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The Vidalia Advance Established 1901
The Lyons Progress Established 1894
Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia
March 17, 2021
Everybody Jmows
how to raise children,
except the people who
have them.
- PJ. O’Rourke
SWAT Team Deployed
In Two-Hour Standoff
News
BYTES
Sweeten Your
Ride Event Set
The 3rd annual "Sweeten
Your Ride" fundraiser will
be Friday and Saturday,
March 26 and 27, as
a drive-through event
located in the vacant
lot across from Palmer's
Furniture. This sale of
$10 "Sweeten Your
Ride" window decals
raises money for local
needs and encourages
support for the Vidalia
Onion Festival and
the onion season. The
SafeKids Toombs car seat
program, managed by
Vidalia Fire Department
Captain Robert Tillman,
will receive the proceeds
from this year's fundraiser.
The event is sponsored
by the Downtown Vidalia
Association.
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail. com
Over 50 law enforcers, in
cluding a Georgia State Patrol
Special Weapons and Tactics
(SWAT) team, responded to
a tense, two-hour standoff in
Wheeler County Wednes
day after officers at
the scene called
for backup. The in
cident took place
on the outskirts of
Glenwood shortly
after 1 p.m. and end
ed with an arrest and
without harm to the
suspect or authori
ties.
Wheeler County Sheriff’s
Chief Deputy Richie Floyd
said a suspect who barricad
ed himself inside his mobile
home told law enforcement,
“I’m tired of y’all harassing me.
I’m going to show y’all some
thing today.” Floyd said officers
considered that a direct threat
and because they also feared
that the suspect had weap
ons, called for back-up. The
alert brought in law enforce
ment from as far away as The
Georgia Public Safety Training
Center in Forsyth where the
GSP’s state-wide SWAT team
had congregated for training.
SWAT Command staff arrived
by helicopter, landing in a field
off of Ochwalkee Road a quar
ter mile away from the
trailer park.
Wheeler County
Sheriff’s Deputies
took William Riley
Davis, 38, into cus
tody around 3 p.m.
after he spoke with
Sheriff Randy Rig-
don and agreed to
surrender to au
thorities. Davis is being held
in the Wheeler County jail
on multiple charges follow
ing a preliminary hearing be
fore Magistrate Judge Jolinda
Harrelson on Friday morning.
Davis was charged with manu
facturing methamphetamines,
two counts of felony obstruc-
Please see SWAT page 3A
William Davis
(Wheeler County Sheriff’s Office Photo)
STANDOFF ENDS PEACEFULLY - Authorities arrest suspect William Davis
outside his residence near Glenwood Wednesday. The incident brought
in law enforcement from not just across the area but also the state after
officers at the scene called for backup in what they expected to be a
threatening situation, Davis surrendered without incident and is being
held in the Wheeler County jail on multiple charges.
Masonic Lodge
Slates BBQ
Sandwich Sale
The Vidalia Masonic
Lodge will hold a
barbecue sandwich
sale on Thursday, April 1,
from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.
For a $5 donation per
sandwich, participants
can pick up orders at
the Lodge on Slayton
Street across from
Calvary Baptist Church.
For advance orders,
call or text Joel Grier at
293-4382 or email him at
joelgrierl 774@gmail.com.
Proceeds benefit the
Lodge.
Blessing of
the Crops
(Photo by Evan Riekhof)
STAYING SAFE - Sandy Seidling, Accounting Specialist for the Vidalia City
Schools Board of Education, gets the Johnson & Johnson one-dose COV-
ID-19 vaccine. About 170 participated in the vaccination last Friday at Vida
lia High School, The vaccination was not mandatory, but many took advan
tage of the offer.
Suspect Clocked at 160 mph
In Chase Across Two Counties
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail.com
A high-speed
suit starting
pur-
m
Emanuel
County ended
in a Lyons
neighborhood
when the sus
pect wrecked
and fled on
foot. The inci
dent occurred
Saturday,
March 6.
Authorities
hended
Anthony Jones
emiah Jones of Toombs
County soon after he
abandoned his vehicle
near Skyline Boulevard
and Washington Street,
reported Ma
jor Nick Rob
ertson with
the Emanuel
County Sher
iff’s Office. The
chase began at
2:09 p.m. when
Jones’s Dodge
Charger was
clocked at 140
appre-
Anthony Jer-
miles per hour on Inter-
Please see Chase page 2A
Area Teachers Roll
Up Their Sleeves
By The Advance News Team
A morning of prayer and
fellowship to kick off the
2021 crop year will be
held on Friday, April 2,
at 7 a.m., at the Toombs
County Agri-Center
Arena, Quint Shrine
Road, Lyons. Breakfast
will be served. Everyone is
invited to attend.
IN THIS ISSUE
Editorials Page 5A
Obituaries Page 7A
From the Record Page 11A
Your Mind On Line Page 9A
Sports Page 1 B
Area teachers and school staff
rolled up their sleeves last Friday to
receive COVID-19 vaccinations. Be
ginning March 8 eligibility for the
vaccinations was extended to include
teachers and staff at public and pri
vate Pre-K, K-12, and Department
of Early Care and Learning licensed
or exempt childcare programs. The
criteria did not include staff at col
leges and universities. Educators and
school staff comprise about 450,000
residents in Georgia.
Vaccinations were not manda
tory but many took advantage of the
offer.
Meadows Health administered
the one-round Johnson & Johnson
vaccine to educators at Vidalia High
School. Since taking a survey of
those who would choose to receive
the shot, school officials discovered
some of the staff had received it by
other avenues. About 170 doses were
Please see Vaccines page 3A
City of Mount Vernon
Responds To Allegations
Of Excessive Force
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail.com
The City of Mount
Vernon has issued a state
ment following allega
tions posted on social
media last week that a
Mount Vernon police of
ficer used excessive force
against a 49-year-old fe
male motorist.
City Attorney Daniel
J. O’Connor said the city
has not received any di
rect or formal complaint
regarding the March 3 in
cident in Mount Vernon
that prompted the post.
“While these kinds of al
legations are taken seri
ously, the allegations in
this case are inaccurate in
light of the evidence gath
ered by the City, includ
ing relevant body cam
footage,” O’Connor said
Please see MoCo page 2A
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