Ruling may change way poor is represented in Georgia

ATLANTA - The Georgia Court of Appeals threw out a guilty plea of a man who it said had not received adequate legal representation, a ruling experts say condemns ``assembly-line&#39;&#39; justice for many poor defendants. <br> <br> Richard Anthony Heath had pleaded guilty in Paulding County in July 2000 after he was accused of driving drunk and colliding head-on with a car, injuring its three passengers. <br> <br> But in the decision issued Tuesday, Appeals Court Judge G. Alan Blackburn wrote that Heath&#39;s defense - a lawyer hired by Paulding County to defend people who can&#39;t afford lawyers themselves - ``was so deficient that it effectively equaled no assistance at all.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The court called the ruling the first of its kind in Georgia in a nondeath-penalty case. <br> <br> Legal experts said it sends a message that lawyers about thoroughly investigating cases before advising indigent clients to plead guilty. <br> <br> ``In counties all over Georgia, there is a &#39;meet-them-and-plead-them&#39; assembly-line way of processing people through the courts without any individual representation,&#39;&#39; said Stephen Bright, director of the Southern Center for Human Rights. ``Guilty pleas entered under those circumstances could now be challenged and set aside.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Savannah lawyer Terry Jackson, president of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, called the ruling a big step forward. <br> <br> ``All over Georgia, we have lawyers who go to the jail, meet briefly with their clients, and then plead them out after conducting no investigation at all,&#39;&#39; he said. ``This ruling draws a line in the sand that you can&#39;t do this anymore.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> A state Supreme Court commission is expected to publish Dec. 12 a report with recommendations on indigent defense for the Legislature to consider. <br> <br> Heath pleaded guilty in 2000 to 15 counts of serious injury by vehicle, two counts of driving under the influence and one count of reckless driving. <br> <br> His county-contracted attorney, Jason Shwiller, advised Heath that a guilty plea would give him a prison sentence of just a few years. But Heath, who had four previous DUI convictions, was sentenced to 15 years. <br> <br> Schwiller said during an interview in July that he ``did, realistically, everything I could&#39;&#39; to represent Heath. <br> <br> Paulding County Attorney Angela Woodall said Schwiller&#39;s contract was not renewed because of concerns his busy practice didn&#39;t afford him enough time to spend on indigent cases.