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TheCHAMPION
The official legal organ of DeKalb County, GA. Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker, Stonecrest and Stone Mountain.
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14 - 20, 2019 SECTION A: VOL. 29 • NO. 20
Stonecrest Mayor Jason Lary celebrates with his supporters after being reelected.
Photos by Carla Parker
Stonecrest voters
reelect Lary as mayor
BY CARLA PARKER
carla@dekalbchamp.com
ason Lary will serve
as Stonecrest mayor for
another four years after
receiving a majority of votes
Nov. 5
Lary won the mayoral
race with 55.48 percent
(3,049) of votes. Challengers
Charles Hill Jr., and Diane
Adoma received 23.54
percent (1,294) and 20.58
percent (1,131), respectively.
SEELARY ON PAGE 9
special election results
BY CARLA PARKER
AND TAYLOR ROBINS
D eKalb County voters
say “no” to the board
of ethics referendum.
Voters rejected the
ethics board referendum
with 61.33 percent of votes.
The referendum would
have made revisions to
the makeup of DeKalb
County’s ethics board and
how future complaints
would be filed. Changes
were made following a
Georgia Supreme Court
ruling that determined
some of the board’s current
members were appointed
unconstitutionally
The amendments
would have required
county employees to file
complaints with human
resource departments before
filing with the ethics board,
allowed the county CEO
to have a representative
on the ethics committee
and changed the ethics
officer position to an ethics
administrator.
DeKalb CEO Michael
Thurmond said in a
GREEN GONE
Green was not present when DCSD board members voted to end his superintendent contract Nov. 11. Photo by Taylor Robins.
School board votes to remove Green
with separation agreement
BY TAYLOR ROBINS
Taylor@dekalbchamp.com
In a 6-1 vote, DeKalb
County School District
(DCDS) Board of
Education voted to remove
DCSD Superintendent R.
Stephen Green “effective
immediately” Nov. 11.
Green was not present for
the vote.
“We appreciate [Green]
for his service to the county
and wish him the best in his
future endeavors,” DCSD
Board Chair Michael A.
Erwin said.
The called meeting was
announced Nov. 8.
Green announced May
24 that he would not extend
his current contract beyond
the 2019-2020 school year.
His last day was scheduled
to be June 30, 2020, prior
to the separation agreement
vote. Green came to the
R. Stephen Green
district in 2015.
In May, Green said
his decision to leave the
school district came “after
thoughtful consideration
with [my] family”
DCSD Board Member
Allyson Gevertz cast the
opposing vote saying she
did not want to switch to a
new superintendent in the
middle of the school year,
having to pay two contracts
for Green and an interim
superintendent. According
to DCSD Board Member
Joyce Morley, the district
would not have to pay two
contracts if the agreement
was approved.
“We can’t keep
pretending like things are
okay,” said Morley “We
can’t keep putting things out
to the public and making it
look good. The bottom line
is, we can pretend, but it’s
not going to be good for our
students. Our students only
have time around and once
they’re done with those four
year, they can’t go back and
get it.”
According to Morley,
morale at DCSD is low.
“This is long overdue,”
she said.
“It’s been overdue,”
said Willie Pringle, Restore
DeKalb community activist.
“I wish him well.”
Restore DeKalb is a
SEE ELECTION ON PAGE 9
SEE GREEN ON PAGE 9
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