Author: On Common Ground News

The City of Stonecrest City Council will meet on Feb. 19, 6 p.m., at Stonecrest City Hall, 3120 Stonecrest Blvd. This is the voting meeting for the council. City Council Agenda 2-19-2018 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 CITY COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA February 19, 2018 6:00 p.m. Stonecrest City Hall 3120 Stonecrest Blvd. Stonecrest, Georgia 30038 CALL TO ORDER:   Mayor…

The Stephenson High School Trombone Choir from DeKalb County has been invited to perform at the 2018 Music for All National Festival, presented by Yamaha, the nation’s most prestigious festival for scholastic musical ensembles. The 27th Annual Festival, which showcases the finest music ensembles and student musicians in America, will take place in Indianapolis, Indiana, March 15-17. Under the direction of Calvin L. Morris, Jr. and Quentin R. Goins, the Trombone Choir was selected to perform by a panel of esteemed music educators and conductors, who judged a recorded audition. “When we received the news of our acceptance to the…

DeKalb County District 3 Commissioner Larry Johnson is hosting a Public Safety Town Hall Meeting to allow residents to discuss various public safety issues and needs in their communities. The town hall meeting is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 26, at 6 p.m. at Bob Mathis Elementary School, 3505 Boring Road, Decatur. The keynote speaker for the event will be Joseph “Jack” Lumpkin, DeKalb County’s new chief operating officer for public safety. Residents also will have the opportunity to meet representatives from various county departments, including the Sheriff’s Office, Marshal’s Office, Solicitor-General’s Office, Juvenile Court, District Attorney’s Office, DeKalb Community Service…

Stonecrest City Councilman Rob Turner, District 2, will host a town hall meeting on Feb. 22, 6:30 to 8 p.m., at the Lou Walker Senior Center, 2538 Panola Road, Stonecrest. The community is invited to hear updates on issues relevant to the city and community at large.

Ira Henderson, a cornerback for Stephenson High School’s football team, was arrested on Feb. 9 after allegedly robbing an 18-year-old student at gunpoint after school, according to DeKalb County police. Henderson, 18, and another unidentified male suspect are accused of robbing the victim of his backpack and $1,200 Louis Vuitton gold tennis shoes on Jan. 26. The victim said he had gotten off the school bus around 4 p.m. when he was approached by the suspects in the driveway at his home, police said. The suspects pulled up in a white 4-door Lexus truck, one carrying a shotgun, the other…

Kaylon Janard Jiles, 24, of Tucker and Traquan Alexander Mcleod, 22, of Decatur are in custody for the murder of Lawrenceville resident Eric Fisher, who was shot to death outside a Motel 6 in DeKalb County. The shooting took place in November 2017 after Jiles and Fisher got into an argument, DeKalb Sheriff’s spokesperson Cynthia Williams said.  Fisher was shot multiple times. Jiles fled the scene in a black sedan, according to reports. Four months later, Jiles  and Mcleod were arrested on Feb. 12 by the DeKalb Sheriff’s Fugitive Unit. Jiles, Mcleod and a third person were spotted at a…

DeKalb County is holding a toilet paper drive to benefit the metro Atlanta homeless community. Sponsored by the Office of DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond, the toilet paper drive is in partnership with Love Rolls Inc., a local nonprofit, which has collected approximately 225,000 rolls of toilet paper and distributed 125,000 rolls to homeless individuals, people in need and those impacted by natural disasters. DeKalb County has a goal of collecting 3,000 rolls of toilet paper during this drive. “When people think about serving the homeless, needy and those who have gone through a natural disaster, they immediately think about…

By Mackenzie N. Morgan As the flu epidemic sweeps Georgia and across the nation, DeKalb County’s Board of Health reported its first pediatric death related to the flu. Miguel Jaimes Martinez, 15, a Cross Keys High School student, died from flu complications on Sunday, Feb. 11, according to DeKalb officials. DeKalb Schools Superintendent R. Stephen Green issued a statement saying the school district was saddened to learn of the teen’s passing. “The entire DeKalb County School District is saddened by the news that one of our own has passed away due to illness,” Green said.  “Our thoughts and prayers are…

DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond has selected Chuck Ellis as the county’s director of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Affairs, effective Feb. 26. Ellis will manage the department’s 200 full- and part-time employees and a budget of $12.8 million. Ellis has served in government for 35 years, beginning in his hometown of Lexington, KY, where he had the unique experience of overseeing a 659-acre equestrian park that included therapeutic programs, indoor and outdoor programming and competition spaces and other programs and facilities dedicated to the public equine experience. Most recently, he served as director of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Arts in…

Secretary of State Brian Kemp announced a record-breaking month of annual business registrations. In the month of January, the Corporations Division processed over 216,000 annual business registrations – more registrations in one month’s time than ever before. “We are proud to achieve another milestone in our agency,” said Secretary Kemp. “With our state-of-the-art eCorp filing system, filing your business in Georgia continues to become simpler. Feedback on our user-friendly filing system remains upbeat and positive, and the numbers reflect how easy it is to use. By streamlining this process, we simplify the lives of job creators – big and small…