civil Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Claims Disposed by: Dispossessories and Distress Warrants Disposed by: County Filed Non-Trial Trial Filed Non-Trial Trial Oglethorpe 337 426 44 65 34 20 Paulding3 1,344 705 77 1,323 862 75 Peach 796 590 113 249 144 80 Pickens 616 206 28 246 106 10 Pierce 448 241 21 163 108 10 Pike 343 160 33 116 63 11 Polk NR NR NR NR NR NR Pulaski 306 174 18 54 41 3 Putnam 1,265 0 96 255 0 34 Quitman NR NR NR NR NR NR Rabun3 436 255 61 53 7 28 Randolph 311 239 13 51 51 0 Richmond 7,091 5,169 1,050 5,674 3,955 537 Rockdale 1,899 1,272 304 2,399 1,885 763 Schley 284 213 17 25 25 2 Screven 554 125 49 110 19 12 Seminole 395 80 315 39 20 19 Spalding 1,493 1,684 580 3,336 3,354 415 Stephens NR NR NR NR NR NR Stewart NR NR NR NR NR NR Sumter 2,455 3,402 91 869 719 21 Talbot 167 161 6 18 18 0 Taliaferro 62 61 1 0 0 0 Tattnall 743 525 45 48 5 38 Taylor 319 288 31 49 48 1 Telfair3 380 18 3 52 3 0 Terrell 421 0 1 158 0 0 Thomas 2,567 2,210 183 585 0 66 Tift 1,750 1,582 168 840 747 93 Toombs 0 0 0 0 0 0 Towns 131 109 4 30 21 4 Treutlen1 38 0 0 13 0 0 Troup 2,895 1,943 378 2,193 1,981 170 Turner2 231 210 21 34 30 15 Twiggs3 230 89 14 46 23 12 Union 276 14 8 95 5 4 Upson 1,256 757 78 433 253 34 Walker 0 0 0 679 217 71 Walton 1,190 1,066 124 1,607 1,488 119 Ware 1,210 1211 127 509 523 133 Warren 177 137 4 71 71 0 Washington 1,299 1,203 70 169 110 12 Wayne 886 539 175 373 221 70 Webster NR NR NR NR NR NR Wheeler 209 176 17 32 24 3 White 393 331 42 245 219 26 Whitfield 2,798 2,330 464 1,429 1,164 265 Wilcox 208 172 4 26 20 2 Wilkes 376 272 65 46 46 0 Wilkinson 398 377 21 42 33 9 Worth NR NR NR NR NR NR Total 162,225 101,356 30,320 169,840 86,211 29,706 Garnishments Disposed by: Filed Non-Trial Trial Foreclosures and Attachments Disposed by: Filed Non-Trial Trial Total Civil Filings 16 7 0 69 12 7 487 92 34 0 41 34 0 2,800 188 113 2 46 30 9 1,279 132 11 0 8 4 0 1,002 119 56 0 43 28 1 773 53 32 0 20 13 1 532 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 102 54 0 8 5 0 470 556 0 20 25 0 2 2,101 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 139 33 0 18 2 11 646 84 84 0 10 9 1 456 1,949 1,341 8 327 0 0 15,041 383 321 0 39 14 16 4,720 66 15 0 8 8 0 383 106 53 0 15 3 1 785 39 39 0 3 3 0 476 459 440 8 114 58 21 5,402 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 1,004 539 0 79 64 1 4,407 6 6 0 3 3 0 194 12 12 0 0 0 0 74 65 0 52 51 0 49 16 35 1 14 14 0 905 434 37 113 1 0 14 0 0 559 94 0 0 40 0 0 713 796 0 0 0 0 0 3,948 974 966 26 89 19 60 3,653 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 22 10 0 0 0 0 183 8 0 0 2 0 0 61 1,042 714 13 157 134 18 6,287 52 52 0 17 17 0 334 38 18 0 7 4 0 321 50 0 0 7 0 1 428 373 105 0 19 7 0 2,081 120 20 0 0 0 0 799 303 303 0 96 95 1 3,196 496 403 14 75 69 8 2,290 57 27 0 0 0 0 305 460 267 0 44 15 0 1,972 289 198 5 28 25 0 1,576 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 64 51 0 15 13 0 320 82 66 2 35 24 0 755 1,950 1,935 15 59 50 9 6,236 50 30 0 2 1 0 286 89 20 0 2 1 0 513 101 101 0 8 7 1 549 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 44,931 28,123 499 19,906 10,928 919 396,902 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Magistrate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Warrants Issued County Felony Arrest Appling 350 Atkinson 250 Bacon 223 Baker NR Baldwin 1,156 Banks 242 