Newspaper Page Text
THE
ACKSON
H Wednesday, February 1, 2023
ERALD
VOL. 148 NO. 34
20 PACES 2 SECTIONS PLUS INSERTS
Merged in 2017 with
The Commerce News
A PUBLICATION OF MainStreet Newspapers, Inc.
JEFFERSON, JACKSON COUNTY GEORGIA 30549 $1.00 COPY
Public safety
Jury finds woman guilty of murdering husband in 2020
A Jackson County wom
an has been found guilty of
murdering her husband in
Arcade in 2020.
According to Jackson
County Superior Court re
cords, Karen Whisnant was
found guilty by jury in Jan
uary on charges of felony
murder, aggravated assault,
cruelty to children (second
and third degree) and pos
session of a firearm during
the commission of a crime.
She also pled guilty to one
charge of possession of a
firearm by a convicted fel
on.
Whisnant was found not-
guilty on one charge of mal
ice murder.
Sentencing is scheduled
in April.
ABOUT
THE SHOOTING
Whisnant shot her hus
band, Michael Shane Whis
nant, 41, at their Athens
Street residence in Arcade
on Feb. 4, 2020. Michael
was shot in the chest and
was pronounced dead at
Piedmont Athens Regional
Medical Center.
A number of agencies
were called to the residence
that night, including the
Jackson County Sheriff's
Office and Jefferson and
Arcade police departments.
A Jefferson officer report
ed seeing Karen Whisnant
on top of Michael yelling,
“please, don’t leave me,”
when he entered the resi
dence. Karen was holding
a towel to Michael’s chest,
but he had stopped breath
ing when officers and EMS
arrived.
Karen told a JPD offi
cer that Michael had “been
beating on her” throughout
the day. She said the at
tacks messed up her teeth
and mouth, but the officer
reportedly didn’t notice
any facial injuries. Multiple
See Whisnant, page 3A
Chamber awards
Photo by Mike Buffington
The Jackson County Area Chamber of Commerce held its annual awards dinner on Jan. 26 where it
recognized a number of people for their work in the community and for the chamber. Shown are (L to
R): Manager Brian Leutz representing Uline of Braselton, the chamber’s Large Business of the Year;
Linda Foster of Jackson County Community Connection who received the chamber’s Citizen of the
Year award; Sheriff Janis Mangum who received the chamber’s William H. Booth Lifetime Achievement
Award; Kym McLane of John & Kym Creative as the chamber’s Ambassador of the Year; Heather Robin
son of Cross & Dot, the chamber’s Volunteer of the Year; and Dylan Wilbanks of Wilbanks Law Firm, the
chamber’s Small Business of the Year.
Chamber celebrates 50 years
Sheriff Mangum
awarded lifetime
achievement award
By Alex Buffington
alex@mainstreetnews.com
It was a night of celebra
tion for the Jackson County
Area Chamber of Commerce.
Community members gath
ered Thursday, Jan. 26, for
the Chamber’s annual Awards
Banquet and Dinner. It was a
momentous occasion for the
Chamber, which is celebrat
ing its 50th anniversary this
year.
“We certainly are indebted
to those individuals who, 50
years ago, were foresighted
enough to realize we’re stron
ger together; that businesses
should have a voice when
we start thinking about how
things ought to get done; and
that economic and commu
nity development are active
pursuits,” said Chamber Pres
ident and CEO Jim Shaw.
“We absolutely stand on the
shoulders of those who came
before us.”
The night kicked off with a
champagne toast to celebrate
the Chamber’s 50th anniver
sary.
Thom Price, the 2022 chair
man of the Chamber board of
directors, passed the gavel to
incoming chairman Tricia
Massey.
A number of communi
ty members were honored
with awards. Sheriff Janis
Mangum was presented the
William H. Booth Lifetime
See Chamber, page 2A
The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce’s
William H. Booth Award for Lifetime Achievement
recipient Sheriff Janis Mangum (center) was hon
ored during the chamber’s annual awards event
on Jan. 26. Shown with her are chamber president
Jim Shaw (R) and Amin Maghani representing the
award sponsor Tabo’s.
MAILING LABEL
Index
News
1A-3A, 5A
Classifieds
4B
Opinion
4A
Obituaries
11A
Public safety.
6A-7A
Legals
5B-7B
Social news
8A-9A
School
10A, 8B
Sports
1B-3B
House District 119
State House District
119 special election
heading to a runoff
The State House 119 special election is
headed to a runoff after none of the seven
candidates earned at least 50% of the vote on
Tuesday (Jan. 31).
The top two vote getters — Holt Persinger
and Charlie Chase — will vie for the open
seat in a Feb. 28 runoff. Both are Republi
cans. With all precincts reporting, Persinger
finished with 27.9% of the vote while Chase
took 25.48%
The seat was vacated after Danny Rampey,
who was elected to the House District 119
seat last year, resigned from the post follow
ing his arrest on burglary charges in Barrow
County. House District 119 covers portions of
Jackson County (in the Braselton-Hoschton
area) and Barrow County.
The vote tally for Tuesday’s special elec
tion included:
See Runoff, page 3A
Public safety
Suspect detained in death
of man found in Jefferson
A suspect has been detained in the death of a Hall
County man whose body was found in Jefferson last
week.
Law enforcement officials said warrants were be
ing obtained in the case and that the investigation is
ongoing. The suspect is not from Jackson County,
officials said.
The body of Joshua Wick, 19, of Hall County, was
found on Holder Siding Road between Benton Road
and Long Farm Road in Jefferson around 6 p.m. Jan.
20.
Officials said the death was not due to an accident
and that they don’t believe Wick died at the scene
where his body was discovered.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was called to
a scene by the Jefferson Police Department.
County planners
30-lot subdivision
gets JCPC denial,
draws packed crowd
By Hannah Barron
hannah@mainstreetnews. com
Plans for a 30-lot subdivision got the Jackson County
Planning Commission’s recommendation for denial on
Jan. 26.
Applicant Barry Lord sought a character area map
amendment change from “agricultural” to “rural” for 71.9
acres at 8384 Holly Springs Rd., Maysville.
The applicant would then seek a zoning change from
A-2toA-R.
The planners’ recommendation came after a packed
crowd of nearby residents spoke in opposition.
The residents also submitted a petition of over 100 sig
natures.
They cited a number of concerns, including the agri
cultural character of the area, which does not fit small-lot
subdivisions, as many have moved to the area in order to
have bigger lots for farms and to get away from subdivi
sions.
Other concerns included the potential impact on the
school system, water supply, crime and traffic.
The fire department assisting the area is also volun
teer-based — a department that could be heavily impacted
by a subdivision.
“In theory, if you double the population, you double
See Planners, page 3A
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