Flood damage: Chattooga County estimates thirty homes were damaged in their community during last weekend’s flooding. Most of them were trailers parked on a campground where people were living.

So far there are no reports of damage in Walker County, although it seems a few homes were flooded over the weekend south of LaFayette. No official statements will be made until the flood reaches Chickamauga.   

Commissioner Heiskell wants to create a new court system in Walker County to handle codes enforcement. She claims the county can’t enforce codes because it requires a court order, and the traditional courts aren’t fast enough to suit her.

If we can’t enforce codes, why do we have a codes enforcement department? She says there’s one guy, but in 2011 the codes department budget was over $400,000. Where’s all that money going, and what does the codes department do NOW besides erect campaign signs and drive around all day?

Another article says Heiskell wants State Judge Billy Mullinax to appoint retired State Judge Donnie Peppers to the new court. Peppers stepped down in 2011 but has stayed on the county payroll for reasons not yet made clear by Peppers or Heiskell. (Mullinax represented Peppers in his 2007 DUI; a mugshot from that incident was included in the TFP report and shared here for posterity.)

Walker County’s codes were implemented several decades ago when Commissioner Heiskell was the County Administrator; she played a role in their composition and in pushing voters to approve them. She also created Walker County Police, the agency responsible for enforcing the apparently unenforcible laws. So in essence, Bebe will create a court whose budget is set by her so a judge paid by her can make rulings about her laws, for her police department to enforce.

In England the queen just waves at people..   

Saturday night or early Sunday, thieves broke into fourteen storage units at LaFayette Rentals on North Main. Those are the storage barns next to Restaurant Enterprises.

Same thing happened on the same night in Catoosa. Might be a link y’think?   

LaFayette’s historic caboose was moved into place Monday over at the new park by a crane. The retired rail car will remain there on permanent display.

The city’s original plan (or, rather, the Downtown Development Authority’s original plan) to set up a baggage car in a swamp didn’t work out, but we can have this one because an LU contributor saw a “caboose museum” mentioned in a newspaper from 1988, researched what happened to it, and got an article together. Chamber of Commerce leaders reading the 2011 LU blog post realized the old LaFayette chamber actually owned this thing, and brought it back from Summerville for installation in the park.

It only took 24 1/2 years, but the project is finally “on-track.” (You’re welcome.)

This kind of cheap neighborhood-improving family-friendly stuff is what the city should be doing. The money spent on the Hodge-Mahal softball fields (not to mention what we waste on the golf course every month) would do a project like this fifty times over.

And if the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum trains stop down there now instead of just rolling by, it’ll probably pay for itself in a couple years.     

During last week’s council meeting, LaFayette councilors listened to complaints about the way rec. baseball is run and then accepted a nearly half-million-dollar credit for overpayments on electricity.

As noted previously, the refund will be used to keep the city out of deeper financial troubles. LaFayette Electric customers won’t benefit from the repayment, even though their rates were raised at least in part because of the amount being overpaid.   

Sheriff Wilson has responded to accusations of harassment from a Rossville business owner. Wilson says officers haven’t harassed the business, mentions the business owner’s criminal history, and says he supports his officers 100%. He’s nuts, he deserves it, and we didn’t do it – all in the same comment.

All else aside (and this still smells funny), there’s no justification for the deputy telling customers the man is running an illegal gambling business. He could sue the department for that if it’s not true and he can prove it was said.

While the business owner may not be clean as a whistle, the deputy involved also has a spotty background of unprofessional behavior. Per the usual, Sheriff Wilson will stand behind his officer 100% even if the officer breaks every law in the book.   

50-year-old Sheila Gail Hensley Rape was killed several days ago on GA 337 in Chattooga when her truck left the road and flipped. There’s no explanation of why she lost control. Hensley lived in South Walker but had a Menlo address.   

LaFayette resident Jason Hall, former City Manager of Varnell, resigned that position last month saying he wanted to help his wife run her LaFayette business The Cookie Boss. That story never seemed right, and turns out it wasn’t the full truth – Hall was pushed out after Varnell’s city council found “concerning” charges on his city-issued credit card.

Last week Hall and his family moved out of town after taking a job as city manager of Lyons in South Georgia. His wife still owns Cookie Boss but left it in the hands of someone else.   

