Add Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves to the list of people who disagreed with the seven-year prison sentences handed down by a county judge to three former educators convicted in the Atlanta Public Schools test-cheating scandal.
“I think that a case can be made that they were too harsh,” Eaves said Friday in a meeting with members of the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists.
Eaves added he felt the sentences were “excessive” but wished the defendants had expressed remorse in exchange for lesser sentences that had been offered by the Fulton County District Attorney’s office.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jerry Baxter has scheduled a hearing on Thursday to resentence the three former APS regional directors he gave the lengthiest sentences. Seven other former teachers and principals convicted in the trial received sentences ranging from evening home confinement to two years in prison.
Many community activists have criticized sentencing the convicted former educators to prison. Others, like Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, thought the sentences were appropriate.
Eaves said he plans to meet with APS Superintendent Meria Carstarphen to discuss ways the county government can improve graduation rates. Eaves said about 80 percent of inmates in the Fulton County Jail are high school dropouts.
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