Barrow 1,613 Bartow 2,547 Ben Hill 792 Berrien 610 Bibb 3,104 Bleckley 370 Brantley2 195 Brooks 390 Bryan 109 Bulloch 1,588 Burke 249 Butts NR Calhoun NR Camden 946 Candler3 75 Carroll3 1,295 Catoosa 38 Charlton 1,228 357 Chatham3 475 Chattahoochee2 11 Chattooga 827 Cherokee 2,697 Clarke 1,999 Clay 58 Clayton 3,684 Clinch 160 Cobb 10,819 Coffee 978 Colquitt 604 Columbia3 1,027 Cook 571 Coweta 2,131 Crawford 182 Crisp 846 Dade2 165 Dawson 505 Decatur 580 DeKalb 9,307 Dodge 132 Dooly 479 Dougherty 2,175 Douglas 3,165 Early3 310 Echols 29 Effingham 530 Elbert 598 Emanuel 387 Evans NR Misdemeanor Arrest 377 91 288 NR 1,601 324 2,436 3,910 504 427 2,983 204 147 376 115 2,444 547 NR NR 1,037 160 1,085 2,199 143 1,144 31 555 2,383 3,614 54 10,875 115 16,424 404 425 937 733 783 105 503 306 651 639 12,461 833 94 3,870 3,923 307 27 1,149 1,029 222 NR Good Behavior 30 1 6 NR 0 0 0 0 0 6 33 0 0 0 0 28 0 NR NR 3 4 4 3 0 801 0 28 0 58 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 0 6 11 13 7 0 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 NR 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Search Warrant 17 5 24 NR 49 8 65 218 35 33 313 35 18 16 3 56 21 NR NR 88 4 80 26 19 1 8 25 269 171 1 223 9 746 38 20 115 25 92 9 66 9 23 22 565 5 10 231 81 16 1 41 70 42 NR Warrant Application 292 49 50 NR 0 16 57 233 62 63 644 36 0 648 0 128 197 NR NR 10 29 497 3,600 28 667 14 55 414 765 0 1,423 173 1,762 114 0 159 104 301 75 22 25 300 0 4,681 47 23 544 82 0 7 144 56 503 NR Hearings First Appearance Commitment 405 171 460 NR 0 75 1,466 3,866 774 0 4,473 287 254 555 53 520 268 NR NR 1,410 183 2,005 2,527 508 0 25 333 2,776 6,965 58 7,220 273 13,187 1,110 0 0 826 2,108 235 955 401 386 302 6,689 0 394 6,836 4,122 246 33 295 525 464 NR 15 0 7 NR 59 3 155 0 1 0 1,089 55 3 5 0 0 0 NR NR 0 0 338 144 0 843 9 269 113 382 0 937 0 4,602 6 5 0 0 526 2 9 203 100 0 21,070 0 8 334 856 0 0 0 38 9 NR Good Behavior 5 1 6 NR 0 0 0 0 0 2 33 0 0 0 0 36 0 NR NR 3 4 120 0 0 679 0 28 0 10 0 0 12 0 0 75 0 0 1 11 13 8 0 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 102 1 0 NR Magistrate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Filed 2 0 0 NR 0 15 389 328 0 0 628 2 41 18 20 220 119 NR NR 105 0 283 457 63 0 0 0 460 0 0 739 0 5,053 6 20 902 39 244 0 22 4 0 253 298 7 0 184 385 0 0 311 17 1,190 NR Ordinance Violations Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial 0 2 0 0 0 0 NR NR 0 0 12 0 60 329 4 202 0 0 0 0 325 0 0 2 23 119 18 18 3 12 0 220 65 0 NR NR NR NR 22 83 0 0 199 84 415 42 40 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 248 198 0 0 0 0 657 64 0 0 2,957 593 4 2 0 12 175 727 0 39 100 67 0 0 16 2 3 0 0 0 202 51 0 77 0 0 0 0 79 104 264 29 0 0 0 1 149 98 7 13 993 99 NR NR Filed 630 196 0 NR 1,498 0 0 559 386 0 1,679 234 110 0 0 0 0 NR NR 840 68 715 392 150 623 0 392 961 873 0 0 73 4,870 1,051 291 579 0 790 97 846 79 0 195 600 357 69 1,558 0 0 1 1,149 0 362 NR Misdemeanors Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial 266 331 3 12 0 0 NR NR 0 80 0 0 0 0 0 0 45 3 0 0 1,139 0 130 104 27 23 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 NR NR NR NR 670 170 14 26 557 158 334 58 123 0 828 27 0 0 127 172 589 138 646 15 0 0 0 0 57 16 0 0 573 478 0 0 334 33 0 0 630 31 69 2 590 6 67 29 0 0 184 11 0 355 185 106 0 0 1,641 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 232 2 NR NR