2026 Summer Public Defense Conference

Catherine H. Vachon is a Senior Fact Investigator with the Georgia Capital Defender,
Southeast Georgia Regional Office, where she has served since 2008. She has investigated
numerous complex homicide and death penalty cases, contributing to more than ten
capital cases that proceeded to verdict, while also helping resolve many others through
negotiated plea agreements.
Prior to joining the Georgia Capital Defender, Catherine served as a Criminal Investigator
with the Effingham County Solicitor General's Office and the Dougherty Judicial Circuit
District Attorney's Office. She also served with the Albany Police Department, where she
was assigned to the Gang Task Force and later became a Homicide Investigator.
Throughout her career, she has investigated hundreds of serious felony cases and has
extensive experience working alongside law enforcement, prosecutors, defense attorneys,
forensic experts, and mitigation specialists.
Catherine earned a master’s degree in criminal justice with a concentration in Public Safety
Administration. Drawing on decades of investigative experience from both the prosecution
and defense perspectives, Catherine teaches practical methods for organizing discovery,
analyzing evidence, and using investigative grids to improve case preparation. Her
approach emphasizes creating efficient, systematic workflows that can expose
weaknesses in an investigation, strengthen negotiations, assist in developing reasonable
doubt, and ultimately lead to better outcomes for clients