Lawyers and representatives from several civil rights organizations gathered Friday morning at the Atlanta Municipal Courthouse to protest a purported campaign by some of the court's judges to push Mayor Kasim Reed to fire the city's interim public defender, Rosalie Joy.

Joy is a 28-year veteran of the office, leading it since 2010 as interim public defender.

According to those raising the alarm, several of the judges are believed to have signed a letter asking Reed to cashier Joy after her office filed a habeas petition seeking the release of 10 defendants who were denied access to bond hearings over their counsel's objections.

Attorney Sam Starks told the Daily Report he's has been trying to get a copy of the letter through Open Records Act requests since last month. He is among 12 lawyers who penned a Sept. 27 letter to Reed seeking an audience with the mayor. He said there's been no response thus far.

Among the groups represented at the rally were the ACLU of Georgia, Southern Center for Human Rights, Gideon's Promise, Georgia Alliance for Justice, Atlanta NAACP, Southern Christian Leadership Conference and others.

The coalition released a letter Wednesday hailing Joy's accomplishments and warning that “interference from some City of Atlanta judges is gravely inconsistent with the integrity that should govern the judicial office.”

The National Legal Aid & Defender Association and the American Council of Chief Defenders weighed in, sending Reed a letter observing that it is “fundamental to our adversarial system of justice that defense counsel provide zealous, conflict-free representation.”

Jonathan Rapping, president and founder of Gideon's Promise, said Joy's offense was zealously defending clients' rights, “the same things that we, as private attorneys, are lauded for.”

Atlanta NAACP Vice President Gerald Griggs said the Atlanta City Council should refuse to confirm any replacement for Joy and called for an investigation into “any judge who had improper contact with the mayor” seeking her ouster.

Joy declined to comment, as did Reed's office. Municipal Court Chief Judge Calvin Graves did not respond to requests for comment.

Lawyers and representatives from several civil rights organizations gathered Friday morning at the Atlanta Municipal Courthouse to protest a purported campaign by some of the court's judges to push Mayor Kasim Reed to fire the city's interim public defender, Rosalie Joy.

Joy is a 28-year veteran of the office, leading it since 2010 as interim public defender.

According to those raising the alarm, several of the judges are believed to have signed a letter asking Reed to cashier Joy after her office filed a habeas petition seeking the release of 10 defendants who were denied access to bond hearings over their counsel's objections.

Attorney Sam Starks told the Daily Report he's has been trying to get a copy of the letter through Open Records Act requests since last month. He is among 12 lawyers who penned a Sept. 27 letter to Reed seeking an audience with the mayor. He said there's been no response thus far.

Among the groups represented at the rally were the ACLU of Georgia, Southern Center for Human Rights, Gideon's Promise, Georgia Alliance for Justice, Atlanta NAACP, Southern Christian Leadership Conference and others.

The coalition released a letter Wednesday hailing Joy's accomplishments and warning that “interference from some City of Atlanta judges is gravely inconsistent with the integrity that should govern the judicial office.”

The National Legal Aid & Defender Association and the American Council of Chief Defenders weighed in, sending Reed a letter observing that it is “fundamental to our adversarial system of justice that defense counsel provide zealous, conflict-free representation.”

Jonathan Rapping, president and founder of Gideon's Promise, said Joy's offense was zealously defending clients' rights, “the same things that we, as private attorneys, are lauded for.”

Atlanta NAACP Vice President Gerald Griggs said the Atlanta City Council should refuse to confirm any replacement for Joy and called for an investigation into “any judge who had improper contact with the mayor” seeking her ouster.

Joy declined to comment, as did Reed's office. Municipal Court Chief Judge Calvin Graves did not respond to requests for comment.