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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 3ALOCAL

    by Carla [email protected]

    Brookhaven City Man-ager Marie Garrett apolo-gized to one of the modelswho claims the former city’s

    communication directormade racial comments toher.

    Rosemary Taylor wasired April 6, a week afterhe allegedly made racial

    comments to two models athe Cherry Blossom Festival.

    Garrett said in a releasedtatement that she met with

    photographer Nelson Jones,one of the models and hermother April 13.

    “I apologized to thempersonally for how theywere treated at the CherryBlossom Festival last monthand explained to them thathe communications direc-or no longer works for the

    city,” Garrett said. “We aretill investigating the com-

    plaint and cannot commenturther until the investiga-ion is closed.”

    Jones, a photographerrom TOPOP Entertain-

    ment Inc. and resident ofBrookhaven, said he washired by Brookhaven Tour-sm Manager Mike Vescio o photograph the city’s

    Cherry Blossom Festival,

    which took place March27-29. He brought twomodels with him—18-year-old Domonique Jackson,who is Black, and Khamlee

    Vongvone, who is 17 andAsian.

    Jones said he was doingtest shots of Vescio and themodels when Taylor ap-proached him.

    “She knew who I was,but she was really irate inher approach to me,” Jonessaid. “At the end of her en-counter, asked me a flurryof questions, and she turnedtowards the girls and said,‘They—this is not the image

    that I want for Brookhaven.’”Jones said he and the

    models were stunned by theremark.

    “This is a city official

    in public,” Jones said.“Her position [was] thedirector of communica-tions. Literally what thatmeans is that you are themedia savvy guru be-tween us and the public,and what she did in thatinstance was broke thepublic’s trust.”

    In a statement releasedApril 9, Taylor said her re-marks were not racist.

    “Let me say this clearly–

    racism had absolutely noth-ing to do with my interac-tions with the photographerand his hired models at therecent Brookhaven Cherry

    Blossom Festival,” Taylorsaid. “It all had to do with alack of professionalism onbehalf of the photographer, aconflict of interest, misuse ofcity funds and money spentunnecessarily.”

    Taylor said there wereno discussions with anyonein the city’s communicationsdepartment of hiring modelsprior to the event.

    “If it had, we would havenixed that idea immediatelybecause a park filled withthousands of people pro-

     vides enough opportunitiesfor good, authentic photos–astandard industry practice

    –without hiring models tostage anything. In my pro-fessional opinion, it simplywasn’t necessary,” she said.

    Jones said the modelswere there to help promotehis business, which he triedto explain to Taylor. Afterhe walked away from Taylor,

    Jones said he turned aroundand saw her “berating”Vescio.

    “It was dramatic,” Jonessaid. “He was visibly shaken,almost to the point of tears.He catches eye contact with

    me, and he makes a beelineto me and said, ‘She said youall have to leave.’”

    Taylor said when shequestioned Jones about themodels he got agitated anddefensive.

    “My mistake was gettingagitated back, as he contin-ued to tell me he was theofficial photographer and hehad hired top models andthis was going to be goodfor the city,” she said. “I toldhim it wasn’t and that it wasnot what we wanted. It wassimply a matter of the pho-tographer not honoring therequests of what we neededfor future publicity use —authentic photos of attend-ees at the event.”

    The group left, andJones said he sent letters tothe mayor and city councilmembers about the incident.

    Taylor said the accusa-tion is untrue.

    “My main concern wasfor the city of Brookhavenwhen I saw a blatant misuseof the festival brand and po-tential waste of city funds,”

    she said. “I stick to my pro-fessional decision behindthe reasons not to utilize thephotographer’s services.”

    Brookhaven official apologizes to models over Cherry Blossom incident

    Khamlee Vongvone, 17, and Domonique Jackson, 18, were the vic-

    tims of alleged racial comments by Brookhaven CommunicationsDirector Rosemary Taylor. Photo by Nelson Jones

    Garrett

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 4AOPINION

    SB129: Religious freedom or freedom to discriminate?

    An opinion piece by defi-nition should be a clearlycommunicated, well-ex-plained judgment of a spe-cific subject or topic. Tis isnot an opinion piece.

    Tis is an attempt to forman opinion and an inside-my-mind assessment of bothides of the debate.

    I do not condone or sup-port discrimination of anykind. SB129, commonly re-erred to as the Restoration

    of Religious Freedom Act,may make it legal for someegments of our society to

    be discriminated against.I do not believe that any

    eligion, in its purest and in-ended form, supports or in

    any way justifies, discrimi-nation of any kind.

    I believe every Americanhas the right to practice anyreligion he or she chooses tobelieve in. I also believe it isimpossible for any govern-mental entity to define howone chooses to apply or in-

    terpret religious principles.Business owners or

    service providers, just asindividuals, should havethe right to make decisionsthat affect the success, orlack thereof, of their busi-ness (assuming they are notreceiving governmental sub-sidies, tax credits or incen-tives).

    Te public has the rightto shop anywhere they wantand support any businessthey chose. However, I donot want to shop at anystore, or receive servicesfrom any service providerthat does not offer its goodsor services to anyone whowishes to purchase them.I do not want my moneyto have a role in allowing a

    business or service providerto discriminate; and I hopethat any person of soundmind would also not sup-port a business that choosesto discriminate.

    It is my hope that anybusiness that chooses to notoffer its goods or services tothe public suffers tremen-dous financial losses andbecomes painfully aware ofthe circumstances that led totheir financial demise; lead-ing, hopefully, to a spiritualand social awakening.

    It is impossible to passlegislation that offers un-equivocal protection to allwithout possibly, even inthe slightest way, appearingto discriminate against onegroup or another.

    It is impossible for a so-ciety to exist in which allpeople have every right theybelieve they should have.

    A utopian society is notpossible. Te most we canhope for is to live in a soci-ety in which all are treatedequally and with respect.

    Lastly, it is impossible tolegislate how one interpretsreligious writings and be-liefs. It is human nature tointerpret anything we hear,see or read based on ourindividual and collective ex-periences and beliefs.

    It is not possible to legis-late good, fair, moral behav-ior. It also is not possible tolegislate common sense andmutual respect.

    John [email protected]

    Chief Operating Officer 

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    OPINIONThe Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 5A

     

    l us Know Wha Yo think!

    THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS encour-ages opinions from its readers. Pleasewrite to us and express your views. Lettersshould be brief, typewritten and containthe writer’s name, address and telephonenumber for verification. All letters will beconsidered for publication.

    Send Letters To Editor, The Champion Free Press, P.

    O. Box 1347, Decatur, GA 30031-1347; Send emailto [email protected] • FAX To: (404)370-3903 Phone: (404) 373-7779 . Deadline for newsreleases and advertising: Thursday, one week priorto publication date.

    EDITOR’S NOTE: The opinions written by colum-nists and contributing editors do not necessarilyreect the opinions of the editor or publishers. ThePublisher reserves the right to reject or cancel anyadvertisement at any time. The Publisher is notresponsible for unsolicited manuscripts.

    Publisher: John Hwi Chief Financial Ocer:Dr. ear D. GnnManaging Editor:Andrw cahnProduction Manager:Kemesha Hunt Photographer:travis HdgonsSta Reporters:cara parkr, Ashy Ogsby

    The Champion Free Press is publishedeach Friday by ACE III Communications,Inc., • 114 New Street, Suite E, Decatur,

    GA. 30030 • Phone (404) 373-7779.

    www.hamionnwsar.om

    DISPLAY ADVERTISING (404) 373-7779 x 110

    F REE P RESS

    STATEMENT FROM THE

    PUBLISHERW sinry aria hdisssion srronding his and anyiss of inrs o DKab cony.The Champion was fondd in 1991xrssy o rovid a form fordisors for a ommniy rsidnson a sids of an iss. W hav nodsir o mak h nws ony oror nws and oinions o ff

    a mor dad iiznry ha wiimay mov or ommniyforward. W ar hay o rsnidas for disssion; howvr,w mak vry ffor o avoidrining informaion sbmid os ha is known o b fas and/orassmions nnd as fa. 

    ONE MAN’S OPINION

    “I believe that the resi-dents of DeKalb deserve amore deliberate process, andhat the state Legislature

    needs to make changes tohe cityhood and annexation

    process,” said Ed Williams, Citizens Against Cityhood,April 3, 2015.

      As a lifelong DeKalbCounty resident, publicchools graduate and some-

    one who has invested de-cades in my hometown, Iclearly understand the ever-deepening disappointmentor many of what our oncehining county on the hill

    has become.

    I will not waste space inhis column recounting theongoing decline, but sufficet to say that I ‘get’ why so

    many are attempting to fleeand build their own smallempires, cities and commu-nities of interest, separateand apart from the county.

