Newspaper Page Text
CountvNews
Vol. 99, No. 76
■
Suspects sought in pawn shop heist
Chase ends with wreck near Coal Mountain
By Julie Arrington
Staff Writer
One suspect remains hos¬
pitalized and as many as
three others are at large after
a Monday morning pawn
shop heist in Cumming.
The suspects, who may be
armed, led authorities on a
high-speed chase up
Dahlonega Highway (Hwy. 9)
before crashing into a house
near Coal Mountain.
No one else was injured in
A sea of
South
girls
second
in state
By BJ Corbitt
Sports Writer
South Forsyth High
School’s quest for a state soc¬
cer title came up just short
Saturday in a i -0 loss to No. 1
Parkview, but the War Eagles
had one definite advantage
when they took the field for
the Class AAAAA champi¬
onship game.
A throng of fans that
looked more like what might
be expected for a football
game than a soccer match
packed the home side bleach¬
ers at War Eagle Stadium.
Most wore the blue and white
of South, hoping for a happy
ending to a storybook season.
South athletic director
Keith Gravitt said the game
drew about 2,200 fans, a large
turnout for a sport not accus¬
tomed to such support.
Parkview’s stifling defense
combined with a first-half goal
from Panther junior Megan
See SUPPORT, Page 8A
Cox makes middle school visit
State’s top education official tours NFMS
By Lara Moore
Staff Writer
The state school superintendent visit¬
ed several classes at North Forsyth
Middle School on Monday.
It’s probably my favorite part of the
job,” said Kathy Cox, after leaving Lesa
Reynolds’ social studies class.
Cox said she’s visited more than 500
schools and every school district in the
state.
On her last visit to Forsyth County, in
October, she toured Liberty and South
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Copyright © 2007 Forsyth County News
Your "Hometown Paper” Since
WEDNESDAY May 14,2008
s« m MI.II....IMI, MM l 1111
the incident, which unfolded
over several hours and forced
the brief lockdown of three
schools in northern Forsyth
County.
In a bizarre twist, one of
the suspects later turned up at
Grady Memorial Hospital in
Atlanta.
Authorities say 30-year
old Christopher Walton of
DeKalb County eluded cap¬
ture, then paid a resident,
who was not aware of the sit¬
uation, to take him to the hos¬
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For full coverage of the game, see Sports, 1B.
Forsyth middle schools.
It’s a rare week that I’m not in a
school,” she said. “It is good because it
keeps me grounded about what is really
happening, talking to teachers and school
boards. ii
Cox chatted in Spanish with students
in Monica Gonzalez’s class and watched
Candy Baker's science class make
marshmallow water molecules.
Baker said it was “quite an honor” to
have the state school chief looking over
the teachers’ shoulders.
She compared the preparation for
INDEX
Abby............ 5A
Classifieds. IB
Deaths_________ 2A
Events.......... 3A
Horoscope 5A
Legals.......... 3B
Opinion....... 6A
Sports__________ IB
pital.
The extent of Walton’s
injuries could not be deter¬
mined Tuesday morning,
though Cumming Police
Chief Mike Eason the suspect
was still at the hospital.
Eason said a warrant has
been issued for Walton’s
arrest on burglary charges.
He said the man also may
face charges from Atlanta
police after falsely identified
See HEIST , Page 2A
Cox’s visit to when out-of-town relatives
visit.
“You want things to look nice ... how¬
ever it’s not a show,” Baker said. “I won’t
do things today I wouldn’t normally do.
She’s just one of us, you know.”
Principal Jeff Hunt was “absolutely
thrilled” with the visit.
“We like showing off the kids in our
school,” he said, noting that North Forsyth
Middle is a two-time School of Excellence.
Superintendent Buster Evans said he
recommended Cox tour North Forsyth
because it is a good example for other
middle schools.
E-mail Lara Moore at
laramoore @forsythnews. com.
Local
‘Flash bang’
device thrown at
fire station.
Page2A
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Photo/Jim Dean
A vehicle, not pictured, carrying robbery suspects
Monday missed a curve on Dahlonega Highway
and slammed into a two-car garage.
Photos/Emily Saunders
Members of the South
Forsyth girls soccer
team, above, cross the
field as the home
crowd applauds their
effort in Saturday's
state Class AAAAA
championship game.
The War Eagles
dropped a 1 -0 heart
breaker to No. 1
ranked Parkview. It was
South’s second state
runner-up finish in four
seasons. Left, the War
Eagles’ Autumn
Meyers, Rachel
Howard and Ashley
Sweinhart gather in the
aftermath of the hard
fought contest.
t.
M
.
Opinion
Bill Shipp: Let the
state chamber choose
a governor.
Page 6A
2
/ i
* i j
SPORTS, 10
South shocks Harrison
More
talks
on tax
likely
City counters
with conditions
By Jennifer Sami
Staff Writer
Despite some movement toward
an agreement, the struggle over
Forsyth County’s sales tax collec¬
tion continues.
During a called meeting
Monday morning, the city of
Cumming agreed to the county’s
proposal on how to fairly split
money from a voter-approved sales
tax extension.
The city, however, added condi¬
tions to each of the five offers made
in the county’s proposal, further
delaying a process that could have
ended Monday.
“They substantially ... changed
the terms of the agreement,” said
Forsyth County Commission
Chairman Charles Laughinghouse.
“It’s going to take some discus¬
sion to determine the status of that
agreement, does it really exist.
Thanks to a second judicial
extension, the two parties have until
May 30 to reach an intergovern¬
mental agreement, which would
prevent an interruption in the sales
tax.
The current Special Purpose
Local Option Sales Tax extension,
or SPLOST V, is set to expire June
30. If an agreement can be reached,
the new tax would begin July 1.
The current situation stems from
the inability of the city and county
to agree on how best to split tax rev¬
enue. State law assigned the city a
cut of 4.29 percent, based on popu¬
lation.
The city sued the county after
the tax referendum passed Feb. 5
with nearly 70 percent of the vote.
Visiting Superior Court Judge
Hugh W. Stone ruled the ballot lan¬
guage didn't allow the city to best
spend its share, all of which was
required to go toward a municipal
parking deck.
An agreement between the gov¬
ernments would override his origi¬
nal ruling. Stone gave both sides
until May 7 to settle the matter. He
expanded the deadline to Monday,
before extending it again to May 30.
See TALKS, Page 2A
Forsyth County
Schools
Superintendent
Buster Evans,
left, gives state
school superin¬
tendent Kathy
Cox one of his
“2400
Challenge”
lapel pins
before the
group begins a
tour of the
school.
Photo/Jim Dean
Partly Cloudy LAKE LANIER LEVELS
Date Level
May 9 1057.52 ft
May 10 1057.53 ft
May 11 1057.62 ft
*sSP -: ' May 12 1057.64 ft
Full 1071.00 ft
High in the mid-70s.
Low in the low 60s.