Newspaper Page Text
THE
ACKSON
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H Wednesday, February 3, 2010
ERALD
www.JacksonHeraldTODAY.com
VOL. 135 NO. 33 48 PACES 4 SECTIONS PLUS INSERTS A PUBLICATION OF MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. JEFFERSON, JACKSON COUNTY GEORGIA 30549 75« COPY
— Inside —
Area news:
•School furlough
days set
page 2A
•Perry to head plan
ning commission
page 2A
•Legislators to look
at budget cuts
page 3 A
•EPD to hold hearing
on Plant Dahlberg
page 12 A
Op/Ed:
•'Bailout undermines
needed reforms'
page 4A
Sports:
•Lady Dragons defeat
Commerce
page 1B
Features:
•Top teachers are
recognized
page 1C
Other News:
•Public Safety
pages 6-7A
•Legals
pages 4-27C
•Church News
page 7B
•Obituaries
page 11A
•School News
pages 8-1OA
•Classifieds
pages 4-5B
Q -R
Fraud alleged in CB&T failure
BANK TAKEOVER
Community Bank & Trust was taken over by state
and federal regulators Friday night and sold to a new
owner Saturday.
COMMUNITY Bank &
Trust, taken over by state and
federal bank regulators Friday
night and sold to Orangeburg,
S.C.-based SCBT, N.A. on
Saturday, was a victim of both
fraud and bad loans, a former
official insists.
“There’s some people in our
company going to jail,” said
Elton Collins, who until Friday
evening at 5 p.m. was president
of Jackson County operations.
“I know damn well they’re
going to jail.”
Collins, however, called the
takeover by SCBT “the best
switch-over I’ve ever seen of that
type,” and said it “really worked
out good” for Community Bank
& Trust employees.
“SCBT has been very good to
everybody,” said Collins. “They
are just as nice as they can be
at this point. There was not all
of that embarrassment Friday
night that you typically see.”
That could be because SCBT
didn’t know it was getting the
bank until Thursday, according
to Collins.
“BB&T had the bid. They
were going to get the bank,”
he said. “Then, Thursday
afternoon, because of all the
fraud involved, they got cold
feet. Thursday afternoon they
(FDIC) called SCBT and gave
it to them.”
The FDIC and the State
Banking Office took over
the bank on Friday night at
closing time. They put it into
receivership and bankruptcy
on Saturday, which relieves the
new owners of the obligations
of contracts and contingencies,
then sold the assets to and turned
over the deposits to SCBT with
a loss share agreement.
“Basically it was fraud and
bad loans that got the bank,”
Collins said. As for the fraud, he
said the FBI is handling that at
the Cornelia office.
The FDIC’s move doesn’t
affect depositors, but it did
affect Community Bank &
Trust stockholders.
“We got wiped out Friday
night as stockholders,” Collins
commented, adding that he
considered it “very likely” that
there will be lawsuits over those
losses.
CB&T had assets of over
$1.2 billion.
Officials said the bank would
continue to operate under the
CB&T name, but depositors
would automatically become
depositors of SCBT.
Some 70 SCBT officials were
at the various bank branches
when they opened for business
Saturday to begin the transi
tion. FDIC officials were also at
some locations.
“This evening and over
the weekend, depositors of
Community Bank and Trust
can access their money by writ
ing checks or using ATM or
debit cards,” the FDIC said in
a news release. “Checks drawn
on the bank will continue to
be processed. Foan customers
should continue to make their
payments as usual.”
Officials said the bank’s
failure would cost the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)
some $354.5 million.
The bank’s demise was not a
continued on page 3A
Nicholson budget on hold 30 days
FORD SPEAKS TO NICHOLSON COUNCIL
Nicholson resident Jimmy Ford (standing at podium)
addressed the Nicholson City Council at Thursday’s
public hearing on the proposed 2010 budget.
Approximately 50 people turned out for the hearing
in the Nicholson Community Center.
Photo by Sharon Hogan
BY SHARON HOGAN
THE CITY of Nicholson
will continue to operate on last
year’s budget as the council
again postpones approving the
new budget.
In a 3-1 vote on Monday,
the Nicholson City Council
tabled the adoption of the 2010
budget for 30 days. Council
member Chuck Wheeler
made the motion to postpone
action. Council members
Lamar Watkins and Howard
Wilbanks voted with Wheeler,
while council member Bobby
Crawford voted against the
motion.
City attorney Tricia Leeman
said that the city can still oper
ate, however, it is operating on
last year’s budget totals.
Mayor Ronnie Maxwell
reported that the proposed 2010
budget, totaling $405,000, has
been cut by approximately 30
percent from the 2009 budget.
Leeman advised it is not
good for the city to be operat
ing on a budget that is larger
than the proposed current year
budget.
A Nicholson resident ques
tioned Wheeler about when the
council would get together to
work on the budget. Wheeler
did not attend the monthly
work session on Thursday, Jan.
28, to bring up the budget.
Wheeler answered, “Any
time in the next 30 days.”
Wheeler stated he was sick
on Jan. 28 and that is why he
was not at the monthly work
session.
The council held a public
hearing on the proposed 2010
budget on Thursday, Jan. 28.