      I respectfully also thinkhat they are wrong. Run-

    ning and/or building a newgovernment entity is noguarantee of fixing the un-derlying issues/concerns oreceiving more cost effective

    delivery of services.Ballot referendums will

    proceed, to potentially es-ablish two more DeKalb

    municipalities, both in thenorth and central regions ofhe county, and respectively

    LaVista Hills and ucker.Annexation plans will

    move forward in Clarkston,

    but remained vexed inDecatur and Avondale Es-tates, and at least partiallyslowed in terms of the mas-

    sive land grab by the city ofAtlanta planned for some ofDeKalb’s priciest residentialreal estate and most pre-ferred public schools.

      Becoming a city inGeorgia has been stream-lined. You effectively have tooffer only three municipalservices off of a moderatelylengthy list of choices, andthe “city light” model hascome down to incorporat-ing by offering parks, codeenforcement (building,sanitation and constructioncodes) and zoning. Leavingthe more significant heavylifting operations of govern-ment to either private sectorcontracts or service agree-ments and cofunding mech-anisms with the same hostcounty. hese services in-clude police and fire protec-tion, water and sewer, sani-

    tation, public health, roadand street maintenance,Medicaid, etc... Yet pleaseremember as more citiesare created, fewer horses arepulling the wagon and pro-

     viding resources to pay forthose potholes, water/sewermaintenance, etc...and theday may come, that DeKalbCounty will no longer beable to afford a countywidepolice or fire department,especially if the majority ofmunicipalities decide to taxand provide those servicesthemselves.

      When we look at hightax states such as New Yorkand New Jersey, what prin-

    cipally jumps to the fore interms of governmental dif-ference is the number andlayers of local governments.

    Georgia has 159 coun-ties, and well over 500 cit-ies, before the recent newcity epidemic began in2005. New York state hasmore than 3,400 active lo-cal government entities and4,200 taxing jurisdictions.

    Despite a small frac-tional land mass comparedto Georgia or New York,New Jersey has everysquare foot within exactlyone municipality, thoughthere are twelve forms oflocal government includ-ing buroughs, townships,

     villages, and 565 munici-palities within only 21 coun-ties. Only “axachusetts”and Maryland come evenclose in terms of layers of

    local government and taxingdistricts.

      But a city should bemuch more than a $30,000feasibility study, containingquestionable math to showthat there is a sufficientresidential and commercialproperty tax base to fundthe self-proposed list ofservices. As the 2007 realestate recession should havetaught everyone, real estate

     values and tax digests arenot a constant. And, govern-ment services rarely declinein cost, as payroll (largestshare) and service desiresfrom the public eventuallyonly escalate over time.

    A tip of the hat goes tothe State House Committeewhich attempted in earnestto finalize maps set in stoneto end border disputes be-tween the proposed citiesof ucker and LaVista Hillsprior to the start of the 2015General Assembly. But as ismost often the case, thosetwo chambers are oftenincapable of leaving wellenough alone, so lines gotmoved and neighborhoodstreets are now split downthe middle, particularly inthe proposed LaVista Hills,where boundaries often fol-lowed U.S. Census tracts.

    Absent a lottery win, Iam in my dirt nap house,and hell or high water (theformer may now be morelikely), I’m here to stay, butI would also prefer to staya resident of good ol’ unin-

    Bill Crane

    [email protected]

    Columnist

     What have you done for me lately?corporated DeKalb. Anyonewho feels similarly, pleasesend me a note and let meknow, or reach out to EdWilliams, who has done afine job of articulating whathas been wrong with thisprocess to date and of late.

    Bill Crane also serves as a political analyst and commen-tator for Channel 2’s ActionNews, WSB-AM News/Talk750 and now 95.5 FM, as wellas a columnist for 

     The Cham-pion, Champion Free Pressand Georgia Trend. Crane isa DeKalb native and businessowner, living in Scottdale. Youcan reach him or comment

    on a column at bill.csicrane@ gmail.com. 

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    Page 6A The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015

     

    LOCAL

    If you would like to nominate someone to be considered as a future Champion of the Week, please contact Andrew Cauthenat [email protected] or at (404) 373-7779, ext. 117.

     MINNIE COLLINS

    May addresses county concerns at Lithonia town hall meetingby Carla [email protected]

    Interim DeKalb County CEOLee May  has been making stopsaround the county informing resi-dents about new developments.

    He stopped in Lithonia April7 where he addressed a variety ofconcerns the residents had abouthe District 5 vacancy on the Board

    of Commissioners, development inouth DeKalb, cityhood, the schoolystem, sanitation and more.

    After May describing in depthhe behind-the-scenes drama re-

    garding the commissioners andheir trouble finding a replacemento represent District 5, May ad-

    dressed other issues.One resident, Harmel Codi,

    had concerns about the hiringof Ray Gilley  as president of theDeKalb Development Authority.Gilley resigned as chief executive ofhe Metro Orlando Economic De-

    velopment Commission (EDC) in2010. According to an article in theOrlando Sentinel, EDC and Gilleycame under fire after the newspaperevealed that the agency was “tout-ng job growth tied to economicncentives without first checking to

    determine whether the companiesinvolved had actually created thenew positions.”

    Codi brought up the article inthe meeting.

     “My issue is, currently there hasnot been a lot of vetting on [Gilley],”Codi said. “We somewhat have ahistory of having people from other

     jurisdictions taking executive officesin our county that have had issues in

    their previous jobs. Yet, they cameto our county.”May told Codi not to believe ev-

    erything she reads in the paper.“We were fully aware of the his-

    tory of the work he did over there,”May said. “He was there for 10 years,and there was one article on one is-sue—that there were some questionsabout the data and the job creationdata that was moved forward. Hewas never blamed for that; it had todo with the system and how the sys-tem calculated the data.

    “You can either focus on rumorsand the negative, or you can figureout how we can work together,” Mayadded. “The man is here, and he dida phenomenal job in Orlando. Let’sgive him a chance.”

    One resident had concernsabout how the county will navigate

    and cover pensions for public safetyofficials if Tucker and LaVista Hillsincorporate. May said certain pen-sion costs stay with the county oncenew cities form, and the incorpo-rated areas are no longer responsiblefor pension costs of the DeKalb Po-lice Department, causing residentsin unincorporated DeKalb to pickup the difference.

    “If they start their own police

    department, they don’t offer newpensions to their police officers,”May said. “But those officers thatpatrolled their communities for 10to 20 years, we’re on the hook forproviding the pension benefit tothem and these new cities are nolonger obligated for that. That’s re-ally state law and we’re looking at alocal fix for that. It’s a difficult lawfor us to figure out. I’ve got our at-torneys on it trying to create thelegislation.”

    Johnny Waits, president of theFlat Rock Archives and Museum,said he has concerns about the one-day-a-week trash pickup. The Boardof Commissioners adopted May’srecommended cost-saving sanita-tion initiative March 10.

    “We’re hoping that this will bea cleaner measure for the county,”

    May said. “It will actually allow us tobe more sustainable. It’s my expecta-tion that your sanitation rates willnot increase for another nine years.”

    If a resident misses the pickupday, May said the county will have“roaming trucks” for residents tocall and have their trash picked up.

    After the meeting, Waits said hethought it was “a very good meet-ing,” and thought May was transpar-

    ent regarding the issues.“It was very informative, and Ithink that he went around the tableand told the truth about the com-missioners, about our district notbeing represented,” Waits said. “Ireally think they need to come to aclosure on that and work with theCEO, or work with whatever he istrying to do to get the representa-tion that we need. But we got a bet-ter understanding tonight.”

    Melva Fudge said she hopesthere will be answers to every ques-tion that was asked.

    “And I hope that everyonecomes together as one because that’swhat it’s all about—coming togetheras a community,” she said. “We’retrying to build our community tomake it better.”

    Minnie Collins, aDeKalb County residentince 1992, was recently rec-

    ognized as Fernbank Mu-eum of Natural History’s

    volunteer of the month.

    Collins said she was en-couraged by Jean Lewis, ariend from church to start

    volunteering at Fernbankwo and half years ago andaid she enjoys her role inhe museum’s Polaris vol-

    unteer program and theopportunity to meet newpeople.

    In addition to assistingwith greeting and seating atthe museum’s IMAX theater,

    Collins also participates inZumba, Bible study, yogaand a travel club.

    “I love my lifestyle. I liketo stay busy,” said Collins.

    Now retired, she saidshe makes an effort to get

    out and enjoy life.Collins said she wanted

    to be a designer growing upand when that didn’t hap-pen she discovered a moremeaningful calling for her

    life. She went to college forthe first time at the age of36, gained a bachelor’s de-gree in social work and ded-icated 22 years to workingwith children in Alabamaand Georgia.

    “I think it’s about takinga leap forward and doingsomething different,” shesaid.

