Newspaper Page Text
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Ribbon cutting held for new elections building
By Kelly Whitmire
kwhitmire@forsythnews.com
Officials celebrated the
opening of a new elec
tions facility this week.
A ribbon cutting cere
mony was held on
Monday for the new
Forsyth County *Voter
Registration and
Elections office at 1201
Sawnee Drive in
Cumming.
“It went extremely
well,” said Barbara Luth,
Forsyth County real estate investor sentenced
By Alexander Popp
apopp@forsythnews.com
A Forsyth County real
estate investor has been
sentenced to fines and
probation for his alleged
part in a bid rigging con
spiracy that defrauded
investors of more than
$160,000 between July
2008 and Dec. 2011.
According to court
documents, on Feb. 5,
FROM 1A
goal,” Dpollack’ said
before the lights went
down and the movie start
ed.
Dpollack explained that
they chose to do a drive
in movie event because of
how unusual and fun the
idea sounded, while still
keeping the emphasis on
driving dangers.
“We liked the connec
tion of “drive in” and we
wanted to go out-of the
box with the event and do
something that had never
been done at Lambert
FROM 1A
case manager, which
means she supported vol
unteers who did advoca
cy, until 2011.
__ “Frankly, when I first
came to CASA, I didn’t
completely understand
the child welfare system,”
she said. But, [l] learned
to really embrace it and
recognized there was a
group of kids who need a
voice, who through no
fault of their own were all
of a sudden involved in
the juvenile courts sys
tem, where people were
deciding their future and
their fates, and they
weren’t part of that dis
cussion.”
She said she took some
time off after 2011 and
worked at Jesse’s House,
a local nonprofit aimed at
at-risk girls, and did non
advocacy volunteer work
FOFERNA e
Malmfeldt returned to
CASA in June 2017 to
serve as director of com
munity engagement, a
new position at the orga
nization
“CASA had grown to
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supervisor of voter regis
trations and elections.
“We had a good turnout.
People enjoyed them
selves. We liked the
building. We did tours of
the building so everyone
can see what we have
now.”
Also speaking at the
event: Donald Glover,
chief registrar and chair
man of the county’s
board of voter registra
tions and elections, and
District 1 Commissioner
-2018 Otto Gogolin, a
Roswell resident, was
sentenced to three years
of probation and $54,916
in fines and restitution by
U.S. District Judge
Richard W. Story for one
charge of conspiracy bid
rigging and one count of
conspiracy to commit
bank fraud.
Gogolin pled guilty to
both charges in August of
2016, but was not sen
before,” she said. “We
wanted something that
could stand out in their
mind, so they can remem
ber this night and what it
was actually for.”
She said that since
Farrell was killed in
2017, they have all seen a
perception shift in how
the students view drunk
driving and about how
they talk about it with
each other.
“People have started to
think a lot more about
their choices. They think,
“This happened to some
one that I loved, and I
don’t want it to happen
again,”” she said.
Webb said the friends
the point where we had
so many kids [who] were
coming into foster care
that we had to be very
intentional about recruit
ing volunteers,” she said.
“It used to be that we
could meet the needs of
providing advocates for
children in foster care just
by whoever called ... It’s
now gotten to the point
where we have to be real
ly intentional with the
recruitment.”
In November, she was
asked to be interim exec
utive director and was
selected for the position
full-time in January.
“I’m thrilled,” said vol
unteer Caitlin Ryan said
of Malmfeldt’s new post.
“She knows the commu
nity very well. She knows
CASA very well. She was
a case manager, [so] she
knows what they’re going
through. She can tell you
anything about any case.
She knows everybody.
She knows all the volun
teers, and when she
doesn’t she makes a con
scious effort to know
you.”
As executive director,
Malmfeldt said she want
ed to increase the number
of volunteers, who must
Pete Amos.
Luth said she received
a lot of good feedback
from those who toured
the facility.
“They thought it was a
beautiful facility,” she
said. “All our poll work
ers who came in knew it
would be much better to
drop off their equipment
and pick up their equip
ment and how much easi
er it was going to be for
us as a staff to be able to
work the elections and
tenced until recently.
Court documents from
2018 stated that between
2008 and 2011, Gogolin
and “about ten conspira
tors” “rigged bids and
committed bank fraud at
the foreclosure auctions
of at least 24 properties.”
“The conspirators’
agreement not to bid kept
the sale prices often at
just one dollar over the
opening bid,” the docu
“were a little shakert-and
our, community was a lit
tle shaken after it hap
pened... After what hap
pened, it shook our com
munity a little bit and
everybody was a little
more on point about mak
ing sure their friends got
home safe and making
sure they weren’t drink
ing and driving either.”