Total Criminal & Civil Warrants and Filings Hearings and Dispositions 2,070 696 1,322 NR 8,408 1,012 6,891 10,963 3,673 1,908 18,496 1,525 134 1,704 412 7,964 1,982 NR NR 4,981 864 6,546 6,355 1,278 13,946 60 2,739 11,730 11,622 252 37,199 708 52,459 5,670 4,381 5,990 2,188 7,807 848 4,707 722 1,876 4,008 37,749 2,489 1,663 20,298 12,525 724 109 4,236 2,803 3,888 NR 1,989 212 1,304 NR 2,645 539 4,455 6,463 1,940 523 22,110 1,284 1 2,148 188 4,532 662 NR NR 4,330 441 7,042 8,683 1,116 8,916 46 1,757 6,522 10,469 163 29,232 876 37,531 5,167 386 2,711 1,789 7,447 711 2,955 855 981 3,053 36,418 578 571 19,447 10,720 422 41 1,597 1,430 3,833 NR 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported County Appling Atkinson Bacon Baker Baldwin Banks Barrow Bartow Ben Hill Berrien Bibb Bleckley Brantley2 Brooks Bryan Bulloch Burke Butts Calhoun Camden Candler3 Carroll3 Catoosa Charlton 39 Chatham3 Chattahoochee2 Chattooga Cherokee Clarke Clay Clayton Clinch Cobb Coffee Colquitt Columbia3 Cook Coweta Crawford Crisp Dade2 Dawson Decatur DeKalb Dodge Dooly Dougherty Douglas Early3 Echols Effingham Elbert Emanuel Evans Magistrate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Warrants Issued County Felony Arrest Misdemeanor Arrest Good Behavior Fannin2 252 304 0 Fayette 1,015 1,075 6 Floyd3 778 2,067 1 Forsyth 1,079 1,056 9 Franklin 602 266 0 Fulton 19,794 0 0 Gilmer 592 525 0 Glascock NR NR NR Glynn NR NR NR Gordon3 1,167 995 0 Grady 543 884 0 Greene 472 413 7 Gwinnett 6,348 8,580 0 Habersham 838 687 1 Hall3 1,715 1,649 67 Hancock3 14 24 6 Haralson 738 631 16 Harris 184 486 35 Hart 438 149 0 Heard3 133 156 0 Henry 1,384 1,906 0 Houston 2,357 3,751 0 Irwin 172 130 0 40 Jackson 1,382 1,232 0 Jasper3 32 46 0 Jeff Davis 333 112 5 Jefferson 486 432 0 Jenkins 163 268 0 Johnson NR NR NR Jones 491 572 2 Lamar 527 206 2 Lanier 274 126 6 Laurens 1,318 1,520 1 Lee 553 521 30 Liberty 2,557 2,768 18 Lincoln NR NR NR Long 231 160 1 Lowndes 2,940 4,150 0 Lumpkin3 338 468 3 Macon2 85 162 1 Madison NR NR NR Marion 90 47 8 McDuffie 382 486 0 McIntosh 547 311 5 Meriwether NR NR NR Miller 182 154 0 Mitchell3 265 544 1 Monroe 469 400 15 Montgomery 175 39 3 Morgan 334 281 15 Murray NR NR NR Muscogee3 NR NR NR Newton 902 2,820 0 Oconee NR NR NR 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Search Warrant 8 57 127 56 23 563 29 NR NR 77 48 29 533 0 156 0 44 11 55 11 74 113 12 71 3 13 13 12 NR 31 35 18 59 26 49 NR 8 168 29 5 NR 4 13 28 NR 6 50 36 10 15 NR NR 49 NR Warrant Application 44 301 957 706 111 0 88 NR NR 69 71 76 0 238 701 0 243 128 72 74 3,293 527 56 84 40 115 38 20 NR 141 65 15 486 99 352 NR 15 12 90 13 NR 29 0 71 NR 10 42 157 114 140 NR NR 756 NR Hearings First Appearance Commitment 129 1,637 2,410 1,212 295 31,843 518 NR NR 276 591 475 5,481 301 6,446 30 303 254 393 103 2,072 4,185 226 2,013 28 352 461 16 NR 112 662 125 2,838 802 2,019 NR 161 5,116 657 94 NR 128 4 696 NR 130 221 279 30 413 NR NR 860 NR 0 247 117 64 0 0 1 NR NR 0 0 306 9,841 34 1,241 5 0 256 134 1 0 305 2 457 0 29 0 0 NR 18 7 6 10 134 0 NR 1 78 116 0 NR 0 0 36 NR 0 0 87 1 558 NR NR 349 NR Good Behavior 0 6 46 9 0 0 0 NR NR 0 0 2 1,550 1 67 6 14 35 0 0 792 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 NR 2 0 6 3 30 14 NR 1 0 3 0 NR 8 0 2 NR 0 1 0 3 15 NR NR 0 NR Magistrate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Ordinance