Remember the supposed Coca-Cola formula a Ringgold family was selling on eBay last week? The final auction was shut down by eBay and won’t be relisted- and now ANOTHER guy from Ringgold is saying he has the formula too. (He doesn’t seem to be especially serious.)

The original auction was showing a $15 million Buy It Now bid but apparently that was fake. Looks like the family will just have to enjoy their Coca-Cola recipe at home.   

A Dalton 2-month-old was killed Sunday when its mom mistook gas for brake and pinned dad and child to the garage wall. The father is expected to be OK, infant was pronounced dead at the hospital.   

Last week Georgia returned Gideon’s Bibles to state lodges, cabins, and resorts, saying the availability of that donated material doesn’t violate the law because any religious entity is welcome to contribute literature.

Now an atheist group is promising to collect its own books to leave in state-owned lodging. It’s unclear if they legitimately want to distribute literature, put the state to the test about allowing “any” entity to put out books, or just put so many different books in the mix that the state stops putting out anything at all.

It will be interesting to see if non-theists can be as widespread and consistent as the Gideons have been for decades.

If people open state dresser drawers and find a Gideon KJV, “Why I Am Not A Muslim,” and “The God Delusion” which one are they going to flip through?   

GDOT has some 9,200+ unneeded tracts of land in suburban areas around the state, and probably another 3,500 tracts in rural areas. Some of the lots are over 100 acres, and thousands have value if sold on the open market. The agency is going through necessary red tape to begin selling much of the property to fill gaps in its budget. As a bonus, GDOT land sold to private owners will be taxable again.

They can start with a thousand-plus acre tract GDOT owns here in Walker County.   

A 58-year-old Cartersville man set his neighbor’s house on fire, damaging it beyond repair, over a conflict about uncut grass. He won’t have to worry about the grass now since his neighbor (and family) are living with relatives and he’s in jail.   

A year ago Aimee Copeland of Snellville, GA nearly died – and suffered four amputations – when she caught a flesh eating virus after cutting her leg on a zip line. Last week Copeland was given advanced prosthetic hands that will enable the now 25-year-old to live a fuller life.

In June 2012 it wasn’t clear if Copeland would even survive, much less have an opportunity to live somewhat normally.   

In 2014, Georgia will depend on more than $12 billion in federal funds – that’s nearly a third of the state budget. The state’s reliance on federal money while legislators (who set the budget) criticize federal spending is rightly described by Governor Deal as “hypocritical.”

Most of the money goes to healthcare, education, and transportation. Every penny comes with strings attached.   

A student at Georgia Gwinnett College was afraid to tell his parents about failing English, so he faked his own abduction. After eight days of camping out he came home and was eventually arrested by the FBI.   

A Kennesaw researcher is pushing the US Defense Department to award Medals of Honor to two men involved in the Civil War Great Locomotive Chase. Those two are the only ones out of 22 involved in the Andrews Raid and great chase not given the honor, and history doesn’t make it clear why they were skipped.

If you know your history, you’ll recall the group of 22 Union spies stole a locomotive in Kennesaw and fled north through Dalton and Tunnel Hill until they ran out of fuel near Ringgold, then most were captured and later hung in Atlanta. After their arrest the men were held in the old Walker County jail in downtown LaFayette.   

Rock Spring resident Jonathan Gentry has published a book – “The Lazarus Assassins.” Here’s his blog and a preview first chapter. Support local artists and authors when you can.

The book is available on Amazon.com in paperback and for Kindle   

For today’s links and any breaking news, follow the Underground on Facebook or Twitter.

Heavy rains over the last two days have closed roads in Chattooga County (Walker County apparently doesn’t officially ever close roads) and put Walker County Schools on a two-hour delay. Trion officially received 4″ of rainfall between 8 AM and 4 PM; LaFayette got over 3 inches for the day, and Rock Spring measured about 1 1/2. Some unofficially measured eight or nine inches on their home rain gauges.   

Walker County was briefly under a “State of Emergency” on Sunday afternoon. Two families were evacuated during that time. So far there are no official reports of any homes damaged, only downed fences, drowned pastures, and washed-out driveways.   

In Chattooga County, a rescue worker was sucked through a culvert while trying to help residents evacuate near West Halls Valley Rd. He came out the other side and was rescued, taken to Redmond Hospital in Rome, and is believed to be OK. Thank God he didn’t get stuck. A total of five families were evacuated from the West Halls Valley Rd. area in Chattooga, which is where the worst flooding in our area was seen.   

