ATLANTA — For three years, Jamariel Hobbs was confined to Georgia, unable to travel freely or move where he wanted to. At the beginning, a probation officer showed up at random times of night to test him for drugs.

The soft-spoken Hobbs, now 29, was among almost 176,000 Georgia residents on probation, the largest per capita population in the United States. Then he got lucky. Because of a new law, the court slashed what was supposed to be nine years of probation to three.

He was free.

“Probation feels like a leash,” he said. “I have my future back.”

People are often put on probation for low-level crimes such as drug possession or nonviolent theft. Georgia refuses to cap sentences the way many other jurisdictions do.

The practice of long sentences persisted for years despite research suggesting that the likelihood of people reoffending drops after three years on probation. In short, longer probation may do little to improve public safety.

“You’re talking about folks who have often been through a lot of trauma and feel like they are constantly walking around with a weight on their shoulders, a cloud over their head, where the smallest little thing could completely derail all the work they’ve put in,” said Wade Askew of the Georgia Justice Project.

People on probation also have to pay fees to help offset the cost of monitoring them, a particular burden for low-income people.

Previous attempts to free people from probation stalled

Under state law, a lot more people like Hobbs could have been free. In 2017, Georgia lawmakers passed a bipartisan bill designed to reduce the number of people on probation by letting some off early. According to a study by the Urban Institute, the measure could have translated into roughly one-third of the men and women on felony probation being offered sentences with the opportunity for time off their probation after three years at most, providing they stayed out of trouble.

Instead, just 213 sentences that included the possibility of an early end to probation actually finished ahead of schedule, according to Georgia’s Department of Community Supervision.

The Legislature’s directive fell short for multiple reasons. Judges often failed to include possible early termination dates for probation when they should have and they turned down the Department of Community Supervision’s requests to end probation early.

In 2021, the Legislature passed a second law outlining stricter guidelines to make the process more automatic.

To qualify for their freedom, people who are convicted of a felony for the first time have to pay off any restitution they owe and avoid being arrested for anything more serious than a routine traffic violation. They also have to have avoided their probation being revoked anytime within the previous two years. Judges or prosecutors can request a hearing if they oppose a case.

And people who have been on probation for at least three years can seek an early end if they meet the criteria, even if they were originally sentenced to a longer period.

Judges and lawyers say they’re seeing progress

Observers – including judges and lawyers – say the new law seems to be more effective than the original.

By last January, Georgia’s probationary population had fallen about 8% from 190,475 in 2021, according to the Department of Community Supervision, echoing nationwide trends.

The department said it could not readily provide the number of people released from probation under the criteria set out in 2021. What is known, is that at least 26,523 sentences have ended early since the bill passed, though many of those terminations could have been granted for other reasons.

“It has been a very successful, very big first step,” Askew said.

Some defense lawyers and advocates across the state say they still see eligible people on probation struggle to get probation officers to act. Others say they encounter judges and prosecutors less friendly to the changes.

“If you want to get something done, you’ve really got to hound them,” said Devin Rafus, an Atlanta defense lawyer.

Jamariel Hobbs had a friendly judge.

One man finds the exit

The Emory University graduate’s life seemed to be on track after he earned his degree in Japanese in 2019. He landed a sales job peddling auto parts across the South. Then, the pandemic took a toll on Hobbs’ mental health. After intervening in a family argument in 2020, he was charged with aggravated assault, according to Hobbs and the indictment against him.

He spent months couch surfing after his friends bailed him out of jail. He lost his job and his company car. In December 2021, he was sentenced to a year of incarceration and nine on probation, but was able to avoid jail time by enrolling in Georgia’s Accountability Court Program for people with mental health and substance abuse problems. It was there that he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and prescribed medication for it.

He now works for a biopharmaceutical company and recently began serving as a peer outreach coordinator for people recovering from substance abuse or mental health issues.

Hobbs said his probation officers didn’t make it clear to him that his sentence included the possibility of early release from probation. So it felt surreal when he got a letter from Judge Layla Zon in December and was off probation days later.

Now he hopes to move to North Carolina, where the cost of living is more affordable and he dreams of starting an organization to help people with health and wellness.

“I’m sitting here probation-free,” Hobbs said, pausing to smile. “It’s a blessing.”

Judge Zon agreed.

“It’s really one of the better things that I get to do as a judge, to reward that person for what they’ve accomplished and for doing what we’ve asked them to do,” she said.

__

Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Kramon on X: @charlottekramon.

ATLANTA – LGBTQ+ community members and their allies rallied at Liberty Plaza outside the Georgia State Capitol on Monday as state lawmakers began the 2025 legislative session. Demonstrators voiced their opposition to proposed legislation targeting transgender youth, which Republican lawmakers are prioritizing after similar efforts failed last year.

“We will show up, we will show out. We will not let this happen silently,” one protester declared, drawing cheers from the crowd.

What is Senate Bill 1?

At the center of the controversy is Senate Bill 1, introduced by Republican Sen. Greg Dolezal of Cumming, which would ban transgender girls and women from competing in female sports at any publicly funded institution, including K-12 schools and state universities.

“It’s a good bill for the protection of women,” Dolezal said. “Senate Bill 1 ensures that we have a fair playing field in women’s sports by ensuring that only women are allowed to participate in women’s sports.”

Is SB 1 veiled discrimination?

Critics, however, have called the measure discriminatory and harmful.

Janice Darling, a parent of a transgender boy and a vocal trans rights advocate, described the legislation as an attack on vulnerable youth.

