Author: On Common Ground News

DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston today announced the conviction in the retrial of Pamela Ballin, 56, who was accused of bludgeoning her husband, Derrick Ballin, Sr., 53. She was charged with murder, felony murder and aggravated assault in the nearly 8-year-old case. Mr. Ballin was attacked on Dec. 29, 2009 inside the Ballins’ Turnbridge Wells Road home in Lithonia and he later died in the hospital. Authorities say they believe Pamela Ballin was motivated by two life insurance policies totaling $1.2 million. Her husband owned a lawn service company on Stone Mountain-Lithonia Road in Lithonia. Authorities say Pamela Ballin staged…

Rockdale County Department of Transportation (RDOT) will make a presentation on several key topics at the Board of Commissioners’ June 20 meeting. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the Assembly Hall, 901 Main St., Conyers. The meeting is being held in the evening to give more residents the opportunity to attend. Transportation officials are expected to discuss how the public can report road maintenance needs, why some projects take longer than others, how to get on a SPLOST list, as well as other transportation topics that are of interest to the citizens of the Rockdale community. For…

Rockdale County Public Schools (RCPS) welcomes new additions and roles in school leadership positions for the 2017-2018 school year. Dr. LaSharon McClain was recently named the new principal of Flat Shoals Elementary (FSE). Tammy Smith, FSE principal for 2016-2017, is retiring after more than three decades as an educator. Dr. McClain comes to RCPS from Upson-Lee South Elementary where she has been principal since 2011. Before that, she worked in Newton County as an assistant principal at South Salem Elementary and Heard-Mixon Elementary and a second grade teacher at Ficquett Elementary. She was named 2004 Teacher of the Year…

Rockdale County High School senior Galilea Garcia has been named the 2017 Interact Scholarship Winner. Garcia, who serves as president of the Rockdale County High School (RCHS) Interact Club, earned the $1,000 scholarship from the Rotary Club of Conyers. “I’m really excited. It’s awesome to see how much your community has your back. It feels really good to be recognized for something you love to do when you didn’t expect it at all,” said Garcia. Rotary Club of Conyers Youth Services Chair Ruth Wilson describes Garcia, who plans to become a Rotarian after college and mentor other minority girls…

CITY OF STONECREST, GEORGIA Honorable Mayor Jason Lary, Sr. Council Member Jimmy Clanton, Jr. – District 1    Council Member Rob Turner- District 2 Council Member Jazzmin Cobble – District 3     Council Member George Turner- District 4 Council Member Diane Adoma – District 5 WORK SESSION MEETING AGENDA May 31, 2017 @ 5:00p.m. Stonecrest Library 3123 Klondike Road, Lithonia, Georgia CALL TO ORDER:   Mayor Lary   ROLL CALL: Acting City Clerk   OPENING REMARKS: Mayor Lary                                                                                                                                  AGENDA ITEMS:   Discussion on the Zoning Ordinance and Zoning Timelines   MAYOR AND COUNCIL REMARKS:   ADJOURNMENT:   EXECUTIVE SESSION: WHEN AN…

Public Service is clearly not for the weak and faint of heart. Many have disconnected from the legislative process and simply are not interested. However, the runoff election for Stonecrest Districts 5, 4 and 2 generated some unprecedented results with almost a 12% increase in voter return. Albeit, when this increase is compared to the total number of registered voters, this is still unacceptable.   Therefore this cannot be defined as aggressive citizen engagement. Transparency was a key promise of my pre-election platform and remains a critical component of my current office agenda. Stonecrest citizens and stakeholders are firmly protected when…

A Memorial Day ceremony will be held on Monday, May 29, 11 a.m., at the Walk of Heroes Veterans War Memorial, 3001 Black Shoals Road, Conyers. The ceremony features remarks from State Sen. Tonya Anderson and other special presentations. For more details, contact Tommy Clack at 404-401-7142 or visit www.walkofheroes.org.

The annual Gwinnett Fallen Heroes ceremony will take place on Saturday, May 29, 1 p.m., at the Gwinnett Fallen Heroes Memorial, 75 Langley Drive, Lawrenceville. The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners and honor guard units from Fire and Emergency Services, Police Department, Sheriff’s Office and the Lawrenceville Police Department will participate in the event to commemorate fallen American military and public service personnel. The Memorial Day ceremony will be televised on May 29, 7:30 p.m., on TVgwinnett, Gwinnett County’s government access cable channel and also will be available on demand at www.tvgwinnett.com.

It’s graduation time and even the youngest graduates marched in celebration. At Voices of Faith Christian Daycare in Conyers, the pre-K program graduates stood proudly to accept their diplomas during a program held on March 24. Some giggled, some cried and some played during the program. For more photos and a salute to the high school valedictorians and salutatorians, visit www.ocgnews.com.

DeKalb County Sheriff Jeffrey Mann, who is under investigation for exposing himself in an Atlanta public park and running from police, says he is disciplining himself for “conduct unbecoming.” Mann said in a statement that he is suspending himself May 27 through June 4 and donating one week’s pay to a charity to be determined. Mann’s announcement comes in advance of a the findings of an investigation expected to be reported in a few days to Gov. Nathan Deal. The governor ordered a special panel to broaden its scope of an investigation of Mann, who was arrested on May 6…