Chattooga County Gets "A" For Air Quality From American Lung Association
The American Lung Association has released its 2024 “State of the Air” report, which covers air quality and pollution levels across the United States.
“In the 25 years that the American Lung Association has been doing our ‘State of the Air’ report, we have seen incredible improvement in the nation’s air quality. Unfortunately, more than 131 million people still live in places with unhealthy levels of air pollution, and Metro Atlanta still has work to do,” Danna Thompson, Advocacy Director for the American Lung Association in Georgia, said in a statement. “Climate change is making air pollution more likely to form and more difficult to clean up. There are actions we can and must take to improve air quality, such as calling on EPA to set long-overdue stronger national limits on ozone pollution.”
Chattooga County ranked high on the list, getting an “A” on the State of the Air report.
Chattooga Extension Food Preservation Class
The Chattooga County Extension Office will be hosting a Food Preservation Fermentation Workshop coming up in May. The class is limited to 25 participants and will be held at the Extension Office / Chattooga County Ag Building on Wednesday, May 22, 2024 from noon until 2 PM. The cost of the class is $25. Participants will take part in a hands-on workshop where they can acquire the knowledge of safe techniques for fermenting vegetables at home. For more information, or to register for the class, contact the Chattooga County Extension Office at 706-857-0744.
Former NW Georgia Youth Pastor Pleads Guilty To Child Molestation Charges
Despite the fact that a former Cartersville youth pastor pleaded guilty to molesting two young boys who attended his church, prosecutors said there were many more victims who may never see justice. Christopher Matthew Codding, 44, pleaded guilty to two counts of felony child molestation and one count of sodomy on Thursday.
As part of that plea, Codding will be sentenced to 60 years on probation and serve a sentence in prison of up to 19 years. The amount of serve time will be determined by a judge during a sentencing hearing on May 16. The case involves the sexual abuse of two boys, both approximately 10-years-old at the time, who attended the church where Codding was a youth pastor between 2012 and 2017.
Despite the timeline of the charges in this case, prosecutors said there is evidence of prior incidents as well.
At the time of his arrest in 2022, Codding was employed as a radiologic technician, often working in Baltimore, Maryland, and an instructor at Georgia Northwestern Technical College. He volunteered as a youth pastor at Cassville Baptist Church in Cartersville. To add insult to injury, Codding taught child abuse prevention and youth protection classes at the church, Johnson said.
The case began when one of the victims learned that Codding was attempting to adopt two young boys, and stepped forward, Johnson said. Once the floodgates were opened, more and more victims came forward.
Codding, who has been out on $30,000 bond since 2022 on an ankle monitor, will be sentenced on May 16 at 9 a.m.
Advent Health Redmond: Strike Out Stroke
On Tuesday, May 7, AdventHealth Redmond is hosting Strike Out Stroke Night to support stroke awareness and prevention.
Throughout the game, courageous stroke survivors and some of AdventHealth Redmond’s medical experts will be featured. Each AdventHealth Redmond team member receives two free tickets; proof of badge is required at the box office. Free t-shirts will also be given to every game attendee.
Strokes are the primary leading cause of long-term disability and death. BE FAST educational materials will be available during the game. BE FAST is the popular acronym to help individuals remember the signs of a stroke, and it outlines a difference in balance, eyes, face drooping, arm, speech and time.
AdventHealth Redmond is proud to partner with AdventHealth Stadium to bring awareness and provide education in hopes to combat this prominent health care issue.
For more information on neurology care at AdventHealth Redmond, please visit https://www.adventhealth.com/hospital/adventhealth-redmond/neurology-care
Arrest Report - Friday - April 26, 2024
Here is the latest arrest report from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office for Friday, April 26, 2024:
Northwest Georgia Unemployment Numbers Up Slightly
Yesterday, the Georgia Department of Labor released unemployment numbers for Northwest Georgia. Despite a slight increase in unemployment numbers, Labor Commissioner Bruce Thompson remains optimistic about Georgia’s job market.
“Georgia’s job market is red hot with opportunity,” said Commissioner Bruce Thompson. “This continuous growth is a strong indicator that our economic momentum is not slowing down any time soon. Once again, Georgia continues to shatter records in growing businesses statewide and creating jobs for hardworking Georgians.”
Northwest Georgia
- The unemployment rate was up two-tenths to 3.1 percent over-the-month, the rate was 3.2 percent one year ago.