    “I was encouraged by afriend to volunteer. I don’t

    think I would have donethis on my own but Jeantold me it was fun, and Iwould enjoy it and I do.”

     

    nterim DeKalb County CEO Lee May addressed a variety of concerns Lithonia residents had about the District 5 vacancy on the Board of Commissioners, development in south DeKalb.Photo by Carla Parker

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 7ALOCAL

    Atlanta

    Safety Jam coming to south DeKalb

    To promote a fun safe summer, DeKalbCounty Commissioner Larry  Johnson haseamed up with state Sen. Gail Davenport and

    American Medical Response to bring Safety Jamo south DeKalb on Saturday, April 25, at Gresh-

    am Park Recreation Center, from noon to 3 p.m.Free and open to the public, Safety Jam will

    eature games, food, giveaways and communityxhibitors.

    Community exhibitors include DeKalb Coun-y Police and Fire Rescue, No Text No Drive,

    Grady Burn Unit, Going and Growing Green,AARP, Atlanta Medical and more. DJ Uncle Pau-ie will be providing music and entertainmenthroughout the event, along with Comedian NO.

    Fitness coaches also will provide free fitnesslasses throughout the day.

    The park is located at 3113 Gresham Road,Atlanta. For more information, call (404) 371-2425.

    Decatur

    DeKalb Workforce Development to hostegional workforce summit

    As a part of National County Governmentmonth, DeKalb Workforce Development will hosta regional workforce summit on Thursday, April23, at 9 a.m., at 774 Jordan Lane, Building #4, De-atur.

    The theme of the summit is “Gauging thePulse of the Health Care Industry...Helping Oth-rs through Human Transformation and Eco-

    nomic Development.”The event is designed to inform and an edu-

    ate audience of healthcare training providers,businesses and job seekers on labor market dataand demand of occupations in the healthcare in-dustry.

    Some of the organizations presenting include:Emory Healthcare System, Grady Healthcare Sys-

    em, DeKalb Medical, Center for Disease Controland Prevention, Morehouse School of Medicineand United Health and Business.

    For additional information, contact RoderickWyatt at [email protected] or (404)687-3402, or call DeKalb Workforce Develop-ment at (404) 687-3400.

    Group to host health awareness event

    Our Seeds Tomorrow will host a children’sducational event titled Our Seeds Tomorrow

    Health Awareness, April 25, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.This free event for students and parents in-

    ludes a discussion about the importance of ahealthy lifestyle. Elementary children and their

    parents will receive free health screenings.Sponsors include Atlanta Braves, Sam’s Club/Wal-Mart Foundation, DeKalb County PublicLibrary, Mango’s Restaurant, DeKalb County TV,Decatur Parks and Recreation Department.

    The event will feature a health motivational

    speaker, 9:30 a.m.; preventative health screen-ings, 10 to 11:30 a.m.; catered lunch, 11:30 a.m. tonoon; panel discussion on poverty, clean drinkingwater and illiteracy, noon to 1 p.m.; culture troopperformance, 1 to 1:30 p.m.

    The event will be held at Decatur Active Liv-ing, 231 Sycamore St., Decatur.

    For more information, contact Dazia Fum-bah, executive director, at (404) 257-2600 [email protected], or visit the group’swebsite at www.ourseedstommorow.org.

    Sorority to hold financial workshop

    The Tau Pi Omega chapter of Alpha KappaAlpha Sorority Inc. will present a financial work-shop on April 26 at the Decatur Library, 215Sycamore St., Decatur.

    The workshop, “Getting Your FinancialHouse in Order,” will help attendees with finan-cial planning and accessing current net worth. Inaddition, the workshop will provide pointers onspending, debt and budgeting.

    The workshop will be presented by MichaelSmith, a registered representative with UnitedPlanners Financial Services of America. He of-fers securities and advisory services through hisagency.

    The workshop will be held from 3 to 4:30p.m.

    For more information, contact April Elmore at (404) 210-8040 or [email protected].

    DeKalb DA to host PAWS for the Cause

    PAWS for the Cause will be held April 18from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Glenlake Park. PAWSfor the Cause, sponsored by the DeKalb DistrictAttorney’s Office, promotes animal cruelty aware-ness, pet adoption, animal rescue, pet health andeducation.

    Attendees can meet vendors with the latestpet products, low cost micro-chipping and vac-cines, dog training by JillG, pet performances,live entertainment and a dog fashion show. Glen-lake Park is located at 1121 Church St. in Decatur.The event is free. For more information, visit

    www.dekalbda.org.

    Lithonia

    City to host open house

    Lithonia will host an open house for its newcity hall April 18, 2-4 p.m. as part of the kick-offfor Georgia Cities Week. The city will also host anelectronics recycling event April 18 from 9 a.m. tonoon with Keep DeKalb Beautiful. The city willcelebrate Georgia Cities Week April 18-25. Therewill be a variety of activities for all ages. For addi-tional information, call (770) 482-8136.

    New nonprofits to hold launch event

    Care for the Future Inc. and BreakingThrough to Embrace Milestones Inc. are holding

    a launch event for the new nonprofit groups.

    The meet-and-greet will introduce the com-munity to the new nonprofit organizations andprovide information about new resources that areavailable to community members. Various com-munity organizations will be onsite and there willbe giveaways.

    The event will be held April 25, 3 to 6 p.m.at Redan Recreation Center, 1839 Phillips Road,Lithonia.

    It will feature a college panel discussion forhigh school seniors to talk to college graduatesas well as a Savannah State University admis-sions recruiter.

    “This will be a great opportunity for individu-als and families to gain community resources andmeet two nonprofit organizations that are willingto help others in time of need,” states the event’s

    announcement.High school seniors and parents are encour-

    aged to attend.

    Library to hold book sale

    The Friends of Stonecrest Library will be hav-ing a book sale on Saturday, April 18, from 10a.m. to 4 a.m.

    Fiction, nonfiction, textbooks, encyclopedias,children’s, romance books and more will be onsale.

    The library is located at 3123 Klondike Road,Lithonia. For more information, call (770) 482-3828.

    Stone Mountain

    South DeKalb group to sponsor parentalawareness forum

    The education committee of the SouthDeKalb Improvement Association Inc. (SDIA)will sponsor a Parental Awareness Forum at 11:30a.m. on April 18, at Redan High School, 5247 Re-dan Road, Stone Mountain.

    Participants will discuss legal rights parentshave when their children attend school and whatresponsibilities parents are charged with whenchildren are in the school system.

    The forum is free and open to the public.SDIA is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 organizationwhose mission is to provide the residents of southDeKalb a voice and platform in addressing issuesthat affect quality of life, including code compli-ance and enhancement, economic development,education, housing and public safety.

    For additional information, contact Robert Douglas at robertdoug8aol.com or [email protected].

    AROUNDDEKALB

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    Page 8A The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015

     

    LOCAL

    Mother sues for answers in daughter’s jail death

    Police impersonator arrested in Doraville

    y Andrew [email protected]

    Vernell Davis is lookingor answers in the death of

    her daughter two years agon DeKalb County Jail.

    “I believe [the truth

    bout] her death was coveredup,” said Davis of Lithoniabout the death of Shantell

    Ada Johnson in March 2013.In March, Davis filed

    lawsuit against DeKalbCounty Sheriff’s Office toind out what happened afterohnson was arrested andaken to jail.

    “I’m about getting an-wers,” Davis said. “I’mringing them to justice be-ause I really want to know

    what happened to my child.Nobody ever reached out to

    me. Nobody ever told menything. And I just want toknow.”

    According to Davis, herdaughter was stopped by a

    olice office for a movingiolation. When police dis-atch was contacted, it was

    discovered that there waswarrant for Johnson’s ar-

    est. Once she was at the jail,t was determined that the

    warrant had been cancelled,

    but Johnson was still jailed,Davis said.

    Davis said Johnson hadbeen sick earlier in the dayand “when she gets to [in-mate] intake, her blood pres-sure was 140 over 98.

    “They gave her a medi-cal band,” Davis said. “Thatmedical band was ignored.[jail personnel] put her onthe floor and it was notthe medical floor. Her cellmate tried to get their atten-

    tion. Other cell mates in thepod…tried to get their atten-tion. No one answered.”

    “No one checked on her,”said Eric Echols, an inves-tigator for Chestnut firmwho has investigated thecase. “They didn’t check onShantell Johnson until lateron that afternoon when shedidn’t get up for lunch. Bythat time rigor mortis hasset in; Shantell Johnson wasdead.

    “The system failed her,”he said.

    Davis said she was atwork when she got a phonecall the DeKalb CountySheriff ’s Office; a chaplainwanted to meet with her.