Webb said they have
found it easier and easier
to talk to their peers about
the dangers of drinking
and driving, and call them
out for it when necessary.
“Because we are the
same age as them, it’s
easier to connect to them,
easier for us to tell them
go through seven weeks
of training, get courtroom
experience and classes to
be sworn in as an advo
cate who has to deal with
experienced judges, case
workers and attorneys.
“All of a sudden, I'm
bringing in a volunteer
who has no background
in any of that and I'mr
helping them be profi
cient and credible and
make recommendations
that can impact the
child’s life forever,”
Malmfeldt said.
Currently, there are
about 100 such volun
teers, though Malmfeldt
said she hoped that would
increase after a new
round of training starts on
April 9.
Malmfeldt said, in
addition to advocates, the
group is also looking for
people to spread their
message, which could get
other volunteers involved,
and to help with fundrais
ing.
Those interested in vol
unteering with the group
can go to
ForsythCountyCASA.org
or contact Malmfeldt at
770-886-4082 or
pdmalmfeldt@forsythco.
com.
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have it right in one build-
Previously, the depart
ment had operated out of
the office at the Forsyth
County Administration
Building and a ware
house facility on Piney
Grove Road. All opera
tions will now be done at
the new facility.
The new building will
be used as a site for
g%:ce voting in this
ye primary and elec
tion but will not be used
merit stated.
The document stated
that “[Gogolin] directly
participated in rigging
bids on at least nine fore
closure properties in two
counties and is responsi
ble for a loss amount of at
least $164,391.”
In the sentencing mem
orandum filed Jan. 26,
2018, Matthew Stegman,
a trial attorney for the
Antitrust Division of the
that it’s not OK and it’s
not cool to drink and
drive. It’s not even cool to
drink underage,” she said.
One of Eliza Farrell’s
many close friends,
Vivian Underwood, was
at the event Saturday and
said she was heartened by
the display of supportive
remembrance.
“It’s really nice to see
all the community come
together,” Underwood
said. “It’s heartwarming
to see all of my peers and
people I didn’t even know
come out and support us.”
Underwood agreed
with Dpollack and
Webb’s idea of a changed
drinking and driving per-
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for election day voting.
Advance voting previous
ly held at the county
administration building
and Cumming City Hall
will be at the new build
ing.
The groundbreaking
for the project took place
on March 16, 2017, and
work was done by archi
tects with the Sizemore
Group and crews from
CBI General Contractors.
Luth said now that the
facility is open the
U.S. Department of
Justice, wrote that
Gogolin’s crimes were
not “victimless.”
“To the contrary they
affected immediate vic
tims and the community
at large,” Stegman states.
Gogolin’s attorney,
Drew Findling of The
Findling Law Firm stated
that they were pleased
with the sentencing, call
ing Gogolin an “upstand
ception at the school.
“When you are in high
school, you hear stuff a
lot. Like freshman year,
sophomore year I was
seeing people going to
parties and they had to
drive home drunk. Now I
don’t hear that, and when
I do, people say, ‘you
shouldn’t do that; it’s not
ok,” she said.
Before the movie start
ed Saturday night, Kali
Robinson, a spokesperson
for Mothers against
Drunk Driving spoke to
the gathered students and
accepted a check from the
students.
“Mothers Against
Drunk Driving’s mission
*.\’{s "'\ 7 '
department will focus on
the election and needs of
voters. :
_“For us, we’re going to
continue to get ready for
these upcoming elec
tions,” she said. “We
have training that we're
set up for. We have quali
fying starting Monday of
next week, so we're going
to roll right along to get
ready for this May 22
[primary] election.” -
ing member of the com
munity.”
“We are happy that the
judge followed our rec
ommendation to give Mr.
Gogolin probation,”
Findling said.
Gogolin will serve
three years of probation
for his crimes and will
serve the first four
months of his sentence
under house arrest.
is to talk to young people
and parents about the
dangers of drunk driving
.:. with young people we
are asking them to take a
pledge to not drink and
drive, at least until you
are 21 and can plan
ahead,” Robinson said.
Webb said Monday that
with ticket sales and
donations from the com
munity, the event raised
more than $1,400 for
Mothers Against Drunk
Driving, but that the
money was secondary to
reaching their peers.
“If we can just stop
one person from making
the choice later on it’s
worth it,” she said.
5A