They were open to it, he said, but they ultimately weren’t satisfied with the apology letter Evans wrote.
Rubin told the court that before the hearing, he had met with Armstrong and Willis to discuss a sentence reduction for Evans. When asked by the judge if his position came “from the top down in the DA’s office,” Armstrong answered that it did. Her colleagues at a mental health clinic attested to the valuable community work she has done, and her lawyer, Bob Rubin, said she has fostered positive growth for “refugees, the mentally ill, victims of crime, and children who are poor.” A prison sentence would end that, he said.īefore the judge handed down the new sentence, Fulton County Chief Senior Assistant District Attorney Kevin Armstrong argued that Evans should be sent to prison. At the Fulton County Justice Center, Evans apologized for her negligence. He also said he believed that some of the witnesses who testified against Evans had “agendas.” He concluded, “I gotta do what my conscience tells me and this is what it’s saying.”Įvans was not accused of cheating. “What she has told me today is that she has accepted responsibility for what happened,” Baxter said. (In Georgia retired judges are allowed to preside over cases). On June 28, former principal Dana Evans narrowly avoided prison when retired Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jerry Baxter-the same judge who originally sentenced her to a year in prison-agreed to reduce her sentence to probation and community service. One of those defendants can now breathe a little easier. (Thanks to federal policies like No Child Left Behind, cheating is a fairly widespread problem.)īut over the last seven years, two Atlanta educators have gone to prison and seven have had the threat of prison hanging over their heads as they appealed their cases.
Greed corp cheats professional#
Typically, administrators and educators accused of cheating have had their professional licenses suspended or revoked, or they were fined or sentenced to community service. The prosecution of Atlanta’s educators was unprecedented, from the RICO charges to the prison sentences. Social justice groups are calling for Willis to hit the brakes on a case that they say has criminalized Black educators, perpetuated systemic racism, and ignored the root causes of cheating. Six more educators could still be locked up unless Willis changes her stance. Last week, her office opposed a sentence reduction to spare a former principal from prison, but a judge granted it anyway.
Since Willis took office, she’s fought the Atlanta educators’ appeals.
Her predecessor, Paul Howard, had been the county’s top prosecutor for more than two decades. In 2020, with the backing of the local police union, Willis was elected district attorney, making her the first Black woman to hold the office. Willis was one of three lead prosecutors on the case, but her involvement didn’t end there. Of the 12 people who went to trial, only one was acquitted. In 2015, 11 Black educators were convicted on RICO charges and sentenced to prison in what’s known as the Atlanta Public Schools Cheating Scandal, which dominated local headlines for well over a year. Wade.īut as Willis’s national profile rises, some of her priorities have evaded the spotlight, namely her efforts to incarcerate Black educators-mostly women-for allegedly cheating on standardized tests.
“It is my responsibility as the elected District Attorney to set priorities for the use of my office’s resources,” she told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution shortly after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Or maybe it was from her prosecution of rapper Young Thug and 27 people affiliated with his record label, Young Stoner Life, which Willis has cast as a “criminal street gang.” Or you could have seen reports that she’s among the growing number of prosecutors in red states pledging not to bring charges against abortion seekers. If you’re not from Atlanta and you’ve heard of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, chances are it was from pundits gushing over her gutsy investigation of Donald Trump. This piece is a commentary, part of The Appeal’s collection of opinion and analysis.
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