    “They brought a bag withher belongings—her workclothings, a brown bag withher inmate number on it—and that was it,” Davis said,adding that she received nopaperwork about the inci-

    dent. Johnson had five chil-dren, between ages 5 and 12.

    “I had to figure out howto obtain information aboutwhat happened to my daugh-ter,” Davis said. “So I wentto the sheriff ’s departmentand I asked them for the

    final investigation. When Iread it—I stayed up all nightbecause this is like new newsto me. And when I read thestatements from the officersmy heart saddened evenmore.

    “It was sad—what theystated they did, and whatthey stated they did not do,”Davis said. “Rigor mortis hadalready settled in when theygot to her. She had to be deada long time.

    “What happened? Whathappened to the system?”

    Davis asked. “She was nottreated right. She was nottreated fairly. They violatedher civil rights. That is notOK. That is not acceptable.

    “I had to bury my28-year-old daughter,” Davissaid. Cynthia Williams, theSheriff’s Office’s public infor-mation officer, said the office“cannot comment on inci-dents where there is pendinglitigation.”

    y Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

    Daniel Harbison, a0-year-old White male wasrrested on April 3 for im-ersonating a police officer.

    Doraville Police Depart-ment officials are encourag-ng victims of the imperson-tor to file a report.

    Public Information Of-icer Gene Callaway said the

    department is still in the in-erview process with victims

    who have come forward.The impersonator

    was taken into custodyfter stopping an off-duty

    Doraville officer, EdwardLowe.

    Lowe reported that heand his young daughter had

     just made a right turn ontoHomeland Drive from GA-

    141 when a silver DodgeCharger behind him turnedon green and white lightsthat were on the dashboard.

    He said he called theDoraville Police Communi-cations Division and advisedthem that a man approachedhis vehicle wearing a drugenforcement agency (DEA)shirt along with realistic ap-pearing credentials.

    Lowe said he advisedthe man that he was withDoraville Police Departmentand he was having someonecome check his credentials.Harbison told him that wasfine, that he had to go backand check on something.The alleged impersonator

    got into the silver Chargerand backed up onto GA-141north access.

    Lowe said he lost sightof the car as it turned leftunder the bridge at WintersChapel Road.

    A broadcast email wassent to surrounding agen-cies.

    At approximately 9:30p.m., Doraville police ar-rested Harbison. 

    Officer Sean Mahar re-ported he received a phonecall from officer Lowe, whotold him that DunwoodyPolice suspected that thesubject they were lookingfor lived in the DunwoodyGlen apartment homes.

    Mahar said he went tothe Dunwoody Glen apart-ments and immediatelylocated the vehicle. It was asilver Dodge Charger withdark tinted windows and aDEA tag cover.

    Once Mahar locatedHarbison he said he contact-ed Lowe to come to his loca-tion to identify Harbison.

    Lowe confirmed thatHarbison had stopped himearlier in the day and pre-sented himself as a law en-forcement official.

    Harbison was transport-ed to the Doraville city jailand released to jail person-nel for processing.

    Third Junior League of DeKalbCounty Tour of Kitchens set

     On Saturday, April 25, the Junior League of

    DeKalb County Inc. will host its third annualTour of Kitchens from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

    “Whether you are interested in kitchen de-ign, decorating ideas, cooking tips or just a funway to spend the afternoon, the Tour of Kitchenswill have it all,” states the event’s announcement.

    The self-guided tour will feature the designsf CSI Kitchen & Bath, Design Galleria and

    Splice Design, interior furnishings, and culinarydemonstrations by chefs from Decatur restau-rants.

    The tour also will showcase cooking talentsof students from DeKalb County School District’sculinary programs. Participants will have the op-portunity to purchase a copy of the Junior Leagueof DeKalb cookbook and take home giveawaysfrom the sponsors.

    Participating sponsors include No. 246, Park-er’s on Ponce, Strippaggio, Community Farm-ers Market, The Champion Newspaper , DeKalbMedical, Design Galleria, CSI Kitchen and Bath

    Studio, Splice Design, Harry Norman Realty andRE/MAX.

    Proceeds from the Tour of Kitchens sup-port the Junior League’s mission to provideleadership training, resources, and support toempower women to create change in the commu-nity. Particular benefiting programs include theleague’s key impact area to improve nutrition andcombat obesity in DeKalb County.

    Tickets to the tour are $10. For sponsorshipand ticket information, visit www.jldekalb.org/tok.

     

    Vernell Davis speaks during a rally against police-involved shootings. Davis’ daughter, Shantell Johnson, diedwhile incarcerated at the DeKalb County Jail. Photo by Andrew Cauthen

    Harbison

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    by Andrew [email protected]

    Chris Morris, DeKalbCounty’s longtime commu-nity development director,s ready to spend more time

    with her family.“The first thing that I’m

    going to do when I retire iso make sure that I spend

    more time with my family,”said Morris, 63, who haswo granddaughters, ages 2

    and 9. “Have I showed youpictures of my granddaugh-ers?”

    Displaying a picture ofher with a granddaughteron a park’s playground,”Morris said, “So this is what’m going to be doing more

    of when I retire. We’re goingo have so much fun.”

    In addition to spendingime with her family andbeing active with her DeltaSigma Theta sorority, theConley resident said she stillwill be “interacting and go-ng out and doing what God

    wants me to do.”Morris announced

    March 24 that she wouldretire April 30 after workingfor the county for approxi-mately 38 years. She  beganworking for the county inJuly 1976. She worked inhe planning department and

    finance department before

    moving to the communitydevelopment department in1979.

    “I love working with thecommunity,” Morris said. “Iove working with people inhe community and I recog-

    nize that it is a blessing to beable to help neighborhoods

    get some very basic things.”As the community de-

    velopment director, Morris

    administers approximately$9 million annually fromthe Community Develop-ment Block Grant Program,the HOME Program, theEmergency Shelter GrantsProgram, and other fundsreceived by DeKalb Countyto improve the housing andliving conditions of low- tomoderate-income persons.Additionally, she is respon-sible for implementing the

     Neighborhood StabilizationProgram in DeKalb County,an $18.5 million grant au-thorized under the Housingand Economic RecoveryAct of 2008,” according thecounty’s website.

    “The community devel-opment block grant programwas started…to help neigh-

     borhoods get some very basic, viable, things such aswater, sewer [and] parks,”

    said Morris, who graduatedfrom Mercer Universitywith a bachelor’s degree in

    English and Georgia StateUniversity with a master’sdegree in urban governmentand administration. “Andthat’s important for everyneighborhood.

    “To have the opportunityto work with neighborhoodleaders and community

     people and help renovate buildings that are still im- portant to the communityand bring those buildings upto code—that was very, veryimportant,” Morris said.

    Despite the bad press thecounty is receiving in thenews media, Morris said,good things are happening inthe county.

    “When you read all ofthe [news], you see wherethings are happening that arenot good,” she said. “Andit’s good to see things thatare being corrected to have

    systems and processes thatare put in place for ac-countability.

    “DeKalb has a lot ofvery, very positive thingsmoving forward,” Morrissaid. “There are a lot ofgreat things that are hap-

     pening. We go throughchanges in our lives—inthe work environment defi-nitely. Every governmentis going to go through that.How it’s handled and whatthe media does is a wholeother story.”

    Morris said she “wouldlike to be rememberedas a person that loves theLord, thankful for a great

    staff, thankful for all thegreat departments that worktogether, thankful for ourleadership and especially

    for all the people that livein DeKalb and our businesscommunity.

    “It’s been a privilege tohave the opportunity to workwith other county depart-ments, to work here withgreat staff in community

    development,” she said. “Ithas been a privilege servingDeKalb County. It has beena wonderful experience.”

    Community development director to retire

    Juionor League

    STONE MOUNTAINVILLAGE CITY-WIDE

    YARD SALEFirst Baptist ChurchLawn. Sat., April 25, 

    8:30 am-3pmSetup begins 7:30 a.m. on

    day of sale.For info call City Hall

    770-498-8984

    Atlanta VA Medical Centeropens lactation room

    The Atlanta VA Medi-

    al Center has opened aactation room for the pri-acy and comfort of nursing

    mothers.Located near the Ob-

    ervation Medical Inten-ive Care Unit, the roomncludes chairs, a sink andlectrical outlets. The lacta-ion room is available to alleterans, visitors, employeesnd volunteers. Mothers

    must bring their own pump-ng kits.

    “Breastfeeding is one ofhe most important things a

    mother can do for her baby,nd we want to supporthat,” said Hal Barnes, whoversaw the design and con-truction of the new room.

    Barnes, the center’s as-

    sociate chief engineer, addedthat the lactation room isdesigned to promote betterhealth for mothers and theirinfants and will help reducethe stress and anxiety associ-ated with nursing or pump-ing outside the comfort ofhome.

