Defense attorney Annette Greene showed up late Wednesday to the Atlanta Public Schools test-cheating trial and it cost her $200.
“Pick out a legitimate charity and donate $200 and give me proof in a reasonable amount of time,” Fulton County Superior Court Judge Jerry Baxter told Greene as she entered the courtroom. Greene quickly said she would do so.
Baxter, a former prosecutor, has said he once appeared before a judge who routinely showed up late and left lawyers and parties waiting in the courtroom. Since he became a judge, Baxter said, he has made it a point to never be like that.
At the outset of the trial, Baxter warned lawyers and defendants that they could face a $200 fine if they showed up late for court proceedings, which begin at 9 a.m. In past weeks, he has not carried through on that threat when some attorneys and at least one defendant showed up a few minutes late. But that ended Wednesday when Greene, who represents former Dunbar Elementary School teacher Shani Robinson, was late after getting stuck in traffic.
“I think we ought to be here on time,” Baxter said.
The judge then brought in the jurors, whom he has often praised for consistently showing up on time.
6:45 a.m.
Former governor could testify Wednesday
Former Gov. Sonny Perdue could take the witness stand Wednesday in the Atlanta Public Schools test-cheating trial.
Perdue, who called for an investigation that uncovered cheating across the school system, testified last year in the first trial against former regional supervisor Tamara Cotman. In that trial, Cotman was acquitted of a charge that alleged she influenced witnesses.
Cotman remains one of 12 defendants on trial, charged with engaging in a racketeering conspiracy to inflate test scores. Before Perdue takes the stand, Kathleen Mathers, the former executive director of the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement, must finish testifying.
Perdue became emotional when explaining his decision to appoint special investigators.
“These kids only get one shot, ” said Perdue, his voice breaking. “These kids needed integrity in their lives, and they needed to know how they were doing and how they were stacking up. … If they think they’re doing fine and getting passed along, they’re going to get to high school and find they can’t perform.”
Perdue said he initially became concerned about test-tampering after seeing "amazing, almost unbelievable gains" on tests at Deerwood Academy in 2008. After the 2009 Criterion-Referenced Competency Test results came in, the entire state was analyzed for wrong-to-right erasures, and Atlanta's results were among the most suspicious.
Perdue said he personally telephoned former Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall to tell her about the improbable gains made at Atlanta schools. Perdue said he wanted Hall to find out what happened.
"My goal was to seek the truth, " Perdue said. "It mattered to these kids, their parents and their futures."
Perdue said an internal probe by APS was "woefully inadequate" and a blue-ribbon commission's investigation also fell short. "I got a distinct impression of stonewalling, " the former governor testified. He said it was as if school administrators were thinking, "If we hunker down long enough, everything will go away … things will just blow over."
Even though some advisers were telling him not to get more involved, Perdue said, he appointed special investigators to find out what happened and ordered the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to assist with the probe.
About the Author
