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Vol. 143, No. 37 - Waynesboro, Ga. 30830 Established in 1882 Wednesday, November 1,2023 - $1.00
Keysville attorney promises accountability
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
City Attorney Doug Kidd says
“accountability” is just around the
corner for Keysville Mayor Linda
Wilkes.
“Your open records requests are
perfectly legitimate and should be
responded to and I have told the
mayor that and the city clerks that,”
Kidd said referring to complaints
filed by The True Citizen with the
Attorney General’s Office regarding
the city’s defiance in complying with
open records requests.
Kidd also addressed The True
Citizen’s complaint filed with the
AG that Keysville charged $96 for
copies of the 2018 and 2019 audits
that were witnessed to have taken
less than fifteen minutes to produce,
further violating the open records
act. “The open records act says the
first 15 minutes are free and after
that they can bill you a small copy
ing charge. There is no way it should
have been $96.”
Kidd said he will see to it that
The True Citizen is reimbursed for
the overcharges. This is especially
important since citizens and council
members are also denied access to
public information.
Additionally, Kidd said he re
ceived a call from the Secretary
of State’s Office Friday, October
20 regarding The True Citizen’s
complaint that the city is failing to
hold elections as mandated by state
election laws.
“The Secretary of State is look
ing into it and they don’t know and
can’t tell when elections were held
(previously),” Kidd said. Flowever,
he will be attending the city council
meeting November 13 to discuss
with the council and the mayor how
to straighten it out. Kidd said he
is working with the SOS to figure
out the best
course of ac- SEE
tion. ACCOUNTABILITY,
“You can’t c
Attorney Doug Kidd (pictured during the Feb. 14, 2022 meeting) has
offered to get more involved in Keysville’s multitude of conflicts.
A
Are on
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Hyrick. Street
The Waynesboro Police Department pre
sented their third annual Nightmare on
Myrick Street haunted houseTuesday, Octo
ber 31. It takes the WPD approximately three
weeks to transform the police department
building into the haunted attraction. The free event requires about 20 actors,
and this year the event includes hot dogs for the hundreds of children who
were expected to attend.
Willie Palmer case heard again
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetuecitizen.shelliel@gmail.com
The Supreme Court of Georgia
heard arguments Thursday, October
26 that District Attorney's office lost
or destroyed evidence involved in
Willie Palmer’s 27-year-old former
death penalty case.
Palmer’s first trial took place in
Burke County for the 1995 murders
of his estranged wife Brenda Palmer,
31, and stepdaughter Christine Jen
kins, 15, and resulted in a mistrial.
The women were fatally shot in a
Vidette residence. Palmer’s second
trial, held in Washington County,
resulted in a 1997 death sentence,
but a court reversed the convictions
in 2005. His third trial, in 2007 in
Burke County ended in a death sen
tence , but Palmer was granted a new
trial in 2020. The state agreed not
to seek the death penalty. Palmer’s
current appeal stems from his fourth
trial held earlier this year in Burke
County. Palmer was found guilty
of four counts of murder, burglary,
kidnapping, cruelty to
children and possession
of a firearm. He was sen- PALMER,
fenced to two life sen- 3
Willie Palmer
A ribbon cutting ceremony for Burke Therapy and Burke Imaging Thurs
day, October 26 offered attendees the opportunity to tour the depart
ments.
BURKE HEALTH
"Hospital of the Year"
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
Less than half way through the
initial lease term, Burke Hospital
Company has transformed Burke
County’s rural hospital into a center
for excellence in orthopedic and car
diac care, with facility improvements
that include state-of-the-art equip
ment and robotics, technologically
advanced operating rooms, 24-7
cardiology coverage and expanded
telehealth capabilities.
The True Citizen met with Burke
County Hospital Authority Chair
man Chris Collins last week. He said
financially the hospital is doing well
now. He recalled that prior to Burke
Hospital Company assuming man
agement of the facility, the county
was subsidizing the hospital with ap
proximately $5 million per year, just
to keep the doors open. The future of
the rural facility looked bleak as it
struggled with no income producing
operations. In fact, County Manager
Merv Waldrop stated in February
2021 that county taxpayers had spent
approximately $33 million to keep
the hospital afloat since 2015.
When Burke Hospital Company
took over, the agreement included
that the county would continue to
provide $22 million in subsidies over
the course of the first three years of
the initial 7-year term, while the new
management made efforts to rejuve
nate the facility. However, near the
end of the first year, Burke Health’s
losses were stabilized enough that
management elected to stop receiv
ing the funds and instead allow
the money to be devoted to capital
improvements. The financial move
allowed the funds to be invested in
a way that was guaranteed to benefit
the community long term.
“It was sooner than anyone imag
ined,” Collins stated. “Before that,
we didn’t have anything to show for
the money besides keeping the doors
open and keeping people employed.”
The hospital has grown from 140
total employees (95 full-time/45
part-time) in May 2021 to 280 to
tal employees (165 full-time/115
part-time). The employees are con
sidered the “best
and brightest” in
healthcare, with BURKE HEALTH,
years of exper- 6