Violations Misdemeanors Total Criminal & Civil Filed Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial Filed Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial Warrants and Filings Hearings and Dispositions County 82 0 840 577 50 47,246 25 NR NR 212 475 96 0 3 515 0 91 17 23 57 571 210 64 179 203 0 285 0 NR 0 16 34 700 334 39 NR 79 45 2 NR NR 0 26 0 NR 153 23 102 45 72 NR 0 320 NR 38 0 1,078 46 11 0 13 NR NR 154 212 27 0 0 313 0 48 0 19 50 441 65 29 107 0 0 0 0 NR 0 0 1 353 108 28 NR 0 11 0 NR NR 0 8 0 NR 52 15 88 0 36 NR 0 199 NR 0 0 195 531 0 4,3460 1 NR NR 54 113 0 0 0 113 0 40 17 4 5 92 51 35 34 0 0 285 0 NR 0 0 1 347 45 9 NR 0 34 0 NR NR 0 15 0 NR 42 0 14 0 3 NR 0 61 NR 68 284 1,043 439 368 0 335 NR NR 600 173 21 828 763 423 4 331 2 248 80 554 516 1 0 104 359 371 83 NR 0 128 120 918 569 0 NR 147 1,384 35 NR NR 0 459 0 NR 0 396 0 126 158 NR 0 1,660 NR 40 347 1,228 0 0 0 235 NR NR 334 48 10 406 1 247 3 119 1 166 67 578 921 1 0 0 7 0 54 NR 0 11 2 591 136 0 NR 5 28 0 NR NR 0 0 0 NR 0 85 0 0 51 NR 0 788 NR 1 1,032 569 0 4,740 4,670 125 8,293 9,256 439 5,051 4,940 0 2,229 793 0 122,257 95,148 0 2,627 1,752 NR NR NR NR NR NR 26 4,778 1,935 53 3,947 2,024 1 1,899 2,497 34 49,026 45,023 61 3,354 993 17 9,378 14,167 1 388 385 72 2,796 1,512 1 1,297 1,071 48 1,947 1,853 1 742 548 0 10,105 9,996 19 12,570 11,984 0 905 875 0 5,147 5,112 0 987 158 273 1,945 1,929 371 2,737 2,305 29 999 552 NR NR NR 0 2,141 993 0 1,911 895 0 735 114 327 7,513 7,952 2 3,329 1,907 0 6,431 3,362 NR NR NR 0 753 176 0 15,364 10,017 0 975 1,122 NR NR NR NR NR NR 0 557 364 0 2,592 404 0 1,325 1,133 NR NR NR 0 770 324 0 2,898 672 0 2,200 1,589 0 888 149 2 1,850 1,971 NR NR NR 0 2,920 563 62 10,182 6,747 NR NR NR Fannin2 Fayette Floyd3 Forsyth Franklin Fulton Gilmer Glascock Glynn Gordon3 Grady Greene Gwinnett Habersham Hall3 Hancock3 Haralson Harris Hart Heard3 Henry Houston Irwin Jackson 41 Jasper3 Jeff Davis Jefferson Jenkins Johnson Jones Lamar Lanier Laurens Lee Liberty Lincoln Long Lowndes Lumpkin3 Macon2 Madison Marion McDuffie McIntosh Meriwether Miller Mitchell3 Monroe Montgomery Morgan Murray Muscogee3 Newton Oconee 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Magistrate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Warrants Issued County Felony Arrest Misdemeanor Arrest Good Behavior Oglethorpe 530 294 10 Paulding3 1,251 1,910 0 Peach 456 453 16 Pickens 573 600 0 Pierce 312 209 7 Pike 329 230 25 Polk NR NR NR Pulaski 193 88 0 Putnam 547 731 3 Quitman NR NR NR Rabun3 NR NR NR Randolph 156 163 0 Richmond 4,200 8,725 0 Rockdale 1,474 1,876 18 Schley 15 71 0 Screven 384 189 14 Seminole NR NR NR Spalding 2,805 4,311 43 Stephens NR NR NR Stewart NR NR NR Sumter 834 1,856 0 Talbot 5 8 3 Taliaferro 59 27 0 Tattnall 598 293 0 42 Taylor 182 323 62 Telfair3 264 96 0 Terrell 227 333 0 Thomas 1,015 1,547 0 Tift 970 700 0 Toombs NR NR NR Towns 130 173 0 Treutlen1 25 36 7 Troup 2,021 1,714 0 Turner2 217 134 0 Twiggs3 87 119 16 Union 328 372 1 Upson 666 445 1 Walker 756 695 4 Walton 1,135 1,781 49 Ware 1,283 1,228 61 Warren 8 104 0 Washington 697 903 0 Wayne 817 901 4 Webster NR NR NR Wheeler 136 74 0 White 443 429 32 Whitfield 1,702 1,894 58 Wilcox 124 80 1 Wilkes 183 173 0 Wilkinson 187 181 0 Worth NR NR NR 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported Search Warrant 13 38 31 34 15 18 NR 2 11 