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Lawyers ask to be moved up in vaccination priority to keep courts running

ATLANTA — Jury trials in Georgia have stopped for months due to COVID-19. Criminal defense lawyers are hoping to get their vaccine priority bumped up and, hopefully, open up courts again.

Lawrence Zimmerman, president of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, believes the pandemic has delayed justice for thousands of defendants across the state.

“They’re languishing in jail for a year. There’s no trial in sight. They can’t get a resolution to their case,” Zimmerman said.

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The Georgia State Supreme Court stopped jury trials last year out of concern of COVID-19 and its spread.

“There’s a huge backlog. It’s gonna take years to dig out of this,” Zimmerman said.

This week, Zimmerman sent a letter to Gov. Brian Kemp asking for help. He asked the governor to move trial attorneys into the 1b vaccine group. Zimmerman said they are essential for upholding public safety and justice throughout the state.

Kemp, in a news conference on Tuesday, reiterated that supply has been an issue with providing the vaccine to Georgians.

“In a few months, I’d hope under this new administration that has put forward a logistical plan that may be able to roll it out and start getting it down to the people,” Kemp said.