The photo above is from the Halls Valley Road / Lee School Road area in Walker County. Check LU Facebook for more flood photos.

Music on the Square in downtown LaFayette was held on Saturday before most of the heavy rains fell. The third-annual event appears to have been a success; no official word yet on attendance numbers. A complimentary (or possibly competing) event on Chattanooga Street seemed to be lightly attended.   

Saturday night during the late news, Channel 12 mentioned a possible shooting in Walker County. On Facebook later on, the station said the shooting was overheard on police radio but Walker County Dispatch refused to release details when pressed. So far the possible incident hasn’t been mentioned elsewhere.

In the absence of official confirmation or denial, rumors and speculation have spread the story wide. There’s no consensus as to what happened, except whatever happened (or was falsely reported to police) happened on “Upshaw Street” (which doesn’t exist) or Upshaw Drive, which is in Chickamauga off GA 136.

Somebody in law enforcement or 911 dispatch needs to clarify if something happened or not. People need to know if simply to stop the rumors from getting bigger.   

During Music on the Square on Saturday, someone drove their car off the side of Villanow Street in town and into Town Creek. Eyewitnesses say the driver was “distracted” – a friend of the driver says he was avoiding children in the street. Driver is reported to be OK, if a bit banged up.   

The owner of a Rossville pool hall claims he, his business, and his customers are being harassed by a Walker County Sheriff’s Deputy. The deputy keeps pulling over customers and accusing them of engaging in illegal gambling; the business owner says the deputy has a personal beef with him.

Figures the ONE business in Rossville they harass for illegal gambling is the one that doesn’t engage in it. Maybe he just forgot to contribute to Stocking Full of Love this year?

This is nothing new – Rossville PD has destroyed many a business through harassment. Sounds like the deputy just decided to get with the program and do what the locals do. Maybe he’s looking to change jobs?   

Thanks to a $445,000 private arts grant, visitors to Howard Finster’s Paradise Garden in Trion will now be able to tour an air conditioned Finster museum.

Ever been to Paradise Gardens or Finster Fest ?   

Pubic Officials Behaving Very Badly: A federal grand jury has indicted GA State Rep. Tyrone Brooks for using a charity to raise more than $780k for HIMSELF between 1995 and 2012. He also stole money from a fund meant to promote black leaders. Brooks faces at least thirty counts of fraud.   

More details here. More on Brooks’ background as a Civil Rights leader.

Tiny city of Nelson, GA just passed a new law requiring families to own firearms. The law has loopholes and exceptions for personal beliefs and isn’t being actively enforced, but the city is now being sued by a prominent national anti-gun group.   

93-year-old Lidabell Beagles plays mandolin like someone half her age. The LaFayette resident didn’t touch the instrument for sixty years but picked it up again after her husband passed away in 1993.   

(Linked article includes video.)

Thanks to everybody who contributed photos yesterday of the flooding, and all those who got Music on the Square pics over the weekend. Some really compelling photos and information have helped all of us stay on top of the news.   

LU is socially driven local coverage, which means we’ve got a potential reporter or photographer in 6,100+ places at the same time. The Underground depends on YOU for photos, tips, and information to stay relevant and helpful for the community. Other ways to contribute.

For today’s links and any breaking news, follow the Underground on Facebook or Twitter.

A total of 22 Walker County and Walker State Prison firefighters responded to the blaze, but trailer fires are difficult to extinguish and the nearest hydrant was some 2,500 feet away. (Baker Hill is a political/geographical oddity, as it lies outside LaFayette city limits but can only be accessed by driving through town.)

When it was all said and done the home was a complete loss. A family of FOURTEEN people, including nine children all under the age of 10, was left homeless. The Snyders lost nearly everything (they likely didn’t have much to start with), and had no insurance.

The family has been temporarily put up in “a local home” by the Red Cross. They’ve been given some temporary help through Ledford Pharmacy, which is the suggested place to go if you’d also like to help the family out.           

This morning LaFayette Middle School will be involved in an emergency drill. The drill could involve evacuating the school, and plans at one point also involved shutting down the LaFayette bypass. Not sure if that’s still included in the drill.

Students who don’t have parental permission to participate in the drill will be isolated in an uninvolved section of the school, watching movies or doing some kind of school work.   

