Georgia, Augusta lag behind nation in college degrees
While the number of adults graduating from college is on the rise in Georgia, the sluggish pace leaves the state 32nd in the country for those who have completed degrees beyond high school, with the Augusta metro area trailing the state and nation.
Golf equipment stolen from truck outside hotel
Police are looking for a suspect responsible for stealing $2,500 worth of golf equipment from a truck Friday morning.
James Lynes, 40, of Savannah, Ga., said his truck was broken into after midnight, with the driver’s side window shattered, a Richmond County sheriff’s report said.
The 2011 GMC Sierra was parked in front of the DoubleTree hotel at 2651 Perimeter Parkway, the report said. In addition to the TaylorMade golf bag and seven golf clubs, a 13-round handgun magazine and a pair of Sperry shoes, valued at $150 combined, were stolen.
Warrenton man robbed at knifepoint near Cherry Tree Crossing
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a suspect who robbed a Warrenton, Ga., man at knifepoint near Cherry Tree Crossing on Saturday morning.
Quinderiaus Meyers, 23, of Parham Street, told authorities he made arrangements online to meet the suspect, who goes by “Rock,” at Smart Grocery at 3221 Wrightsboro Road around 9:30 a.m., a police report said.
Virginia woman robbed at Augusta hotel
Authorities are looking for three men in connection with an armed robbery Saturday morning.
The 32-year-old woman, of Norfolk, Va., told police she met an unknown man at a Washington Road gas station around 5 a.m. and brought him to her hotel room at the Marriott on Stevens Creek Road, a Richmond County sheriff’s report said. When the man went to leave, two men entered, one carrying a handgun. The victim handed over a gold watch, a gold bracelet and an iPhone 4, the report said. The items were valued at more than $600.
Demolition of vacant properties halts when Augusta budget runs dry
The city has burned through $500,000 appropriated last year for the demolition of abandoned properties, which means such work will cease until the new budget year begins in January.
The money funded about 100 demolitions between October and May, helping the city chip away at its growing list of abandoned and neglected buildings.
Although the city is making progress, some say it is fighting a losing battle unless officials come up with a better plan.
Man accused of attempted robbery
An Augusta man accused of attempted robbery was booked in to the Richmond County jail Friday.
Clyde Durant Adams, 22, of East Hale Street, was arrested about 3:40 p.m. on charges of attempted armed robbery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession of a firearm by a first offender probationer.
About noon, Adams approached a man on Second Street. Adams brandished a revolver and told Dunbar to hand over everything he had, an incident report said.
Search warrants provide more details in triple homicide
Search warrant affidavits from the May 21 slaying of a Hephzibah couple and their 20-year-old son show the bodies of the victims had been partially dismembered in addition to being burned.
The bodies were found by firefighters responding to a fire in a field behind Deer Chase Elementary School. According to the affidavits, deputies later found a dolly, an ax, a hacksaw and a short-blade saw at the home of Roosevelt and Edna Jones around noon that day.
Most missed Augusta garbage pickups resolved
Fewer Augustans should awaken this morning to uncollected garbage or recycling, according to Augusta Solid Waste Director Mark Johnson.
“I believe that would be the case. The only area where that has been a challenge is on assisted collections,” Johnson said, referring to the homes of the disabled who are unable to put the bins on the roadside.
The city’s new weekly collection contract got off to a rocky start June 3, with thousands of missed pickups as most of the city’s 58,000 garbage customers were assigned a new hauler, truck, route and collection day.
Firefighter who sent tweet apologizes
An Augusta firefighter has apologized for a tweet that drew widespread criticism for questioning the citizenship of a Latino boy singing the national anthem Tuesday at Game 3 of the NBA Finals in San Antonio.
“The issue was really more sensitive than what I was paying attention to,” said Andre Lacey, an Augusta firefighter since 2007, in a phone call Friday. “By no means am I racist.”
Marijuana operation found in Burke County
The Burke County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a suspect in connection with a large marijuana operation found Thursday afternoon.
Deputies responded to a call at Hephzibah-Key Road shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday, where a homeowner reported that a man had been tending more than 100 marijuana plants in the woods behind his home, a statement from the sheriff’s office said.
Augusta code enforcement issues maintenance notices to River Glen Apartments manager
Maintenance issues at River Glen Apartments forced Augusta’s code enforcement department to issue warnings to the property manager this week.