- The labor force was up 3,423 over-the-month and up 8,047 over-the-year, to 448,089, an all-time high.
- The number of employed was up 2,476 over-the-month and up 7,954 over-the-year, to 434,073, an all-time high.
- Initial claims were down 355 (-16%) over-the-month and down 1,164 (-39%) over-the-year, to 1,817.
Junior Ranger Camp At Sloppy Floyd State Park
Jr. Ranger Camp is returning again this year to Sloppy Floyd State Park in Summerville. This year, the camp will be offered in two different sessions on June 13-14 and again July 8-9. For registration or information, you can call the park office at Sloppy Floyd State Park at 706-857-0826. Campers will have the opportunity to join park rangers for hands-on experience in outdoor skills such as archery, wayfinding and nature craft-making. Also, they will get the chance to go fishing and discover the diverse wildlife that can be found at Sloppy Floyd State Park. The event is for children ages 6 to 12 and takes place from 8:30 AM until 4 PM daily.
Armuchee Man Leads Police On High-Speed Chase
James William Bishop, 61 of Armuchee, is facing felony dug charges after leading police on a high-speed motorcycle chase.
Authorities stated that they clocked Bishop driving at speeds of over 15 mph above the posted limit when he refused to pull over.
After driving to and arriving at his home on Haywood Valley, Bishop is accused of running on foot. When he was captured, he was found to have been driving while drunk.
Deputies went to say that after arriving at the jail he was found with suspected methamphetamine on him.
Bishop is charged with possession of meth, obstruction, unlawful possession of drugs by an inmate, DUI, speeding and violation of driving class.
Coosa Valley News
Menlo Veterans Marker Project Bake Sale / Yard Sale
A bake sale and yard sale to benefit the Menlo Veterans Marker Project and Menlo Reading Buddies will be held the first weekend in May. The sale is scheduled from 8 AM until 3 PM on Friday and Saturday, May 3rd and 4th at the Lawrence Center in Menlo. Some of the bake sale items include: fried apple pies, banana bread, apple bread, cookies and pies. The yard sale will feature a lot of household and miscellaneous items. The public is invited.
Calhoun HERD Field Day - May 3, 2024
"Squatting Bill" Signed By Governor
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed legislation criminalizing squatting, the illegal practice of entering and residing on someone else’s property without their consent.
Under current law, the practice of squatting is treated as a civil matter by law enforcement, which places a burden on the property owner in getting the squatters out of a residence. The property owner would then have to go to court and get an eviction notice, allowing the squatters to remain for weeks, months – or in some cases over a year before being forcibly removed from the property.
The Georgia Squatter Reform Act makes squatting a misdemeanor criminal offense, punishable by up to a year in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both. It also speeds up the timeline to evict a squatter, giving landlords and law enforcement more tools to establish that someone is trespassing and to demand that they leave.
The new law directs local law enforcement to issue citations and arrest people accused of squatting if they don’t provide a valid lease or proof of payment within three days. If they do produce such documents, it moves eviction proceedings to magistrate courts, and requires cases to be heard within seven business days after filing.
If the judge deems documents they present to be forged or fake, those accused of squatting could be charged with a felony. And judges can impose more fines based on the fair market value of rent that landlords lose.
Governor Kemp Signs Anti-Human Trafficking Legislation
Governor Brian P. Kemp, accompanied by First Lady Marty Kemp, members of the General Assembly, state and local leaders, and members of the GRACE Commission signed a package of anti-human trafficking legislation into law, including SB 370 – the ninth piece of legislation brought forward and passed by First Lady Marty Kemp and the GRACE Commission.
Sponsored by Senator Mike Hodges, signed by Senators Ben Watson, John Albers, Bo Hatchett, and Kay Kirkpatrick, carried in the House by Representative Soo Hong, and heard in the Senate Committee on Regulated Industries and Utilities by Chairman Bill Cowsert and the House Committee on Regulated Industries by Chairman Alan Powell, SB 370 includes convenience stores, body art studios, businesses that employ licensed massage therapists, manufacturing facilities, and medical offices in the list of businesses that must post the human trafficking notice; allows the Georgia Board of Massage Therapy to initiate inspections of massage therapy businesses and board recognized massage therapy educational programs without notice; requires massage therapists affix a passport sized photo with their license certificate that is displayed at their place of work; and requires massage therapy board members to annually complete human trafficking awareness training.
