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Indictment: 4 examiners faked 130 driver licenses
Four former driver's license examiners who worked in Lithonia have been indicted in a scheme to issue more than 130 licenses to illegal immigrants. Two of the examiners also obtained false commercial driver's licenses and landed jobs driving MARTA buses, according to an indictment from a federal grand jury. Former examiners Shijuanna Cobb, 33, of Ellenwood, Rickell Patterson, 31, of Covington, Angela Read, 38, of Lithonia and Chardye Lloyd, 23, of Conyers were arrested Wednesday and arraigned before a U.S. magistrate judge in Atlanta, according to a statement issued by David Nahmias, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia. The four examiners were charged with identity theft and conspiracy to commit fraud, related to issuing licenses for the illegal immigrants. The four also were charged separately with conspiracy to transfer false identification related to a handful of commercial driver's licenses.
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Clarkston standoff ends; suspect found under bed
A three-hour hostage standoff in DeKalb County ended peacefully when a police SWAT team found the suspect hiding under a bed. The incident began shortly after 3 a.m., when police received a domestic violence call regarding a man firing a gun outside an apartment at the English Oaks complex in the 4100 block of Church Street in Clarkston, according to Clarkston police Chief Tony Scipio. When officers arrived, the suspect retreated into the apartment, Scipio said. Two women escaped from the apartment, but a 6-month-old child and a 1-year-old child remained inside, he said.
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New DeKalb nightclubs face restrictions
A policy conflict over late-night partying finally ended in DeKalb County this week when the County Commission quietly imposed new controls on nightclubs and other drinking establishments. The new law uses zoning to restrict where clubs and other "late night establishments" can open, and it authorizes officials to impose conditions on facilities seeking to operate near neighborhoods. It does not affect existing bars, restaurants and nightclubs unless the owners undertake a major renovation or lose their alcohol license. The ordinance proposed by Commissioner Jeff Rader was approved by a 5-0 vote Tuesday after commissioners added it to the agenda of an evening planning and zoning meeting.
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Astronauts from Georgia Tech saluted during game
Georgia Tech fans were treated to a live feed of space shuttle Endeavour and their alumni crew members on the Bobby Dodd Stadium video board Thursday night. Aboard the spacecraft are three Tech grads, pilot Col. Eric Boe and crew members Lt. Col. Robert "Shane" Kimbrough and Sandra Magnus. The crowd, already fired up by Tech's early 3-0 lead over Miami, cheered its approval as the astronauts were saluted between the first and second quarters. Among the Tech faithful at Bobby Dodd Stadium was one fan dressed as an astronaut. Earlier in the evening, the shuttle, docked with the international space station, passed over Atlanta at about 6:10, the school said. The station was visible as a moving star-like light in the sky.
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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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Doraville adds policy on transgender employees
Doraville has become the latest Georgia city to add transgender employees to its nondiscrimination policy. The move means transgender workers — those whose biological and gender identity are not the same — cannot be fired or mistreated in the northern DeKalb County city. "We have never discriminated against anyone, and we never will," said Mayor Ray Jenkins. "We want to stay ahead of the issue." The policy puts Doraville in rare company. Atlanta and Decatur are the only other cities in the state that protect transgender workers.
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Avondale to discuss annexation Thursday
The Avondale Estates City Commission will hold a special call meeting at 5:30 p.m. tonight to discuss the annexation of commercial and residential land. The city has been studying annexation of parcels along East College Avenue west of Maple Street and the city line. The meeting is at City Hall, 21 North Avondale Plaza. For more information, call 404-294-5400 or go online to www.avondaleestates.org.
