The trial for a Buckhead real estate investor who bought up much of an impoverished west Atlanta neighborhood was delayed Monday morning to give him time to find a criminal attorney to represent him.
Rick Warren was scheduled to face a judge for conditions at a burnt-out, debris-covered property near the English Avenue community. The investor appeared with civil attorney Stephen Rothman, who represents him on conditions on that one house only. Warren, who faces possible jail time, is seeking a criminal attorney to represent him on it and an additional eight properties.
Municipal court Judge Crystal Gaines agreed to push back the date so he could retain additional counsel.
Warren is set for re-arraignment on May 18.
Deputy Solicitor Erika Smith said during Monday’s hearing that Warren has recently been issued additional citations.
An Atlanta Journal-Constitution investigation last year found that Warren owned more than 150 properties, most of them in the neighborhoods just west of construction of the new $1 billion Falcons stadium. Warren and various partners had bought up some 10 percent of the houses in and around the community, which experts said is an unprecedented share for a neighborhood in a major city.
Mayor Kasim Reed has said Warren continues to leave behind a trail of blighted properties, and he will not allow the behavior to continue.
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