Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) on Friday signed a bill creating a commission with the power to remove local prosecutors who “refuse to uphold the law.”
Kemp’s office said in a press release that his signature established the Prosecuting Attorneys Qualifications Commission (PACQ) to serve as a “valuable oversight mechanism” for district attorneys and attorneys general across the state. The bureau said the commission will ensure these officials carry out their constitutional and legal duties.
“As hard-working law enforcement officers routinely risk their lives to identify, confront, and arrest criminals, I will not stand idly by as they meet resistance from rogue or incompetent prosecutors who refuse to uphold the law,” said Kemp. “Creating the PACQ will help hold prosecutors accountable who are guided by distant politics rather than their commitment to their responsibilities and will help make our communities safer.”
The law sets out several grounds for the commission to dismiss prosecutors or force their “involuntary retirement”. These include willful misconduct in office, mental or physical incapacity that is likely to be permanent in the performance of duties, willful and persistent failure to comply with legal obligations, and conviction for an offense involving “moral reprehensibility”.
District Attorneys and Attorneys General could also be fired for conduct detrimental to the administration of justice and damaging to the firm’s reputation, and knowingly permitting an Assistant District Attorney or Assistant Attorney General to commit any of the acts listed.
The commission will start its work on July 1st and can start accepting complaints about prosecutors from October 1st.
The law is one of several efforts by some Republicans across the country to crack down on Democratic and Liberal prosecutors who they accuse of being soft on crime and refusing to prosecute certain crimes.
Georgia Democrats have accused the Republican-controlled Legislature and Kemp of attempting to impose the Legislature’s will on Democratic local areas.
Some observers said the law could be used against Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is considering charges against former President Trump and his allies over efforts to overturn state election results in the 2020 presidential campaign.
Willis has condemned the law as racist because it comes into effect after voters elected 14 non-white district attorneys.
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Republicans named District Attorney Deborah Gonzalez, who serves Athens-Clarke and Oconee counties, as a target of the law because she has refused to prosecute marijuana-related crimes. Seven district attorneys also pledged not to prosecute abortion offenses after the Supreme Court ruled Roe v. Wade had tipped.
Georgia is not the only state where officials have taken action to try to sack prosecutors who they say are failing in their responsibilities. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) fired a prosecutor from office in August for signing a pledge not to criminalize women and doctors who violate abortion laws and families who seek gender-sensitive care for minors pursue.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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