Attorneys for Nathan Weekes on Thursday argued that he cannot get a fair trial in Tattnall County where he’s facing the death penalty for the 2021 murder of Bobby Kicklighter.
Attorneys with the Georgia Capital Defender’s Office made several arguments about why the county is unfit to host a fair trial for Weekes, presently scheduled for later this year, including negative publicity about the case, about the Georgia Department of Corrections, and positive publicity about the victim, Bobby Kicklighter.
Attorney Elise Burnum laid out a litany of reasons the defense is deserving of a change of venue and asked Superior Court Judge Jay Stewart to move the case to another county for trial.
Negative publicity via the Prison Town podcast
- The PowerPoint referenced the nomination for a Peabody Award, but noted she was unsure of the reach. Judge Stewart asked if that was indicative of wider reach, not just Tattnall County.
- Burnum stated a comment by a defense attorney in Episode 6 was “factually incorrect. She said he made a statement about who can afford a capital defense, which can total $500,000, and that was untrue. She said the attorney was suggesting that Weekes got money from the criminal enterprise to pay for the defense.
(Notably, the context of the quote was how expensive it is to defend a capital case if someone doesn’t have an appointed lawyer and that nearly no one can afford to pay for the legal defense in a death penalty case. Additionally, at the time, Weekes did have a retained counsel.)
Stewart asked how it’s relevant. “I don’t see it,” he said.
Burnum replied that it’s factually incorrect and there’s “no cure” for the harm done.
Negative Publicity About Nathan Weekes
- Some media has reported negatively on Weekes every year since 2021
- People don’t understand that the Weekes case and the Atlanta YSL case are not connected
- The media’s use of Weekes’ DOC photo
- Negative comments on social media about Weekes. The slideshow displayed several comments from Facebook, but many of the comments in the slideshow were not from Tattnall County residents.
Negative publicity about the Georgia Department of Corrections
- Cited a county-wide survey published by TheGeorgiaVirtue showed 85% of Tattnall residents were against a new 3,000-bed mega prison.
- She said it is clear the public has “absorbed law enforcement’s position” that at least one murder is tied to the prisons.
- Cited November 1, 2022 article about the violence on Smith State Prison and other Tattnall county Prisons.
Burnum said the community is slightly larger than what is typically considered a “small community,” but the influence of GDC on the community is grand.
Positive publicity of the victim
He was universally beloved citizen who loved his community and he was “widely appreciated.” She said there were lots of Facebook comments which showed his popularity and call for a harsh punishment for the defendant.
Weekes’ attorney cited 1,400 employees for the three prisons when they were all operational, while the county is home to 7,500 households, suggesting that all of the employees live in Tattnall County. That suggestion, however, is patently untrue.
Burnum said she couldn’t find more recent information when Judge Stewart stated the data would not be accurate since only two prisons are open now. Notably, both prisons are understaffed and are not operating at full capacity.
Burnum also cited readership of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, which is “essentially the entire state of Georgia,” as additional far-reaching media coverage. It was not clear how the entire state reading about the case would help the argument for change of venue, since it would suggest that no one in the state can objectively serve on a jury.
Legally speaking, Burnum argued that “death is different,” and noted that the standards are higher for the court to allow the case to remain in Tattnall County.
“The volume and duration and character clearly meets the standard…there has not been a let up on this case. And that’s concerning,” Burnum said.
ADA Allison Mauldin argued on behalf of the state.
The state argued that the media coverage has, as a general rule, been factually accurate. “The court is going to read the jury the indictment.”
She said there are 24,000 people in Tattnall with approximately 18,000 over the age of eighteen, but their true positions on the case, if any, aren’t yet known.
She asked the court to reserve ruling because the defense did not make their case that it cannot get a fair trial in Tattnall County, but also that it is too soon to know the position of jurors.
“Gross generalities about GDC, the GDC employees, their families, that they feel threatened. That is pure speculation, and I will stipulate that people get their news in all different manners…different ages get their news in different ways, but we’re not going to know how it impacts Tattnall County until we get to jury selection.”
She belabored that the state also has a vested interest in doing everything right. “We only want to try this case once.”
Judge Stewart said he would take it under advisement and allow counsel to submit additional briefs by June 16. He will make a decision after that.
