Author: On Common Ground News

DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond has proposed committing $9 million in additional contributions to strengthen the county’s employee pension fund. The contributions will be made annually over the next five years to help reduce the county’s unfunded pension liability. “DeKalb County’s goal is to get the employee pension fund on firm financial footing’’ said Thurmond. “The proposal is a long-term strategy to strengthen and stabilize the employee pension fund and ensure financial integrity in the fund going forward.” The proposal includes paying down existing debts and increasing the recommended contribution to 20.91 percent or $61,080,344 for Fiscal Year 2019.…

Jeffries Scott Anderson, 38, was sentenced to life in prison after jurors found him guilty of shooting and killing a man whose home he was burglarizing during the man’s lunch break. After deliberating for less than an hour, jurors returned guilty verdicts on Feb. 5 against Anderson in the shooting death of Jonathan Alexander Newton, 30. Anderson was convicted on charges of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, burglary in the first degree, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The incident happened on Halloween, Oct. 31, 2016…

The Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office is alerting citizens to beware of a telephone scam after receiving calls from the public who were contacted by a fake “deputy.” According to incident reports, several county residents have received telephone calls from someone stating he is a deputywith the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office. The caller mentions an outstanding warrant for an unpaid debt, missed jury duty or some minor infraction causing a fine. The caller then attempts to force the person to wire money for the infraction through Western Union MoneyGram or by getting a prepaid credit card to pay off the…

The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners will decide on Feb. 12 if the county should spend funds from the Homestead Option Sales Tax(HOST) to purchase new radios for the Rockdale Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office has asked the board to spend $1.3 million to for 107 new dash mount radios and 231 portable radios. The funding was generated from the one-cent HOST approved by voters in 2002. The HOST provides a combination of property tax relief for homeowners (using at least 80 percent of receipts) and funding for capital projects (up to 20 percent). “This investment of the HOST funding…

Springfield Baptist Church in Conyers served as a Safe Zone Atlanta call center in an initiative to combat sex trafficking during Super Bowl 53 weekend. More than 100 volunteers participated in the initiative. Pastor Eric W. Lee, Sr.,  pastor of Springfield, said the initiative was coordinated to deliver a message as the masses poured into Atlanta for the Big Game:   “Not in our backyard. The church must be a center for redemption, reconciliation and Restoration,” said Pastor Lee. According to advocacy groups such as the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, major sporting events often see an increase in sex trafficking.…

By Clarence Cuthpert, Jr. Rockdale Probate Judge   Many citizens contact the Probate Court and ask to speak with the judge. The initial response from the clerk is usually, “What is it in reference to?” The citizen’s response to this question is often “Why do you need to know?” I assure you it is not just because the clerk is being nosy. It is because as judges, we must avoid conversations that give one party an advantage over another. Judges are prohibited from communicating with a party to an active case, or someone who is looking to file a case…

   The Conyers Downtown Development Authority (DDA) recently presented an Outstanding Achievement Award to Keish Momin for his efforts in the renovation, expansion and beautification of Las Flores Olde Town Mex restaurant, which is located at 957 South Main Street in Olde Town Conyers. The restaurant, built in 1930, was formerly a residence, office and coffee shop before it opened as Las Flores Olde Town Mex. The building was purchased by Keish Momin from local attorney Jorge Flores in 2016. After a year of  and making subtle changes, Momin decided to expand the restaurant, enclose the outside deck to create…

The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) has announced that the Black History Month theme for 2019 is “Black Migrations.”   ASALH selected the theme to educate the public about the movement of people of African descent to new destinations as it recognizes the 400th Commemoration of Africans who arrived in the first permanent English Colony in North America in August 1619. Beginning in the early decades of the twentieth century, African American migration patterns included relocation from the South to the Northeast, Midwest, and West. The migrations gave rise to social changes including the…

After serving as a reading volunteer in the Birmingham City, Alabama Schools, Robert Gilmore noticed that the students knew little about the history of Blacks in the United States. In an effort to raise cultural awareness in the classroom, Gilmore decided to improve his own knowledge and took up the hobby of stamp collecting. Stamps, he said, are a gateway to our past that can also serve as a bridge to inspire present and future generations to continue making strides in Black history. “Sometimes, students have a poor image of themselves because they lack exposure to images of successful Black people,” said…

The public is invited to attend DeKalb History Center’s 11th Annual Black History Month Celebration honoring DeKalb’s vibrant and powerful African American political heritage. The event will be held on Thursday, Feb. 14, 11 a.m., at the Historic DeKalb Courthouse, Second Floor, 101 E Court Square, Decatur. A host of dynamic presenters, elected politicians, and community leaders will talk about the early days of voter intimidation and how the African American citizenry of DeKalb mobilized to register to vote, protest, and destroy Jim Crow laws, despite being fired from jobs, shamed, and even violently attacked. Program highlights include the WWI…