“These people are targeting trans children because they identified it as a winning issue,” Darling said. “I think it’s discriminatory, and I think it’s going to hurt the children. It’s a terrible bill.”

Jeff Graham, executive director of LGBTQ advocacy group Georgia Equality, echoed those sentiments, calling the proposal unnecessary.

“This is institutional bullying of children,” Graham said. “This is a solution in search of a problem. The problem simply does not exist.”

When asked about such criticisms, Dolezal denied the bill unfairly targets trans students. “Our bill doesn’t target anyone. It simply tries to ensure we have a fair and safe playing field for women,” he said.

Georgia’s previous anti-transgender bills

The legislation comes after two similar anti-transgender bills cleared the Georgia Senate last year but failed to pass the House. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones has pledged to prioritize transgender bans in women’s sports during the current session.

“This fight is hard, it will continue to be hard, and we will have to continue to do this together,” said a rally speaker, urging supporters to remain vigilant.

For many advocates, the renewed push for legislation feels personal. Darling stressed the broader impact on marginalized youth.

“You’re really hurting a set of vulnerable people,” she said.

As the debate heats up, both sides are preparing for a contentious fight over the rights of transgender youth under the Gold Dome.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s General Assembly is being sworn in for a new two-year term on Monday, with 180 state representatives and 56 state senators taking office after winning election in November.

Republicans will continue to control both chambers, returning to the Senate with the same 33-23 majority they had in the previous term. Republicans’ majority in the state House narrowed by two seats to a 100-80 edge after court-ordered redistricting.

There are only 18 new House members and four new senators taking their oaths.

Top issues will include Gov. Brian Kemp’s push to limit lawsuit verdicts and proposed responses to September’s deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder. Revenue growth is slowing, but Georgia has an $11 billion surplus lawmakers can spend if Kemp, a Republican, lets them.

Here’s a look at some other key issues:

Doing more to ease Hurricane Helene damage

Georgia leaders are generally applauding a relief package that Congress passed in December. But they say more needs to be done after Hurricane Helene cut a swath from Valdosta to Augusta in September, causing billions in damage.

After Hurricane Michael in 2018, Georgia allocated $470 million on top of federal spending. That included $200 million in income tax credits for timber and pecan farmers to replant trees and $69 million to help state and local agencies cover emergency response costs, $55 million to assist farmers suffering crop losses and $20 million for timberland cleanup.

State officials have already approved a plan for $100 million in loans to affected farmers and timber owners.

House Speaker Jon Burns in particular wants more money to clean up downed timber, saying fallen trees will become a wildfire risk if not removed.

Republicans push to ban transgender women in school sports

Georgia Republicans in both chambers, including Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and Burns, have promised to prioritize banning transgender women and girls from competing in women’s school sports.

The General Assembly in 2022 left it up to the Georgia High School Association to make decisions about transgender women and girls in sports. The association, mostly made up of public high schools, then banned transgender women and girls from participating in its sports events.

Top Republicans now say that’s enough, after Donald Trump and others have made opposition a political issue.

“I have four granddaughters, and they’re engaged in athletics, and they work hard spending hours a week preparing themselves to participate,” Burns said at a recent press conference. “We want them to have the opportunity to excel and to win and to be first.”

Jones has said Senate Republicans will seek a ban at the college level as well as in high school athletics, but it is unclear if the House will go that far.

Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, an organization that advocates for LGBTQ+ rights, noted there are no known instances of transgender athletes in Georgia participating in school sports.“They are really putting a lot of time and effort into solving a problem that does not exist,” Graham said.

Spending could improve conditions in Georgia’s prisons

Lawmakers in both chambers have said they will pursue legislation to address violence and deaths in Georgia’s prisons.

The U.S. Department of Justice said in November that conditions in state prisons are “inhumane” and prison officials are violating prisoners’ Eighth Amendment protections against cruel punishment.

In a meeting earlier this month with lawmakers, Corrections Commissioner Tyrone Oliver said Kemp is proposing to spend more than $600 million to renovate prisons and hire more staff, among other investments. Oliver also said the state would build another new prison.

Lawmakers want to cut off access to cell phones and drones, which officials say bring contraband inside. Others have suggested increases in mental health staff.

Fighting over election rules may persist

Georgia’s 16 presidential electors met in December and cast their votes for Trump with nary a peep of opposition, much less the avalanche of activity that followed Joe Biden’s 2022 win in Georgia.

But that doesn’t mean fighting over election laws is over. The state Republican Party wants to cut off automatic voter registration when Georgians get a driver’s license and end no-excuse absentee voting.

Lawmakers could also consider some of the State Election Board rules that a court blocked. Those include include counting the total number of ballots by hand on election night and making it easier for county election board members to refuse to certify an election.

Other possibilities include requiring voters to fill out ballots by hand and having election officials count those ballots by hand, reflecting distrust of Georgia’s electronic voting system. Some lawmakers may want to make it easier to challenge a voter’s eligibility.

Can sports betting come up a winner?

Despite support from Jones, the Metro Atlanta Chamber and Atlanta’s pro sports teams, legalizing sports betting in Georgia has gone nowhere in recent years. Proponents will certainly try again to legalize it.

There are multiple issues that need to be resolved before legislation can move forward. Some argue that legalization requires an amendment to the Georgia Constitution, which would require a two-thirds vote in each chamber, followed by approval from a majority of those voting in a statewide referendum. Others say only a simple majority vote would be required if sports betting is regulated by the Georgia Lottery.

There are also disagreements about how the proceeds should be spent, and how heavily the state should tax the activity. ___

Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Kramon on X: @charlottekramon.