“For years Georgia was considered a hot spot for human trafficking, but thanks to the GRACE Commission, under the leadership of First Lady Marty Kemp, we have established Georgia as a national leader in this fight by passing legislation that cracks down on both traffickers and buyers while also, and even more importantly, empowering survivors,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “I could not be more proud to sign the ninth piece of legislation brought forward by the GRACE Commission since its formation only 5 years ago, continue to go after human traffickers and make sure that those caught in trafficking situations know in Georgia, there is always help for them, both in getting to safety and in moving on to a better life.
Along with SB 370, Governor Kemp signed two additional pieces of legislation included below:
HB 993, sponsored by Representative Alan Powell, signed by Representatives Tyler Paul Smith, Jason Ridley, Derrick McCollum, J. Collins, and Trey Rhodes, carried in the Senate by Senator Bo Hatchett, and heard in the House Committee on Juvenile Justice by Chairwoman Mandi Ballinger and the Senate Judiciary Committee by Chairman Brian Strickland, creates the felony offense of grooming of a minor and prohibits the defense from prosecution for offenses relating to visual mediums depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct on the basis that the visual medium was created, adapted, or modified to show an identifiable minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
Special thanks to Attorney General Chris Carr and Hannah Palmquist, the head of the Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, for their support and work on this legislation
HB 1201, sponsored by Representative Houston Gaines, signed by Representative Tyler Paul Smith, Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones, Representatives Deborah Silcox, Soo Hong, and Katie Dempsey, and carried in the Senate by Senator Brian Strickland, allows human trafficking survivors that received first offender or conditional discharge status the ability to vacate such status for certain crimes, so long as the crime was a direct result of being a victim of human trafficking, and defines the term “commercial sexual exploitation recovery center.”
Special thanks to the Director of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, Jay Neal and the Commissioner of the Department of Human Services and Division of Family and Children Services, Candice Broce, for their support and work on this legislation.
Woman Says She Thought Her Dog Was "Playing" With Neighbor's Chickens
The Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office was called to an address on Bryant Road in Summerville about a dog killing and injuring chickens. When a deputy arrived on the scene and spoke with the complainant, she told the deputy that her neighbor’s dog had been attacking her chickens. The woman showed the deputy a hen with visible injuries to its left wing and leg. The complainant said that another dog had been removed by animal control from her neighbor’s residence due to similar complaints. When the deputy spoke with the neighbor in question, she told the deputy that she thought her dog was “just playing with the chickens” and didn’t realize that the dog was hurting the poultry. The deputy reminded the neighbor about her responsibility to keep her dog on her own property. The deputy noted that the dog owner had a fenced-in back yard that the dog could be contained in. The woman promised to start keeping her dog contained.
Arrest Report - Thursday - April 25, 2024
Here is the latest arrest report from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office for Thursday, April 25, 2024:
Federal Judge Won't Allow Catoosa GOP To Remove Candidates From Ballot
The Rome News Tribune reported that yesterday a federal judge declined to grant a petition by the Catoosa County Republican Party to restrict candidates they don’t feel represent the party’s values from the ballot.
U.S. District Court Judge William Ray heard the Catoosa County GOP arguments on April 17 and this week entered an order declining to stop the elections process.
“The (Catoosa GOP) asks the court to strike the candidates’ names, to order that no ballots cast for the candidates be counted, and to order that the requested questions be included on the ballot,” the judge wrote in the order. “After review, the court denies the (temporary injunction and restraining order) because the requested relief would not be in the public’s best interest.”
The Catoosa County GOP was asking the Federal Judge to overrule Lookout Mountain Superior Court Judge Don Thompson’s ruling that prevented them from removing incumbent Republican Catoosa County Commissioners from the May Primary ballot.
Thompson ordered the candidates be allowed to qualify to run on the Republican primary ballot. The county Board of Elections then placed the four candidates back on the ballot as Republicans.
Summerville Man Reports Being Threatened With A Gun
Summerville Police are investigating an incident that happened on Tuesday evening on Economy Street. A complainant met with a Summerville Police officer and told the officer that another man pointed a gun at the complainant after a rumor that the complainant had “turned on” the suspects water. The complainant said that he had no idea what the suspect was talking about. The officer took the name of the suspect and turned over the incident to an investigator.
