Judge denies Gonzalez's motion to dismiss lawsuit

Senior Judge of Superior Courts of Georgia David Emerson on Tuesday denied Western Judicial Circuit District Attorney Deborah Gonzalez’s motion to dismiss a writ of mandamus, which is a legal remedy to force an elected official to perform specific job duties. A trial date has not yet been determined.

In a January 2021 memo, Gonzalez made a proclamation that her office would not charge simple possession of marijuana offenses, regardless of amount, and that she would not charge possession of drug-related-object offenses. Gonzalez has also declined to prosecute other user-quantity drug cases and truancy offenses. 

In his ruling, Emerson wrote, “This court finds if the defendant has adopted such a policy, she has grossly abused her discretion.” 

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