Conasauga Circuit District Attorney Bert Poston holds a plaque after being named District Attorney of the Year for 2018 by the District Attorneys Association of Georgia. Congratulating the winner is Tracy Graham Lawson, Clayton County DA.
Bert Poston of the Conasauga Judicial Circuit has been named District Attorney of the Year for 2018 during the 2018 Summer Conference sponsored July 22-25, on Jekyll Island by the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia (PAC).
Each year during the conference, held at the Jekyll Island Convention Center, the District Attorneys Association of Georgia presents this award to recognize outstanding leadership and dedication in the field of prosecution.
“Bert Poston’s ability to accomplish so many things including maintaining and prosecuting major cases in our offices, overseeing the daily operations of our office and performing other duties as district attorney that have helped many in the field of prosecution, as well as being a great leader for our office, community, state, and his family makes him more than qualified to receive this year’s District Attorney of the Year award,” said April Parker, domestic violence investigator in the DA’s Office, who nominated him for the honor.
“Thank you, Bert, for your years of service and dedication to our state.”
PAC Executive Director Peter J. Skandalakis said the council is “extremely proud” of the prosecutors, investigators and victim advocates honored during the Summer Conference and their dedication to serve the justice system in Georgia.
“It is no surprise these individuals are the example we follow every day,” he said.
Mr. Poston began his career as an intern with a District Attorney’s Office in 1990 while attending the University of Georgia Law School. He has worked as an attorney in the DA’s Office since 1992 and has been the district attorney in the Conasauga Judicial Circuit since February 2012.
Mr. Poston has written computer programs for his circuit which have made it run more efficiently. He helped establish Georgia’s first felony Domestic Violence Court, which is now a model for the state, and has served as chairman of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council, where he has served in many capacities representing prosecutors and victims across the state.
“Throughout his years of service, our office has received multiple calls and letters from victims and others in our community recognizing his efforts and compassion in serving our community as a prosecutor,” Ms. Parker said.
As a domestic violence investigator, Ms. Parker and prosecutor Susan Beck went to Mr. Poston concerned about a sentencing issue in Family Violence Battery cases. “At that time a second Family Violence Battery conviction was a felony, but we had a defendant that had a prior Domestic Violence Murder conviction and a new Family Violence Battery case and the Family Violence Battery was only a misdemeanor,” Ms. Parker said. “Bert immediately started working to get the statute changed. Through his efforts, and the help of others, the sentencing for Family Violence Battery was changed to include any forcible felony, in July 2016.”
In 2017 when a group of people started advocating to change the Victim Rights Statute in Georgia, Mr. Poston began working with legislators to write the bill that passed this year known as Marci’s Law. Through his diligence working with others on Marci’s Law, the statute avoided changes that could have had an adverse effect on prosecutors’ ability to make prosecutorial decisions in victim cases.
Mr. Poston has served as chairman of the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council, where he has served in many capacities representing prosecutors and victims across the state. He is a member of multiple boards helping local victims and also serves in many other capacities in the community.