    Commissioners to hostcommunity cleanup

    In support of KeepDeKalb Beautiful and theGreat American Clean Up,Commissioners Stan Wat-son and Larry Johnson are partnering with DeKalbCounty, Keep DeKalb Beau-tiful, and neighborhoodsalong Wesley Chapel, Rain-bow, Columbia, CovingtonHighway and Flat Shoals fora community cleanup.

    Other sponsors includeReps. Pam Stephenson,Howard Mosby  and Rahn Mayo.

    The Districts 3 and 7cleanup is Saturday, April18, at 9 a.m. The kickoff is atthe lot at the intersection ofWesley Chapel and Boring/Kelley Chapel Roads.

    The cleanup routes in-clude: Rainbow/Columbia(near Porter Sanford) toWesley Chapel; CovingtonHighway/Wesley Chapel toFlat Shoals Parkway; FlatShoals/Columbia (near QT)to 155- Snapfinger Road;and South Hairston at Wes-ley Chapel to CovingtonHighway.

    To claim a route, contact(404) 371-3681 or [email protected].

    Chris Morris, DeKalb’s community development director for more thanthree decades, said serving the county has been a privilege. Photo byAndrew Cauthen

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    LOCAL

    Eddie’s still rocks after all these yearsby Kathy Mitchell

    Eddie’s Attic in Decatur has beencompared with Nashville’s RymanAuditorium, home of the Grand OleOpry during its glory years from the1940s through the mid-1970s, with

    musicians measuring their success bywhether they’ve played there.While many dining and enter-

    ainment venues in downtown Deca-ur have come and gone over the past

    quarter century, Eddie’s Attic, whichopened in 1991 across from theDeKalb County courthouse, has notonly remained, but thrived. WhenEddie Owen sold his namesake ven-ue in 2002 it already had a reputationfor showcasing top-notch aspiringand accomplished talent.

    “This place is legendary. Nearlyevery musician puts Eddie’s on theirist of places they aspire to perform.t’s known across the country—in

    fact, around the world—as a top mu-ic venue,” said Dave Mattingly , who

    currently owns the business alongwith Alex Cooley .

    The roster of musicians whoplayed at the place insiders call “TheAttic” during their early years whowent on to have Grammy Award-winning or chart-topping music

    reads like a who’s who of contempo-rary music. It includes John Mayer,Sugarland, Shawn Mullins, Josh Jo-plin, Billy Pilgrim, Kristen Hall,Caroline Aiken, Michelle Malone and Matthew  Kahler.

    Despite established artists clam-bering to perform there, Eddie’s con-tinues its tradition of making room

    for new songwriters and performers.Once a week there’s an open micnight in which anyone who signs upis allowed to perform.

    “Staying part of the communityis an important part of who we are,”Mattingly said, noting that benefitperformances are often held at Ed-die’s. For example, keyboardist Chuck

    Leavel, who has played with TheRolling Stones, The Allman BrothersBand, Eric Clapton, The Black Crow-es, and his own group Sea Level, will“share his music and stories” May 7at a fundraiser, benefitting his grand-sons’ elementary school, Westches-

    ter Elementary in the city of Decatursystem.Andy Hingley , whom Mattingly

    calls “one of the best talent buyers inthe country,” chooses performers forEddie’s. His eclectic taste includes acountry, folk, acoustic, rock and awide range of other genres. Eddie’srecently hosted classic rock legendsThe Impressions.

    After studying past attendancepatterns, Hingley decided that book-ing more performers for shorterengagements is the way to go. “I no-ticed that when we booked an artistfor four nights, the first two nightswould sell out then the attendancewould drop because their real fanbase would come for the first perfor-mances and wouldn’t be back duringthis engagement. So it was better toschedule two shows a night for twonights then have a completely dif-ferent type of music that might drawa different audience the next twonights.”

    Eddie’s remains an intimate set-

    See Eddie’s on page 12A

    Eddie’s has been a xture on the courthouse square for nearly quarter of a century.

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 11ALOCAL

    Peachblossom Bluegrass Festival

    WEEKPICTURESIn 

    Photos brought to you by DCTV

    23

    DCTV Channel 23

    @DCTVChannel23

    DeKalb County Gov

    Ustream.tv/channle/DCTV-Channel-23

      VISIT US AT WWW.DCTVChannel23.tv E-mail us at [email protected]

    Get your front row seat to all things DeKalb County

    through your EMMY Award-winning station

    2323

    Community radio 89.4 FM WRFG Atlanta held its 39thannual Peachblossom festival fundraiser on April 11 atthe Clarkston Community Center.

    The annual event is an indoor festival operated byvolunteers from the radio station.

    Volunteer event coordinator Sharon Wiggins, who hasworked on 37 of the bluegrass festival events, said she’sthrilled to bring the festival to Clarkston.

    She said,“It’s been great. It’s much more multicul-tural than it ever was.”

    Music started at noon and featured bands for theevent included Playing on the Planet, Cedar Hill, JohnnyRoquemore & The Apostles of Bluegrass, ClearwaterCreek, Curtis Jones & Primal Roots, Donna Bopp Bandand Tucker Station. Photos by Ashley Oglesby

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    LOCAL

    ing that seats no more than 165patrons. “You’re so close to the musi-ians you can practically touch theirnstruments. This is definitely not

    Philips Arena,” Mattingly said. “Andwe’re going to be this way—there’sno place to expand to.” Occasionally,

    when the demand far outpaces theeating capacity at Eddie’s, an “Eddie’s

    presents” event will be held at a largervenue.

    According to Mattingly, both

    musicians and customers love thesound system at Eddie’s. “You won’tfind a better one anywhere,” he said,adding that Eddie’s success is largelyattributable to the respect it shows formusicians, customers and employees.“We believe that you treat everybodyright and you’ll be all right.” Respectfor the musicians means keeping thesettling more like a concert hall thana bar. Patrons are required to silencetheir cell phones, which Mattingly

    said pleases performers and musiclovers.

    Patrons without tickets can sit onthe patio, where they can order foodand drink and “hear amazingly well,”

    Mattingly said.“One thing that’s unexpected

    for many who come here is that thefood is good. I think there are thosewho expect just the usual bar fare—something to snack on along withthe drinks—and they’re pleasantlysurprised. Musicians who’ve been onthe road a few days are delighted thatthey can get a real meal here,” he said.The fare includes soups, salads, veg-etables and what the printed menu

    claims is “the best mac and cheese inDecatur.”

    While the space retains its rusticattic feel, the current owners are inthe process of upgrading such details

    as the furniture. “The chairs are morecomfortable and the bathrooms—we’re working on the bathrooms,”said Mattingly, who explained he andCooley operate Eddie’s for the loveof music. Neither needs money gen-erated by the business so whateverit makes they are able to reinvest inthe business. Mattingly, a pilot, said,“Getting ready for a performance forme is like getting a plane ready totake off. You check everything to be

    sure it’s working just right, and there’sexcitement every time you take off.”

    Eddie’sContinued From Page 10A 

    Interim CEO Lee May:Commissioners ‘cannot get along’by Carla Parker [email protected]

    Interim DeKalb CountyCEO Lee May said thereason the Board of Com-missioners cannot come toan agreement on selecting acandidate to ll the vacantDistrict 5 seat is the commis-sioners ‘cannot get along.’

    May was hosting a townhall meeting in LithoniaApril 6 when he was askedabout the lack of represen-tation for District 5. Mayexplained the process andevents that have happenedfollowing his being ap-pointed interim CEO byGov. Nathan Deal to thecommissioners struggling toselect an interim represen-tative from a group of vecandidates.

    “The issue is this—we’vegot a board that cannot getalong, and that’s the mostunfortunate thing,” Maysaid. “We’ve got a board thatdoesn’t trust each other. It’ssplit north and south, Black

    and White, and all that. I’m

    trying to gure out how wecan pull everyone together.This whole north/south stuff,Black/White stuff is not go-ing to advance our county.”

    The board has not cometo an agreement on onecandidate to represent thedistrict. The candidates areMarkus Butts, Gina SmithMangham, Kathryn Rice,Kenneth Saunders III andGeorge Turner. The com-missioners interviewed thecandidates March 3, andcame up with a weighted

     poll to choose their top can-didate.

    Mangham and Turner tiedfor rst, Butts came in sec-ond and Rice and Saunderstied for third. At the March10 commission meeting,commissioners tied theirvote for Mangham, and Maycast the tie-breaking voteagainst her.

    May told Lithonia resi-dents that he voted againstMangham because Turnerwas his original recommen-dation to ll the vacant seat.

    “George Turner is a per-

    son that I’ve [had] on theagenda for, ve months,” hesaid.

    May then talked aboutcomments that he claimedCommissioner Jeff Rader made to him.

