Georgia Today: SCOTUS could rule on FBI raid case; Brunswick pollution report; Georgia's trade war

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, the Supreme Court is likely to rule in the Georgia case of an FBI raid that targeted the wrong house. A report from Emory University details the health effects of pollution in coastal Brunswick, and the Georgia Chamber publishes a new report on the ongoing trade war.

Chris Clark: There could be outright procurement bans on U.S. technology companies. We're hearing about licensing boards across the globes that would increase burdens on our engineers, consultants or attorneys that might practice abroad.

Peter Biello: Today is Wednesday, April 30. I'm Peter Biello, and this is Georgia Today.

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Donald Trump

Story 1:

Peter Biello: Civil rights groups in Atlanta today condemned actions taken by President Donald Trump during his first 100 days in office, GPB's Sarah Kallis reports.

Sarah Kallis: On the steps of Big Bethel AME, the oldest Black church in Atlanta, civil rights advocates said they are continuing to push back on changes to the federal government made by Trump, including cuts by the Department of Government Efficiency, mass deportations, tariffs and DEI rollbacks. Southern Property Law Center president and CEO Margaret Huang said that Trump's second administration so far has been marked by chaos.

Margaret Huang: From the first day President Trump took office, he and his inner circle have taken a wrecking ball to the agencies and services that are lifelines for millions of people and for the heart of our democracy.

Sarah Kallis: In a speech Tuesday, Trump said his first 100 days were the most successful of any administration. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: The U.S. Supreme Court seems likely to issue a narrow ruling in a Georgia case over an FBI raid that targeted the wrong house. Justices heard oral arguments in the case yesterday. Some appeared open to the argument that the Atlanta family of Trina Martin should be able to sue the government over the mistake that left them traumatized. Their attorney, Patrick Giacomo, compared their right to police accountability to a business refund.

Patrick Giacamo: If you really, really meant to drop the pizza off at the right address, it doesn't matter. You still need to give a refund if you drop it off at the wrong address.

Peter Biello: But the court overall seemed wary of handing down a more sweeping ruling on police liability for their mistakes.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: A new report in the journal Environmental Pollution published by Emory University says coastal Brunswick area residents have elevated levels of industrial chemicals known as PCBs in their bodies. The area has four of the nation's most contaminated hazardous waste sites. GPB's Sofi Gratas has more. 

Sofi Gratas: The government banned PCBs in the 1970s because they can cause cancer and other health issues. In Brunswick, these and other contaminants have been found at the site of an old landfill, chemical manufacturing plants and a dredged creek. Blood tests from 100 longtime residents, including former workers at the plants, show almost half of them have levels of a kind of PCB, an aroclor, that is far higher than U.S. averages. But Emory's Noah Skovronik says there's still more to learn.

Noah Skovronik: The fact that these chemicals build up in the body over time make it very difficult to differentiate whether people were exposed recently or historically or both.

Sofi Gratas: He says to understand how exposure works, they'll need to survey more people. That work is currently waiting on a federal grant to continue. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: The Georgia Chamber has published its fourth report on the impact of the ongoing trade war on Georgia businesses. The report focuses on the state's large service sector, which includes digital service providers and professionals like engineers and accountants, as well as film and tourism. Chamber president and CEO Chris Clark notes the importance of cybersecurity firms in and payment processors in Atlanta and Columbus. 

Chris Clark: We are hearing that foreign countries could restrict cross-border data flows, which could effectively exclude U.S. cloud technology firms. There could be outright procurement bans on U.S. technology companies. We're hearing about licensing boards across the globe that would increase burdens on our engineers, consultants or attorneys that might practice abroad. And our robust tourism and entertainment sectors could get walloped if countries issue travel warnings or we just see decline in traffic to the U.S.

Peter Biello: He says more than 4 million Georgians are employed in service industries. The Chamber's previous reports focused on small businesses and manufacturing, among other sectors.

​​​​​​​Story 5:

Peter Biello: A National State of Preschool Report shows a continuing long-term decline in enrollment in Georgia's lottery-funded Pre-K program. The report, released this week by the National Institute for Early Education Research, says Georgia's enrollment rate in 2024 was 55% of eligible children, down from 60% in 2019. Georgia Pre-K used to be the envy of the nation. The report says it's fallen behind, but notes the assessment came before a, quote, "historical investment" made by state lawmakers for the 2024-2025 school year.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: Atlanta-based fashion entrepreneur Lauren Amos is giving the High Museum of Art $3 million to establish the museum's first ever multi-faceted initiative related to fashion design. The museum announced the gift today along with new fashion-related programs and the search for a fashion curatorial position. Amos is a longtime High Museum board member best known for co-founding the global fashion house Antidote.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: The Atlanta Falcons have been fined a quarter million dollars for the role the team played in a data breach that resulted in a prank call to Sheduer Sanders last week during the 2025 NFL Draft. The league says the fine is for failing to prevent the disclosure of confidential information. The call made headlines when the Falcons said the son of their defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich was responsible. Ulbrich has been fined $100,000. The call happened on the second day of the draft while Sanders was waiting for what many expected to be a first round pick. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round.

And that's a wrap on Georgia Today. We do appreciate you tuning in. You can check gpb.org/news for the latest updates. And we're gonna be back here tomorrow. The best way to remember to come back is to subscribe to this podcast. That way, you won't miss a thing. And if you've got feedback or a story idea, send it our way by email. The address is georgiatoday@gpb.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news