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fAYNESBOROYGEORGI, t'A2§nar.tans at Brian/vood ^7:30 p.m. O 04 ^3* o (NJ OJ 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 'Hifjhttni 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