Lack of environmental experience won't be a problem in EPA job, DeKalb DA says

By Megan Matteucci

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Six death penalty trials, a police-involved shooting overhaul and a school corruption investigation will help DeKalb County’s district attorney with her new job at the Environmental Protection Agency, she says.

Longtime prosecutor Gwen Keyes Fleming starts Tuesday as the new regional administrator for the EPA -- an appointment courtesy of President Barack Obama.

One of 10 regional administrators, Fleming will oversee eight states, including Georgia, and six tribal nations. She will manage a staff of about 1,000 to ensure the president’s environmental policy is implemented, including standards for clean water and air and pushing for a green economy.

“I haven’t handled any environmental cases, but I’ve been able to demonstrate good collaboration and administrative skills,” Fleming told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It’s about being able to think quickly on my feet, analyze a set of facts, compare that to the applicable law or regulations and arrive at a solution.”

But local environmentalists aren’t as confident.

“She has no environmental experience and I don’t know of any environmental issues she’s actually taken part in,” said Jacqueline Echols of the Clean Streams Task Force that worked for sewer upgrades in Atlanta. “I’ve been around the environmental circuit in Atlanta for almost 15 years and her name has never surfaced.”

Doug Denton, who serves on DeKalb’s Soil and Water Conservation District, said he hasn’t seen the district attorney enforce local environmental regulations. “I am unaware of Ms. Keyes Fleming’s managerial skills or knowledge of environmental law,” he said. “I hope she has the will and support to protect the public’s health and welfare within what is certain to be a challenging job.”

Some say her ties to the president helped land her the job. Fleming worked for Obama’s campaign and served as a delegate at the Democratic National Convention. Her former spokeswoman, Adora Andy, also works for the EPA in Washington.

"Gwen Keyes Fleming is foremost an experienced and respected public servant who has dedicated most of her career to ensuring our laws are enforced and fighting for her community. EPA is delighted to have found a person of Gwen's caliber as exemplified in her many years of experience and leadership on behalf of the people she has served," EPA spokesman Carl Terry said in a statement. "Her extensive leadership and managerial experience will serve her well."

Fleming, 41, a mother of two young children, said she didn’t seek the job, but was excited when presented with the opportunity. As the first African-American female district attorney and solicitor-general in DeKalb, she is used to naysayers.

“When I first became solicitor-general and DA, there were a lot of people who didn’t think I could do this job and I worked to prove them wrong. I will do the same thing now,” she said.

Fleming worked as a Fulton County prosecutor before being elected solicitor-general in DeKalb in 1999. In 2005, she took over as district attorney, where she has managed 13,000 cases annually and a staff of 165.

During her tenure, Fleming led the initiative to change how the county responds to officer-involved shootings and investigated a ticket-fixing scam at the county’s Recorders Court. She touts an 81 percent conviction rate and a pretrial diversion program for first offenders.

Gov. Sonny Perdue has not decided if he will appoint an acting district attorney, said the governor’s spokesman. Until he makes that decision, chief Assistant District Attorney Javoyne Hicks White will serve as acting district attorney.

Qualifying for the November election starts next week. DeKalb Solicitor-General Robert James has already said he plans to run. White said she will not run.

Both White and Fleming insist there will be no disruption in prosecutions, including three men who are charged with the 2008 shooting deaths of DeKalb police Officers Eric Barker and Ricky Bryant Jr. Fleming was supposed to help prosecute that trial in early 2011.

Fleming said there also will be no delay in the prosecution of former DeKalb schools Superintendent Crawford Lewis. Fleming, who focused on enhancing public integrity investigations in DeKalb, led the extensive investigation into Lewis and his staff, which resulted in indictments for RICO and other charges.

“I think upholding the public trust is critical for anyone elected. When that trust is violated it goes much deeper than that individual. It goes to all of government,” Fleming said. “It’s imperative to restore that public trust and make sure those who violate the law are held accountable.”

It’s that drive, said Sally Bethea, executive director of the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, that will help Fleming succeed at the EPA.

“I understand she doesn’t have an environmental background, but I think she may be a good appointment for Region 4 given the fact that she’s an attorney and has a great deal experience enforcing the laws," Bethea said. "That’s what we need at EPA."

Fleming insists she is not leaving the law,  just going on a hiatus. She’s too attached to what she does to ever truly leave, she said.

“I remember my first murder case as an ADA in Fulton. And I still talk to the victim’s family from the fist simple assault case I prosecuted in Fulton,” she said. “That’s the thing about being a prosecutor; some faces, some victims, some families -- they just stick with you.”