LAWRENCEVILLE - The Gwinnett County judge in the case of a Dacula dentist accused of killing his wife is reviewing whether to make a gag order tougher.
Defense Attorney David Wolfe told Superior Court Judge Michael Clark that a tighter gag order is needed to make sure his client, Barton Corbin, receives a fair trial. Corbin, wearing a dark suit, sat through the Monday hearing next to his attorneys.
``The difficulty that we are facing in defending Dr. Corbin is the information disseminated in many cases is inaccurate,'' Wolfe said.
Corbin has pleaded not guilty in the Dec. 4 death of his wife, Jennifer. The shooting was initially thought to be a suicide but was later ruled a homicide. The dentist also has been indicted in Augusta in the 1990 shooting death of a former girlfriend, Dolly Hearn.
Currently, only attorneys involved in the Jennifer Corbin case are barred from discussing the case publicly.
Wolfe's request is being challenged by attorneys who represent The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, WSB-TV and WGCL-TV. Clark did not say when he would issue a ruling on the request but gave attorneys on both sides 14 days to submit proposed revisions to the gag order.
``What I'm trying to do is make sure this case is not tried four or five times in the press,'' Clark said.
The original gag order issued in January kept many involved in the case, including police and potential witnesses, from publicly talking. But on March 28, Clark lifted most of the order. But he said then that he could be willing to modify the order again with more restrictions.
Wolfe said news media accounts of the case were full of inaccurate information, a sentiment echoed by District Attorney Danny Porter, who called some of the reporting ``inflammatory journalism.''
``The press does not come here before this court with clean hands,'' said Porter, who proposed a gag order that would name specific people who would be banned from commenting on the case.
Wolfe provided Clark seven videotapes of television broadcast reports plus 33 newspaper stories that contained what he said were inaccuracies.
Wolfe criticized news reports that said Richmond County investigators could not conclude Hearn died of a suicide, as authorities initially said after her 1990 death. The attorney also was critical of reports that speculated whether Hearn, who was dating Corbin when she died, would have committed suicide.
But Thomas Clyde, an attorney for WSB-TV and the Journal-Constitution, argued that media stories have been accurate and would not contribute to an unfair trial.
``I don't think there has been any substantial showing of prejudice'' that would prompt the need for a tougher gag order, Clyde said.
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June 15th, 2025
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