George R. Smith
How Judge Smith rules, drawn from 21 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Judge Smith no longer sits on this court. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled here.
About Judge Smith
George R. Smith served as a U.S. magistrate judge for the Southern District of Georgia from 1988 until his retirement in 2018. He sat in Savannah and previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the same district. His work included criminal preliminary proceedings and civil matters referred by district judges.
How Judge Smith decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In a long-running pro se prisoner civil-rights suit, the judge separated a defendant who was entitled to summary judgment from co-defendants against whom claims still needed to proceed, rather than resolving the case as a single package.
“REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS re granting as to Warden Franks 111 MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by Doug Franks, Bruce Duncan, Jason Colvin, Lisa Boyd.”
Procedural preferences
In United States v. Cobb, Smith granted the government’s motion to dismiss the information against Vincent Cobb nine days after the motion was filed.
“ORDER granting 4 Motion to Dismiss as to Vincent E. Cobb (1).”
In a pro se prisoner case with repeated discovery disputes and cross-motions for sanctions, the judge granted the defense's sanctions request while denying the plaintiff's competing one in the same report, rather than splitting the difference.
“recommending motion be granted re 68 MOTION for Sanctions filed by Doug Franks, Bruce Duncan, Jason Colvin, Lisa Boyd, and Denying 66 MOTION for Sanctions filed by Noel Romero Doye”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“Recommends that plaintiff's complaint should be dismissed as to Nurse Parker and Liberty County Sheriff's Department. The Clerk is directed to deliver a copy of this Report and Recommendation along with plaintiff's complaint to the U.S. Marshal for service upon Cpt. Duncan, Lt. Boyd, Deputy Colvin and Warden Franks.”
“ORDER denying 38 Motion for Leave to Depose Defendants; denying 39 Motion to Appoint Counsel; granting 29 Motion to Strike; denying 36 Motion for Court's Assistance.”
“REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS Denying 54 MOTION to Compel filed by Noel Romero Doye, recommending dismissal re 1 Complaint filed by Noel Romero Doye, recommending motion be granted re 68 MOTION for Sanctions filed by Doug Franks, Bruce Duncan, Jason Colvin, Lisa Boyd, and Denying 66 MOTION for Sanctions filed by Noel Romero Doye.”
“recommending motion be granted re 68 MOTION for Sanctions filed by Doug Franks, Bruce Duncan, Jason Colvin, Lisa Boyd”
“Denying 66 MOTION for Sanctions filed by Noel Romero Doye”
“ORDER denying 100 Motion to Dismiss; granting 102 Motion to Compel, Additionally, defendants' request to extend discovery until October 1, 2010 is granted.”
“REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS re granting as to Warden Franks 111 MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by Doug Franks, Bruce Duncan, Jason Colvin, Lisa Boyd. ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE why Sheriff Martin should not be dismissed from case.”
“ORDER denying 155 Motion in Limine; denying 156 Motion; granting 157 Motion for Writ of Habeas Corpus ad testificandum; denying 158 Motion for TRO.”
“ORDER granting 7 Motion to Modify Conditions of Release as to Michael T. Kennedy (1).”
“ORDER granting 9 Motion for Early Termination of Probation as to Michael T. Kennedy (1).”
“ORDER granting 11 Motion to Modify Conditions or Term of Supervision as to Matthew S. Gomel (1).”
“ORDER granting 13 Motion for Early Termination of Probation as to Matthew S. Gomel (1).”
“ORDER granting 4 Motion to Dismiss as to Vincent E. Cobb (1).”
“ORDER dismissing as moot 20 Motion for Protective Order; dismissing as moot 21 Motion for Protective Order; dismissing as moot 22 Motion to Compel; granting 25 Motion for Protective Order.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Smith's own docket over three decades was dominated by the misdemeanor and petty-offense criminal caseload a duty magistrate handles directly (bond and detention proceedings, guilty pleas, sentencing, and probation supervision), plus a smaller set of civil matters referred to him or consented to his jurisdiction, including pro se prisoner civil-rights suits and an insurance-coverage dispute.
Pending matters in the official report
Judge Smith was last listed in the Civil Justice Reform Act report as of March 31, 2022.
| Motions pending more than six months | 0 |
| Bench trials submitted more than six months | 0 |
| Bankruptcy appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Social Security appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Civil cases pending more than three years | 0 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 0 |
| Sep 2020 | 0 | 0 |
A snapshot on that date: matters listed may since have been decided or reassigned. A motion referred to a magistrate judge is counted for both judges. Motions in multidistrict litigation, section 2255 cases and Social Security appeals are not counted, and a very large three-year count is generally a multidistrict docket. Source: Appendix A of the report (PDF); about the report.
A historical record
Judge Smith no longer sits on this court. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled here. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.