Newspaper Page Text
Repeat Offender Tracking Unit
will put 'scarlet letter’ on serial
criminals
'Off-wire'trains, bus-rapid
transit considered for Clifton
Corridor
Fulton DA Fani Willis
announces the creation
of the Repeat Offenders
Tracking Unit
(Courtesy City of Atlanta)
By Collin Kelley
The City of Atlanta and Fulton County
have created a Repeat Offender Tracking
Unit.
The unit will include members of the
Atlanta Police Department, Fulton County
Sheriffs Department, and Fulton County
District Attorney’s Office.
Based on Mitchell Street in Downtown,
the unit will share information between law
enforcement, prosecutors, and judges to
keep repeat offenders behind bars.
“We are now specifically tracking repeat
offenders from the time of arrest,” said
Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis. “We
are literally giving them a scarlet letter, so
the prosecutors and investigators who touch
these files know that this is a case where we
need to pay more attention and make sure
justice is actually served.”
Mayor Andre Dickens said that 30% of
arrests made by APD each week are repeat
offenders who have already been convicted
of at least three felonies.
The mayor also noted that 1,000 people
are committing an estimated 40% of the
city’s crime, and the new unit is “designed
to get these serial, repeat offenders off the
city’s streets.”
Atlanta Police Chief Rodney Bryant
called the repeat offender situation a
“significant problem” said that during the
month of March, officers charged 75 people
who had more than 1,800 combined arrests.
Administrative staff for the unit is being
funded by the Atlanta Police Foundation,
while Central Atlanta Progress, Midtown
Alliance, and Buckhead Coalition are
picking up the tab for the office lease,
furniture, and technology. [0
By Collin Kelley
MARTA is exploring using a type of “off-wire” train or bus rapid transit (BRT)
for the long-proposed transit connection from Lindbergh station to the Emory
University/CDC campuses.
Light rail along the corridor, which would also connect to the Avondale Station,
was first conceived more than 60 years ago but only started gaining renewed traction
in 2012. While light rail is still on the table, it appears MARTA is looking for a less
expensive alternative.
MARTA officials told the Atlanta City Council Transportation Committee
in April that it is exploring so-called “off-wire” technology — essentially a battery-
operated train without an overhead wire — making the Clifton Corridor line more
compatible with the CSX freight line it would run alongside.
Transit officials said they are also considering a BRT line for the Clifton Corridor,
similar to the one soon to connect Downtown with Summerhill, and proposed for the
Campbellton Road Corridor.
Interim MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood said the initial study for BRT on the
Clifton Corridor showed an “improvement for cost, time, and flexible operational
efficiency.”
Greenwood said MARTA was working on an “aggressive schedule” to narrow
down the most efficient mode by the end of the year. QH
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Plans unveiled for North Decatur cityhood initiative
By Collin Kelley
Proponents of a new city in North DeKalb County aren’t giving up. From the ashes of
previous cityhood efforts — Vista Grove, LaVista Hills, Lakeside City, and Briarcliff — comes
a new plan: the City of North Decatur.
The City of North Decatur won’t be happening this year since the legislative session
wrapped up in April. Still, it’s already got the backing of Democratic state Sen. Sally
FFarrell, who is preparing a proposal for the new city, according to a report at Decaturish.
The group behind Vista Grove sent out an email on Tuesday stating it had contacted
legislators who represent the area “about a different plan for a city, encompassing much of
our previous area, and adding others.”
The email said the Vista Grove Initiative would no longer exist, making way for the
North Decatur City Initiative.
As proposed, the City of North Decatur would extend from Embry Hills in the north
to Atlanta, Decatur, and Avondale Estates in the south. It is bounded by 1-85 on the west
and 1-285 on the east (excluding the portions within the cities of Brookhaven, Tucker, and
Clarkston) and includes a population of approximately 82,000 people.
Upon creation, the City of North Decatur would be responsible for planning and
zoning, roads and drainage, and parks and recreation. The new city would partner with
DeKalb County on public safety and other services, including the DeKalb County Police
Department.
There’s a new North Decatur City Initiative website at northdecaturrityinitiative.org.lli]
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