December 31, 2016

Waffle House waitress pulled gun on robbers who threatened to shoot everyone

A Waffle House waitress took matters into her own hands after three robbers entered the restaurant and demanded cash.

Heather Burkinshaw-Stanley followed three robbers out of the restaurant and fired a shot after they stole $200 from the Waffle House worked at in Newnan on U.S. 29, according to a police report.

The three men walked into the diner about 2:30 a.m. Thursday and ordered a meal, according to a police report.

Twenty minutes later, one of the men walked over to the counter and presented a note threatening to shoot every one inside if he didn’t get “all of the money,” according to the report. The waitress at the counter told police she didn’t see a gun and one was never shown.

Read more: http://www.ajc.com/news/local/waffle-house-waitress-pulled-gun-robbers-who-threatened-shoot-everyone/N36D8suXaeg82x3mdW9a0M/

December 31, 2016

Colobus monkey arrives at Chehaw via c-section

The Chehaw park family welcomed its newest member on the cusp of the Christmas holiday when local veterinarians delivered a healthy, female Colobus monkey via cesarean-section (C-section) last week.

More at http://www.albanyherald.com/multimedia/colobus-monkey-arrives-at-chehaw-via-c-section/collection_30cef9e8-ced0-11e6-b491-738d4b34ce37.html#1

ETA:

ALBANY — The Chehaw park family welcomed its newest member on the cusp of the Christmas holiday when local veterinarians delivered a healthy, Colobus monkey via cesarean-section (C-section) last week.

According to Chehaw’s Director of Community Engagement Morgan Burnette, zookeepers had been keeping a close eye on pregnant Arusha, a long-time resident of the zoo’s Colobus monkey exhibit, when they noticed the early signs of the birthing process on Dec. 23.

Under careful scrutiny the staff determined something was wrong, and Arusha was taken to the park’s regular veterinarians office, Dockery, Odom & Deriso. Vets there determined the unborn monkey was in breech, with its feet and buttocks positioned to be delivered instead of the head. The vets rushed Arusha into surgery and were able to deliver the 10-inch-long female monkey via a successful C-section.

“There have been other births (at Chehaw) where keepers or veterinary staff have had to intervene,” Burnette said Friday of the frequency with which C-sections need to be performed. “We try to let the animals have every opportunity to live as naturally as possible, including giving birth on their own.

More at http://www.albanyherald.com/features/colobus-monkey-arrives-via-c-section-at-chehaw-zoo/article_8e21c982-ce95-54c4-b693-e286ae0b3235.html

December 31, 2016

Paine College dogged by financial problems again in 2016

AUGUSTA -- This was another year of uncertainty for financially troubled Paine College.

Its accreditation agency notified the school in June it was being removed from the organization’s membership for failing to meet certain financial standards.

Paine later sued the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Com­mission on Colleges after the agency denied an appeal and the parties reached an agreement allowing the school to stay a member while the suit moves forward.

The college cut a number of positions in 2016 and raised several million dollars to help its financial picture before meeting with SACS in June. School officials said they were blindsided by the organization’s decision and in the lawsuit claimed that SACS was using arbitrary financial standards unfair to small private colleges like Paine.

Read more: http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/2016-12-30/paine-dogged-financial-problems-again-2016

[font color=330099]Paine College is a historically black college.[/font]

December 31, 2016

Married minister allegedly plans sex with child, gets arrested in internet sting

A Hazlehurst minister was caught in an internet child sex sting operation out of Telfair County.

Randy Wade Rowell, 58, was arrested Wednesday after allegedly planning to meet a child for sex, according to a news release from Telfair County Sheriff Chris Steverson.

Several weeks ago, the GBI’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force began an undercover investigation that snared Rowell.

Investigators, posing as an underage female, arranged to meet Rowell at a secluded location.

Read more here: http://www.macon.com/news/local/crime/article123722009.html

December 31, 2016

Deonn Carter's mom, sister charged with Medicaid fraud

The mother and sister of a beloved autistic man who died this year from a gunshot wound sustained in an attempted robbery have been arrested on charges of defrauding the state of Medicaid funds.

Deonn Carter’s mother, Suzette Ragland, and sister, Kimillia Carter, are accused of falsifying records to defraud the state of $22,035.86 between Aug. 10, 2012, and Dec. 15, 2014, according to a Muscogee County grand jury indictment filed Dec. 13.

The indictment alleges Ragland and Kimillia Carter together filed documents claiming Carter was providing Medicaid-funded services to Deonn Carter when in fact the sister was serving other patients.

