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Legal battle brewing over broadcast
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| CHIEF SUPERIOR COURT Judge Amanda Williams might seek legal action against the host of a radio program that criticized her drug court. (Tribune & Georgian file photo) |
By Mark Beavers
Chief Superior Court Judge Amanda Williams may seek legal action against the host of the public radio broadcast aired in March that criticized her drug court program as "possibly the toughest drug court in the country."
The Public Radio International program, "This American Life," aired a broadcast on March 25 titled "Very Tough Love" about Williams' drug court.
During the broadcast, program host Ira Glass states his findings show that Williams' drug court does "things that violate the basic philosophy of all drug courts" by imposing harsher sentences than other drug courts for those that relapse.
Glass asserts that Williams' drug court is run differently than others in America and uses excessive bail requirements.
In the broadcast, Glass gives the example of 24-year-old Lindsey Dills, who at 17 forged two of her parents' checks for a total of $100 and ended up in Williams' drug court for more than five years, including just over a year in jail.
Dills is serving "another five years after that - six months of it in Arrendale State Prison, the other four and a half on probation. The average drug court program in the U.S. lasts 15 months," states the website for "This American Life."
Glass also interviews 22-year-old Brandi Byrd, who entered the drug court program after being arrested for possession of two prescription pills. He calls Byrd a "low-level offender" who didn't deserve to be in the program. Byrd was arrested for a DUI and served time in jail after not showing up to drug court for 11 months.
A letter sent April 8 to Glass from Williams' lawyer, David G. Oedel, disputes Glass' claims that Williams' program is the toughest in the county, operates outside the standards of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and uses coercive tactics to place people in the program.
"On Judge Williams' behalf, I hereby put you on formal legal notice that Judge Williams disputes all these central factual features of your story," Oedel wrote in the letter. "As to the five individuals in the drug program on whom you relied for your story, you failed either to discover or reveal key facts that would have indicated either that the sources were not telling the truth to you and the audience, and/or that you misrepresented what the sources said to you and/or the public records of their cases."
Attorney's claims
For example, Oedel said in the letter, during the broadcast Glass states he interviewed Dills "in a prison way upstate," but Glass did not reveal that Dills was actually in the Substance Abuse Treatment Program at Arrendale State Prison and not actually an inmate there.
"Frankly it seems incredible to me that you would base any report on the remarks of a deeply drug-addicted person who would laughingly acknowledge on tape about being 'unstable,'" Oedel said in the letter.
Oedel also claims that Glass falsely represented Byrd in his story.
"Incarceration for an offense like DUI while on the lam from drug court probation is inevitable in any drug court nationwide; and such dangerous conduct by a repeat offender is hardly 'low-level,'" Oedel said.
In his letter, Oedel writes that Williams' penalties in her drug court are "relatively standard and meaningful" and "Williams has never sentenced anyone washing out of rehab to time beyond the statutory range" of the crime that the individual pleaded guilty to committing.
"The damages (of the radio broadcast) that have been suffered are profound," Oedel said in his letter to Glass. "Judge Williams is being threatened with death; the blogs locally and nationally are wild with hateful comments about Judge Williams; and her reputation has been tarnished in myriad ways.
"... Judge Williams and others libeled by your 'Very Tough Love' story are presently contemplating how to proceed at this point. I stand ready to discuss your respective liabilities and possible strategies for settlement short of litigation; but I must warn you that we are moving forward with legal action."
Mike McDaniel, special agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, said that no arrests have been made in relation to two death threats that were sent via e-mail to Williams' re-election site shortly after the broadcast aired.
"Originally there were two," McDaniel said. "They led us to some addresses out of state and we're working with the authorities in those states."
Glass responds
Glass and his attorneys responded to Oedel's letter on Friday, April 15, in defense of the broadcast.
"For all the minutiae presented in these two documents, Judge Williams and Mr. Oedel don't dispute and barely address at all the main two points of my story or the evidence I provide to back up those points," Glass said. "Judge Williams' drug court uses punitive sanctions for relapses and other broken rules which are harsher than any other drug court I - or the national experts interviewed for the show, who were familiar with hundreds of drug courts across the country - could find. Judge Williams' court uses a variety of means that other drug courts don't to encourage defendants to sign up for drug court."
