Judge Accused Of Bias Asks Not To Be Reappointed

SANDY SPRINGS, GA — A Sandy Springs Municipal Court judge who came under fire for making disparaging remarks against an Iranian-American student has asked not to be reappointed to the bench. Sharon Dickson last week asked Mayor Rusty Paul not to be considered for another four-year term on the court.

"Thank you for the opportunity to serve as a judge for the city of Sandy Springs for the past four years," Dickson said in her letter. "At this juncture, I ask that you not consider me for an appointment for the next four-year term. I request that I be taken off the calendar for the remainder of the year. Again, thanks for the opportunity to serve."

Paul is scheduled to reappoint four judges — Candiss Howard, Donald Schaefer, Joseph Buford and Marcia Ernst — to the Municipal Court at the Sandy Springs City Council's Aug. 7 meeting, which will be held at 7 p.m. in the Studio Theatre at City Springs.

Controversial comments uttered by Dickson to defendant Fazial Azizan, an Iranian-American pursuing a degree in nursing, were made during a July 13, 2017, trial on a disorderly conduct charge. The judge called the college student and Uber driver "despicable," and chided him for speaking in court with the comment, "I know where you come from, women don't mean anything," which critics said showed the judge's bigotry.

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Dickson sentenced Azizan to serve six months in jail on the disorderly conduct charge stemming from a March 2017 accident. Azizan appealed his sentenced, and the city of Sandy Springs last week agreed to reduce his sentence imposed by the judge.

That consent order shared by the city indicates Azizan will serve a total of 78 days. However, he will receive credit for the 18 days he served in jail and will carry out the rest of that sentence — two months — on probation. The Georgia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which filed an amicus brief in support of Azizan's appeal, said it welcomes Dickson's decision to "step down" from the Municipal Court.

"Anyone who enters a courtroom in Georgia must be able to trust that he or she will be treated fairly and equally, regardless of national origin," said CAIR-Georgia Executive Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell. "That could no longer happen in Judge Dickson's courtroom."

Mitchell also called on the city to sever its ties with Riley McLendon LLC, the law firm Sandy Springs uses to prosecute violations that come to the Municipal Court. CAIR-Georgia was critical of Municipal Court prosecutor Bill Riley, who did not intervene when Dickson criticized the defendant.

Dickson served on the Municipal Court since her appointment in June 2014.

Image via city of Sandy Springs