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Lake Oconee News
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Your official newspaper serving Greene, Morgan and Putnam counties in Georgia’s Lake Country \ wum.LakeOconeeNews.us
FRIDAY JANUARY 8 2016
VOL. 18 NO. 1
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GREENE COUNTY
Supt. Mellor's contract dissolved in 3-2 vote
Jackie Gutknecht
jackie@lakeoconeenews.us
In a 3-2 vote during a
special called meeting that
lasted less than 30 minutes
Greene County Board of
Education passed a mutual
dissolution of Superin
tendent Philip Mellor’s
contract with compensa
tion.
BOE Chairman Arlie
Collins and BOE member
“I’m sad and disappointed
for the community.’ - Philip Mellor
Leah Dukes voted against
the decision.
The board’s discussion
on the personnel matter
was done solely in executive
session.
“I’m sad and disappoint
ed for the community,”
Mellor said Tuesday night
in a phone call after the
meeting. He had no other
comment to offer by press
time.
Collins said Assistant
Superintendent Rotonya
Rhodes and Greene County
School System CEO Dean
Ware would handle the
day-to-day activities of
the school system until
a new superintendent is
found. The board is actively
pursuing a replacement and
already has “feelers” out, he
said.
Mellor began his career
with GCSS as Superinten
dent of Schools July 1, 2014.
SEE BOE » A9
Jackie Gutknecht/Staff
Philip Mellor was not in
attendance during Tuesday
night's special called
board meeting.
Water-logged motorist rescued
Jeff Warren
jeff@lakeoconeenews.us
A stranded driver, whose vehicle
was pushed off Briar Creek Road
by flood waters Dec. 30, made
it to safety, rescued by lawmen
and county firefighters. Morgan
County Sheriffs Deputy Shawn
O’Kelley, one of several peace
officers on the scene at the county’s
east side, recorded the incident in
a sheriffs office report.
O’Kelley joined seven other sher
iffs officers, a game warden and
Morgan County Fire Rescue per
sonnel at about half past noon that
Wednesday as they prepared to
assist James Brown, of Madison,
who stood atop his vehicle, sur
rounded by surging flood flow.
The vehicle, a white Ford Ranger
pickup, was well out into floodwa-
ter then crossing the road at sig
nificant depth and strong current,
O’Kelley recorded.
“He was in the middle of the
creek. It had pushed him off the
road down into the creek,” said
Morgan County Fire Chief Jeff
Stone, describing the rescue the
day after. Sergeants Lanier and
Pritchett of the sheriffs office
teamed with firefighters to make
a way to Brown in the swollen
stream. Holding to taglines, ropes
held by other team members on
the bank, the rescuers reached
Brown and brought him to land.
The fast-flowing water was about
SEE FLOOD » A2
MORGAN COUNTY
Detective
arrested
for DUI
Jeff Warren
jeff@lakeoconeenews.us
An investigator with the
Morgan County Sheriffs
Office was arrested and
booked into the county jail
near 10:30 p.m. New Years
Day after Georgia State Patrol
troopers judged her to be op
erating a motor vehicle while
under the influence of alcohol.
Arrested was Lisa Marie
Reynolds, 51, of a Concord
Lane, Madison address.
Though not on call to fulfill
law enforcement investigative
duties that night, Reynolds
was contacted that evening
by the detective working a
child molestation case south
of Rutledge, explained chief
deputy, Capt. Christopher
Bish, of the Morgan County
Sheriffs Office. The detective
who previously specialized
in child molestation cases
just retired, Bish explained.
Reynolds was due to assume
SEE DUI » A9
GREENE COUNTY
GREENE COUNTY
Hoverboard catches fire at Ritz
Jackie Gutknecht
jackie@lakeoconeenews.us
Room 463 at the Ritz Carlton
Reynolds, Lake Oconee is in need
of remodeling after a hover board
caught fire on New Year’s Eve,
causing damage.
The fire was put out quickly by the
fourth floor room’s sprinkler system,
Greene County Sheriffs Deputy
Jordan Knowles reported.
The initial call came into Old
Salem Fire Rescue at 10:51 a.m.,
Deputy Fire Chief Derrick Daniel
said. OSFR, Walker Church Fire
Department, Greensboro Fire De
partment and Greshamville Fire De
partment responded. The Putnam
County Fire Rescue Ladder Truck
SEE FIRE » A9
Chris Bridges/Contributed
The charred remains of a
hoverbord that was left
plugged-in to recharge
and caught fire at the Ritz
Carlton on New Year's Eve.
Union Point, county open
can of worms on services
Mark Engel
news@lakeoconeenews.us
Attorneys for Greene County
and the City of Union Point were
animated as they huddled at the
front of the courtroom Monday
morning. As other lawyers and
clients waited for their cases
to be heard, Union Point City
Attorney Joe Reitman looked up
at Superior Court Judge William
Prior and said “we’re just narrow
ing the issues.” Prior, obviously
pleased, said “well, continue to
narrow!”
In the process of trying to
narrow the issues, the two sides
came to a temporary agreement
that could actually widen the
scope of the potential problems.
Union Point forced the county
to court over the county’s decision
to charge the city $40,000 per
year, starting October 1, 2015, for
emergency 911 and other police
services provided by the county.
Fire department and EMS
services would not be affected.
Union Point argues that city
residents have been paying for all
of those services for years through
ad valorem taxes and the $1.50
monthly surcharge on telephone
bills.
Letters and legal actions have
been exchanged since June, when
the county made the decision.
SEE UNION POINT » A8
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