Blog Topic: Breaking News

In the Loop: Rep. Chuck Williams May Be Stepping Down, Too

By Blake Aued | August 25, 2017 9:57am

Thursday, we reported that Gov. Nathan Deal had appointed state Rep. Regina Quick (R-Athens) a Superior Court judge. Now, Deal might be eyeing another Athens legislator.

Rep. Chuck Williams (R-Watkinsville), who owns a tree farm in south Oconee, is under consideration for a position on the Georgia Forestry Commission, Lee Becker reported last night at Oconee County Observations.

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In the Loop: Regina Quick Named Superior Court Judge

By Blake Aued | August 24, 2017 11:54am

Gov. Nathan Deal has named state Rep. Regina Quick (R-Athens) to the bench, announcing her appointment as a judge on the Western Circuit Superior Court this morning.

Quick will replace David Sweat, who retired as chief judge July 31. The other superior court judges—Eric Norris and Lawton Stephens—selected Judge Patrick Haggard as the new chief judge.

Besides representing District 117 in the state House, Quick is a solo practitioner, mainly in the area of family law. Superior court judges hear divorce and child custody cases, in addition to other civil lawsuits and felony criminal cases.

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In the Loop: Mark Martin Announces Commission District 2 Candidacy

By Blake Aued | August 11, 2017 12:52pm

Photo Credit: courtesy of Mark Martin

Teacher Mark Martin will announce he's running for Commissioner Harry Sims' District 2 seat at 10 a.m. Saturday at City Hall.

Martin, a Cedar Shoals High School graduate and an eighth-grade math teacher at Hilsman Middle School, is the first to say he's running for the soon-to-be vacant seat.

Sims is stepping down next year to run for mayor after 26 years on the commission.

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In the Loop: The Alleged 40 Watt Burglar Has Died

By Blake Aued | August 6, 2017 3:45pm

Photo Credit: Clarke County Sheriff's Office

The man who was charged with burglarizing the 40 Watt Club last week died on Thursday, according to an obituary in the Athens Banner-Herald.

Michael Wilson Simpson, 35, died at his home in Athens, says the obituary, which does not give a cause of death.

Athens-Clarke County police confirmed he is the same man who was arrested last week in connection with the burglary at the 40 Watt.

Simpson, a musician and sound technician who formerly worked at the 40 Watt, stole dozens of microphones, amplifiers and other music equipment worth approximately $20,000 while the famed music venue was closed the morning of July 28, according to police.

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In the Loop: Russell Edwards Is Running for Commission District 7

By Blake Aued | July 27, 2017 3:42pm

Flagpole reported a couple of weeks ago that activist and business owner Russell Edwards was considering a run for mayor.

As it turns out, Edwards is passing on that race, but he will seek the Commission District 7 seat currently held by Diane Bell.

In a statement released this afternoon, Edwards said:

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In the Loop: Police Identify Men Involved in Fatal Downtown Stabbing

By Blake Aued | July 24, 2017 11:39am

Photo Credit: Kelly Hart/file

The 909 Broad apartment building.

Police identified this morning the two men who were involved in a fatal stabbing at a downtown apartment building Friday.

Robert E. Bryan, 21, stabbed his roommate, Wesley Ford, 24, during a dispute about Bryan moving out of their apartment at 909 Broad, according to Athens-Clarke County police.

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In the Loop: Kelly Girtz Is Finally Officially Running for Mayor, Almost

By Blake Aued | July 20, 2017 12:56pm

Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file

Commissioner Kelly Girtz speaks at a rally to expand Medicaid in 2015.

Athens-Clarke County Commissioner Kelly Girtz has already told Flagpole, the Banner-Herald and WXAG 1470 AM, among others, that he plans to run for mayor in 2018, but he hasn't done much, you know, actual campaigning. That will change soon.

Girtz announced a campaign kickoff event this morning, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 9 from 10 a.m.–noon at the Lyndon House Arts Center.

"We can build a strong foundation that will support Athenians of every walk of life, one that will set the stage for great lives for generations ahead,” Girtz said in a news release. “A safer, healthier, more prosperous Athens is awaiting, and I can't wait to work with you to build it.”

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In the Loop: Democratic Candidate for Governor Stacey Abrams Talks Saving HOPE, Voter Suppression at Athens Rally

By Blake Aued | July 15, 2017 4:26pm

Photo Credit: Richard Hamm

House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams smiles during a speech at Pulaski Heights BBQ on Saturday.

In 2011, when Republicans voted to cut the HOPE Scholarship that, until then, had provided free college tuition to every Georgia high-school student with a B average, they had help from an unlikely place: Stacey Abrams, the highest-ranking Democrat in the state House.

Abrams made an agreement with Gov. Nathan Deal that, if he removed a provision tying HOPE to test scores and included low-interest loans for students who would no longer have their full tuition covered by HOPE, she’d back the bill. The move split her caucus, and could come back to bite her as she runs for governor. One of those who criticized her actions was state Rep. Stacey Evans (D-Smyrna), who’s now her opponent in the May 2018 primary.

“The argument that we should let the HOPE Scholarship die so we could use it as a political tool four years later is absurd, because students don’t have the luxury of a do-over, especially four-year-olds who’d lose access to pre-K,” said Abrams (D-Atlanta).

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In the Loop: Doug McKillip and Houston Gaines Are Running for State House

By Blake Aued | July 12, 2017 1:18pm

Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file

Houston Gaines.

Two familiar faces in local politics will vie for an Athens seat in the state House of Representatives.

Houston Gaines—the grandson of the late Judge Joseph Gaines, Mayor Nancy Denson's campaign manager in 2014 and last year's UGA Student Government Association president—announced his candidacy this morning for the District 117 seat. Flagpole profiled him three years ago.

Gaines said in a news release that he is running as a "new, conservative voice."

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In the Loop: Athens Lawyer Announces Mayoral Candidacy

By Blake Aued | July 7, 2017 4:38pm

Samuel Thomas.

Another candidate has stepped forward to run for Athens-Clarke County mayor: Samuel Thomas, a lawyer and Athens native. Thomas is a political newcomer, although he comes from a political family—his grandfather ran for mayor in the 1970s, and his father ran for mayor of nearby Crawford.

Thomas grew up on the Eastside and in Oglethorpe County, left to attend law school at the University of Alabama, then returned to open a family law practice in 2012.

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