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Alpharetta teen finishes second on 'Jeopardy!'
Alpharetta teen Bradley Silverman took 2nd place Friday in this year's edition of "Jeopardy!" for teens. Silverman pocketed $44,600 in the final of the popular TV game show that aired Friday night on WATL-TV. Bradley, a 16-year-old junior at Centennial High School in Roswell, said he plans to study engineering at MIT or Georgia Tech, and plans to use his winnings to pay for college. He was among the best out of thousands of teens who tried out for the game show.
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2 men flee after chase ends in wreck
Sandy Springs and DeKalb County police are searching for two men who ran away Friday after wrecking a car while being pursued by officers. DeKalb police captured a third man immediately after the car chase, which involved several vehicles. He was captured near Mount Vernon Drive and Abernathy Road, Sandy Springs police said. The search is focusing on the area around Crestline Parkway in Sandy Springs.
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Forsyth meeting gets rocky over greenspace
A majority of the Forsyth County Commission threatened to shut down Thursday night's meeting in a dispute over greenspace acquisition. What angered the three was a move by the other two commissioners — Jim Harrell and Chairman Charles Laughinghouse — to postpone a scheduled vote on buying about 60 acres of green space on the county's southside. County Commissioner Linda Ledbetter said the two were intent on keeping her from being part of buying green space for the county.
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Forsyth again delays upscale mall deal
For the sixth time in five months, the Forsyth County Commission on Thursday postponed signing off on a agreement that's critical to plans for an upscale regional mall on the county's southside. But County Commission Chairman Charles Laughinghouse said all the delays don't spell trouble for the agreement with retail developer Taubman Co. Officials want to "get it right and get it right the first time," Laughinghouse told the audience at Thursday's county commission meeting.
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Report: Fulton, DeKalb DFCS offices improve
The state child welfare offices in Fulton and DeKalb counties have improved their oversight of abused and neglected children in foster care, according to a report by experts chosen by a federal court to monitor the system. The report credits the state Division of Family and Children Services with increasing the number of face-to-face visits between children and the caseworkers responsible for their well-being, although it did cite other continuing problems. The report said the agencies were doing a better job of placing children in foster homes that have undergone adequate background checks and safety screenings.
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Bids taken for new 400/Hammond interchange
The state Transportation Board on Thursday voted to take bids to design and build a new interchange at Ga. 400 and Hammond Drive. The project will put a half-diamond interchange there so drivers can go northbound from Hammond onto Ga. 400 and southbound from Ga. 400 onto Hammond, according to a local group that has backed the project. It will also replace the bridge, making it higher and longer so that DOT can add more lanes to the highway underneath some day, said officials with the Perimeter Community Improvement Districts, a self-taxing business district that helped pay for the project. An important function of the project is to relieve some of the congestion at Ga. 400 and I-285, one of the most congested chokepoints in Georgia, said Yvonne Williams, president of the Perimeter CIDs, which pushed hard for the project.
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5 charged in Forsyth County gang vandalism
Five suspected gang members have been arrested by the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office for reportedly vandalizing more than a dozen buildings, including a local high school. Three 17-year-olds were charged as adults, and two 16-year-olds as juveniles, Sheriff Ted Paxton said. The five have been linked to vandalism in south Forsyth County and Cumming in late October and early November, the sheriff's office said in a prepared statement.
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Forsyth wades into troubled bond market
Forsyth County is at the bond markets this week, looking to borrow $118 million. The county wants $83 million to start work on a $100 million parks, recreation and green space program approved by voters in February. The remaining $35 million is being sought to jump-start projects slated to be funded with a five-year extension of the county's special purpose local option sales tax, or SPLOST. Tax collections started July 1 and have been much less than expected, largely due to the slumping economy and a related drop in consumer spending.
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Milton weighs tightening noise ordinance
The Milton City Council is continuing its research into how much noise is too much. The council, which is weighing whether to tighten its noise ordinance, is trying to find a middle ground between protecting homeowners and not harming businesses and other groups. Residents near Montana's Grille have complained that the music at night bothers them. The owners of Montana's Grille say the music is popular and helps them stay afloat. Mayor Joe Lockwood said the council should consider possible consequences on churches, pool parties, schools and other businesses should the ordinance be tightened too much.
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Forsyth nixes driver's license center
The Forsyth County Commission refused Tuesday to commit to building a new state driver's license center. The costs of constructing the center, which have yet to be determined, would have been offset by a $12,500-a-month rent payment to the county from the state Department of Driver Services (DDS). County Commissioner Jim Harrell said he was concerned that the state's budget crunch might mean the DDS will not always be able to make the rent.
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Driver clocked at 120+ mph dies in Roswell crash
Roswell police have identified a man killed Tuesday when his car struck a bridge abutment on Ga. 400 and Holcomb Bridge Road. Christian Michael Gomez, 35, of Roswell was clocked at Haynes Bridge Road and Ga. 400 traveling at about 120 mph as he headed south, police said. Alpharetta police didn't chase him because he was out of sight in moments. But as he approached Holcomb Bridge, another driver saw him coming up fast on from the rear, and she tried to get out of his way by moving to the shoulder, police said. Gomez apparently intended to drive around her on the shoulder because he made the same move.
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Forsyth hiring freeze won't affect 911 center
A hiring freeze in Forsyth County will not apply to the county's 911 center. The Forsyth County Commission voted 5-0 Tuesday to exempt the agency from a hiring freeze that has been in effect for several months for most county departments. Pat Giordano, the center's director, told commissioners Tuesday she needs to fill six positions at the center, which dispatches calls for the county fire department, sheriff's office and emergency medical transport services.
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Vice charges dropped because cop had sex
The Sandy Springs solicitor has dropped prostitution-related charges against four women who were arrested after a vice detective engaged in sex with them. Solicitor Bill Riley said such behavior calls into question a detective's motives and makes the cases more difficult to prosecute. Moreover, Riley wanted to send a message to other detectives that such behavior crosses a line. "It goes to the officer's credibility," he said. "The defense always says the sex was consensual, that it wasn't sex for hire. It's a policy decision. We don't want a policy that encourages officers to do that. If we don't prosecute, the guys get the message and they tailor their work to something that can get prosecuted."
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Sandy Springs OKs buying old Target store for City Hall
Sandy Springs has picked a location for a future City Hall, although city officials aren't ready to commit to any timeline for construction or renovation. The City Council voted 5-1 Tuesday to authorize the $8 million purchase of a commercial property on Johnson Ferry Road, near Roswell Road. The 8-acre tract is now occupied by a recently shuttered Target store. The acquisition got a mixed review from an audience of 25 residents, some of whom spoke at a public hearing before the vote.
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Home site near Chattahoochee River to be preserved
A 22-acre home site in Sandy Springs near the Chattahoochee River has been purchased and will be protected from development under a public-private partnership announced Tuesday. The tract, called the Lost Corner Preserve, is worth an estimated $2.6 million. The state donated $250,000 to purchase the property. Other donors were the homeowner, the city of Sandy Springs, the Trust for Public Land and the Sandy Springs Conservancy. The site, at the southwest corner of Dalrymple Road and Brandon Mill Road, is about 2,000 feet from the Chattahoochee River. A Craftsman-style bungalow sits on the property that is home to native perennials and hardwoods, some of which are at least 200 years old, according to the Georgia Land Conservation Program.
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