| A | B |
|---|
| Local Governments | provide services and protections to people who live in particular counties or cities. |
| County Governments | Build and maintain roads, control licenses for cars and trucks, run Georgia’s welfare programs, and have court systems. |
| Municipal Governments | GA has approximately 535 cities and towns, also called municipalities. Municipal governments elect officials and provide services for cities and towns. |
| Council-Manager | The city has a City Manager (head of the Executive Branch). The City Manager decides who is in charge of city services and runs the city’s budget. In this form, the mayor is a member of the legislative branch like the rest of the city council. |
| Strong Mayor-Council | Has a powerful mayor. Mayor is elected by voters in the city and can veto legislation passed by the city council. The mayor can also choose people to run the city’s services and runs the city’s budget. |
| Weak Mayor-Council | Has a weak mayor. Mayor is elected by the voters, but has no special executive powers (no power to veto, choose committee members, or overriding say in the budget). |
| Special-Purpose Districts | Created by city and county governments to accomplish a specific task. |
| Development Authorities | Special-Purpose District. Create jobs and increase business in specific counties. |
| Downtown Development Authorities | Special-Purpose District. Maintain and rebuild the downtowns of cities. |
| Recreation and Parks Authorities | Special-Purpose District. Maintain and develop land for parks and recreation areas in counties. |
| Housing Authorities | Special-Purpose District. Manage housing options in counties. |
| Juvenile Justice | Laws specific for citizens under the age of 18. |
| Unruly Behavior | Is considered a status offense when committed by children (would not be a crime if committed by an adult). Examples of unruly behavior: Child refusing to go to school. Child frequently disobeys parents or caregivers. Child runs away from home. |
| Delinquent Behavior | When a child commits a crime it is considered delinquent behavior. A child who is less than 13 years old cannot be tried for a crime in GA. A child between 13 and 17 years old (a juvenile) will be punished according to the law. This may include spending up to five years in a juvenile detention facility. |
| Rights of Juvenile Offenders | Right to a lawyer. Right to cross-examine witnesses. Right to provide evidence to support one’s own case. Right to provide witnesses to support one’s own case. Right to remain silent. Right to an appeal. Right to a transcript of a trial (written copy of the trial). |
| Juvenile Justice Process | Children thought to be delinquent are arrested and their parents are notified. Children may then be released to the parents or detained. The next step is a probable cause hearing. The next step is a adjudicatory hearing. The next step is a dispositional hearing. |
| Seven Delinquent Behaviors | Behaviors that are automatically outside the jurisdiction of juvenile court. Children between the ages of 13 and 17 who are thought to have committed any of these crimes will be tried as adults. |
| The Seven Delinquent Behaviors | Aggravated Child Molestation, Aggravated Sexual Battery, Aggravated Sodomy, Murder, Rape, Voluntary Manslaughter, Armed Robbery with Firearm |