LPD has determined Jared Marsh likely fell asleep driving on Sunday morning when his Jeep slammed into a tree off Chattanooga Street. The 19-year-old was seriously injured, and at last report still hospitalized. Judging by the accident photos he’s fortunate to still be alive. He WAS wearing a seatbelt, thankfully.   

During Monday’s LaFayette council meeting, city leaders announced a refund from an electric study overcharge. Interim City Manager Max Morrison found the overcharge and worked out a refund, and also found an overcharge for the city’s water service. As a result of the refunds, the city’s water and electric are now in the black for 2013. Unfortunately they didn’t decide to roll back the rate increase from last month.   

A former Whitfield Co. gymnastics teacher, accused of asking a 15-year-old former student for sex, lives on Hope Drive in Rock Spring. He’s specifically been charged with “computer porn” (not child pornography) and child exploitation.

The suspect, 38-year-old Billy Newcom, had a clean background check and was well regarded as a gymnastics coach before he quit due to an injury.

Background checks are necessary, but we can’t rely solely on those – every criminal at some point in their life had a clean background.     

During an emergency meeting Wednesday night, Commissioner Heiskell agreed to back a new $2.5 million line of credit for Hutcheson, offered jointly with Catoosa Co. Catoosa’s Commission agreed to the funding during a meeting earlier in the day. The funding was made available immediately via another loan from Regions Bank.

This is what Walker and Catoosa are doing INSTEAD of the $70+ million bond issue Hutcheson asked for. This money won’t pay their debts, just keep the doors open for another six weeks while Hutcheson looks for another entity to buy or lease the entire facility.

Hospital leaders insist “the wolf is not at the door” but Hutcheson employees will be paid with a paper check this week, not direct deposit, due to not having funds earlier in the week. When payroll gets disrupted, things are not going well. The $2.5 million will be gone by July 4th; if there’s no outside savior by then it’s going to be a sad day for the hospital and the communities it serves.     

After class ends later this month, three Walker Co schools – LaFayette Middle, CV Elementary, and Rossville Elementary – will undergo major renovations and expansion. The work is expected to take until at least next January. The plans for LMS include adding new classroom space where the hated parking circle is now. No word on how this will disrupt class schedules, if at all. The project will cost $3 million in ELOST funding.   

Earlier this week Georgia briefly removed donated Bibles from drawers in state-owned lodges and cabins, but on Wednesday the material was returned by order of Governor Deal. Deal says the presence of a Bible in a dresser drawer isn’t state established religion because all religious groups are welcome to donate material to share the same way.   

Mayor of Lookout Mountain (city not geographic feature) resigned last night, saying he and his wife are moving out of town. The tiny municipality will have an interim mayor until November’s regularly scheduled election.

Lots of turmoil in local city governments lately: LaFayette city manager pushed out, Fort O. city manager and police chief fired, LaFayette mayor will retire this year, Varnell city manager (who lived here) quit and moved out of town, Lookout Mountain mayor resigned, lots of similar activity in small towns in Tennessee. Chickamauga City Manager expected to retire in the fall…

Only place in Walker County not experiencing some turnover is Rossville, and that’s only because nobody wants to be in charge of a snake pit booby trap.

All these experienced people in the area with no jobs, and LaFayette will still end up hiring another city manager from Bumville down near the Georgia/Florida state line.   

Atlanta news outlets have recently raised a stink about the Fulton County tax commissioner buying himself a $39,000 SUV with county funds. Meanwhile, here in Walker, the Sole Commissioner and County Attorney both have similar vehicles also purchased with tax monies in 2011 and 2012. Walker County’s budget is nothing compared to Fulton. Plus the Fulton County tax commissioner doesn’t get in three or more wrecks a year like Our Miss Bebe.

The SUV purchased in Fulton cost around $39,000. Bebe’s new ride, a 2012 Explorer, costs about $30k retail. Assuming the county got some kind of deal, we’re talking $28 grand or so. County Attorney Don Oliver has the same thing one year model earlier. $28k is less than $39k certainly, but Fulton County’s budget is probably ten times the budget of Walker County.

You might make a case that Commissioner Heiskell needs a vehicle, but why does the County Attorney need one too?   

Katherine Tumblin of Catlett was recently arrested at Trion Walmart for stealing $116 worth of various junk. Why do people try to steal such random silly things?   