    “Jeff Rader has toldme, ‘I like George. Georgewould be a good asset to this

     board, but Lee I’ve got more power now than I’ve everhad.’ That’s what he toldme,” May said. “So it hasnothing to do with George,it’s politics.”

    In a phone interviewApril 9, Rader denied mak-ing the comments.

    “In fact, he used thosewords,” Rader said. “Hecame into my ofce andwanted to talk to me aboutthat. He said, ‘Just betweenyou and me, don’t you feellike you have more powernow than you’ve ever had?’And, just in the interest, Iguess, of agreeing with himI said, ‘Sure.’ But, he putthose words in my mouth.”

    This is the second time

    May has alleged that Rader

    made those comments. Maytalked about that same con-versation during a previouscommission meeting.

    “After he said thosewords on the oor of thecommission [meeting] heapologized for that to meagain, privately, and saidthat he spoke those words inhaste—he accused me of thatin haste,” Rader said. “Nowthat he has said it again isa matter of bad taste on his

     part, rst, because he was theone that suggested that idea,and then second, becausenow he is sort of retreadingthat in that way. There isno truth to this notion that Iam withholding my vote forTurner in order to maximizemy power.”

    Rader also said it is nottrue that the board cannotcome to an agreement on acandidate because of a racialdivide or a north/south split.

    “The split is on whetheror not Lee May will bothserve as interim CEO andhave his rst choice as his

    replacement,” Rader said.

    “The three of us that are vot-ing against that believe thatit is inappropriate for him tohave that much power.

    “If we decline to vote forMr. Turner then that’s our

     prerogative,” Rader added.Rader said the board will

    vote again in a month.May said at the Lithonia

    meeting that he would liketo see a straw poll done soresidents can voice who theywould like to see representDistrict 5 during the interim

     period.“Do it in all the librar-

    ies in District 5 or close tothem,” he said. “I would loveto be able to set up the vot-ing machines so the integrityof the process will be setup, and have an independentgroup monitor it. Then thecommission, if they wouldagree to it, could say who-ever is the top vote getter iswho we will support.”

    May said he is workingwith the legal department onthat idea.

    nterim DeKalb County CEO Lee May said Commissioner Jeff Rader told him that he has “more power now than I’ve ever had.” Rader said that is not true. May photo by Carla Parker,Rader photo by Travis Hudgons

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    Annie (ID#24178328) will fill yourheart with joy! This 2year old girl is a playful

    sweetheart who can’twait to find a familyof her very own. Shehas an adventurousspirit and would makea wonderful hiking orwalking buddy! Pleasecome meet Annie andtake advantage of our“Spring Into Adoption”

    special. During April all animals over 25 lbs canbe adopted for FREE, so you can adopt Annie andreceive her spay, vaccines and microchip at nocharge! If you would like more information about Annie email [email protected]

    or call (404) 294-2165. All potential adopters will bescreened to ensure Annie goes to a good home.

    Pet of the Week 

    by Andrew [email protected]

    “This is your shot. Thiss it.”

    That’s what Scott Saly-ers, supervising castingproducer for SharkTank told metroAtlanta entrepre-neurs April 13 whowere participatingn a casting call

    for the business-hemed reality

    show on ABC.On the show,

    he “sharks,” agroup of self-made

    business tycoons,isten to entrepre-neurs’ brief pitchesand decide wheth-er they want to invest in theup-and-coming companies.

    During the casting callat Porter Sanford III Per-forming Arts & CommunityCenter in Decatur, dozens ofparticipants had up to threeminutes to pitch their busi-nesses.

    “The pitch is very im-portant,” Salyers said. “Itshould have a beginning, amiddle, and most impor-

    antly, an end. I don’t meano be rude, but sometimes

    people just keep going. Theywant to fill the dead air.”

    “It doesn’t matter todaywhat it is you’re pitching,”Salyers said. “It’s how you

    pitch it. It’s your conviction.It’s your passion.

    “That’s the thing that’s

    going to get you going to thenext round,” he said. “I wanteveryone to go to the nextround.”

    Encouraging the par-ticipants, Salyers said, “Bepassionate. Be excited. Actlike you care. The eventwas sponsored by by ValuesPartnerships, DeKalb Coun-ty Government, DeKalbChamber of Commerce, andOpportunity Hub.

    “The chamber supportsbusiness, and for you all tobe engaged and if businessesare successful you have to

    know what’s going on inyour local government, inyour county, because thepolicies that impact yourbusinesses are really critical,”said Katerina Taylor, presi-dent and CEO of DeKalb

    County Chamber of Com-merce, to the casting callparticipants.

    “I’m excited that youguys are here,” she said. “I’mexcited that somebody willgo on the show. Good luck.”

    Interim DeKalbCounty CEO LeeMay  said was ex-cited about theparticipants’ op-portunity.

    “I’m excitedthat the partnersfrom Shark Tank [are bringing] thisopportunity to ourgreat county,” he

    said.“I’m a recover-ing entrepreneur,”May said. “I pray

    for you all each and ev-ery day. It is my hope andprayers that you all wouldrealize your greatest dreams,thoughts and desires thatyou have planned.

    “We want you to makeas much money as you candream of,” May said. “Wewant you to create as many

     jobs as you can. We believetoday is just a tremendousopportunity for you to take

    that next step and realizethat dream.”

    The participants willhear from Shark Tank in ap-proximately two weeks.

    Local entrepreneurspitch to Shark Tank 

    Two children killed in high-speed accidentby Andrew Cauthen

    [email protected]

    Two children were killed

    n a three-car accident April12, according to DeKalbCounty Police.

    The accident occurredat 10.45 p.m. at the intersec-ion of Moreland Avenue

    and Constitution Road. “What our officers be-

    ieve occurred preliminarilys the drivers of a Lexus and

    a Monte Carlo were travel-ing at a high rate of speed

    southbound on Morelandwhen they struck a ChryslerSebring that was attemptingo turn…onto Constitution

    Road,” said police depart-

    ment spokeswoman MekkaParish.

    A mother and her threechildren were in the Chrys-er, Parish said. “Two of

    those three children havesince died as a result of theirinjuries.”

    The children who died

    were Lauren Coleman,3, and Jordan Coleman,4. The mother, Cazhara Lovett, and 6-year-old Jay-len Coleman were taken to

    a local hospital.

    Melanie Putnam, thedriver of the Lexus, and42-year-old James GeraldBenford, of Lithonia, whowas driving the MonteCarlo, face charges of ve-hicular homicide and reck-less driving, Parish said. Asof the morning of April 13,both drivers were receivingmedical treatment for theirinjuries.

    “Our detectives believethat speed was a contrib-uting factor,” Parish said.“There have been a numberof questions of whether ornot these cars were racing.That has not been deter-

    mined. That’s something weare definitely looking into.”

    Katerina Taylor, president and CEO of the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce,is interviewed by DCTV during a casting call for Shark Tank .

    From left, Interim DeKalb County CEO Lee May and Scott Salyers ofShark Tank , speak to entrepreneurs.

    Entrepreneurs line up for a chance to pitch their businesses to SharkTank. Photos by Andrew Cauthen

    ‘It doesn’t matter today what it isyou’re pitching. It’s how you pitchit.’

    -Scott Salyers

    James Benford

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    Longtime employee bringsleadership, continuity to workplaceby Kathy Mitchell

    Stories of people whostart work as young adultsthen retire from the samecompany with a gold watchmore than 40 years latermay be more a legend thana common occurrence. Cer-tainly such employees havebeen unusual among U.S.workers during the past 25years, according to the U.S.Bureau of Labor Statistics.

    The average time privatesector employees remainwith the same company hasremained approximately

    four and a half to five yearsduring the past quarter cen-tury, based on 2014 resultsof a survey the federal agen-cy takes every two years.

    As younger workerswith values different fromthose of their older col-eagues move into the job

    market the “gold watch” em-ployee appears to be becom-ng rarer.

    An article in ForbesMagazine noted, “While

    Baby Boomers started work-

    ing with an eye on gainingstability, raising a family,and ‘settling down,’ today’syoung workers take none ofthat for granted. Instead, asshown by [a recent] survey,they are more concernedthan their predecessors withfinding happiness and ful-fillment in their work lives.”

    The Bureau of LaborStatistics reports, “Amongworkers ages 60 to 64, 58percent were employed forat least 10 years with theircurrent employer in January2014, compared with only

    12 percent of those ages 30to 34.”

    The long tenured em-ployee has not disappearedfrom the job landscape,however. There are stillemployees such as Decaturresident Ameenah Musta-faah, who was recently rec-ognized by Bank of Americafor 46 years of service.

    “I worked briefly a fewother places, but the bankwas a good fit for me and

    it has worked out well,”

    said Mustafaah, who wentto work for Citizens &Southern Bank in 1969 andremained when it mergedwith Bank of America.