Approximately 50 people
attended the hearing. Most of
the hearing was spent discuss
ing the $10,000 that Wheeler
asked to have added to the
travel budget for 2010 and the
$24,884 budgeted for the library
for books and periodicals.
continued on page ?A
Local men part of Haiti relief effort
BY KATIE HUSTON
AFTER A devastating earth
quake wreaked havoc on Haiti
leaving thousands dead and
many more homeless, two
county men are among those
helping with the relief effort.
Lance Corporal John Quinton
Helms of the United States
Marines, and Petty Officer 3rd
Class Dustin Scott Nichols of
the U.S. Navy are in the midst
of the turmoil oversees and
doing their job to help.
Twenty-one year old Helms
is part of the 3rd Battalion, 2nd
Marine Regiment, 22nd MEU,
which is tasked with support
ing the relief mission in Haiti.
Helms has been in the Marine
Corps for two years and four
months and is stationed out of
Camp Lejeune, N.C. He’s also
the son of local pastor, Michael
Helms, who leads services at
Jefferson First Baptist Church.
According to the pastor, the
troops arrived on January 18
and began immediately assist
ing with relief. The unit had just
returned from a seven-month
deployment on Dec. 5,2009.
Twenty-year-old Nichols has
HELMS NICHOLS
been in the Navy for over two
years and is stationed on the
USS Carl Vinson in San Diego,
Calif. Nichols has been in Haiti
with the USS Carl Vinson since
Jan. 14. They were on their way
to port in Mayport, Fla., when
they were called to duty and
were the first ship to arrive.
According to his mother,
Cheri Nash, he works on the
flight deck and mans the cata
pult that launches planes off
the deck.
“He is working 16-18 hours
per day,” she said. “They have
helicopters flying in and out
from about 5 a.m. (until) 8
p.m. everyday with supplies or
bringing injured people to the
ship for treatment.”
Helms’ ongoing mission,
however, is setting up a distri
bution site in Leogan, Haiti,
where he hands out humanitar
ian rations to the local popula
tions. He’s also been part of a
security detail with the Uans-
portation of food, the distri
bution of food and providing
security for the medics who are
providing care to the Haitians.
“While Port Au Prince is get
ting most of the press, the earth
quake has affected Haitians
throughout the Hinterland who
have been left homeless and
without food and water,” his
father said. “The marines from
the 22nd MEU are finding these
people, distributing food and in
some cases, taking some people
back to their ship for medical
attention.”
Communication is under
standably difficult, with limited
access and time for phones, but
Helms manages to get informa
tion about his son regardless.
“As the father, I have to
get in line behind the fiancee
and (Helms’) mama,” he said.
“So far I get my information
through these women.”
continued on page 5A
Subdivision problems to
be reviewed case-by-case
Commissioners set guidelines
BYANGELA GARY
SUBDIVISIONS that don’t
meet county regulations will
now be reviewed on a case-by-
case basis with staff making
recommendations on how to
get each development in com
pliance.
The Jackson County Board
of Commission approved a res
olution Monday night outlining
how to deal with property own
ers who want a building permit
for property located in subdivi
sions that don’t meet county
regulations.
“The Jackson County Public
Development staff is directed
to investigate each of the non-
compliant subdivisions in order
to make recommendations to
this board of commissioners as
to specific action that should
be taken in order for the pub
lic development staff to issue
building permits,” the resolu
tion reads. “The owners of each
non-compliant subdivision or
subdivision lot shall be contact
ed and advised that the board
continued on page 3A
GBI: Pendergrass probe
may end in two months
BY ANGELA GARY
THE GEORGIA Bureau of
Investigation is continuing its
probe of reports of wrong-doing
by city officials in Pendergrass
and officials expect it to be
wrapped up within the next two
months.
“It is still ongoing and we are
still working on it,” said GBI
director Jim Fullington. “It is
proceeding along. We are look
ing at one specific piece of it.
My hopes are to have it resolved
in the next 45 to 60 days.”
The investigation stems
from allegations three former
employees made against city
officials, including misuse of
city funds.
Unemployment moves back up
THE unemployment rate in
Jackson and Barrow counties
jumped up in December after
several months of being flat.
The unemployment rate in
Barrow County went up to 10.8
percent from 10.5 percent in
November.
In Jackson County the rate
hit 10.7 percent in December,
up from 10.6 percent in
November.
Except for Walton County, all
other counties touching Barrow
or Jackson have unemployment
rates below 10 percent.
Countians pay too much for tags
SOME 800 Jackson Countians will be getting a refund for over
payment on their tag fees due to an error by the state.
The fees for some pick-up tracks and SUVs that were billed in
January and February were higher than they should have been,
according to tax commissioner Don Elrod.
“We have approximately 800 refunds to send as soon as the motor
vehicle department fixes a program that will create the refund on the
state tag computer,” Elrod said.
The refunds are from .89 cents to $82.
JHS student charged with rape
A JEFFERSON High School
senior has been charged with
rape following an incident that
allegedly occurred in a bath
room at the school.
Dylan Thomas Corbett, 18,
was also charged with aggra
vated sodomy. The victim is a
15-year-old female student.
The alleged assaulted
occurred on Jan. 27 after school
had ended for the day. The vic
tim reported that the assault was
in the boys’ resfroom in the
school cafeteria.
The investigation by the
Jefferson Police Department is
ongoing.