Members of the Northeastern Judicial Circuit (NEJC) Accountability Courts were honored on September 17, 2024 at the annual Council of Accountability Court Judges (CACJ) training conference held in Athens, Georgia. Star Awards were presented to one individual in each role throughout the state for their work in Accountability Courts in Georgia. Public Defender Attorney Jake Shapiro was recognized for his work as a defense attorney with the Hall County Drug Court. Assistant District Attorney Robert Gardner received the award for his work as prosecutor in the Dawson County Treatment Court. Kit Devine was named the Star Award winner as the attorney for Family Treatment Courts. She works with Hall County Family Treatment Court. Additionally, the Hall County Family Treatment Court, which is presided over by Chief Juvenile Judge Alison Toller, was named a Model Court in Georgia. Judge Kathlene Gosselin, Treatment Services Director Heather Herrington, Jessi Emmett, and Rachel Williams who all work in the NEJC also presented as lecturers at the conference.
The Council of Accountability Court Judges is the state agency that manages all of the certified accountability courts in Georgia. These include Drug Court, DUI Court, Mental Health Courts, Veteran Treatment Courts, Juvenile Treatment Courts, and Family Treatment Courts. The 2024 Conference had over 1,450 registered participants from a variety of roles and teams throughout the State. Governor Brian Kemp addressed the conference on Monday to voice his support of the Georgia Accountability Courts and Georgia State House Majority Leader Chuck Efstration served as the keynote speaker on Tuesday. Efstration was an original sponsor of several bills that created the Accountability Courts.
Chief Superior Court Judge Jason Deal said, “We are very proud of our accountability courts in the NEJC. It was great to see some of our team members receive statewide recognition for their hard work and sacrifice. We are certainly blessed to live in a community that believes in accountability and recovery.