Georgia Justice Project (GJP), in collaboration with Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady, Jr., recently opened a Second Chance Desk in Cobb County (more commonly known as an “Expungement Desk”). Cobb’s Second Chance Desk is the first of its kind in Georgia, and GJP has plans to open several more around the state. The Second Chance Desk is a resource in the Cobb County Circuit Defender’s Office where individuals can have their criminal history reviewed by an attorney, receive a free consultation, and get assistance with filling out record restriction forms for eligible Cobb County charges.
Interested individuals can sign up at www.cobbsecondchancedesk.com or call 404-834-8604.
4.3 million people have a Georgia criminal history, approximately 40% of working-age adults. Georgia’s new law expanding record clearing remedies (a process many states call expungement) – championed by GJP and the partners of the Second Chance for Georgia Campaign – went into effect this year and made approximately 1.5 million Georgians newly eligible to have their misdemeanor convictions (and some pardoned felony convictions) restricted for the first time in the state’s history. Second Chance Desks are an invaluable resource to meet this increasing need for record restriction services.
“Georgia Justice Project helps many Georgians each year with their criminal record, but we can’t do this work alone,” says Doug Ammar, Executive Director of Georgia Justice Project. “It is refreshing to see prosecutors working alongside defense-oriented groups to alleviate the impact of a criminal record. We appreciate District Attorney Broady and Solicitor Barry Morgan for joining us in this effort.”
The Second Chance Desk will be staffed by GJP attorneys and the Circuit Defender’s Office. These attorneys will assist eligible individuals with clearing their record as Georgia law allows.
“This is justice in action,” DA Broady said. “Removing barriers that keep nonviolent people from being productive members of society benefits everyone.”
Partners on this project include GJP, Cobb District Attorney Flynn D. Broady Jr., Cobb Solicitor General Barry E. Morgan and Cobb Circuit Defender Randy Harris. The Second Chance Desk is housed in the Cobb County Circuit Defender’s Office.
To ask about the Desk’s services, call 404-834-8604.
For media inquiries, contact Erika Curtis at Erika@GJP.org or 404-827-0027 ext. 215.