A letter from Glass' legal representatives, Foley & Lardner LLP, states that Glass gave Williams numerous opportunities to respond to the statements from other sources in the broadcast but refused to be interviewed.
"Our clients' broadcast and related web publication are the product of intensive investigative journalism and, consistent with Mr. Glass' professional reputation, represent fair, accurate and unbiased reporting," the letter states.
Another view
While Glass' story paints a negative picture of Williams' drug court, some are arguing the story was based on fallacies.
Attorney Audrey Chapman, who represents clients in Williams' drug court program, said that Glass came to her office looking for information about the court.
"I couldn't comment on my individual clients," Chapman said, noting that HIPPA laws and client confidentiality would not allow her to speak on such matters.
Glass told her some of the information he had collected, Chapman said.
"I told him that (it) was untrue and the majority of his story was a fabrication," she said. "There are little nuances in the story that are not factually accurate."
Chapman said she invited Glass to attend the graduation ceremony for some of the drug court clients.
"He had an associate show up, and he heard over 10 graduation speeches and none of that made the story," she said.
Chapman said she has seen the drug court change the lives of many individuals for the better.
"In my mind, this is politically motivated," Chapman said. "We've had over 1,000 graduates and they found three that were unhappy."
Funding figures
Camden County has supported the drug court program through funding in years past.
According to information prepared by Camden County Finance Director Mike Fender, the county paid $66,561 to the drug court program in 2009 and $46,921 in 2010.
"We're getting ready to do the budget," county commissioner Chip Keene said. "We haven't had any public meetings. My guess is we'll see another request for funding for (drug court)."
Commissioner Jimmy Starline said he has listened to the broadcast "Very Tough Love" but has not made a decision for or against supporting funding for the program.
Williams did not return multiple phone calls and e-mails from the Tribune & Georgian for comment between April 4-6 but eventually decided to allow an interview on Friday, April 15.
That day, the Tribune & Georgian learned the meeting with Williams was canceled because her legal representative had advised the judge not to issue any statements.
The notice about the cancellation came not from Williams or her office but in an e-mail from an unrelated party.
A call was placed to Williams' chambers, where her secretary, who would not state her name, said that Williams had canceled the meeting because of a change in her schedule.
The Public Radio International program, "This American Life," aired a broadcast on March 25 titled "Very Tough Love" about Williams' drug court.
During the broadcast, program host Ira Glass states his findings show that Williams' drug court does "things that violate the basic philosophy of all drug courts" by imposing harsher sentences than other drug courts for those that relapse.
Glass asserts that Williams' drug court is run differently than others in America and uses excessive bail requirements.
In the broadcast, Glass gives the example of 24-year-old Lindsey Dills, who at 17 forged two of her parents' checks for a total of $100 and ended up in Williams' drug court for more than five years, including just over a year in jail.
Dills is serving "another five years after that - six months of it in Arrendale State Prison, the other four and a half on probation. The average drug court program in the U.S. lasts 15 months," states the website for "This American Life."
Glass also interviews 22-year-old Brandi Byrd, who entered the drug court program after being arrested for possession of two prescription pills. He calls Byrd a "low-level offender" who didn't deserve to be in the program. Byrd was arrested for a DUI and served time in jail after not showing up to drug court for 11 months.
A letter sent April 8 to Glass from Williams' lawyer, David G. Oedel, disputes Glass' claims that Williams' program is the toughest in the county, operates outside the standards of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and uses coercive tactics to place people in the program.
"On Judge Williams' behalf, I hereby put you on formal legal notice that Judge Williams disputes all these central factual features of your story," Oedel wrote in the letter. "As to the five individuals in the drug program on whom you relied for your story, you failed either to discover or reveal key facts that would have indicated either that the sources were not telling the truth to you and the audience, and/or that you misrepresented what the sources said to you and/or the public records of their cases."
Attorney's claims
For example, Oedel said in the letter, during the broadcast Glass states he interviewed Dills "in a prison way upstate," but Glass did not reveal that Dills was actually in the Substance Abuse Treatment Program at Arrendale State Prison and not actually an inmate there.
