The champion newspaper. (Decatur, GA) 19??-current, October 12, 2023, Image 1

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Newspaper Page TextTHURSDAY, OCTOBER 12 - 18, 2023 www.THECHAMPIONNEWSPAPER.com VOL. 34 • NO. 15 e CHAMPION 50^ The official legal organ of DeKalb County, Ga. "64116 UUUU1 LOCAL DCSD leaders discuss violence, bus drivers at town hall PAGE 2 LOCAL DCSD celebrates high school rankings and literacy awards PAGE 6 BUSINESS Stone Mountain driver inducted into Truck Driver Hall of Fame PAGE 13 LIFESTYLE Spooky tales returning to Stone Mountain in October PAGE14 VISIT US ONLINE @ THECHAMPIONNEWSPAPER.COM DCFR ignites building to promote smoke alarms BY JAY PHILLIPS JAY@DEKALBCHAMP.COM DeKalb County Fire Rescue (DCFR) and the American Red Cross demonstrated the effectiveness of smoke alarms by igniting a full-size, fully furnished bedroom equipped with a smoke alarm on Oct. 4 at DeKalb Fire Academy. The bedroom was engulfed in flames within a minute of the fire starting. Speakers used the quick spreading fire and the immediate alarm from the smoke alarm to emphasize the importance of having working smoke alarms in homes. SEE ALARMS ON PAGE 8 A mock bedroom was fully engulfed in flames as part of a DeKalb County Fire Rescue demonstration. Photos by Jay Phillips Prosecutor will not file charges against Georgia State troopers who shot protester BY CHRISTINE FONVILLE CHRISTINE@DEKALBCHAMP.COM A prosecutor has announced that no charges will be filed against Georgia State Patrol troopers after the shooting of protester Manuel Teran, who died on the site of the future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center in January. District Attorney Pro Tempore George Christian of the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit released a statement on Oct. 6 that read, in part, "the use of lethal (deadly) force by the Georgia State Patrol was objectively reasonable under the circumstances of this case." "No criminal charges will be brought against the Georgia State Patrol troopers involved in the shooting of Manuel Teran," the statement continues. According to Christian's statement, Manuel Teran was shot and killed at the site of the future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center in January. File photo on Jan. 18 when the shooting occurred, Georgia State troopers used a device known as a pepperball launcher after Teran "refused lawful commands to come out of the tent." According to the company that manufactures pepperball launchers, the devices are designed for minimum time between launches and quick Hundreds attend housing crisis discussion forum in Lithonia BY CHRISTINE FONVILLE CHRISTINE@DEKALBCHAMP.COM A lthough Rep. Hank Johnson was in Washington, D.C. to cast his vote that would ultimately be part of the first ousting of a speaker of the House in U.S. history, more than 300 people showed up at Lou Walker Senior Center in Lithonia for his Oct. 3 event to learn more about the ongoing housing crisis in DeKalb County, as well as seek resources from experts who were on hand from United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Atlanta Legal Aid, and other organizations. In attendance for the discussion were State Sen. Tonya Anderson, State Rep. Billy Mitchell, DeKalb County commissioners Larry Johnson and Mereda Davis Johnson, Clarkston councilwoman YT Bell, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Multifamily Housing Regional Director Mark Dominick, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Atlanta Homeownership Center Deputy Director Valerie Williams and others. The discussion centered on multiple hardships that renters, homeowners, and unhoused people are facing in the wake of emergency COVID-19 funding set aside for rent, utilities and mortgages running dry as costs continue to rise. Many of the speakers at the forum emphasized that while Gov. Brian Kemp touts Georgia as a state that is welcoming and friendly toward businesses, it is failing when it comes to being a state that is livable and affordable. Both Mitchell and Johnson discussed the growing number SEETERAN ON PAGE 8 SEE HOUSING ON PAGE 6 Social @DEKAIBCHAMPNEWS

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The champion newspaper. (Decatur, GA) 19??-current, October 12, 2023, Image 1