Author: On Common Ground News

Ronnie Juval Miller, one of three suspects wanted for the Feb. 19 murder of the owner of the Tic Toc food mart on Evans Mill Road, has been arrested. Miller, 42, of Conyers, was arrested today(March 12) in connection with the death  of 57-year-old Tesfaye Birru, who was found fatally shot outside his store shortly before 10:30 p.m. as he closed for the night on Feb. 19. Police have said they believe robbery was the motive. The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Unit, with the assistance of the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office, arrested Miller without incident in a parking lot on Old…

The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) is awaiting confirmatory testing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on five additional presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 in Georgia. The additional cases are in Cobb, Fayette, Gwinnett, and two in DeKalb. The individuals are hospitalized, and the sources of their infections are unknown. Confirmed cases and presumed positive cases of COVID-19 are broken down as follows: Confirmed COVID-19 Cases (Total: 6) Fulton County: 3 Floyd County: 1 Polk County: 1 Cobb County: 1 Presumptive Positive COVID-19 Cases (Total: 11) Fulton County: 2 Cobb County: 3 Fayette County: 1 DeKalb…

DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond, the Board of Commissioners, District Health Director Dr. S. Elizabeth Ford and DeKalb County School District Interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson will host a virtual town hall meeting about the coronavirus and the county’s preparedness measures. Out of an abundance of caution, the public town hall meeting will no longer be held at Rehoboth Baptist Church. The virtual town hall meeting will be Wednesday, March 11, 7 to 9 p.m., and can be accessed via: dekalbcountyga.gov Comcast Cable Channel 23 in DeKalb County Facebook live: facebook.com/ItsInDeKalbGa Questions are being accepted now and during the town hall…

Sanitizer pumps are going up everywhere as health and emergency management officials warn the public to wash their hands and avoid skin-to-skin contact as COVID-19 spreads in Georgia.  Currently, there are six confirmed, including three in Fulton County, and one each in Cobb, Floyd and Polk counties, according to the office of Gov. Brian Kemp. There are 11 presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 in Georgia that are awaiting confirmation from the CDC, state officials said on Monday. Meanwhile, an employee at a Waffle House, located at 1849 Marietta Highway in Canton, has tested positive for coronavirus, according to the restaurant. The location is temporarily closed.…

Due to the coronavirus, DeKalb County Superior Court Clerk Debra DeBerry and Sheriff Melody Maddox have decided to cancel the 2020 Annual VOICES Women’s History Month Event scheduled for Saturday, March 14. “After careful deliberation, we agreed it is most important to protect our community and to do our part to minimize this emerging public health concern,” DeBerry and Maddox said in a statement released today (March 10). This year’s “touch free” experience will feature a video tribute to women and a brief message from DeBerry and Maddox. The video link will be uploaded on Saturday, March 14, 11:00 a.m.…

Congressman Hank Johnson, Fourth District, has cancelled his Census Town Hall meeting that was scheduled on Saturday, March 21, in Clarkston. Johnson’s  office said in a release that the event will not be held due to recommendations to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. Johnson said in a tweet the meeting will be rescheduled at another time. “It’s all about two critical parts that can impact our government and society as a whole: funding and representation,” said Congressman Johnson, who represents several hard-to-count communities in Georgia’s Fourth District. “The 2020 Census is quickly approaching. America’s founders understood this data was…

Due to travel precautions, Itzhak Perlman has decided to cancel his March 11 appearance with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Pinchas Zukerman has graciously agreed to join former Music Director Yoel Levi and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for this performance of Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1. The performance will still be livestreamed online at aso.org/Livestream and on the ASO’s Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts. Atlantans may also attend a simulcast presentation at the Woodruff Arts Center’s Sifly Piazza. Families are invited to bring blankets and lawn chairs and enjoy an evening under the stars at Woodruff Arts Center’s Sifly Piazza for a live simulcast presentation of the ASO’s sold-out performance with violinist Pinchas Zukerman and…

On Wednesday, March 11, lane closures are set to begin for sections of South Candler Street between Green Street and Bruton Street from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., while crews work to rehabilitate approximately 670 linear feet of aging, ductile-iron sewer pipe. These sections of South Candler Street will reopen on Friday, March 13, 2020. The DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management has initiated this construction project as a part of ongoing maintenance to repair approximately 100,000 linear feet of sewer pipe to improve sewer service county-wide. Motorists and MARTA passengers should expect traffic delays stemming from the lane closures.…

Daniel Corwell, 48, is facing several charges including possession and manufacturing of an explosive device after planting six pipe bombs at the Clairmont Terrace Condominiums in DeKalb County where he lived. DeKalb police spokesperson Michaela Vincent said the DeKalb County Police Bomb Squad discovered at least five pipe bombs inside the suspect’s home. Shortly before noon on Monday, March 9, DeKalb Police were called to the condominium on Northeast Expressway  after a resident discovered what they believed was a pipe bomb in the community’s courtyard. Police began evacuating the condos, after receiving a call about the pipe…

The controversy surrounding SB 469 continues to build in the city of Stonecrest. Citizens have started an online petition to stop Georgia Senate Bill 469, which would dramatically change the city of Stonecrest’s form of government. Citizens say the bill was put together without hearing from the majority of citizens. The online petition was shared on Facebook around 4 p.m. today. The petition comes on the heels of a community meeting held last Thursday by State Senators Emanuel Jones, Tonya Anderson and Gloria Butler, where several citizens voiced opposition to the bill , saying that Stonecrest residents have not had…