When residents in one of Georgia’s smallest and poorest counties learned about plans for a 500-acre quarry near the Ogeechee River, they rallied together with their neighbors to fight back.
Georgia’s Southern Judicial District has been called the worst place in America to be poor and charged with a federal crime. The district lacks a full-time federal public defender's office, which advocates say leads to inadequate representation for indigent criminal defenders.
This week, Georgians around the state are remembering Max Cleland. He died of congestive heart failure at his home in Atlanta on Tuesday. He was 79. Cleland was a Democrat and lifelong public servant in a variety of roles, including U.S. senator and head of the Veterans Administration under President Jimmy Carter. Jim Galloway, a now-retired Atlanta Journal-Constitution journalist, says Cleland’s politics were influenced by his military service. He lost three limbs in the Vietnam War. Georgia Today explores Cleland's life and legacy with Galloway, who also knew Cleland as a friend.
The Atlanta mayoral election is headed to a runoff. Whoever ultimately takes the top job will face a sharp increase in crime in the city that's accelerated during the pandemic. On the latest Georgia Today podcast, we hear about the impact of the crime wave on communities across Atlanta, and what's driving it, with a Georgia criminologist who himself became a shooting victim.
Longtime Braves fans know Bobby Cox as one of the winningest managers in baseball history. But they may not know what happened in the decade since he retired that's kept Cox mostly away from games at Truist Park. In 2019 Bobby Cox had a stroke. But the legendary baseball figure remains influential with the team and close to Brian Snitker, the Braves’ current manager. In this week's Georgia Today, we explore how the Braves’ miracle season is in no small part due to their special bond.
Jury selection is underway in the Brunswick trial for three white men accused in the 2020 killing of Ahmaud Arbery, who was Black. It’s also a reminder for some residents of a long-broken trust with a police department and other county law enforcement agencies that took almost three months to open an investigation into the 25-year-old's death. This week's Georgia Today podcast delves into the troubled history of Glynn County policing and how the trial may expose the department to even greater national scrutiny.
Almost a year after the 2020 election, new revelations continue to emerge about former President Donald Trump pressuring Georgia officials to overturn the election results. A recent Senate Judiciary Committee report sheds light on the departure earlier this year of former Georgia U.S. Attorney Byung J. "BJay" Pak, who abruptly announced his resignation just before the Senate runoffs. Investigators say Trump forced Pak to resign for refusing to go along with Trump’s false claims of election fraud. We break down what's in the preliminary Senate committee report and hear what the findings could mean for elections to come.
Drug company Merck is awaiting word on its emergency use authorization application for its recently announced drug molnupiravir. If approved, the anti-viral drug developed at a lab at Emory University could become the first-ever pill to treat COVID-19. The latest Georgia Today podcast examines the journey that led to this potential breakthrough and its connection to Emory.
Most of Georgia’s landmass is rural. But less than a quarter of the population lives in rural areas. And, according to the latest figures from the United States Census, that percentage is dropping as the state grows more diverse and more urbanized. With redistricting getting underway, some small-town Georgia officials worry their shrinking populations could also cost them political influence at the state Capitol.
With 44% of its population fully vaccinated, Georgia is running far behind the rest of the nation. For the state's Latino community, a population that has been disproportionately affected by COVID-19, vaccination rates are even lower. The Rev. Irma Guerra, a Mexican immigrant and minister at Christ Church Episcopal in Norcross, has used her platform to be a vaccine evangelizer and to dispel some of the misinformation about the vaccine through social media, her pulpit and going door to door.
A jail used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain migrants is nearly empty in the wake of complaints filed against the facility. Among the complaints is a whistleblower allegation from a nurse claiming some female detainees at Irwin County Detention Center were forced to undergo hysterectomies. The jail has also been criticized for failing to protect immigrants and jail staff from COVID-19. Now, Irwin County officials worry the facility, which also houses federal and county inmates and is the area's largest private employer, may eventually be shut down, taking much-needed jobs with it.
The Federal Aviation Administration is expected to decide this month whether or not to allow the proposed Spaceport Camden to go forward in Camden County, Ga. The spaceport, supporters say, would mean tourism and big business for the county. But the proposed launch facility would send rockets over the federally protected Cumberland and Little Cumberland islands. This has alarmed residents and environmental advocates. In this Georgia Today, Savannah-based freelance reporter Alexandra Marvar explores the debate.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium: home to the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United and, for a few weeks this summer, hip-hop icon Kanye West? The megastar staged a listening party for his upcoming album at the stadium. And then he moved in for a couple of weeks. And that’s not all. Steve Fennessy chats with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Greg Bluestein about what Bluestein's investigation into the logistics of West's stay at Mercedes-Benz Stadium turned up.
Georgians with certain medical conditions have been permitted to take cannabis oil to ease their symptoms for six years, but it was illegal to purchase in Georgia. The state has finally approved six licenses for companies to produce and distribute medical marijuana oil in Georgia. However, many companies whose applications were not accepted are calling foul play, protesting the licensing process which can delay the production and distribution of medical cannabis oil for many Georgians in need.
Georgia students are beginning their second year of school during the pandemic as coronavirus cases skyrocket, driven by the highly contagious delta variant. With children under 12 not yet eligible for the vaccine, some school districts are already seeing battles over how best to keep kids safe for in-person learning. Gov. Brian Kemp says he has no plans to impose statewide mask or vaccination mandates. Steve Fennessy gets into all this and more with Atlanta-based Wall Street Journal reporter Cam McWhirter.
