Georgia

Former judge Amanda Williams has been indicted for allegedly lying to a grand jury, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Bill Rankin reports. Williams came to national attention after This American Life reported that "she behaved in a tyrannical manner and locked up some drug court defendants indefinitely," Rankin writes.

After a Georgia state-court judge ruled that the state's law protecting speech related to government proceedings doesn't protect a TV station from a defamation lawsuit, many in the media bar are concerned that his ruling, if upheld, could threaten the freedom of press, The Daily Report's Kathleen Baydala Joyner reports. The TV station reported that the plaintiff faked having a Purple Heart to get a free military award license plate. A petition for certiorari is pending with the Georgia Supreme Court on whether the anti-SLAPP statute applies to the case.

Connecticut and Georgia legislators are mulling drone legislation, The Plainville Citizen's Eric Vo and 13WMAZ 's Lorra Lynch Jones reports.

In Connecticut, "in December, the Program Review and Investigations Committee recommended limiting drone use for law enforcement in the absence of reasonable suspicion of criminal activity or a search warrant. The panel also recommended prohibiting remote operation of weapons including government and non-government drones and that all state and local government drones be registered with the Office of Policy and Management," Vo reports.

In Georgia, House Bill 5 has been introduced, spelling "out when and where researchers, law enforcement and private citizens can use drones, when they can capture images, and the bill would make breaking the law a misdemeanor, punishable by fines," Lynch Jones reports.

The Daily Report's Greg Land reports on an issue of first impression in Georgia: does the public have a First Amendment right to attend a plastic surgeon's disciplinary hearing? Dr. Nedra Dodds had her license to practice medicine suspended after two of her patients died following liposuction treatments. The doctor doesn't want a local TV station to cover the hearing before an administrative law judge. The doctor's attorney argues that the privacy of information about patients bars public disclosure of Georgia Composite Medical Board disciplinary hearing, while the station's attorney argues patient privacy is not a compelling state interest that outweighs the public interest in a judicial proceeding.