NR NR 4 20 59 2 7 NR 142 NR NR 51 2 3 22 8 1 9 106 59 NR 3 1 45 5 18 11 56 39 48 45 2 28 34 NR 1 25 99 4 11 10 NR Warrant Application 96 92 113 72 189 91 NR 31 67 NR NR 0 998 585 50 51 NR 285 NR NR 2 14 5 104 61 86 0 285 313 NR 13 0 181 10 110 34 71 0 156 1,284 27 160 118 NR 0 198 535 29 0 44 NR Hearings First Appearance Commitment 489 330 418 360 308 383 NR 218 252 NR NR 319 1,732 1,749 64 109 NR 4,539 NR NR 2,562 9 82 587 52 297 440 1,623 996 NR 98 6 2,001 67 151 419 557 274 1,035 2,004 0 501 304 NR 35 710 2,498 104 201 69 NR 56 1 105 0 5 23 NR 0 0 NR NR 0 636 1,000 64 0 NR 2,073 NR NR 0 0 0 0 24 1 0 0 0 NR 3 0 716 0 15 14 338 0 329 163 0 40 28 NR 0 103 22 0 0 0 NR Good Behavior 7 0 16 0 7 25 NR 0 0 NR NR 0 0 119 0 25 NR 68 NR NR 0 0 0 0 9 0 0 0 0 NR 0 0 0 0 16 1 1 0 21 57 0 0 3 NR 0 48 22 1 0 0 NR Magistrate Court Criminal Caseload for Calendar Year 2003 Ordinance Violations Misdemeanors Total Criminal & Civil Filed Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial Filed Disposed by: Non-Trial Trial Warrants and Filings Hearings and Dispositions County 128 61 89 480 222 3 5 2 9 0 0 0 306 121 0 78 52 0 NR NR NR 0 0 0 57 3 25 NR NR NR 50 12 18 0 0 0 4,195 3,590 304 273 232 35 12 8 4 10 1 1 2 2 0 281 0 281 NR NR NR NR NR NR 78 58 26 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 1 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 11 0 7 1 0 1 NR NR NR 0 0 0 0 0 0 145 44 91 0 0 0 65 25 40 95 12 0 439 240 2 0 0 0 215 75 16 52 31 24 0 0 0 0 0 0 53 8 41 NR NR NR 5 4 0 7 5 0 208 135 73 0 0 0 63 63 0 3 0 3 NR NR NR 156 76 25 1,618 1,449 Oglethorpe 785 172 4 7,264 2,611 Paulding3 359 251 57 2,599 2,052 Peach 625 52 0 2,834 849 Pickens 681 0 0 2,303 1,095 Pierce 99 16 3 1,311 906 Pike NR NR NR NR NR Polk 118 0 0 871 544 Pulaski 0 0 0 3,450 499 Putnam NR NR NR NR NR Quitman 166 63 74 862 564 Rabun3 123 32 50 902 798 Randolph 134 128 0 32,315 19,448 Richmond 935 751 29 7,096 7,028 Rockdale 0 0 0 483 470 Schley 147 0 0 1,536 449 Screven 94 94 0 572 765 Seminole 1,299 459 686 14,283 14,951 Spalding NR NR NR NR NR Stephens NR NR NR NR NR Stewart 0 0 0 7,226 7,485 Sumter 0 0 0 212 217 Talbot 0 0 0 163 161 Taliaferro 453 0 0 2,277 1,362 Tattnall 0 0 0 1,009 580 Taylor 43 151 0 0 1,071 409 Telfair3 150 0 0 1,434 441 Terrell 1,977 867 190 8,604 5,431 Thomas 0 0 0 5,383 4,971 Tift NR NR NR NR NR Toombs 0 0 0 489 262 Towns 19 0 0 149 6 Treutlen1 367 37 0 10,579 8,421 Troup 0 0 0 0 0 Turner2 45 24 1 671 542 Twiggs3 86 0 1 1,321 513 Union 826 123 0 4,514 2,566 Upson 0 0 0 2,293 582 Walker 791 45 1 7,215 4,874 Walton 733 861 24 5,692 6,936 Ware 108 40 0 527 306 Warren 206 147 52 3,806 2,577 Washington 277 89 30 3,662 1,854 Wayne NR NR NR NR NR Webster 0 0 0 536 323 Wheeler 245 230 3 1,936 2,007 White 320 251 69 10,517 9,837 Whitfield 123 12 1 618 376 Wilcox 0 0 0 943 668 Wilkes 40 20 20 970 705 Wilkinson NR NR NR NR NR Worth 1One quarter reported 2Two quarters reported 3Three quarters reported 44 Municipal Courts Approximately 400 local courts are also part of the Georgia court system. These special courts and courts serving incorporated municipalities operate under various names with varying jurisdictions. Courts of incorporated municipalities try municipal ordinance violations, issue criminal warrants, conduct preliminary hearings, and may have concurrent jurisdiction over shoplifting cases and cases involving possession of one ounce or less of marijuana. 