A Gwinnett County solicitor general faces possible contempt charges. | Adobe Stock
A Gwinnett County solicitor general faces possible contempt charges. | Adobe Stock
A Gwinnett County official faces possible criminal contempt charges after suspending in-person court appearances because of COVID-19.
Fox 5 Atlanta reports that according to a petition filed by a county judge, solicitor general Brian Whiteside lacks the authority to declare there would be no in-person court proceedings.
The petition alleges Whiteside and his staff "obstructed the administration of justice," Fox 5 said.
Whiteside's suspended in-person state court through mid-January, even though the chief judge told him he couldn't make that decision and that the court needed his staff for arraignments, the story said.
"Court reporters were present," attorney Walt Britt told the station. "Everybody was in place except the solicitor general's office."
Whiteside told the station his intent was not to close the court but to go virtual, adding, "I put an e-mail out [last] Thursday asking to be virtual."
The solicitor told Fox 5 he has "a duty to protect the public from infection and we had a high risk of infection in our office by people who had tested positive and some people who had come in contact,"
About 30% of his staff had COVID-19 or were quarantine, prompting him to suspend in-person hearings, Whiteside said.
Brit disputed Whiteside's contention.
"They didn't ask for virtual," he told Fox 5. "They didn't show up. They just didn't do anything. They wanted a vacation."
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