The last Hall Monitor Update discussed how several of the 34 defendants in the APS cheating trials were attempting to get their statements to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation thrown out.

They were claiming they were compelled to answer the GBI investigators’ questions by threats of being fired if they failed to cooperate.

There are only two hearings remaining with regards to the motion to get the statements thrown out. So far the judge has denied all of them.

None of the defendants have yet to go with public defenders over their current attorneys.The trial is expected to last six months, and in longer trials, defendants often choose public defenders because private attorney fees become exorbitant.

The judge has yet to make an official decision on the motion of severance that was put forward by the defense, but has unofficially said that he is not planning to sever the cases. He will make his final decision after the Jan. 6 final plea deadline.

Thus far, only one defendant has pled guilty, admitting to cheating. The judge is waiting to make his final decision until after the plea date to allow as many of the defendants as possible to plead guilty. More guilty pleas would minimize the length of the trial.

There has been no update on possible locations of the trial (the Georgia World Congress Center and the Atlanta Civic Center are both being considered). No new motions have been introduced and none of the evidence has been thrown out.