Mold, broken windows and damaged floor tiles were discovered at the Section 8 housing complex on Telfair Street after dozens of complaints from residents.
River Glen tenants began contacting the code enforcement division this month. Inspectors spent several days inspecting 23 units, said Pam Costabile, the code enforcement division manager.
Columbia County to repair collapsed Martinez road
Columbia County officials are planning repairs to a Martinez road that collapsed last week, though its ownership and responsibility remain unclear.
A dam pipe running under Lakestone Court in Barrington subdivision gave way after heavy rains on June 3. The road collapse isolated residents of 12 homes, who were allowed to drive across the temporarily repaired road only for a couple of days before it was closed off again June 5.
Grovetown man sentenced to prison for causing vehicle crash
A Grovetown man who caused a head-on crash on Lumpkin Road has been sentenced to eight years in prison.
Jeffery W. Davignon, 56, pleaded guilty in Richmond County Superior Court on Thursday to charges including driving under the influence and serious injury by vehicle.
Judge J. Wade Padgett also sentenced Davignon to an additional seven years probation.
Alternative Fueled Vehicle Roadshow stops in Augusta
Joy Kramer wants as many people as possible to see the changing face of American transportation.
“We’re here to show what’s available – right now,” said Kramer, the tour director for the third annual Alternative Fueled Vehicle Roadshow, which stopped Friday in Augusta.
Lined up outside the Georgia Regents University Alumni Center were vehicles powered or assisted by propane, biofuels, natural gas, electricity and compressed natural gas.
Fort Gordon celebrates Army's 238th birthday
Pfc. Bryce Sickles gripped the handle of an officer’s saber at Fort Gordon’s Freedom Park and with a clean stroke sliced through 20 pounds of birthday cake.
The Army turned 238 on Friday and to illustrate the branch’s future, Sickles, the youngest enlisted soldier at Fort Gordon, was chosen as a ceremonial cake cutter.
The 18-year-old characterized the honor as a “once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Augusta men sentenced to life terms in prison for armed robberies
Two Augusta men convicted of committing armed robberies have each been sentenced to life in prison.
A Richmond County Superior Court jury on Wednesday convicted Derrell L. McNair, 20, and Andrew L. Dunn, 18, for armed holdups in spring 2012. One of their victims, Saxon Washington, was killed in a house fire about four months later.
The robberies, from March 25 to April 8, 2012, ended with McNair’s and Dunn’s arrests after Dunn was shot fleeing the scene of the last robbery on Watkins Street.
Fort Gordon offers apology but no compensation for malfunctioning garage door remotes
Fort Gordon apologized to the more than 500 homeowners in the Augusta area who have experienced problems with their garage door remotes while the post tests an emergency radio system, but added the military won’t help residents pay to counteract the inconvenience.
The post said in a statement Friday that the frequencies through which the openers operate have been reserved for the U.S. military since World War II and that neither the installation nor the Defense Department can compensate homeowners for repairs.
Police looking for information on 'suspicious' metal sale
Police are asking for information on a suspicious metal sale earlier this week.
Three 15-foot aluminum lamp posts were sold to an recycling center on June 12.
Metal Theft Investigator Kendall Brown said the recycling center notified him of the suspicious sale immediately. Brown has spoken to the Aiken man who was selling the items, but he said it appears there may be more to the story.
The sheriff’s office is seeking any additional information on the lamp posts or where they might have come from.
Augusta man arrested in assault, carjacking
An Augusta man has been charged in a carjacking and assault on Broad Street.
According to a news release, Richmond County sheriff’s deputies were called at 2:44 a.m. Friday to the 1100 block of Broad Street, where they met Vanika Walcott, 27, of Grovetown.
Walcott told police she was trying to enter her 2006 Nissan Armada when she was approached by a man who threw her to the ground, punched her in the face several times and drove off in the sport utility vehicle.
Ga. suspends 19 juvenile justice workers, supervisor
DECATUR, Ga. — Nineteen Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice investigators and the chief of investigations were suspended with pay Thursday while authorities investigate juvenile inmates’ claims of sexual abuse at state detention centers.
The four Georgia facilities were the Augusta YDC in Richmond County; a regional youth detention center in Paulding County; the Eastman Youth Development Campus in Dodge County; and the Sumter YDC in Americus.
