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C M
K
Inside
Open records
Charlton County sheriff
refuses to release
report on shooting.
see 3
It’s Your Money
The county’s public
works department is
featured.
see 7
Today’s Poll
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Last Week
Do you believe our
local governments
are responsible in
their spending?
Yes 5
No 12
Somewhat 4
Index
Obituaries
2
Opinion
4
Upcoming Events
6
Sports
9
People
11
Classifieds
12
Legals
14
Tribune &
Georgian
P.O. Box 6960,
St. Marys, Ga.
31558
Volume 110, No. 43
20 pages • One section
tribune-georgian.com
© 2013, Tribune & Georgian,
Community Newspapers Inc.
1
4
Meth lab takedown
Jocelyn Brumbaugh | Tribune & Georgian
Drug task force team members line up on their way into a mock meth lab during a
role-playing exercise on Friday at the Camden County Sheriff’s Office substation in St.
Marys. Representatives from nearby law enforcement and fire departments also par
ticipated in the training. For more photos, see page 6.
Traffic stop
ends with six
felony arrests
Jocelyn Brumbaugh
iocelyn@tribune-georgian.com
On Friday, May 24, the
Camden County Sheriffs
Office arrested six suspects
from Charlotte, N.C., on a
variety of felony charges.
Ashley Nichole Irby, 24;
Kevin Deshon Franklin, 21;
Tonisha Brenae Polk, 24;
Antonio Montrice Thomp
son, 21; Demario Dontrest
Fuller, 21; and Darius An
tonio Fuller, 21, were
stopped for speeding 90
mph in a 70 mph zone on
southbound Interstate 95
around 5:30 a.m., according
to the incident report.
The deputy immediately
smelled a strong odor of
marijuana after approach
ing the 2013 white Cadillac
Escalade. Irby, the driver,
gave the deputy a false
name and could not provide
a license. After discovery of
Irby’s real name, deputies
found she had an arrest
warrant out in North Car
olina. The tag for the vehi
cle came back as stolen
from North Carolina.
Deputies assisted each
occupant out of the vehicle
before conducting a search.
They found a stolen .45-
caliber semiautomatic
handgun, marijuana, and a
black backpack that con
tained scales, plastic bags
and a razor blade with a
white residue on it that was
later confirmed as cocaine.
All occupants denied
knowing the origin of the
vehicle, contraband or
weapon before being taken
to the Camden County jail.
All face charges of theft by
bringing stolen property
into the state, possession of
a firearm during the com
mission of a crime, posses
sion of less than 1 ounce of
marijuana and possession of
cocaine. The case was
turned over to investigator
Kevin Barber and further
charges are pending.
Drugs
found in
woman’s
bra, pants
Johna Strickland Rush
johna@tribune-georgian.com
A New York woman is facing
four felony drug charges after a
store clerk reported that she ap
peared intox
icated while
paying for gas
Thursday at
an Exit 6 sta
tion.
Megan
Leah Cam-
podonico, 25,
of Nyack,
N.Y., has been charged with four
counts of felony possession of a
controlled substance for having
methamphetamine, heroin, oxy
codone and clonazepam and
misdemeanor possession of mar
ijuana, according to a Kingsland
Police Department release.
Campodonico
See ARREST, page 6
Fire on the water
Emily Heglund | Tribune & Georgian
St. Marys Fire Department responded to call at about 3:25 p.m. Friday to a boat fire at the St. Marys Street
boat ramp in downtown. Still on a trailer, the 19-foot boat was burning in the engine area, according to SMFD
chief Robby Horton. A crew extinguished the fire, leaving the scene after about 20 minutes and the owner re
moved the boat.The fire caused about $5,000 worth of damage.
CCHS programs give students life experience
Emily Heglund
editorl@tds.net
For the last two years of her high
school career, McKenna Blansett es
sentially became a college student.
Blansett decided as a sophomore
that she wanted to obtain college
credit early, and with the help of
high school counselor Margaret
Wallace she enrolled in the ACCEL
program at Camden County High
School.
When she graduated Friday,
Blansett took with her an associate’s
degree as well as a high school
diploma.
“I wanted to get as many college
classes out of the way as possible,”
said Blansett, who will begin nurs
ing school at Jacksonville University
in the fall.
The route she took is just one of
many ways teenagers can gain col
lege or real world experience while
still in high school. Advanced place
ment (AP) courses, select programs
such as the Certified Nursing Assis
tant program and other options give
students a hand up as they strive to
prepare for life after CCHS.
ACCEL
Funded by the Georgia Appropri
ations Committee, ACCEL pro
vides high school students the
chance to earn college credit while
still in high school.
Students who choose this option,
Wallace said, are typically academi
cally motivated and independent.
Some use ACCEL as a springboard
to advanced degrees, such as physi
cian’s associate or doctorate degrees,
while others enjoy the scheduling
flexibility that ACCEL provides.
“When you go into ACCEL, you
are a full college student,” Wallace
said.
Blansett said she attended all her
classes at the College of Coastal
Georgia, which allowed her to work
a seasonal job at the Camden Com-
See LIFE, page 7