GA Department of Corrections has agreed to release 1,000 pages of documents about Hays Prison requested under Open Records laws. The nonprofit prisoner rights group requesting those records will drop its lawsuit, and gets $9,000 from the state for legal expenses.

The Summerville News editorializes that problems at Hays came from a lack of transparency – a policy that continues even as the institution is upgraded.

It should NOT take a lawsuit from a high profile organization to get records released.. Small media outlets are basically SOL with this stuff, and bloggers even more so. It completely violates the intention of open government law.   

Gov. Deal vetoed a bill that would restore sales tax breaks to community health centers, nonprofit clinics, food banks, and similar groups. He said the state should review all tax exemptions and reduce the number of entities that get tax breaks – but still signed off on several measures giving tax breaks to large companies.

Now you can buy a new engine for your private plane without paying taxes, but medical equipment for a church-funded walk-in clinic will still be taxed at the normal rate.   

This weekend will be great for fans of live music.

Roots Fest at Cherokee Farms will begin today and go through Sunday, featuring more than two dozen different bands or performers.

LaFayette’s third annual Music on the Square will be held Saturday, with several of the same groups and a few unique artists. MoTS will be on the square downtown with no tickets or admission fees.

Draft & Craft will be held at the same time on Saturday, over on Chattanooga Street surrounding the Mars Theater District block. A renovated theater building and new ice cream stand will also apparently open up for the first time during that event.

Also this weekend, and through next week, an exhibit of Holocaust photos will be at the Dade Co. library in Trenton. Not related to music but something else possibly worth going to see.   

Berry College in Rome is suing Tennessee over a state law requiring the private college to register and pay about $20,000 a year to erect billboards on highways in the Volunteer State. Tennessee says they’re regulating education, Berry says TN is just unfairly trying to keep out-of-state schools from competing with its own colleges.   

Also in Rome: New movie “Need for Speed” is being filmed. Production started on Thursday and should continue for several more days.   

A Ringgold couple found what they say is the original secret formula for Coca-Cola in a bunch of old papers. An attempt to sell the recipe on eBay for $5 million ended up netting three times that amount.

How could you possibly verify the formula as authentic, make a batch of Coke at home?   

Dalton State College has added two more Bachelor’s Degrees, bringing the total available four-year degrees to sixteen. This is the closest four-year school for south Walker County.

…and you can’t get HOPE at UTC or Chattanooga State.   

For today’s links and any breaking news, follow the Underground on Facebook or Twitter.

Here’s a look at the latest news from LaFayette and Walker County:

Walker Co Schools is preparing for the transition to new Saddle Ridge School by terminating teachers. Last Friday administrators called selected teachers into their offices during school hours, read them a script prepared by school attorneys, and then sent them back to finish the school day. Those who heard the spiel will be unemployed come July.

Teachers weren’t dismissed in front of students, but were dismissed during school hours when kids were still at school to limit anyone reacting negatively. Because good teachers don’t get pissed and cause a scene when their students might see it.

Some have asked why we’re firing teachers while building a new school. The simple answer? SPLOST and ELOST sales taxes are both restricted to construction, building, purchasing property. We can build schools, replace roofs, buy school busses, buy police cars – but not pay power bills or salaries. So stop voting for sales tax renewal, it doesn’t accomplish anything.

Not sure whose situation is worse, the teachers soon to be out of work or the remaining teachers facing larger and larger classroom head count next fall.

So far cuts include five teachers at LaFayette Middle, five at Naomi, three at Fairyland, one at LHS, and two cuts plus one retirement without replacement at Chattanooga Valley Elementary. That’s seventeen teaching positions cut at just five schools. Those totals are not complete, just the ones LU has been made aware of. A full count may never be publicly announced – there’s still been no public confirmation of the teacher firing bloodbath covered here last year.     

An accident Sunday morning on South Chattanooga Street or Hwy. 337 involved 19 year old Jared Marsh. Marsh, who was by himself, hit a tree. He suffered a broken collarbone and head injuries, was sent to Erlanger.

WQCH Radio, 05/14/13: “LAFAYETTE POLICE SAY MARSH APPARENTLY FELL ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL IN THE 11-HUNDRED BLOCK OF CHATTANOOGA STREET. THERE WERE NO SKID MARKS FROM BRAKING, AND THE JEEP CHEROKEE IMPACTED A TREE IN THE FRONT YARD OF A RESIDENCE.