    Whether making fre-quent job changes or stayingwith one company is thebetter course depends onthe person and on the com-pany, according to an onlinearticle by human resourcesdevelopment expert ShirleyJ. Caruso. While some findthat they need to move onto move up, others savortheir roles as team builders

    and leaders as they providecontinuity to a corporateculture, she said.

    The corporate culture isamong the reasons Musta-faah said she has not lookedfor other employment. Shesaid coworkers have beenpleasant and “the supervi-sors I’ve had here have been

     just great. They take thetime to help you howeverthey can. I remember onewho was a real mentor to

    me.”

    Mustafaah, who vol-unteers with Project OpenHand and other charitableorganizations, said she alsolikes that Bank of Americasupports the community.“During the 1996 OlympicGames they allowed those ofus who had enough volun-teer hours to work full timeon the Olympics. I workedin security at Olympic Sta-dium, which later becameTurner Field. It’s an experi-ence I’ll never forget as longas I live,” she said.

    Recalling many changes

    during the past 46 years,Mustafaah said her phi-losophy is “just deal with it.There’s no reason to stressout about things you can’tdo anything about. I try togo to work every day andgive 110 percent. Then I justgo with the flow.”

    Mustafaah, who hasa husband, children andgrandchildren, said she likesthe stability and the qual-ity benefits package her

    employer has offered over

    the years. Now a servicefulfillment associate, shehas held a variety of posi-tions during her years withBank of America, includingresearch and adjustmentsclerk and team leader. Inthe late 1990s her job wasmoved to a Charlotte, N.C.,office. Rather than move,she took a part-time job inAtlanta until she was offereda new fulltime position afew months later.

    If she had it to do again,Mustafaah said, she wouldchange just one thing. “I

    started college, but I didn’tfinish. If I could go backto the start of my career, Iwould get my degree.”

    Mustafaah said shethinks of retirement, but hasmade no definite plans, add-ing, “I’ve had a great experi-ence working here and lookforward to celebrating my50-year milestone in fourshort years.”

     

    DeKalb Chamber of Commerce • Two Decatur Town Center, 125 Clairemont Ave., Suite, Decatur, GA 30030 • 404.378.8000 • www.dekalbchamber.org 

    LOCALLY DRIVEN

    Ameenah Mustafaah says her success formula is “go to work every day and give 110 percent.”

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 15ALOCAL

    Anniversary Continued From Page 1A 

    Protestors rally at police department

    edy, but they brought a lot of greatife and vitality and I choose to re-

    member the joy that they brought toAvondale, while still rememberinghem,” he said.

    Cook and Hill said the commu-nity has been doing better since the

    ire.“I think the hardcore grief is

    over, but I don’t think a day goes byhat pretty much everyone in the

    neighborhood doesn’t think abouthem,” Hill said. “It’s still very much

    on everybody’s mind every day.”“It has really brought the com-

    munity together,” Cook said. “Ev-erybody has really rallied behindeach other, and supporting all thefamilies in any way that we can. It

     just strengthens the community and

    brought us all closer together.”Cook said he has heard from oth-

    ers that the family is still recoveringfrom the fire.

    “From what I’ve heard fromother friends who are in contact

    with [Dave], I understand that Jackis recovering nicely,” he said.

    The community is continuing tosupport the family.

    “I think everyone has continuedto have an open door policy. ‘If thereis anything we can do, anything,

    anytime we’re here to do it,” Hillsaid. “I think Tami’s family has beengood at keeping everyone updatedabout how things are going with thefamily, and everyone is eager forinformation to keep track of how

    they are doing. I think it’s just thisconstant awareness of, ‘Hey, if thereis anything that we can do, let usknow.’”

    “I think Avondale and the fami-lies here will do whatever it takes tocontinue to support Dave and Jack

    in any way that they need us to sup-port them, whatever that may be,”Cook said.

    by Andrew [email protected]

    Approximately 30 protestors gathered out-

    side the DeKalb County Police DepartmentApril 8 to protest the shooting by police of anunarmed Black man in March.

    “I could not imagine getting the phone calltelling me your child has been killed, yourchild is gone,” said Dawn Garrison, a Gwinnettresident who is a member of the Black Law Stu-dents Association at John Marshall Law Schoolof Atlanta.

    “I could not imagine that phone call and,because of that, I am here,” said Garrison, amother of two sons, 31 and 13. “I am here forAnthony Hill because I don’t want anotherAnthony Hill in DeKalb County. “I don’t wantanother one of our men dying foolishly.”

    Te rally was organized to protest police-involved shootings such as the March 9 shoot-

    ing death of Hill, 27, of Chamblee. He wasnaked and unarmed when he was shot byDeKalb County Police Officer Robert Olsen,who responded to a call about a man acting“deranged,” knocking on apartment doors andcrawling on the ground, Cedric Alexander,deputy chief operating officer for public safety,stated in a March news conference.

    Te Georgia Bureau of Investigation is look-ing into the incident to determine whetherOlsen, who is White, acted properly when hefatally shot Hill, who was Black and describedhimself publicly as bipolar.

    “I’m here today because I’m a law schoolstudent,” Garrison said. “If we don’t speak out,if we don’t say anything then who’s going to say

    something?”Garrison said the officer had options otherthan shooting Hill.

    Te officer “had two feet; he could leave,”Garrison said. “He had a patrol car that hecould drive. All of these things he could havedone, but he chose to pull his gun out and takethat woman’s child from this earth. Tat is whyI am here. I am a mother and I don’t want thatphone call.”

    Eric Echols, an investigator for Te Chest-nut Firm who has investigated the Hill case,said, “I’m not against the police. I was a mili-tary police officer in the U. S. Marine Corps, soI support them. Te police as a whole are notbad. Tey are the first responders in any givensituation when you need help.”

    Echols said police officers responding to pri-marily minority areas need to have sensitivitytraining.

    “When you see someone coming towards

    you who is unclothed, the first thing thatshould come to your mind is victim and notsuspect,” Echols said. “When you have that inmind, then the dynamics change on how you

    are going to respond.“DeKalb has a pretty good police depart-ment, however, there are a small few that ruinthe bunch,” Echols said. “Tat’s a lack of train-ing, that’s a lack of education.

    “Te system failed him,” Echols said aboutHill.

    Anthony Showell, 27, president of the JohnMarshall’s Black Law Students Association, saidthe purpose of the rally was to “continue thedialog that Black lives do matter.

    “We want people to know that the…unjusti-fied killing of unarmed African-American menis unacceptable,” said Showell, 27. “We just wantto ensure that there is justice and fairness forall.

    “We just want to make sure there’s adequate

    procedures in place to ensure that the rightthing is happening for all, regardless of whatcolor you are,” he said. “I want to make surethere is justice for African-American men.”

    Showell said people should not rally onlywhen someone is “murdered.”

    “We are here today to make sure that peopleare continuing to talk about it, regardless ofwhere you stand on the issue, to ensure that adifference is made in the community and in theworld,” he said.

    Peggy Ellison, a John Marshall Law Schoolstudent and Henry County resident, was one ofa few who attended the rally to support DeKalbpolice.

    “I think as a general rule, police have a very

    dangerous job and that we should supportthem,” said Ellison, adding that John MarshallLaw School students will receive extra credit ifthey take a picture at the rally.

    Ellison said she supports the county’s deputychief operating officer for public safety, “whohas been handpicked by President BarackObama to serve on his task force to look atthese issues.

    “I think [Alexander] does a very good joband I think if there’s a problem within his de-partment he’s going to handle it,” Ellison said.

    “Te reputation of what he’s done in DeKalbspeaks for itself that we have as few incidentsas we do,” she added. “I think they do a fine joband I’m here to support them.”

    Calling police involved shootings “unfortu-

    nate incidents,” Ellison said, “We don’t know allthe facts. As law students, before we react weshould…let the police officers do their job be-fore we prematurely go protest.”

    Police-involved shootings were the reason law students fromJohn Marshall Law School rallied at the DeKalb County PoliceDepartment April 8. Photos by Andrew Cauthen.

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    Page 16A The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015

     

    LOCAL

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 PAGE 17AEDUCATION

     www.thechampionnewspaper.com

    by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

    DeKalb County Board of Edu-cation Chairman Melvin Johnson released a statement on April 8 con-firming the board has taken actionon allegations that against boardmember Marshall Orson, that hewas to involved in efforts of Atlantaannex part of DeKalb County.

    Johnson said the board dis-cussed the allegations against Orson

    in an April 1 executive session.“Consistent with board policies

    and protocol, the board discussedthe matter and acted in a unifiedmanner,” Johnson said.

