Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady Jr. announced the opening of a record-restriction help desk spearheaded by the Georgia Justice Project and the Cobb County court system.

Record restriction was described in an earlier statement by the DA’s office as follows:

Georgia law generally allows people who were arrested but not convicted to have records of that arrest restricted and sealed. Public records of an arrest can hinder people from obtaining employment, housing, or other resources and thereby being a productive member of the community.

The following is a reprint of a June 15 public information release from the Cobb County District Attorney’s office describing the new Second Chance Desk in detail:

Earlier this year, Cobb District Attorney Flynn D. Broady Jr. announced his support of a record restriction help desk. Partners on this project include the Georgia Justice Project, Cobb Circuit Defender Randy Harris, Cobb Solicitor General Barry E. Morgan, and the Cobb Judicial Circuit. The record-restriction help desk will be known as Cobb Second Chance Desk. It will be housed in the Cobb Circuit Defender’s Office.  Cobb’s Second Chance Desk will be the first of its kind in Georgia. It will be staffed by GJP attorneys and the Cobb Circuit Defender’s Office. These attorneys will assist eligible individuals with clearing their record as Georgia law allows.

The ribbon cutting for the Cobb Second Chance Desk will be held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, June 16 in front of Cobb Circuit Defender’s Office Building located at 10 East Park Square in Marietta. 

The desk is scheduled to open to the public on Friday, June 25. Online appointments will be available starting Monday, June 21 at www.cobbsecondchancedesk.com or https://www.cobbcounty.org/second-chance-desk.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

Cobb Second Chance desk will have an informational booth at the Juneteenth Celebration in the Marietta Square on Saturday, June 19.

Second Chance Desks are an invaluable resource to meet this increasing need for record restriction services.

“Georgia Justice Project helps many Georgians each year with their criminal record, but we can’t do this work alone, and we do so with strong partnership support,” says Doug Ammar, Executive Director of Georgia Justice Project. “Since 4.3 million people have a Georgia criminal history, we need to find creative ways to collaborate with our local institutions to serve as many Georgians as possible. We appreciate District Attorney Broady and Solicitor Morgan for joining us in this effort.”

“This is justice in action,” DA Broady said. “Removing barriers that keep nonviolent people from being productive members of society benefits everyone.”

Cobb Solicitor General Barry E. Morgan added that the service provided by the Georgia Justice Project is needed.

“Prosecutors and court clerks cannot give legal advice, and many people are in limbo if they can’t afford to pay an attorney to navigate the additional, cumbersome process required for record restriction,” Morgan said. “This service will help fill a gaping hole.”

Georgia Justice Project has served Georgians who have been impacted by the criminal justice system for almost 35 years. Learn more at www.GJP.org.