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Counties debate, decide to take $81M in foreclosure aid
Georgia's largest local governments have all agreed to ask for federal money to create governmental house-flipping programs in hopes of propping up values in neighborhoods beset by foreclosures. In all, Atlanta and Fulton, DeKalb, Gwinnett, Clayton and Cobb counties stand to get about $81 million in federal aid through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program. There's a total of $153 million headed to Georgia. The program is part of the federal government's ongoing efforts to resolve the economic and foreclosure crisis. It allows local governments to buy problem foreclosures, fix them up and then sell or rent the properties to some of the same folks who have lost their homes during the crisis. They can also use it to create special financing to make the properties affordable.
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Agnes Scott tuition rises slightly
The cost of a year at Agnes Scott College is going up, but not much. The overall cost of tuition, fees, room and board for the 2009-2010 school year will be $39,955, compared to $38,910 this year, officials said. The college's trustees approved new financial-aid plans to ensure that top students can afford to attend Agnes Scott. The Agnes Solution, for example, guarantees $64,200 in merit aid over four years to Georgia students eligible for the HOPE scholarship. To keep costs down, the historic women's college will be sending out holiday greetings via e-mail and forgoing the big rented tent for graduation, said president Elizabeth Kiss. Some hires also will be postponed.
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Final school bus cutback forum is Thursday night
DeKalb County school officials tonight hold the last of four meetings for parents and students affected by cutbacks in student busing. The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. at Columbia High School. Starting Jan. 6, busing will be cut back for most students who attend schools outside their neighborhood; the cutback will start next school year for Champion Theme Middle School.
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Clarkston aims to showcase its multicultural heart
Clarkston actually does have what it calls a downtown, and no, it's not the area around Georgia Perimeter College. That's just outside the one square-mile city. Downtown Clarkston is a collection of 1950s-ish strip buildings on Market Street and East Ponce de Leon Avenue, across the train tracks from City Hall. The buildings are boring, but the area is alive with a steady parade of residents of the incredibly diverse town, about one-third of whose populace is foreign-born.
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Cigarette warehouse goes up in smoke
DeKalb County firefighters Thursday morning battled a three-alarm blaze that destroyed a large warehouse off Lawrenceville Highway. The fire apparently started before 6:30 a.m. in a storage trailer parked behind the A to Z Wholesale warehouse on Jordan Lane, according to DeKalb fire spokesman Fred Johnson. The fire spread into the warehouse, eventually causing the roof of the building to collapse, Johnson said.
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SWAT team nabs fugitive wanted in shooting
Gwinnett deputies on Wednesday arrested a fugitive wanted in connection with a shooting in DeKalb County. Deputies received information Wednesday morning from DeKalb County's fugitive unit that Bertram Alton Gordon was holed up at a residence near Norcross with several firearms. He had also made threats that he was not going back to jail, according to Gwinnett County Sheriff's spokeswoman Stacey Bourbonnais. A SWAT team was preparing to force entry into the house, on the 6000 block of Rotondo Place, when Gordon opened the door and got down on the ground. Gordon was arrested without a fight and released to the custody of DeKalb County, where he faces an aggravated assault charge. — Andria Simmons
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Fire at Jewish frat house at Emory investigated
DeKalb County fire officials are investigating the cause of a small fire started over the weekend at a predominantly Jewish fraternity house at Emory University. The fire happened during what some have dubbed "Palestinian Week," which included the building of a mock fence to protest Israel's West Bank security barrier. According to a statement released by Emory, the fire was reported early Sunday morning in a side-entrance doorway of the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house. The fire damaged to the door's wooden framing and caused smoke damage inside. There were no injuries and the house is considered habitable.
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Clarkston police unveil secret weapon
Clarkston city police Wednesday officially unveiled their latest weapon against crime: a blue-light equipped, four-seater golf cart. The cart can't go more than 40 mph, but within a month's time it has helped officers nab two burglary supects, foil a couple of drug sales behind convenience stores, cut down on criminal activity on a bike path and collar some truants. "This car is electric. They can't hear it come," said police Chief Tony Scipio. "With this thing, we're able to drive on the sidewalks, up close and personal. By the time they see it, it's too late. They can't outrun it."
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