About Anthony
Hello, and thank you for stopping by my website to learn more about me and my campaign. My Name is Burt Anthony Burton (although everyone calls me Anthony) and I am running against DA Shalena Cook Jones for Chatham County District Attorney. I am the best person for this job because I have dedicated my life and my career to helping victims and pursuing justice; in stark contrast to the current DA. After learning more about me, my experience, and my vision for the office, I hope you will also agree I am the best person for the job and will cast your vote for me, when the time comes.
Background:
I have had the privilege of living in many communities in
the great State of Georgia. I was born in Atlanta and my family and I lived in
Woodstock, a small town north of Atlanta.
My parents went through a divorce when I was eight. I was
enthralled with the legal process. The early exposure to a court room
fascinated me and I knew I wanted to be a lawyer.
During my childhood I moved to several towns throughout
Georgia. I graduated from Etowah High School in Woodstock and went on to
Kennesaw State University in Cobb County. At KSU I received a Bachelor’s degree
in Political Science, with a minor in Sociology. I met some of my best friends
while being a member of the Delta Tau Delta Fraternity.
After graduating from KSU, I was accepted into John
Marshall Law School in Atlanta. While still in law school I interned for the
City of Atlanta Solicitor General’s office, where I tried my very first case (a
traffic ticket for running a stop sign). The following summer I interned for
the Georgia Court of Appeals
After graduating law school and passing the BAR exam, I
began my first job in Douglas County Georgia working in the District Attorney’s
Office where I prosecuted felony matters. In 2015, I had the amazing
opportunity to move to beautiful Savannah and work at the Chatham County
District Attorney’s office under the leadership of DA Meg Heap.
Resume:
I know how to run the Chatham County DA office, because I worked in that office, in every part of that office, for 7 years. I know continue to work in every courtroom in Chatham County as a defense attorney. Throughout my 10 years of practice, I have handle Recorder’s Court cases, State Court Cases, Superior Court Cases, and Juvenile Court cases. I have personally handled over 10,000 cases ranging from minor traffic violations to serious violent felonies. In my 10 years, there is nothing I haven’t seen. I want to take this experience and use it to make our community safer and to make our courts run smoother, faster and, most importantly, fairer.
One of my major focuses while I worked at the Chatham county DA office was efficiency. When I started in State Court I noticed every arraignment included the ADA needing to give the police report to the Defense attorney at that time, causing the cases to be continued so that they could review the report. This made the first arraignment a waste of the Court’s and the Defendant’s time.
I offered a solution and began sending the reports by email prior to the first hearing. Continuances were no longer needed and my cases met one less day in court. Many of my co-workers saw the immediate value in this more efficient process and followed suit. Eventually we worked with the County to make this a fully online process.
I also have helped digitize the discovery process in
Superior Court. This saves taxpayers thousands of dollars and has made the
process faster.
I recognized inefficiencies, created a plan, and enacted
that plan for the good of everyone involved.
WHY AM I RUNNING:
In my 10 years of practice, I have never seen things get so bad so fast, nor have I seen one person cause so much chaos. DA Shalena Cook Jones has been an absolute disaster since taking office. Crime, particularly violent crime, has skyrocketed. Victims are not getting any help, direction, or guidance. Murderers are getting probated offers and being released back on the streets (yes, you read that right. Murderers are being set free!). ADAs, some with decades of experience, are fleeing faster than new attorneys, with no experience prosecuting, can be hired to replace them. The backlog of cases has exploded. The Chatham Das office is in chaos.
Chatham County cannot survive another 4 years of DA Shalena Cook Jones. Someone has to put a stop to the chaos, the disorder, the injustice. “if not me, then who? If not now, when?”
I have a plan to restore the Chatham DA office to being one of the top prosecuting offices in the State. Please continue looking through my website to learn more about this plan. And if you don’t see an answer to the question(s) about me on your mind here, feel free to give me a call. My number is 912-692-5777.
My campaign is a job interview with you, the voter. And I’m here to answer any question my future employers may have for me.