Atlantic Judicial Circuit
Public Defender
Steven J. Messinger
Hinesville Office Darien Office
Post Office Box 948 Post Office Box 1591
Hinesville, Georgia 31310 Darien, Georgia 31305
100 N Main Street, Courthouse, 2nd Floor 103 Jefferson Street
912-369-6338 912-437-3880
FAX 912-369-8327 FAX 912-437-2721
Pembroke Office Reidsville Office
Post Office Box 1270 Post Office Box 37
Pembroke, Georgia 31321 Reidsville, Georgia 30453
151 S College Street 114 Brazell Street, Courthouse Square
Courthouse, 2nd Floor, Room 210 912-557-4426
912-653-4605 FAX 912-557-4428
FAX 912-653-4606
Serving the following counties: Bryan, Evans, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, and Tattnall.
It is very important to make sure your attorney, your bondsman, and the Clerk of Court has your current address on file. The Clerk’s office mails notices of court dates. If you fail to appear because you did not give them your updated address, a Bench Warrant may be issued for your arrest. It is your responsibility to notify the Clerk’s Office of any change in address: filing a change of address with the Post Office is temporary and not sufficient.
Our office can not give legal advice to anyone who is not a current client in a pending case, and our representation is limited to that case. You must apply for a Public Defender for each individual case you may have.
Our office handles criminal cases in Superior, State, and Juvenile Courts in which the state has brought an action against a defendant, and civil cases in Juvenile Court in which the Department of Family and Children Services (DFCS) has brought an action against a parent. Our office does not handle divorce or civil custody cases between parents. You may contact the closest Legal Aid Office in Savannah by calling 912-651-2180.
You may not apply for a Public Defender for someone who is incarcerated; the individual must apply themselves. Our staff visits with defendants in jail within the Atlantic Judicial Circuit on a regular basis to take Applications for a Public Defender.
Applications may not be made over the phone. We must have the original signatures of defendants applying for a Public Defender. You may apply in person at one of our offices: please call first to ensure your case is a type of case that our office handles and to ensure that someone is in the office at that time. Our office may close during business hours for court coverage.
Effective July 1, 2008, to apply for a Public Defender for a State Court Case in Liberty, Long, McIntosh, or Evans Counties, please contact Sam Oliver’s office at 912-437-4090.
(link to GPDSC – Georgia Public Defender Standards Council www.gpdsc.com )
Once our office accepts an Application for a Public Defender, if an attorney from our office declares a conflict of interest in handling your case, your case will be forwarded to the Conflict Defender’s Office. If you have been assigned an attorney from that office, you may reach them through the contact information below:
Atlantic/Ogeechee Conflict Defender Office
Stephen R. Yekel
Southeast Regional Chief Conflict Defender
PO Box 1089
105 Jefferson St
Springfield, GA 31329
Tel 912-754-6530
Fax 912-754-3104
If the Conflict Defender’s Office also declares a conflict of interest in your case, your case will be assigned to an outside attorney, on a case by case basis.
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