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Over 3 dozen
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INSIDE, 3A
WEDNESDAY I DECEMBER 29, 2021 DaWSOflNeWS ^COITI DAWSONVILLE, GEORGIA $1.00
Bond for Roberts now set at $100,000
Defendant accused of killing 19-year-old remains in DCSO custody
By Julia Fechter
jfechter@dawsonnews.com
The defendant accused of
killing 19-year-old Kaleb
Duckworth now has bond
again.
During a Dec. 14 hearing,
Daniel Lee Roberts, 20, was
granted a bond of $100,000 for
both pending criminal cases,
contingent on several condi
tions. However, he remains
behind bars at the Dawson
County Detention Center.
According to the new bond
document, filed on Dec. 20,
Roberts may not violate
laws while out on pretri
al release (PTR). He
will have to wear a GPS
ankle monitor and have
monthly reviews with a
judge as set by the PTR
program to ensure com
pliance with all bond
conditions.
Roberts allegedly caused
Duckworth’s death because of a
fight at the Dawson County
Applebee’s on July 25, 2021.
The indictment for that case
alleges that Roberts punched
the younger teen with a closed
fist, causing serious
brain damage.
After the fight,
Duckworth was taken to
a hospital with severe
brain trauma and died
on July 27.
Roberts has since
been charged with
aggravated assault,
aggravated battery and two
counts of felony murder. Bond
for the 2021 case was initially
denied.
Older incident
When the incident with
Kaleb Duckworth happened,
Roberts was actually out on a
$20,200 bond for another case
from 2019.
Documents for that older
case alleged that after getting in
a verbal disagreement with one
victim, he hit them while leav
ing a Dawson-area parking lot
on Oct. 23, 2019.
After being arrested that
same night, Roberts was
charged with two counts of
aggravated assault, possession
of a firearm during commission
of a crime and carrying a con
cealed weapon and reckless
Roberts
driving.
Following his July 2021
arrest, bond for the older case
was subsequently revoked at
the end of August. Court docu
ments from that time cited that
he violated conditions of the
2019 bond by allegedly com
mitting new offenses.
In October, Roberts was
indicted on two counts of felo
ny murder, aggravated assault
and aggravated battery for the
newer case.
Then in a document fded last
month, his attorney argued that
if released, Robert would be
better able to assist in preparing
See Roberts 12A
‘It takes a village’
Photos courtesy of Scotty Seay
Above, below: On Christmas Day, over 1200 people throughout Dawson and its surrounding counties
received hot meals as part of the Seventh Annual Dawson Feed the Hungry event.
Dawson Feed the Hungry distributes 1200 Christmas meals
By Erica Jones
ejones@dawsonnews.com
This Christmas, volun
teers with the Seventh
Annual Dawson Feed the
Hungry event distributed a
total of about 1200 hot
meals to people throughout
Dawson and its surround
ing counties.
According to event orga
nizer Scotty Seay, this year
he and the volunteers who
helped with the event were
able to both deliver meals
to those in need of one and
to serve meals to others in
person.
“We had a little bit more
walk-ins than we’ve had in
the past,” Seay said.
“Usually it’s a majority
delivery and this year was
a majority delivery too but
there were more that actu
ally came in this time and
got carryout or sat down
and ate with us, so it was
nice to see that and I
encouraged that too.”
Despite supply chain and
delivery issues this year
that made it hard to get the
necessary supplies for the
event, Seay said that it was
a huge success.
“Of course with the sup
ply chain issues and every
thing, this year was a
struggle to try to get sup
plies, but by the grace of
God we managed and He
provided like He always
does,” Seay said.
The meals consisted of a
full menu including chick
en, pork, sides and desserts
See Hungry 14A
BOE announces
Lecave as finalist
for superintendent
By Erica Jones
ejones@dawsonnews.com
The Dawson County Board of Education has
officially announced Nicole Lecave as the
finalist for the district superin
tendent position, according to a
release by the school system.
Lecave, who currently serves
as the deputy superintendent,
has been employed by the
school system for 23 years, 14
of which have been in a leader
ship position, the release said.
“At both the building and
system levels, she has led
teams of teachers, administrators, and support
staff in high levels of academic success and has
led key initiatives that have contributed to the
school system's growth,” the release said.
During Lecave’s tenure with the district, a lot
has been accomplished in the system, the
release said. Dawson County schools have been
in the top 10 percent on the college and career
performance index, and district elementary and
middle schools have remained in the top of the
See Lecave12A
Lecave
Woman killed in crash on Ga. 400
By Julia Fechter
jfechter@dawsonnews.com
One woman died the weekend before
Christmas after being hit by a car along the Ga.
400 corridor in Dawson County.
Kristina Ann Cates, 47,
Dahlonega, died on Dec. 18
after a car struck her while she
was walking along the state
highway.
Before the crash, Cates had
experienced homelessness. She
was known to frequent the
commercial strip along Ga.
400 in Dawson County.
The crash was reported at 8:17 p.m., and a
trooper from the Georgia State Patrol arrived
on scene nine minutes later, according to an
See Cates 12A
Cates
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Inside
Volume 7, Number 47
© 2021, Dawson County News
Dawsonville, Georgia
Events
2B
Classifieds
7B
Dear Abby
6B
Deaths
2A
Legals
7B
Opinion
7A
Sports
1B
4A DPH urges
safety during
holidays
Dawsonville
recognizes
employee of
the year
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