    He added, “Since this is a per-sonnel matter, details of the board’sactions will not be revealed. Basedupon these actions, the board con-siders the matter closed. The boardwill continue to work together in aunified manner, committed to thewelfare of all students in the DeKalb

    County School District.”Reports of Orson’s association

    with pro-annexation groups sur-faced after an open records requestfor Orson’s DeKalb County and per-sonal email.

    Once the emails were madepublic Orson denied advocacy andsaid his emails were being misinter-preted.

    Despite repeated calls for him tostep down from his position. Orsonsaid he will not resign.

    He said, “My goal is and has al-ways been for us to understand andengage on a difficult issue and toaddress it as a school district. TheDruid Hills Cluster, in particular,represents the diversity and strengthof DeKalb. On this issue and oth-ers, I have engaged with a varietyof groups and individuals acrossour community. I have no plans toresign and will continue to servethe children and citizens of DeKalbCounty. This matter is closed.”

    by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

    More than 200 students, facultyand visitors attended an April 9 lec-ure on Emory University’s campus

    presented by former President Jim-my Carter titled Ebola, Democracy,Human Rights and Public Health,he sixth installment of a series of

    discussions and panels concerninghe 2014 Ebola crisis.

    The former president discussedhe Carter Center’s efforts in Liberia

    and applauded Emory for its treat-ment of infected individuals whocarried the Ebola virus.

    Carter recalled his first visit toLiberia in 1978 and recognized Li-berian nursing student Fatu Kekula,who saved the lives of three familymembers afflicted with the virus be-fore enrolling at the Nell HodgsonWoodruff School of Nursing.

    “As all of you probably know,Liberia is the closest country inAfrica to the United States,” Carteraid, while reiterating the nation’s

    establishment by United States citi-zens as a colony for freed African-American slaves.

    Carter also discussed the CarterCenter’s delegations to Liberiahroughout the 1990s during the

    country’s first civil war. He said thecenter held discussions on democ-

    acy and launched human rightsand media programs.

    Still, Carter said, the center’smain focus was health care.

    Carter said the center initiatedefforts to educate Liberians on howo avoid contracting and spread-ng tropical diseases such as guinea

    worm disease, which can be con-racted through unclean drinking

    water.When the Ebola outbreak began

    in March 2014 and other organi-zations were slow to respond, theCarter Center’s involvement in Li-beria proved an advantage, he said.

    “[Ebola] was basically ignoredby the World Health Organization(WHO), the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention (CDC), thelocal health organizations,” Cartersaid.

    Carter added when other orga-nizations realized the severity of thecrisis the Carter Center had already

    begun training nurses for a mentalhealth program in the country ledby his wife, Rosalynn Carter.

    “By the time March 2014 camealong, 144 nurses had already beentrained, so we decided to train themfor Ebola treatment,” Carter said.

    He added that, along with twoother public health programs inLiberia, the Carter Center was wellprepared for the crisis last year, and“it was natural that we gave our at-

    tention to the problem of Ebola inLiberia.”

    Still, he noted that the WHOand the CDC had not declared theoutbreak an emergency until late inthe summer of 2014.

    Throughout the lecture and aquestion and answer session, Carterstressed the importance of educat-ing citizens in affected countries.

    Informing the locals of the im-portance of staying away from thebodies of those who had died of

    Ebola as one example of a majorchallenge in this area, Carter said.The forum was organized by the

    Institute of African Studies, the In-stitute for Developing Nations andthe Nell Hodgson School of Nurs-ing.

    The forum concludes on April13 with Ebola: Moving Forward onResearch, Curriculum, and GlobalPartnerships.

    County board responds to board member’s alleged annexation efforts

    President Carter discussesEbola at Emory University 

    Former President Jimmy Carter discusses theCarter Center’s efforts to educate Liberiansabout Ebola. Photos by Ashley Oglesby

    U.S. President Jimmy Carter, University Distinguished Professor at Emory, answers ques-tions posed by Emory University students and visitors.

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 18ASPORTS

    Redan wins

    DeKalbgymnastics title

    Redan freshman Zaaynah Saadiq won the all-around goldmedal. Photos by Mark Brock 

     The Redan Lady Raiders won the DeKalb County Gymnastics title after scoring 86.5 points.

    Dunwoody’s Anna Boss won the balance beam competition witha score of 8.20.

    Redan’s Miyah Hemingway won third in all-around.

    y Carla Parker [email protected]

    The 50th edition of the DeKalb Countygymnastics Championships was the closesteam scores since the 1991 championships andeatured a Redan sweep of the team and all-round titles March 31.

    Freshmen Zaaynah Saadiq and MiyaHemingway combined for 62.55 points of theRedan Lady Raiders’ 86.5 points to lead Redan

    ast Dunwoody by just .65 points, as the top

    our teams nished within 4.85 points of eachther.

    Three-time defending champion Lakeside84.85) came up just 1.85 points back to nishhird while Arabia Mountain (81.65) came inourth with a 4.85 points decit.

    The .65 point separating Redan and Dun-woody was the closest nish since Tucker102.50) edged Redan (102.45) by just .05 of aoint for the 1991 title.

    Saadiq placed in all four individual events,ncluding a win on the uneven parallel bars

    with a score of 8.35, and second on the bal-nce beam (7.85), to score 32.20 total pointso edge out Dunwoody freshman Anna Boss 31.00) by just 1.20 points for the all-around

    gold medal.Boss won the balance beam competitionwith a score of 8.20, second in the uneven par-llel bars (6.90) and fourth on the oor exercise7.95) as she took second in the all-around.

    Hemingway won the oor exercise (8.55),was runner-up in the vault (8.35) and third onhe bars (6.80) to take third in the all-around.

    All top three nishers were freshman.Arabia Mountain junior Nia Freeman won

    he vault (8.50) and nished fth in the all-round to help the Lady Rams to their fourth-lace nish and improve on her sixth-place

    nish of a year ago.Chamblee sophomore Maulana Young was

    ourth in the all-around with 30.05 points withbest nish of second in the oor (8.10).

    Tucker sophomore Kiara Timmons helpedhe underclassmen dominate the all-around

    nishing in sixth with 29.50 points with third-lace nishes in the vault (8.30) and oor exer -ise (8.00).

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    The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015 Page 19ASPORTS

    by Carla [email protected]

    Columbia’s baseball team becamehe sole leader in first place in Region

    6-AAAA after beating Arabia Mountain1-0 at home April 13.

    After scoring the lone run in thefourth inning, Columbia’s defense andgood pitching by senior Jalen Atter-bury  allowed the Eagles to hang to the1-0 victory.

    “They found a way to get it done,”

    aid Coach Steve Dennis. “It was a biggame for them.”

    In the top of the third inning, Co-umbia found itself in a bind with the

    bases loaded and two outs with Char-vez Carter at bat for Arabia Mountain.However, Atterbury struck out Cartero close out the top of the inning.

    “From the last two batters I kind ofust went through the motions since it

    was two outs,” Atterbury said. “I had toake a break, just get back focused and

    pray, and just finish the inning off andgive my team the victory.”

    Atterbury pitched all seven innings,earning the win. He allowed only three

    hits and pitched 12 strikeouts. Atter-bury said he had a lot of confidence inhis pitching coming into the game.

    “[I had] confidence in my curveball, and the fastball just followed, andeally the two-seam [fastball] change upust fell in play,” he said. “The coaches

    guessed my pitches, and I had alreadyhad my fingers on the seams when hecalled it, so that was really the benefit ofhe day.”

    In the bottom of the fourth inningwith a man on second base, senior El-iot Hammonds hit a RBI single to give

    Columbia the 1-0 lead.Columbia improved its record to

    11-2 in the region and 13-6 overall. The

    Eagles played Arabia Mountain againApril 15 (scored was not available bypress time), and have five more gameso play before the Region 6-AAAAournament. Dennis said his team

    needs to improve on “consistently put-ing the ball in play” if they want to suc-

    ceed in the tournament.“[Carter] threw great today,” Dennis

    aid. “He kept...moving the ball up anddown, kept changing the eye level—hedid a great job against us. But, we haveo do a better job putting the ball in

    play consistently.”Atterbury said the team needs to

    keep the momentum going.

    “[We have to] work hard pitching-wise, score first every inning and justwin every inning,” he said.

    Defense leadsColumbiato win overArabiaMountain

    Columbia pitcher Jalen Atterburry throws a pitch to Arabia Mountain’s Lionel Shanklin.

    Arabia Mountain’s Kobe Atkins waits for a pitch. Columbia’s Khaalis King waits for the pitch.

    The game featured a pitching duel between Columbia pitcher Jalen Atterburry and Arabia Mountain pitcher Charvez Carter. Atter-burry allowed only three hits and pitched 12 strikeouts, and Carter allowed one hit, one run and pitched 10 strikeouts.

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    Page 20A The Champion Free Press, Friday, April 17, 2015

     

    LOCAL


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