45 Municipal Court Caseload for Calendar Year 2003* Filings Hearings City Acworth1 Arabi1 Avondale Estates2 Blakely1 Bowdon Bremen2 Byron1 Chatsworth1 Chauncey Chickamauga2 Clarkesville Clarkston2 Comer2 Commerce1 Concord Cumming1 Dalton1 Danielsville2 Demorest Douglasville Elberton1 Fitzgerald2 Flovilla1 Forest Park1 46 Franklin2 Glennville1 Gordon1 Grovetown2 Hartwell2 Hazlehurst1 Hiawassee2 Hinesville1 Hogansville1 Holly Springs1 Homeland1 Hoschton2 Ivey1 Jackson2 Lake City1 Lakeland Lavonia2 Leesburg1 Lilburn Lincolnton1 Lookout Mtn1 Marshallville1 McIntyre Milan1 Molena Mt. Vernon2 Newington2 Traffic Prelim. Ord. Drugs DUI Other Total 2,586 0 641 47 12 0 2 1 00 0 0 1,000 0 15 0 450 0 60 60 1,112 0 202 23 4,164 0 48 113 0 0 0 0 45 0 0 6 110 0 01 350 0 24 6 0 0 0 0 385 0 10 40 3,645 0 75 64 75 0 0 0 891 0 58 14 0 0 0 0 150 0 6 1 300 0 24 5 0 0 00 1,088 0 226 32 1,397 0 119 29 61 0 0 1 0 0 1,500 0 892 0 2 18 600 0 25 10 136 0 20 5 0 0 0 0 1,712 0 5 69 691 0 54 25 50 0 0 2 8,322 0 1,079 124 877 953 24 16 2,288 0 23 6 170 0 4 1 898 0 5 2 130 0 5 10 4,807 0 127 26 4,318 0 204 33 320 0 45 19 1,163 0 94 9 760 20 50 15 6,225 0 100 45 209 0 13 0 250 0 30 5 300 0 0 0 200 0 0 30 55 0 1 0 150 0 2 0 370 0 0 2 143 0 12 0 120 162 2 7 0 0 60 0 50 0 89 5 168 18 0 2,041 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 0 105 123 1 0 55 188 0 20,520 6 0 0 0 0 0 61 45 57 22 1 0 0 0 42 35 60 0 13 30 0 0 130 240 74 71 13 27 188 1,756 28 8 63 4 5 0 3 0 10 0 26 0 91 0 22 0 65 0 24 0 130 0 1 0 3 12 12 0 30 0 11 0 2 0 15 28 9 0 3,556 24 0 1,075 620 1,431 4,511 2,041 56 111 380 0 485 4,012 76 1,206 20,520 163 329 0 1,452 1,624 63 1,500 989 695 204 0 2,156 915 92 11,469 1,906 2,384 180 908 155 4,986 4,646 406 1,331 869 6,500 223 300 312 260 67 154 415 164 Traffic Prelim. Ord. Drugs DUI Other Total 0 65 3 0 400 200 700 0 75 0 0 0 220 0 0 0 12 0 38 0 0 0 4,000 300 5 0 451 0 5 0 891 0 0 0 15 0 0 0 5,090 0 1,088 0 0 0 22 0 0 0 0 0 40 0 1 0 853 0 744 0 275 0 0 0 0 0 528 578 107 0 30 0 253 0 24 0 2,300 0 4,318 0 320 0 1,095 0 100 20 0 0 56 0 150 0 40 0 31 0 7 0 10 0 370 0 51 0 1 0 2 1 70 30 5 0 30 30 0 0 34 43 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 100 100 0 5 11 25 0 0 58 14 0 0 6 1 0 0 749 77 226 32 0 0 0 1 1,500 0 2 18 5 8 2 0 115 8 5 62 54 25 0 0 0 0 17 9 4 6 4 0 5 2 5 0 50 26 204 33 45 19 94 9 18 15 0 0 2 0 25 5 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 2 3 0 00 27 40 0 30 0 50 0 0 0 59 9 0 2,041 5 0 0 0 0 0 200 0 50 25 67 1 0 55 188 0 21,052 60 00 182 2,010 61 45 0 0 1 0 0 0 42 0 10 0 1 2 35 67 130 14 74 71 00 0 0 17 7 51 4 5 0 3 0 0 0 26 0 91 0 22 0 60 0 24 0 00 1 0 3 10 12 0 0 0 11 0 10 15 28 9 0 66 15 740 735 185 0 365 2,041 19 39 0 4,700 15 79 6 1,206 21,052 28 0 8,108 1,452 0 24 1,500 62 63 6 1,078 955 499 0 0 1,156 172 39 263 29 2,402 4,646 406 1,258 177 0 59 193 52 31 19 13 415 63 *Reported cases by docket 1Reported cases by defendant *Data is shown for those cities whose caseload information was sent to the AOC. Municipal Court Caseload for Calendar Year 2003* Filings Hearings City Newnan Norcross Ocilla2 Oliver2 Oxford1 Palmetto1 Pavo1 Pendergrass1 Perry1 Porterdale1 Remerton1 Rocky Ford1 Rome2 Royston1 Sandersville1 Smithville Smyrna1 Sparta Stapleton Statham1 Stockbridge2 Summerville1 Suwanee1 Thomson2 Valdosta1 White Plains1 