Commissioner Candidate Establishes Scholarship Fund
When I started this campaign, I was determined to self-finance it entirely. However, as the campaign gained momentum, I was humbled by the number of people who expressed their desire to contribute. While I initially declined these offers, I realized the importance of acknowledging their generosity and came up with a solution.
Accident Reported During Filming For “The Pickup”
The Associated Press and other news outlets are reporting there was an accident during the shooting of an Amazon production on Saturday that injured several crew members.
According to the AP, a car and a truck involved in a filming sequence collided Saturday outside of Atlanta. The injuries consisted of mostly bumps and bruises, but two of the crew members were hospitalized. They are expected to make a full recovery.
You can read the full story from Fox 5 in Atlanta here.
A second unit crew for “The Pickup” starring Eddie Murphy, Keke Palmer, and Pete Davidson had also recently done some filming in Rome and Lindale.
According to Rome Police, the filming in Floyd County wrapped up on Thursday of last week and there were no accidents on the set in the Rome area.
WRGA
GNTC Students Qualify To Compete In FBLA Competition
Five Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) students have qualified to compete in June in the Future Business Leaders of America Collegiate National Leadership Conference.
Six GNTC students competed in 12 events at the Georgia Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Collegiate State Leadership Conference in Atlanta, where students from the 22 colleges in the Technical College System of Georgia gathered for leadership development sessions, as well as performance-based and written competitions. GNTC students placed in eight events.
Nancy Johnson, a resident of Tunnel Hill who attends classes at the Catoosa County Campus in Ringgold, placed first in the Foundations of Entrepreneurship and second in the Organizational Behavior and Leadership competitions; Brandon Wishon, a Dalton resident who attends classes at the Whitfield Murray Campus in Dalton, placed first in the Future Business Executive and fourth in the Foundations of Communication competitions.
Anna Cantrell placed second in the Retail Management competition. Cantrell resides in Rome and attends classes at the Floyd County Campus in Rome.
Calhoun resident Josue Lopez, who attends classes at the Gordon County Campus in Calhoun, placed third in both the Entrepreneurship Pitch and Business Presentation competitions. Lopez also won the bronze medal in Masonry at the 2024 SkillsUSA Georgia State Leadership and Skills Conference earlier this year.
Esther Johnson placed fourth in the Public Speaking competition. She resides in Rome and attends the Floyd County Campus.
“I encourage students to put themselves in uncomfortable situations because that’s what the real world is going to expect of them,” said Mark Upton, GNTC’s Marketing Management program director and FBLA coordinator. The state competition tested their abilities and helped them to prepare for the upcoming national competition.
All entries at the state competition who placed first, second or third qualify for competition at the National Leadership Conference, which will take place on June 24-27 in Orlando.
“The added challenge of competing at a higher level at the national competition pushes the students to do their best and to raise their level of competitiveness,” Upton said.
Competing in these kinds of events adds to students’ learning, networking, people skills and dealing with stress; prospective employers like to see well-rounded students who are prepared for the workforce while students find the competitions fun and exciting, he explained.
“GNTC’s FBLA Collegiate group is made up of amazing students this year,” said Trish Wiggins, GNTC’s director of Student Engagement. “I am so proud of every student who competed. I know the five students who advanced will represent GNTC and the State of Georgia very well at the National Competition in June.”
Future Business Leaders of America is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) education association helping more than 230,000 students to prepare for careers in business and business-related fields. FBLA is headquartered in Reston, Virginia, and organized on local, state and national levels.
Caption for photo:
(Clockwise from top right) Mark Upton, Marketing Management program director and FBLA coordinator at GNTC, congratulates GNTC students Josue Lopez, Esther Johnson, Nancy Johnson, Anna Cantrell and Brandon Wishon. The five students have qualified to compete in June in the Future Business Leaders of America Collegiate National Leadership Conference in Orlando.
Man Trying To Impress Women Banned From Bar
Police responded to Harvest Moon on Broad Street in Rome Tuesday after a man kicked a hole in the wall.
According to a Rome Police Department report:
The twenty-six-year-old man told police that he was attempting to do a backflip to impress women inside the bar when he accidentally kicked a hole in the wall. The manager told police the man was not being aggressive, just extremely intoxicated.
The man was not arrested, but was asked to leave the establishment and complied.
He was also banned from the property.