Indicted Georgia state senator to be suspended

ATLANTA, Nov. 13 (UPI) -- A Georgia state senator charged with fiddling his expense accounts and theft will be suspended while he awaits trial, Gov. Nathan Deal said Wednesday.

Deal agreed to follow a state panel's recommendation on Sen. Don Balfour, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. At a short hearing Wednesday morning, Balfour's lawyers argued he can still do his job while under indictment while the state Attorney General's Office requested suspension.

Balfour, the longest-serving Republican in the Georgia Senate, represents a district just northeast of Atlanta.