Whitesburg1 Winder1 Woodville1 Traffic Prelim. Ord. Drugs DUI Other Total 3,986 0 296 52 191 0 4,525 9,899 0 0 0 0 0 9,899 437 0 63 4 10 15 529 1,230 0 0 10 12 0 1,252 363 4 5 2 3 4 381 290 0 95 5 26 68 484 615 0 60 8 15 0 698 2,694 0 60 15 25 0 2,794 3,243 0 185 84 88 152 3,752 628 0 68 5 19 0 720 2,199 0 543 20 105 0 2,867 435 0 0 4 2 0 441 14,990 420 986 98 445 60 16,999 731 0 1 9 13 91 845 2,064 0 244 12 77 48 2,445 265 0 21 1 5 0 292 23,545 0 578 55 404 137 24,719 220 0 0 0 20 0 240 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 444 0 16 4 18 0 482 4,148 70 106 40 156 110 4,630 1,276 0 137 17 79 16 1,525 6,952 0 00 0 0 6,952 762 0 5 53 37 119 976 14,000 0 3,000 500 400 0 17,900 74 0 0 1 1 0 76 924 168 74 6 12 45 1,229 1,529 0 362 67 119 0 2,077 34 0 4 1 2 0 41 Traffic Prelim. Ord. Drugs DUI Other Total 3,765 0 184 40 157 0 4,146 505 0 0 0 0 0 505 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 100 0 0 10 12 0 122 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 290 0 95 5 26 68 484 135 0 15 6 14 0 170 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 583 0 63 73 79 74 872 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20 0 0 4 2 0 26 6,030 420 95 70 305 45 7,265 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,832 0 203 11 72 45 2,163 46 0 21 1 5 0 73 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 26 0 0 0 0 0 26 20 0 6 0 8 0 34 388 0 16 4 17 0 425 830 14 21 8 31 22 926 38 0 11 1 18 2 70 4,064 0 0 0 0 0 4,064 340 0 0 0 4 53 37 62 496 47 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 6 0 3 12 0 21 1,529 0 362 67 119 0 2,077 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Athens-Clarke Co.2 Columbus - Muscogee County1 Gwinnett Recorder's Court2 Total 21,000 0 1,000 150 950 500 38,934 0 3,479 313 621 3,258 0 0 0 0 0 0 211,768 1,635 16,322 2,451 5,755 29,965 23,600 46,605 0 267,896 0 0 0 0 81,703 0 126,963 1,603 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,705 282 1,195 1,771 86,656 6,555 1,247 3,474 27,711 167,553 *Reported cases by docket 1Reported cases by defendant *Data is shown for those cities whose caseload information was sent to the AOC. 48 Serving the Courts Judicial Council of Georgia The Judicial Council is the state-level judicial agency charged with developing policies for administering and improving the courts. The state legislature created the Judicial Council in 1973; in 1978 the council officially became an administrative arm of the Supreme Court of Georgia. The council considers requests for new judgeships and oversees the activities of the Administrative Office of the Courts and the Board of Court Reporting. Twenty-four representatives of the appellate and trial courts make up the Judicial Council. The chief justice and presiding justice of the Supreme Court act as the chairperson and vice chairperson, respectively. The 49 chief judge and another judge of the Court of Appeals; the presidents and presidents-elect of the superior, state, juvenile, probate and magistrate court councils; and the 10 superior court district administrative judges complete council membership. Members of the Judicial Council met on August 28, 2003, December 4, 2003, and June 16, 2004, to discuss creation of judgeships, budget concerns, and legislative matters affecting the judiciary. Serving the Courts Supreme Court of Georgia -- The National