Georgia lawmakers propose new bill that would stop growing number of gang activities

ATLANTA — Law enforcement could soon get new help to fight criminal street gangs.

Channel 2′s Michael Seiden was outside the state capitol, where Fulton County’s top prosecutor says a proposed bill could hold judges accountable for repeat offenders.

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There are some magistrate judges who are appointed, but they still have the power to set bonds for repeat offenders and gang members.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis told lawmakers that she believes it is time for elected superior court judges to start setting bonds so they can be held accountable.

“It’s estimated somewhere between 70 and as high as 90% of all violent crimes are committed by criminal street gangs,” Sen. John Albers said.

Criminal street gangs commit violent crimes against innocent victims.

“We’ve had cases recently where Uber Eats and Uber drivers have already been shot because unbeknownst to them they drove into gang territory,” Willis said.

Willis says enough is enough. On Monday, she testified in front of the Georgia senate judiciary committee voicing her support for Senate Bill 12. The Republican-backed legislation would allow a district attorney to prosecute gang members accused of committing crimes in multiple counties.

“It makes it financially feasible and just common sense that most of the acts that they did happened in Fulton County but they had two or three in DeKalb that I would be able to prosecute those crimes so we can keep it all together.

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The bill would also hold judges accountable when it comes to setting bonds for repeat offenders and gang members.

“We want our superior court judges that are elected and answer to us to actually be the ones that review the person’s record, their gang involvement is and make an educated decision,” Willis said.

But opponents of the bill fear it will lead to more overcrowding in jails.

“Fulton county, specifically, the ACLU looked at their jail and found that there had been people there who had been there six months or more who hadn’t been indicted yet,” Andrew Fleischman said.

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Senate Bill 12 also increases penalties for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in cases involving domestic violence.

It also allows prosecutors to introduce evidence of prior bad acts when a defendant is facing charges of non-sexual child abuse, elder abuse, and domestic abuse.

The bill will now head to the Senate rules committee and could be on the Senate floor by the end of the week.

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