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Serving Metro Augusta, -
South Carolina and The CSRA
February 12-February 18, 2004 Vol. 23, No. 1144
~ INSIDE
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The ever-controversial,
former Washington D.C. |
Mayor Marion Barry toys
with the idea of returning
to politics. Page 2A. .
SPLOST panel’s job
complete i
Members of the
SPLOST advisory panel
have, completed their list
-of recommendations for
phase V spending. The
commission NOW prepares
to finalize a list to take to
voters. Page3A
- Lowery still at it 0
Famed civil rights
leader, Rev. Joseph Low
“ery continues the work
began by him and Dr.
King some 50 years ago.
The activist addressed an
~Adanta group as part of
~the city’s Black History
Month celebration. Page
3A s
. The SPLOST commit.
-sports arena to overshad
list of recommendations.
More Augustans will suf
fer than benefit in the
long run. PageßA
R. Kelly’s “Image” may
not jive with NAACPs
- In light of pending
child - pornography
charges against R&B
singer, R. Kelly' many
critics charge that the
crooner shouldn’t be con
sidered for an NAACP
Inpage Award. Page 1B
Former Mise Black
field to wlk to teens
: about the importance of
abstaining from sex. .
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Black scandals and media ‘overkill’
By THERESA MINOR :
Augusta Focus Staff Writer
Janet Jackson was a no-show at the Grammys, declining
to attend after another apology for her “wardrobe mal
function” during the Super Bowl halftime show became a
condition of her invitation.
James Brown has gone into virtual seclusion following
his arrest and the ‘hair raising’ mug shot that went
national.
And oh, did you hear the latest about Michael? What
about that Kobe Bryant?
We can't seem to get enough of the public disgrace and
scandals involving celebrities. And with mainstream
media that apparently goes double if the celebrity is
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Redistricting shot down
Legislature givenr until March 1 to redraw maps
_?LRHONDA COOK
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Three federal judges
scrambled the 2004 session
of Georgias General Assem
bly — and possibly this year's
elections — by overturning
state House and Senate dis
trict maps Tuesday, Feb. 10.
The judges declared the
composition of the districts
violated the constitutional
principle of one person, one
vote, and ordered legislators
to redraw the boundaries by
March 1, a task lawmakers
doubted was possible. Oth
erwise, the court said, it
would draw an interim polit
ical map until the Legislature
can complete the job.
The ruling stems from a
lawsuit filed by 29 Republi
can voters against redistrict
ing plans authored by
Pemocrats in 2001. Repub
licans had argued that they
were disenfranchised when
Democrats drew maps that
packed them into as few gis
tricts as possible while the
redistricting spread out
Democrats in an effort to
‘maintain control of the Leg
islature.
“This is a good day for
democracy and a good day
for Georgia,” Republican
Gov. Sonny Perdue said of
Tuesday's ruling. “The peo
ple of Georgia should be able
Subscribe to the Augusta Focus, Call (706) 722-4222, extension 225
Black star power under seige
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rather than have the politi
cians choose their people.”
Attorney General
Thurbert Baker,-a Democ
rat, did not immediately say
whether he would appeal the
decision to the U.S.
Supreme Court. Spokesman
Russ Willard said lawyers
were still reading the 91-
page ruling Tuesday evening.
Two-pronged effort
Leading Democrats and
Republicans in the Legisla
ture were planning to huddle
today to decide how to pro
ceed. “We'll start moving in
both directions,” said House
Speaker Terry Coleman (I?-
Eastman), referring to the
appesl process and the draw
ing of a new House map.
The ruling throws *a
wrench into a legislative ses
sion dominated by a state
budget crunch. It also creates
a tight timetable for final
approval of the new districts.
The court said the July
party primaries and Novem
ber general election must be
held with new districts.
Assuming the can be
redrawn by Mar?h, they
would ?wed to be approved
by the U.S. Justice Depart
ment, which has up to 60
days to review them for
compliance with the Voting
Rights Act. Filing to run for
olitical office is scheduled
African American.
