Judge rules against defendants in Atlanta cheating case
A judge denied requests Friday to silence potentially damaging testimony against former Atlanta educators accused of cheating on standardized tests.
Lawyers for the defendants argued in court that their clients weren’t part of a scheme to change students’ answers, but Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jerry Baxter rejected their motions to suppress hearsay statements from alleged co-conspirators.
Prosecutors said the teachers and administrators cheated so they could meet high standards set by Superintendent Beverly Hall, who also faces criminal charges, and so they could receive bonus pay for meeting academic targets.
Baxter ruled against former Dunbar Elementary testing coordinator Lera Middlebrooks, former Deerwood Academy Assistant Principal Tabeeka Jordan and former Dobbs Elementary teacher Dessa Curb.
He also denied a motion by former Dunbar Elementary teacher Pamela Cleveland, who had sought to disallow statements given to GBI investigators from being used against her.
Thirty-three defendants remain in the case, which is set to go to trial April 21.
The defendants have until Jan. 6 to broker negotiated plea deals with prosecutors.
One defendant so far has pleaded guilty. Former Humphries Elementary School teacher Lisa Terry received one year on probation and will perform 250 hours of community service by tutoring at-risk youths, and she agreed to cooperate and testify for prosecutors.
About the Author
Mark Niesse is an enterprise reporter and covers elections and Georgia government for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and is considered an expert on elections and voting. Before joining the AJC, he worked for The Associated Press in Atlanta, Honolulu and Montgomery, Alabama. He also reported for The Daily Report and The Santiago Times in Chile.
