Justices question events that led to DUI plea

Georgia Supreme Court justices had tough questions for both sides Monday in an Augusta traffic case.

Sentinel Offender Services and Richmond County Solicitor Harold Jones appealed a ruling earlier this year that threw out Lisa Harrelson's conviction for driving under the influence. Ms. Harrelson's attorney filed a cross-appeal that asked the court to consider constitutional issues in the case.

Earlier this year in Richmond County Superior Court, Chief Judge J. Carlisle Overstreet granted Ms. Harrelson's habeas petition -- a civil challenge of a criminal conviction -- and voided her July 2007 conviction. He did not, however, address the constitutional issues over the use of private probation services and the $50 application fee for the public defender's services.

The justices closely questioned Sentinel's Augusta attorney, Alana Kyriakakis, over how it happened that Ms. Harrelson pleaded guilty in Richmond County State Court to a crime she did not commit and that a judge accepted the plea with no evidence but an accusation.

Ms. Kyriakakis said that alone didn't mean Ms. Harrelson's conviction could be overturned because there was no "manifest injustice," the threshold for granting a habeas petition.

On behalf of the solicitor's office, Augusta city attorney Andrew MacKenzie echoed that contention. Ms. Harrelson pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of alcohol. The initial charge was driving under the influence of drugs. Both are DUI offenses, and the punishment for both is the same, Mr. MacKenzie said.

The justices also asked several questions about court procedures in Richmond County State Court, including why there was no transcript in Ms. Harrelson's case, how common it is for defendants to plead guilty without legal representation, and whether prosecutors are playing a role in defendants' decisions about representation and guilty pleas.

Ms. Harrelson's attorney, John Long of Augusta, said her case showcases what is wrong. Ms. Harrelson spent two days in jail before seeing a judge, was broke and unable to pay a $50 fee for a public defender and was faced by a solicitor asking whether she wanted to sign away her right to an attorney, Mr. Long said.

"The lady pled guilty to a charge she didn't commit," he argued. "I don't think the lady was guilty," but without the help of an attorney her options were severely limited.

Mr. Long acknowledged that his constitutional challenges could be barred by legal procedure, but he asked the justices to consider the issues because the Supreme Court has supervisory powers over lower courts.

Reach Sandy Hodson at (706) 823-3226 or sandy.hodson@augustachronicle.com.