“POLICE SAID FAMILY MEMBERS TOLD THEM MONDAY THAT JARED WAS IN A MEDICALLY-INDUCED COMA. THEY GOT THE CALL AT AROUND 6:40 SUNDAY MORNING.”       

Hutcheson’s latest loan, backed up by Walker and Catoosa, will come from Erlanger hospital. That brings the total amount owed to Erlanger (before interest) to $20.55 million. The half-million emergency loan was needed to finish setting up new computer systems.   

All together, Hutcheson has over $70 million in debt and growing.

Hutcheson will never be fixed until the hospital gets out from under that massive debt. In this piece, Commissioner Heiskell says Walker County will not back a needed $35 million bond to help the troubled facility pay down debt, because the amount is higher than we can risk.

She’s right, but that doesn’t leave many options. Hospital leaders are looking at leasing the hospital or possibly selling it outright to another operator. That kind of arrangement would take away the counties’ say in hospital operations – which is one reason why Erlanger didn’t get an outright lease two years ago. In light of the current debts, keeping control probably isn’t the biggest worry anymore.   

A 17-year-old Rome boy was killed Sunday after he and a group of friends played chicken with a train. They weren’t racing the train in cars, they were laying on the tracks – last one to get up won the game. He also won the race to become dead.

As recently noted on LU, kids of all ages need to be taught about the dangers of playing around trains, and adults need to intervene when they’re doing dangerous things.   

The Cookie Boss on Chattanooga Street is now under new management. Owner Melissa Hall will be moving out of town with her husband Jason, who’s been named City Manager of Lyons down in south Georgia.

Hall was formerly City Manager of Varnell. He was considered a possible candidate for the LaFayette City Manager position, but city insiders said he didn’t have a serious chance. Hall applied for the LaFayette position before – and was rejected for reasons unknown – before Frank Etheridge was hired in 2011.   

So if we don’t (or can’t) enforce county codes, why do we have a codes department? And why do they have trucks, guns, badges, and a department budget in excess of $400,000 a year?

Maybe the Pallet Man in Wallaceville should put some Bebe signs up to conceal his fire hazard business.   

Highlands PCA Pastor Travis Hutchinson announced his resignation Sunday. Hutchinson is taking a job with Chattanooga Christian School in Tennessee. June 2 will be Travis’ last week at Highlands after 12 years.

Travis is the only local church leader ever willing to comment on LU Facebook or blog – using his own name anyway. LU appreciates his support here and his community leadership over the years. Good luck sir.   

Bob Shaw’s new carpet mills in Whitfield and Murray – a $450 million investment expected to give 2,400 people jobs – came about due to $120 million in tax breaks and other incentives from state and county governments. That’s $50,000 per job, but the jobs will be there for decades. If the incentives weren’t provided in this area, they could have found them elsewhere; it’s the cost today of doing business and creating jobs.

Per GPB, the state’s part of that adds up to $105.6 million. It’s not a good thing that government has to do this to bring in jobs, but in this age that’s required to get them. If you don’t do it, somebody else will.

Since the Engineered Floors deal was announced, Murray County has attracted ANOTHER business that will supply the new factory there. Snowball effect of one business moving in.   

24-year-old Kevin New of Chickamauga died Sunday in Panama City, FL. He was found floating in water where he had been fishing. His wife says he was prone to seizures.   

Music On The Square has added a second “Headliner” artist to the lineup for Saturday. Paid VIP seats now also available, other seating still free. Collections will be taken up during the event to benefit The Care Mission. Annual music event will be held this Saturday beginning at 10 AM.   

(Photo from last year’s Music on the Square.)

Three people have been indicted for “conspiracy to violate Georgia law” after smuggling a drill and drill bits into the Chattooga County jail.   

When the new ethics law begins next January, elected leaders will be prohibited from taking any gift worth more than $75 – including VIP box tickets to UGA football games. Some legislators complain that will block them from using the tickets to be “more effective legislator[s].”

…because rights to sit in the Sanford Stadium President’s Box are why we voted for you in the first place.

Of course the ban starts NEXT year. Which means legislators and state/county/city officials around Georgia are still free THIS year to take free sports tickets – and some of them have been taking truckloads.

“House Bill 142, which limits food and travel paid for by lobbyists to $75 and bans gifts of pure entertainment, like ballgames, passed both the House and Senate unanimously on the final day of the 2013 legislative session. But even though every legislator voted for the bill and applauded themselves for doing so, several immediately began accepting the gifts anyway.”