“The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) offers a Medicaid ‘waiver program’ known as the ‘Comprehensive Supports Waiver Program’ (COMP),” reads the indictment. “This program allows Georgia Medicaid recipients with intellectual or developmental disabilities to receive services in their homes.”

Read more here: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/local/crime/article123646054.html

December 31, 2016

4 Cherokee County firefighters ousted

Four Cherokee County firefighters have been terminated following an investigation into allegations of misconduct.

Capt. Chuck Foster, Capt. Mike Malone and firefighters Chad Huff and Brandon Wilson are appealing the decisions, according to media reports.

The county’s investigation started in October when a former firefighter accused Foster of years of sexual harassment. He denied the allegations, but officials concluded the harassment occurred, according to a 256-page report from the county attorney’s office that details the investigation.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution obtained that report this week through an open records request.

Read more: http://www.ajc.com/news/local/cherokee-county-firefighters-ousted/pftiCoK1o1Idfhf8k5yWhP/

December 31, 2016

Coastal Academy's future uncertain in face of federal lawsuit

At 3434 Ross Road, the former Coastal Academy building sits empty, after months of not being used following its state-mandated closure on July 21.

Coastal Academy previously housed students in the Georgia Network for Educational and Therapeutic Support (“GNETS”) program, which came under fire earlier this year when the United States Department of Justice filed a lawsuit claiming the program violated the civil rights of its students.

Coastal Academy is among 24 programs that form the GNETS program, which serves students with severe emotional and behavioral disorders and students with autism.

The GNETS program is state-run, but Glynn County provides the facility, a school police officer and a nurse.

Read more: http://goldenisles.news/news/local_news/coastal-academy-s-future-uncertain-in-face-of-federal-lawsuit/article_ea90c989-b07d-5e34-a4e3-e6de0fc47adf.html

December 31, 2016

Court reinstates Kennedy cousin Skakel's murder conviction

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel faces a possible return to prison after the state Supreme Court reinstated his murder conviction in the killing of Martha Moxley in 1975 when they were 15 years old and neighbors in a wealthy enclave.

The court issued a 4-3 decision Friday that rejected a lower court's ruling that Skakel's trial lawyer didn't adequately represent him. Justice Peter T. Zarella wrote that the majority of the court concluded Skakel's lawyer "rendered constitutionally adequate representation."

It was unclear if Skakel, now 56 years old, will be sent back to prison or allowed to remain free if he appeals or asks the high court to reconsider. His appellate lawyer Hubert Santos said he was reviewing the ruling.

Skakel, a nephew of Robert F. Kennedy's widow, Ethel Kennedy, was convicted of murder in 2002 and was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison in the killing of Moxley, who was bludgeoned with a golf club, in Greenwich. His cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been a top advocate and this year released a book that argued he's innocent.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2016/12/30/court-reinstates-kennedy-cousin-skakels-murder-conviction/96010102/

December 31, 2016

Georgia GOP leaders hope to avoid snags over hospital tax

Georgia’s governor and legislative leaders hope to quickly extend an annual tax on hospitals that covers a large share of state health care expenses when lawmakers return to the Capitol in January.

The quarterly charges, disparaged by opponents in the past as a “bed tax,” are set to expire on June 30. The state’s Medicaid budget could lose more than $880 million if lawmakers don’t renew the program.

The fees first adopted in 2010 are a percentage of Georgia hospitals’ net patient revenue and also allow Georgia’s Medicaid program to draw millions more in federal support for treating low-income residents. The tax yielded more than $280 million from hospitals and nearly $600 million in matching federal support.

Hospitals that see high numbers of low-income patients get the money back through a higher payment rate from the Medicaid program.

Read more: http://evans.allongeorgia.com/georgia-gop-leaders-hope-to-avoid-snags-over-hospital-tax/

December 31, 2016

Georgia Republican Party financial problems set to carry over to 2017

A sweep of the state in 2014 and a new Republican president-elect isn’t enough to bring the Georgia Republican Party from the perils of financial crisis.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the party’s finances are still in an abysmal state. The most recent financial disclosures filed by the party show they have nearly two times as much debt as they do cash on hand.

The $126,000 in cash is a stark contrast from the once two million dollar coffer jammed full of funds when Chairman John Padgett took over. The Georgia GOP has operated in the negative for much of Padgett’s tenure, currently showing $227,000 in debt.

The $126,000 is a substantial increase from the $11,403 the party had in December 2015.

On the other side of the aisle, the Georgia Democratic Party has $400,000 in the bank.

Source: http://evans.allongeorgia.com/georgia-republican-party-financial-problems-set-to-carry-over-to-2017/