"Frankly it seems incredible to me that you would base any report on the remarks of a deeply drug-addicted person who would laughingly acknowledge on tape about being 'unstable,'" Oedel said in the letter.
Oedel also claims that Glass falsely represented Byrd in his story.
"Incarceration for an offense like DUI while on the lam from drug court probation is inevitable in any drug court nationwide; and such dangerous conduct by a repeat offender is hardly 'low-level,'" Oedel said.
In his letter, Oedel writes that Williams' penalties in her drug court are "relatively standard and meaningful" and "Williams has never sentenced anyone washing out of rehab to time beyond the statutory range" of the crime that the individual pleaded guilty to committing.
"The damages (of the radio broadcast) that have been suffered are profound," Oedel said in his letter to Glass. "Judge Williams is being threatened with death; the blogs locally and nationally are wild with hateful comments about Judge Williams; and her reputation has been tarnished in myriad ways.
"... Judge Williams and others libeled by your 'Very Tough Love' story are presently contemplating how to proceed at this point. I stand ready to discuss your respective liabilities and possible strategies for settlement short of litigation; but I must warn you that we are moving forward with legal action."
Mike McDaniel, special agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, said that no arrests have been made in relation to two death threats that were sent via e-mail to Williams' re-election site shortly after the broadcast aired.
"Originally there were two," McDaniel said. "They led us to some addresses out of state and we're working with the authorities in those states."
Glass responds
Glass and his attorneys responded to Oedel's letter on Friday, April 15, in defense of the broadcast.
"For all the minutiae presented in these two documents, Judge Williams and Mr. Oedel don't dispute and barely address at all the main two points of my story or the evidence I provide to back up those points," Glass said. "Judge Williams' drug court uses punitive sanctions for relapses and other broken rules which are harsher than any other drug court I - or the national experts interviewed for the show, who were familiar with hundreds of drug courts across the country - could find. Judge Williams' court uses a variety of means that other drug courts don't to encourage defendants to sign up for drug court."
A letter from Glass' legal representatives, Foley & Lardner LLP, states that Glass gave Williams numerous opportunities to respond to the statements from other sources in the broadcast but refused to be interviewed.
"Our clients' broadcast and related web publication are the product of intensive investigative journalism and, consistent with Mr. Glass' professional reputation, represent fair, accurate and unbiased reporting," the letter states.
Another view
While Glass' story paints a negative picture of Williams' drug court, some are arguing the story was based on fallacies.
Attorney Audrey Chapman, who represents clients in Williams' drug court program, said that Glass came to her office looking for information about the court.
"I couldn't comment on my individual clients," Chapman said, noting that HIPPA laws and client confidentiality would not allow her to speak on such matters.
Glass told her some of the information he had collected, Chapman said.
"I told him that (it) was untrue and the majority of his story was a fabrication," she said. "There are little nuances in the story that are not factually accurate."
Chapman said she invited Glass to attend the graduation ceremony for some of the drug court clients.
"He had an associate show up, and he heard over 10 graduation speeches and none of that made the story," she said.
Chapman said she has seen the drug court change the lives of many individuals for the better.
"In my mind, this is politically motivated," Chapman said. "We've had over 1,000 graduates and they found three that were unhappy."
Funding figures
Camden County has supported the drug court program through funding in years past.
According to information prepared by Camden County Finance Director Mike Fender, the county paid $66,561 to the drug court program in 2009 and $46,921 in 2010.
"We're getting ready to do the budget," county commissioner Chip Keene said. "We haven't had any public meetings. My guess is we'll see another request for funding for (drug court)."
Commissioner Jimmy Starline said he has listened to the broadcast "Very Tough Love" but has not made a decision for or against supporting funding for the program.
Williams did not return multiple phone calls and e-mails from the Tribune & Georgian for comment between April 4-6 but eventually decided to allow an interview on Friday, April 15.
That day, the Tribune & Georgian learned the meeting with Williams was canceled because her legal representative had advised the judge not to issue any statements.
The notice about the cancellation came not from Williams or her office but in an e-mail from an unrelated party.
A call was placed to Williams' chambers, where her secretary, who would not state her name, said that Williams had canceled the meeting because of a change in her schedule.
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