Some legislators are arguing a $90 dinner would be under the cap if their wife also eats, because each meal would be worth just $45. So if they can figure out a way to include family members, staffers, or other legislators to spread out the value, there will be more opportunities to violate the spirit of the law: “I took some bread home for my five kids so the $300 dinner Georgia Power bought the six of us was only worth $50.”   

Speaking of ethical politicians..

State law allows legislators who practice law to delay cases for their clients any time going to court would conflict with “legislative duties.” That makes legislator lawyers the best defense lawyers when you’re facing a certain conviction. GA House Speaker David Ralston has used that legal loophole to delay justice in a vehicular homicide case for more than EIGHT years.

The law should restrict their “legislative duties” to the actual January-April legislative session, or cap the number of days outside that session they can use the excuse.. But the law can only be changed by people like David Ralston, so it’ll never happen.   

Troy Peco, automotive instructor at GNTC in Rock Spring, was recently named top technical instructor in the state. He showed the attitude that earned that honor by turning around and donating his $1,000 prize to a scholarship program.   

To save money and keep officers more engaged with offenders in the community, Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles has closed many of its smaller offices, pushing parole officers to work in their vehicles. The LaFayette branch is now one of these “virtual offices.”

Here’s a list [PDF] of all the Pardons & Paroles locations – note how many are marked as “Virtual Office.”   

Ex Public Officials Behaving Badly: Rome lawyer and former state legislator Ken Fuller was arrested last Tuesday after making threats against someone else involved in a lawsuit over a cat. Fuller served in the GA House 1979-1981 and GA Senate 1988-1990.   

It recently came out the IRS considers information on Facebook accessible without a warrant. Now the FBI has decided e-mails left on a server more than 180 days are also exempt from constitutional privacy guarantees. Be careful what you say online and where you leave messages stored.   

A high school senior in Clayton County found a mugshot of his principal online and shared it on Instagram, where classmates passed it on. He ended up with four days suspension. The principal says he was punished for claiming she had a DUI when her arrest was only for missing a court date.

“According to WSB-TV, Varner said the principal tried to get an officer to arrest him but the officer refused, so she suspended him instead.”

Sounds like she took what could have been a teaching opportunity and just went vindictive. An oversight board overturned the four day out-of-school suspension and gave the student two days OSS and two days ISS instead.   

As part of budget cuts, rangers at GA state parks will lose responsibility for law enforcement over the next five years, saving costs for certification and equipment. DNR wildlife rangers will retain their law enforcement authority.

The state will also cut some golf programs in state parks to save $300k a year.   

UGA has verbally offered a football scholarship to a 6’3 15-year-old freshman from Griffin. It’s good news for the kid, but what kind of pressure does this offer and expectations of football success put on a teen who can’t even drive yet? What about the impact on other students attending the same school?   

How do you feel about making this kind of high profile commitment to a guy this young?

For today’s links and any breaking news, follow the Underground on Facebook or Twitter.

This photo was taken Thursday on Crow Gap Rd. in Kensington. Guy in the hole says it was three feet deep and about five feet long under the pavement. County came out to patch it a few days earlier. After this they were called back out and “filled it with about six big rocks.”

Meanwhile the county road crew is clearing land for the Davenport family on Lookout Mountain and paving driveways at Mountain Cove Farms. We have resources to fix this stuff properly (all over the county) but don’t use them where they should be used.   

Georgia has freed schools from following the standards of No Child Left Behind and its hated AYP school scoring system. A new state-crafted acronym, CCRPI (College and Career Ready Performance Index), has been rolled out to evaluate school performance and the first scores from that system were released this week.

WQCH Radio, 05/08/13: “WALKER COUNTY SCHOOLS JUST RECEIVED THEIR FIRST SCORES UNDER THE NEW [CCRPI] ACCOUNTING SYSTEM. EACH SCHOOL IS GRADED ON A 100-POINT SCALE. NORTH LAFAYETTE ELEMENTARY HAD AMONG THE COUNTY’S HIGHEST SCORES: A 90.4. NAOMI SCORED 87.8, ROCK SPRING 84.2, AND GILBERT ELEMENTARY TRAILED AT 80.9. THE STATE AVERAGE FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IS 83.4.

