Author: On Common Ground News

After church, Val and I had brunch and then enjoyed Sunday afternoon at the Gwinnett County Bicentennial Plaza in downtown Lawrenceville. The plaza is a beautiful historic park that celebrates the county’s first 200 years of growth. Since we enjoy historic sites, we wanted to see what this plaza was all about and how Gwinnett’s history has been documented. It’s a nice place to walk and learn about Gwinnett’s history through a series of exhibits that are erected along the park’s paved walkways. In addition to the exhibits, there is a time capsule containing residents’ stories and other artifacts buried at the…

STONECREST, GA—The Stonecrest City Council will have a Special Called meeting today, April 17, 6 p.m. The agenda lists four key action items: A decision for City Manager Appointment, Extension of the City Manager vacancy, Stonecrest Development Authority Appointments and Decision for Stonecrest Development Authority Intergovernmental Agreement. According to information in the agenda packet, the Council will vote on extending the appointment of City Manager for an additional 30 days—making the appointment on or before May 17, 2023. Previously, the council had extended the 30-day period from March16, 2023 to April 17, 2023. Mayor Jazzmin Cobble will make a presentation…

District 4 resident Malaika Wells expressed her concern in an open letter sent to On Common Ground News stating that she believes the Stonecrest City Council is “operating in a vacuum.”   Wells is calling on the council to provide transparency in the appointment of a new city manager and a more detailed discussion of the Stonecrest Development Authority ahead of its vote on the matter at the Special Called meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. today, April, 17, 2023.  Here  is the link to the open letter: Dear Councilpersons Grimes, Graves, Turner, Washington, and Mayor Pro Tem: Once again, we are facing a crisis in…

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA—Gwinnett County Police have arrested two suspects in connection with the shooting death of a man identified as Angel Mendoza, 39, of Lawrenceville. Mendoza’s identity was withheld until his next of kin could be notified of his death On Sunday (April 16), warrants were obtained for Esteven Avile-Vega and his girlfriend, Sulma Mejia-Orellana. Both are 26 years old and are from Lawrenceville. They were arrested at a home in Lawrenceville. The shooting took place on Sunday around 1:10 a.m. on Pepperwood Trail in Norcross. Gwinnett police were dispatched to a person shot call and when officers arrived on the scene,…

Washington, DC – Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Congressman Hank Johnson (D-GA), today sent a letter calling on the Judicial Conference to refer Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to the U.S. Attorney General for potential violations of the Ethics in Government Act 1978. The members sent a letter one day after a second ProPublica report exposed that Justice Thomas failed to disclose the sale of properties to billionaire Harlan Crow.  The letter follows a request from the Campaign Legal Center urging the Judicial Conference to refer Justice Thomas to the Attorney General for failure to disclose luxury trips funded by Crow. “Justice Thomas reported his interest in [the Savannah] properties…

DECATUR, GA– The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Unit made an arrest today, April 14, in the death of a man during an alleged drug deal on Glenwood Road in Decatur. Sheriff’s investigators located Charlie B. Buckholts, 20, of Stone Mountain, Georgia at an Indian Forest Trail residence and took him into custody without incident. An arrest warrant charges Buckholts with Malice Murder against Joshua Walker, who was found deceased in a silver van on March 18, 2023, after gunshots were heard by persons nearby. Authorities report that the victim and the suspect were allegedly acquainted through prior drug sales.…

DECATUR, GA–DeKalb County Super District 7 Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson and Super District 6 Commissioner Ted Terry are inviting the community to attend a special town hall designed to share with residents the current economic development landscape in DeKalb. The DeKalb County State of Economic Development Town Hall will take place Saturday, April 15, 9 a.m. (doors open at 8 a.m. for registration and light breakfast) at the South DeKalb Senior Center, 1931 Candler Road, Decatur. Attendees will hear from experts who are at the forefront of the county’s short and long-range plans for growth and development. “One of my ongoing…

DECATUR, GA– DeKalb County has extended the application deadline for the 2023 DeKalb Virtual Career Academy (DVCA), the county’s seventh annual summer jobs training program, run by WorkSource DeKalb. The new application deadline is 11:59 p.m. Sunday, April 16, for the program, hosted by DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond and the Board of Commissioners. “As families continue to struggle to navigate high inflation and food prices, DeKalb County wants to help youth earn money to purchase much-needed items for school while learning critical job skills,” Thurmond said. The five-week program will run from June 5 through July 7. DVCA will…

DEKALB COUNTY, GA– The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Unit has made an arrest in the March 29 death of a man during an alleged argument that led to a shootout on Kelly Street in Lithonia, Georgia. Sheriff’s investigators located 42-year-old Kali Smith of Lithonia at a residence on Laguna Drive in Decatur and took him into custody without incident. Arrest warrants charge Smith with Malice Murder and Aggravated Assault against Torey Shepherd, 21,  of Decatur, who was fatally wounded during the shootout. Smith was transported to the DeKalb County Jail, where he is being held without bond. Arrested: Suspect…