Georgia Today: Arrested journalist remains in federal custody; Endangered birds; Job Corps cuts

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast. Here, we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, the journalist arrested while covering a protest near Atlanta remains in federal custody. The state law protecting endangered birds could soon be changed, and South Fulton City council members speak out against the Trump administration's cuts to Job Corps.

Helen Willis: We are still in danger of Job Corps to be closed throughout the region. We are sill at risk of youth being homeless and hopeless.

Peter Biello: Today is Wednesday, July 9. I'm Peter Biello, and this is Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: A Spanish-language journalist remains in federal custody despite being granted bond by an immigration judge. Mario Guevara was arrested in June while covering a protest near Atlanta and later transferred to ICE custody. His arrest drew widespread criticism by press freedom groups. His lawyer said ICE refused his family's attempt to pay his bond and is treating him as a threat, though a judge ruled he is not dangerous.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: An Athens-Clarke County judge has ordered a mental evaluation for the Venezuelan man convicted of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. GPB's Chase McGee reports.

Chase McGee: Jose Ibarra was found guilty in November and sentenced to life without parole for the February 2024 murder. His lawyers claim Ibarra has a mental deficiency that affected his ability to stand trial or assist in his defense. The judge's order Tuesday asks for an evaluation to determine Ibarra's competency during trial and post-conviction proceedings. Prosecutors say there were no prior concerns about his mental state before the trial, but they do not oppose the evaluation. Ibarra is seeking a new trial. For GPB News, I'm Chase McGee.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: A 21-year-old architecture student at the Savannah College of Art and Design is among those who have died in the flash floods in Texas. The college released a statement yesterday expressing condolences to family and friends of Joyce Catherine Baden, calling her a, quote, "beloved daughter, friend, and classmate."

Story 4:

Peter Biello: Republic Services sanitation workers in the North Atlanta metro area are on strike, affecting garbage collection around Alpharetta. Members of Teamsters Local 728 in Cumming began the strike yesterday in response to alleged unfair labor practices and a failure to bargain over changes in workplace conditions. They are asking for a new contract with a 7% increase in pay. The strike is part of a nationwide work stoppage by Teamsters.

Story 5:

Peter Biello: The metro Atlanta city of South Fulton wants the Trump administration to either restore funding for an unfinished job training center or give it to the city. The site was among Job Corps locations in Georgia affected by the abrupt shutdown announced in May of the U.S. Department of Labor program. South Fulton's City Council member Helen Willis says the courts offer no protection from cuts, affecting 400 students in the city.

Helen Willis: We are still in danger of Job Corps to be closed throughout the region. We are sill at risk of youth being homeless and hopeless.

Peter Biello: The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday cleared the way from mass layoffs at federal agencies while a case challenging them proceeds. A council resolution passed yesterday asks for funding restoration or the site for redevelopment. Job Corps sites in Albany and Brunswick also were ordered to close.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: The state regulation meant to protect endangered birds in Coastal Georgia could undergo its first change since being enacted nearly 30 years ago, GPB's Benjamin Payne reports.

Benjamin Payne: Georgia's so-called "bird island rule" prohibits public access to a handful of small islands and sandbars, which have historically served as nesting sites for threatened species like the American oystercatcher, sandwich tern, and brown pelican. But since the regulation was created in 1998, some new islands and sand bars have emerged, either through a natural process called accretion or through human intervention by the Army Corps of Engineers. And so, the Georgia DNR is proposing to add several new areas to the protected list while removing sites that have eroded. Timothy Keyes is a wildlife conservationist with the Georgia DNR. He says for seabirds and shorebirds —

Timothy Keyes: The vulnerability is just really high, especially since we might only have one colony for that species in a given year. So really with relatively little disturbance, just a few people or a few dogs in a relatively short period of time, you could wipe out the productivity for that species in the whole state.

Benjamin Payne: If approved, the new bird island rule would prohibit public access only in the spring and summer. The Georgia DNR is accepting public comment on its proposal through Aug. 22. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne in Savannah.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: Passengers traveling through domestic airports like Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson will no longer need to take off their shoes when going through TSA security checkpoints. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the new nationwide policy yesterday. Noem says the change ends a requirement introduced almost two decades ago. Noem said there may be some situations in which passengers will still be asked to take their shoes off, quote, "if we think additional layers of screening are necessary."

Story 8:

Peter Biello: Members of the Georgia Legislative Africa Caucus are asking Secretary of State Marco Rubio to reconsider a potential travel ban for some African countries. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports.

Sarah Kallis: Lawmakers in Georgia with ties to Africa say that President Donald Trump's proposed travel ban to several African nations and parts of the Caribbean would negatively impact the U.S. Rep. El-Mahdi Hawley says the caucus has sent a letter to Rubio.

El-Mahdi Hawley: We need to encourage those in our communities that we will stand strong against the president's implementation of this ban.

Sarah Kallis: Trump's administration placed a travel ban on nine countries in June and proposed another travel ban against 36 countries — mostly in Africa — if they do not address travel screening concerns. Supporters say the bans are about safety. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis at the state Capitol.

Story 9:

Peter Biello: Cobb County officials are making final preparations for next week's Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Truist Park. Officials estimate 41,000 people inside the park and between 10,000 and 20,000 in the Battery and nearby All-Stars Village in the Cobb Galleria Center. Local, state and federal law enforcement will be on hand and traffic is expected to be heavy. Cobb County deputy fire chief Carl Crumbley says anyone attending All-Star Week events should prepare for high temperatures.

Carl Crumbley: Please, please hydrate, plan your events. This is a family event. So if you bring really small children, make sure that you keep them covered. You bring plenty of fluids for them as well.

Peter Biello: All-Star Week events begin on Saturday with the All-Stars Futures and Celebrity Softball Games and culminate with the All-Star Game scheduled for Tuesday, July 15.

Story 10:

Peter Biello: The days of going to the ballpark and getting just a hot dog with a little mustard or relish are long gone. And no better proof of that is Truist Park right now. The ballpark responsible for the $151 World Champion Burger, after the Braves' World Series win in 2021, has taken yet another step into the over-the-top indulgent ballpark food choices just in time for the All-Star Game. If you are planning on attending the Midsummer Classic, you could try the Bless Your Heart Dog: A deep-fried, foot-long hot dog rolled in hot Cheetos and fruity pebbles for a sweet heat crunch. Or if you've got that sweet tooth, maybe the Peach Cobbler Nachos: cinnamon sugar tortilla chips loaded with warm peach cobbler filling and whipped cream. Or how about the Don't Call It Hot-lanta chicken sandwich: crispy chicken with maple sriracha, cheddar, applewood smoked bacon, chipotle aioli, lettuce, tomato, and avocado puree! And for the vegetarians like me, Delaware North Truist Park Sous Chef Chris Person cooked up this.

Chris Person: It's a Southern honey glazed biscuit, candy bacon, pimento cheese, and the best part, fried green tomato.

Peter Biello: That would be the fried green tomato slider. That candy bacon, by the way? It's made with carrot. There are more new decadent and possibly messy new menu items, too many to list here, but suffice to say the menu is paying homage to Georgia's food culture. And why not? With baseball fans turning their attention to Atlanta for the All-Star Game for the first time in 25 years and only the third time ever, these ballpark chefs are reminding the country the South's got something to taste.

And that is a wrap on Georgia Today. More news coming your way tomorrow. Please do subscribe to this podcast so you won't miss a thing. And check GPB.org/news for updates. Now, if there's something going on out there that we need to cover and we don't know about it, let us know by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. That's also where you can send feedback for this podcast. Again, GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

---

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