“AMONG MIDDLE SCHOOLS, LAFAYETTE MIDDLE SCORED SLIGHTLY BELOW THE LEADER, CHATTANOOGA VALLEY MIDDLE. THE LMS SCORE IS AN IMPRESSIVE 92.7. THE STATE AVERAGE IS 81.4. AND AMONG THE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOLS, LAFAYETTE HIGH TOPPED RIDGELAND BY A SCANT 9-10th OF A POINT WITH A SCORE OF 76.6. RIDGELAND HAD THE LOWEST SCORE OF ALL WALKER COUNTY SCHOOLS AT 75.7. THE STATE AVERAGE FOR HIGH SCHOOLS IS 72.6, SO BOTH WALKER COUNTY HIGH SCHOOLS WERE ‘ABOVE THE AVERAGE’.

“FAIRYLAND ELEMENTARY, TRADITIONALLY THE SYSTEM’S HIGHEST PERFORMING SCHOOL, REPEATED THAT RECORD WITH 96.9 OUT OF 100 POSSIBLE POINTS. TWO WALKER COUNTY SCHOOLS SCORED BELOW THE STATE AVERAGE: GILBERT ELEMENTARY AND ROSSVILLE MIDDLE SCHOOL.

“SINCE THIS IS THE FIRST YEAR OF THE NEW MEASUREMENT, THERE ARE NO PAST SCORES WITH WHICH TO COMPARE THIS YEAR’S RESULTS. THE WALKER COUNTY SCHOOL SYSTEM DID NOT MAKE ‘ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS’ LAST YEAR, LARGELY DUE TO ATTENDANCE AND DROPOUT RECORDS AT THE TWO HIGH SCHOOLS.”

So far it’s not clear how CCRPI differs from AYP, other than being something local schools perform better on. Which might be the only advantage – we couldn’t pass the old test, so here’s one we can pass.   

Scores for All Walker County Schools:

All scores state-wide

Another report of copper theft in LaFayette, this time from someone already in prison.

A prisoner doing work on the library renovation was caught tossing wire over the fence for a friend who lived nearby to retrieve. Apparently the crime had been occurring regularly for some time.

Who’s supervising the supposed trustees working over there?   

Walker Co Schools will be redoing a new sign for Saddle Ridge School in Rock Spring. The finished sign said “Saddleridge” or “SaddleRidge” and referred to the K-8th institution as an elementary school.

Not sure if the county or sign maker eat the costs, or maybe split it up. How do you get to the point of having a sign MADE with a mistake? Did they not review it or see some designs or proofs ahead of time?

Would it be cheaper to redo the sign or just rename the yet-to-open school?   

Police in Fort Oglethorpe, along with the GBI, are investigating two “soda bottle” bombs found in yards yesterday.   

Photo taken in mid-April of young kids playing on the RR tracks in town, with no adults around. This is illegal, but more importantly it’s dangerous.

Most people have walked down or on the tracks before, but these kids aren’t old enough to have good judgment if a train comes. This was near McLemore Street. LPD was contacted but didn’t seem particularly interested in doing anything.

Trains DO still run through town, and they don’t always come at the same time. Always look and listen, and don’t let your kids play on the tracks.   

Arbitration between Walker County and three of its cities over how to divide sales tax revenues continues, but the whole issue will be out on hold while the state supreme court takes a look at a law specifying how split amounts are decided.

Meanwhile Walker County enters an eighth month with no fiscal 2013 budget.   

Chattooga Co. Sheriff’s Office is looking for the owner of “a fair amount” of money someone found (and turned in) at the Summerville McDonald’s. Presumably it’s yours if you know how much there is.

After several days the cash still hasn’t been claimed. The Sheriff now says they might pull security camera video to look for the owner; that may have been a good place to start looking to begin with.     

Last Monday Georgia announced plans to turn over operation of three state parks to a private company. The company, Coral Hospitality of Coral Gables FL, already took over two other state properties in December. The plan is to turn upscale “lodge” parks or parks with golf courses into a source of revenue for the entire state park system.

Georgia’s Stone Mountain Park has been managed by a private company since 1998, and seems to make a profit for the state AND business partner. It’s a nice tourist attraction but it’s also pretty pricey.   

Journalism hits new highs in Fort Payne. Hate to miss something like THAT in editing.

(Thanks to David Young.)   

Georgia has the third-highest teen unemployment rate in the US: 30.6%. That’s behind only South Carolina and California.   

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