Center for State Courts recognized Chief Justice Norman S. Fletcher with the inaugural Harry L. Carrico Award. Chief Justice Fletcher was selected in recognition of his leadership and commitment to improving indigent defense in Georgia. The award presentation was made at the mid-year meeting of the Conference of Chief Justices held in San Fransico, CA, January 18-21, 2004. Supreme Court Committee on Court Technology The Supreme Court Committee on Technology was created to examine the governance structure of infor- mation technology (IT) in the Georgia courts and make recommendations for improvements. 50 Additionally, the Committee will study e-filing guidelines, make recommendations on their applicabili- ty to the Georgia Courts and develop a time-line for e- filing implementation. Periodic meetings will take place and a report will be issued of the Committee's findings. Superior Court Judgeships -- The Judicial Council approved recommendation of new judgeships in the Gwinnett, Cherokee, Southern, Flint, and Coweta Judicial Circuits at its meeting on August 28, 2003. The Council's recommendation was forwarded to the governor and the legislature for consideration during the 2004 session. However, the enabling legislation failed and no new superior court judgeships were created. Serving the Courts Administrative Office of the Courts The Administrative Office of the Courts provides support services to judges and other court personnel in each class of court: appel- late, superior, state, juvenile, probate, magistrate and municipal. The agency documents caseload informa- tion annually for the courts, provides information tech- nology support, promotes the work of judges' councils, coordinates annual judicial branch appropriations requests, and assists with funding for drug courts and similar efforts. Publications produced by the AOC keep the judiciary and the public up-to-date on activities and issues affecting court administration. The AOC operates under the direction of the Judicial Council of 51 Georgia, a policy-making body chaired by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia. The office is a liaison to other state and national judicial agencies. www.georgiacourts.org The Administrative Office of the Courts maintains www.georgiacourts.org as a public information outlet regarding the work of courts in Georgia. 52 Judicial Appointments and Elections July 1, 2003 to June 30, 2004 Superior Courts: Appointments Judge William A. Fears, Towaliga Circuit, 9/02/03 Judge Michael N. Annis, Augusta Circuit, 9/18/03 Judge David L. Dickinson, Bell-Forsyth Circuit, 10/07/03 Judge J. Bryant Durham, Jr., Rome Circuit, 11/07/03 Judge Thomas R. Campbell, Atlanta Circuit, 5/14/04 State Courts: Appointments Judge B.E. Roberts, Hall County, 9/03/03 Judge Craig Schwall, Fulton County, 9/18/03 Judge Carla E. Brown, Gwinnett County, 11/10/03 Judge T. Russell McClelland, Forsyth County, 12/30/03 53 List of Illustrations Cover Montage created by Ashley G. Stollar. Page 10 Tift County Courthouse Page 16 Monroe County Courthouse Page 24 Decatur County Courthouse Page 44 54 Murray County Courthouse Page 48 Talbot County Courthouse Page 52 Johnson County Courthouse All photographs by Ashley G. Stollar. Administrative Office of the Courts 244 Washington Street, SW Suite 300 Atlanta, GA 30334 www.georgiacourts.org