There has been nearly non-stop talk on the tube and
running commentary in newspapers large and small
about Brown, Bryant, Jackson and Jackson, leaving many
who are African American to wonder what this obsession
says about media coverage of black celebrities.
Augusta resident Yvonne Pouncey, the mother of two
children ages four and 13, says she didn't see the infa
mous half time show with the flash of breast but was con
fronted with it day after day in news coverage. She feels
the media coverage is overkill.
“I get more upset about the things that are shown in the
music videos than what I saw there. That’s no worse than
See Scandals, page 12A
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The judges' decision
reaches back to,a special ses
sion of they Legislature in
2001, when the Democryts,
who then ruled the gover
nor’s office and both houses
of the Legislature, undertook
the *once-a-decade adjust
ment of political distrlct
lines with the aim of solidify
ing their power. :
Republican voters were
packed into some districts
while Democrats were
spread out. Some districts
were drawn with five percent’
more constituents than the
average district, while others
were drawn with five percent
fewer.
It was that 10 percent
“deviation” between districts
that Judges William C.
O’Kelley, Stanley Marcus
and Charles A. Pannell Jr.
faulted in their ruling:
“We have found that the
deviations were systematical
ly and intentionally created
to allow rural southern
Georgia and * inner-city
Atlanta to maintain their
legislative influence eyen as
their rate of population
growth lags behind that of
the rest of the state; and to
protect Democratic-iniiis
bents. 3 ;
|
" Staff writers Nancy
Badergscher, Jim Galloway
and Ty Tagami contributed to
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Locals reject
Perdue budget
By THERESA MINOR
Augusta Focus Staff Writer
It was touted as the Lis
tening Tour — ten town
hali meetings held
Wednesday, Feb. 11, by
Democratic lawmakers
from Cobb County to
Chickamauga and points
in between. If Augusta’s
session is any indication,
legislators got an earful
about the tontroversial
budget proposed by Gov.
Sonny Perdue.
About 60 local resi
dents showed up for the
Augusta meeting to
essentially tell lawmal'tcrs
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: Photo by Theresa Minor
Geneice McCoy (at podium), the mother of two autis
tic children ask lawmakers to reject budget pians to
cut services to the disabled. Pictured at the table (I
r), Reps. Henry Howard, Alberta Anderson, Quincy
Murphy and Pete Warren. L
FIFTY CENTS
YDC
contract
crumbles
By THERESA MINOR
Augusta Focus Staff Writer
Youth Services Interna
tional (YSI), the Sarasota,
Fla. based firm that was
recently awarded the con
tract to run Augusta’s youth
detention center is out.
According to Rep. Quincy
Murphy (D-97), the
Department of Administra
tive Services has ruled that
the bidding process which
resulted in YSI winning the
contract was ruled “corrupt
ed.”
The decision follows a
protest lodged by YDC’s
current management group,
Unique Solutions, alleging
that acting Commissioner
for the Department of Juve
nile Justice, Gregory Maxey,
signed the contract with YSI
before the proposal deadline
was up. The complaint also
alleges that YSI hired a state
bid evaluator just days after
the contract was awarded.
“As of the 16th of Febru
ary, YSI will be assuming
responsibility for managing
YDC. By the 30th of June a
permanent provider will be
selected,” said Murphy.
“The commissioner has not
made a decision as to
whether there will be a pri
vate contractor. There Fs a
. See Contract, page 12A
to reject the Perdue
budget. Among the dis
puted points, S3OO mil
lion in education cuts K
-12 and $25 million
trimmed from the Health
Care Services budget
including Peach Care and
Medicaid. Critics of the
spending plan say it tar
gets the state’s most vul
nerable, children and the
elderly.
“What all of us are ask
ing you to do today is to
invest in our people, the
most vulnerable popula
tion. Please don’t make
See Meeting, page 12A