Georgia sought to bring new charges including conspiracy and malice murder against Eric Heinze and Kristopher Hutchens, federal task force officers who were indicted in state court for felony murder and other charges stemming from the 2016 death of Jamarion Robinson during a raid. The officers removed the case to federal court under the federal officer removal statute, and Georgia later requested a limited remand to state court to obtain a superseding indictment from a Fulton County grand jury.
Circuit Judge Barbara Lagoa, writing for the panel, rejected Georgia's statutory interpretation that would have prevented it from seeking a superseding indictment without remand. "Contrary to the State's interpretation, § 1455(b)(5) requires only that the removed prosecution 'shall proceed no further' in state court, not that the state court loses the ability to conduct a grand jury proceeding for the issuance of a superseding indictment," Lagoa wrote, applying the "rule of the last antecedent" to interpret the federal removal statute.
The district court had denied Georgia's motion for limited remand in May 2023, concluding it lacked authority under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c) and expressing concerns about timing and potential future remand requests. Georgia had argued it wanted to drop false statement charges and add conspiracy, malice murder and felony murder charges, proposing to return to federal court within two days of obtaining the new indictment.
The ruling means Georgia cannot immediately appeal the denial of its limited remand motion and must wait until after trial concludes to challenge the district court's decision. Judge Glenn Branch wrote separately to concur with the jurisdictional finding but criticized the majority for addressing the merits of whether federal law prohibits Georgia from seeking a superseding indictment, arguing the court should not have reached that substantive question.