Clayton County State Court calendar: judge grants restitution and interlock waiver, denies suppression in DUI case; multiple pleas and fines imposed

Judge Tammy Long Hayward presided over the Clayton County State Court criminal motions calendar on March 17, 2025, in Courtroom 304. Court actions included granting a restitution award and 12 months pay-only probation in a two-victim crash case, granting an interlock-waiver based on hardship, signing sealing orders, denying a motion to suppress in a DUI arrest, and accepting multiple negotiated pleas and traffic dispositions.

The calendar included contested hearings and a number of negotiated pleas. In a restitution hearing for defendant Nikia Marie Coleman (cases ending 989 and 990), the court ordered restitution of $1,000 to each victim, Dirk Green and Jeremiah Joiner, and placed Coleman on 12 months pay-only probation with probation supervision fees suspended so payments go to restitution; the court set a minimum monthly payment of $200 and instructed payments be handled through probation. Judge Hayward told Coleman to report to probation and to provide mailing details so recipients can receive restitution payments. The state introduced receipts and the victims testified to out-of-pocket deductibles; the court admitted the exhibits without objection and entered the restitution order.

Also on the calendar, the court granted an interlock-waiver for Alana Ashayla Dawson (2017 case 2017CR01644) after hearing testimony and financial details establishing hardship. The judge directed staff to email the signed form and advised how to obtain a certified copy from the State Court Clerk’s Office.

Sealing motions were granted in at least two cases where the state indicated no objection and the court signed the orders (notably for a 2019 matter brought by Sherry Campbell and for Janice Deanna Gates, both of which the court directed the clerk to process and offered email copies or certified copies from the clerk’s office).

In a contested suppression hearing for the DUI case State v. Marcus Cleve Jackson (2023CR00217), the court denied the defendant’s motion to suppress. Officers who investigated an August 27, 2022 crash on Tara Boulevard testified about signs they said indicated impairment — odour of alcohol, glossy eyes, slurred speech, balance issues and an admission that the defendant had consumed a 12-ounce beer — and introduced body-worn camera footage, vehicle photographs, and open-container evidence. The state argued the totality of circumstances established probable cause for arrest. The court found the officers’ testimony sufficient to deny suppression and allowed the case to proceed to trial.

The court also took and accepted multiple negotiated pleas and non‑jury dispositions on the calendar: for example, a plea to reckless driving in State v. Ariel (Olson) Olsensanya; a plea to reckless driving in State v. Shaquiva Williams; and many traffic pleas and reduced-speed dispositions (several defendants were fined $100 or ordered reduced speeds, with 30–60 days to pay depending on whether the defendant was in court). Several cases were marked no‑process by the state or otherwise resolved by plea. Where fines were imposed, the court repeatedly instructed defendants to supply an email address to the clerk so sentencing paperwork and payment instructions could be transmitted and warned that missed payment deadlines could trigger a warrant for failure to complete a suspended sentence.

The judge repeatedly emphasized practical steps for defendants (how to pay fines, how to obtain certified orders from the clerk, and how to sign up for probation) and reminded parties of limits on the court’s authority in family-law or custody matters when bond conditions were discussed. Several docket items were continued or rescheduled where witnesses or counsel were not available.

The session ran multiple hours and combined evidentiary hearings, plea negotiations, and routine processing of sealing orders and clerk notices. The court directed probation staff to meet with defendants where appropriate and closed the calendar after taking the remaining pleas and dispositions.

Votes at a glance - Motion to seal (Sherry Campbell, 2019 matter): granted; order to be signed and emailed by court staff (state: no objection). - Restitution (State v. Nikia Marie Coleman, 2023TK17989 & 90): restitution ordered $1,000 to Dirk Green and $1,000 to Jeremiah Joiner; 12 months pay-only probation; probation fees suspended; payments through probation; outcome: restitution granted. - Interlock-waiver (Alana Ashayla Dawson, 2017CR01644): waiver granted on hardship; court to email signed form; outcome: approved. - Motion to suppress (State v. Marcus Cleve Jackson, 2023CR00217): motion denied; case to proceed to trial on DUI, open container and related charges. - Plea (Ariel Olsensanya, 2022CR01537 amended to reckless driving): plea accepted; sentence: probation (11 months, 29 days), 24 hours confinement (credit for time served), $500 fine, community service and conditions as announced by court. - Plea (Shaquiva Williams, 2022CR03490): guilty to amended reckless driving; sentence: 12 months probation, $300 fine, 40 hours community service, substance evaluation, risk-reduction course; court will consider early termination after conditions or 6 months. - Multiple traffic dispositions: assorted negotiated reduced-speed dispositions and $100 fines (examples: Trenton Smith, Sherman Robert Rosser, others); defendants given time to pay (typically 60 days when asked) and given email instructions for paperwork.

What it means: The calendar combined routine case-processing (sealing orders, clerk certifications) with contested evidentiary hearings. The denial of suppression in the Jackson DUI matter clears the way for trial on felony/misdemeanor charges and preserves the state’s evidence for court; restitution and probation terms in the Coleman matter were structured so victims receive priority payment. The court repeatedly reminded defendants about payment deadlines, how to obtain certified orders, and limits on the court’s role in family-law disputes when bond/bond-modification requests intersected with custody questions.

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