BRUNSWICK, Ga. – Glynn and Camden are among five counties in Georgia accusing District Attorney Keith Higgins of badly managing the finances of his office and not doing his job properly.
They want him investigated and potentially fired “to prevent further harm.”
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According to a joint formal complaint made by the five counties (Glynn, Camden, Wayne, Appling, and Jeff Davis), Higgins’ “pattern of misconduct” represents an “ongoing and escalating threat to the justice system and to the taxpayers.”
They claim Higgins, who oversees prosecutions in their area, misused public funds, hasn’t been transparent about spending, failed to prosecute cases on time, and even stopped providing some legal services as payback when the counties asked questions about his finances.
READ: Joint complaint from 5 counties against DA Keith Higgins
They also say he created a conflict of interest by advising a grand jury on issues that involved himself.
Higgins, however, denies all the accusations and says the counties are actually the ones at fault. He has sued Glynn County, claiming it illegally held back money his office needed.
Money management
Glynn County, on the other hand, says Higgins is the one responsible for the financial mess. They said he owes them nearly $1 million because he stopped paying them back for payroll costs.
They say they kept funding his office responsibly and tried to get him to follow the rules, but he misused funds and refused to cooperate.
They say they had to stop giving Higgins cash directly because he wasn’t paying them back for payroll. Instead, they started paying staff directly to make sure the money was used properly.
According to the complaint, Higgins hasn’t explained where the money went, and there’s little transparency about how funds were used.
Glynn County claims its money was spent on things it wasn’t supposed to be used for, including paying for staff and expenses in other counties.
The county is asking the court to force Higgins to pay back the money, follow proper financial procedures and account for how the money was spent.
They also want the court to throw out Higgins’ lawsuit against them, saying it’s just an attempt to shift blame.
Growing backlog
According to the counties’ complaint, Higgins stopped handling juvenile court cases as payback when they asked for more financial accountability, and there’s a growing backlog of criminal cases that haven’t been prosecuted.
They accuse Higgins of cutting victim support services, which is making things harder for crime victims and law enforcement.
Oversight issues
The complaint argues that Higgins hired more people than the budget allowed and didn’t cooperate with audits or attempts to figure out where the money went.
The counties say Higgins made misleading public statements about the counties’ actions.
Conflict of interest?
According to the complaint, while under investigation for financial issues, Higgins acted as the legal adviser to a grand jury looking into those same issues — essentially advising on a case where he was personally involved.
They say he didn’t step aside until after influencing the process.
The dispute between Higgins and the counties is now in court, with both sides blaming each other for the financial and operational mess.
