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Bethany man critical after shootout
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
Pickens sheriff officials say
their investigation into why a
well-liked Bethany Road me
chanic shot at two deputies on
Christmas Eve turned up no solid
motive.
Ned Womack, 47, remained
in critical condition on Monday
with wounds to the torso and
head after being shot by Deputy
Ryne Kirkland in an exchange of
gunfire after the deputies re
sponded to a domestic dispute
call at his residence.
“None,” said Captain Frank
Reynolds when asked if there
were motives on why he decided
to shoot at the deputies. “There
was nothing to indicate he had
anything against law enforce
ment officers. It may have spilled
over from the domestic [call].”
After the story was posted on
line, comments indicated that
Womack was a well-liked and
honest mechanic. His shop, lo
cated at his Bethany Road home,
was closed frequently the past
several weeks according to one
regular customer. Online com
ments indicated Womack had
some health problems.
Lynn Manous said Womack
was like a big brother to her. He
had been friends with her family
for more than 40 years. “It’s not
just uncharacteristic. It’s unfath
omable,” she said of him shoot
ing at a deputy.
She said Womack was a well-
rounded, good person who put
family and friends first. She had
never known of him to have a vi
olent side or mental instability.
Manous said two of Wom
ack’s customers/friends both re
called that he had received shots
after stepping on something
sharp about two weeks ago. She
said he told them he was having
trouble working since the shots
as he was “shaky,” and had to lie
down occasionally and he had
just not “felt like himself.”
Cpt. Reynolds said the shoot
ing remains under review by
both the local sheriff’s office and
GBI. In fact, Reynolds noted
that there was still a good bit of
review to complete before they
have any conclusions.
Going over the incident on
Monday, Reynolds gave a more
See Shootout, Page 11A
Pickens County Sheriff’s Office / PHOTO
A deputy stands watch at a Bethany Road home Christmas Eve. The owner was shot after he first fired at deputies.
Flu cases widespread
but few complications
with strain
New Year’s Eve ball drop expected
to draw large crowds
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
The week of Christmas, flu
was accounting for 20 to 30 per
cent of all patients seen at the
Piedmont Mountainside emer
gency room with doctors seeing
10 to 12 people every shift with
the aches, fevers and chills that
accompany the virus.
Friday Dr. Chris Atkins, the
medical director of the emer
gency department at Piedmont
Mountainside, said the influenza
virus is responsible for much of
their business, with children
being seen the most with the flu.
See Flu, Page 11A
Year in review
Top 2014 stories
January 30
Surprise Snow Strands Motorists - Beginning just after 9 a.m.
Tuesday, January 28, and continuing throughout the day, the thickest
snow Pickens had seen in 2014 blanketed the ground. DOT crews
were out in full force salting main highways and bridges, but county
emergency crews still worked numerous motor vehicle accidents
throughout the day. At one point Cove Road was closed. ATV and
dune buggy owners were seen making the most of the day on Main
Street in Jasper midday.
Feb. 20
Winter Storm Pax in late February was mostly uneventful in
Pickens County
Despite dire warnings from forecasters calling for a catastrophic
storm of “historic proportions,” See Stories Page 12A
Staff reports
Organizers expect a large
crowd to ring in the New Year at
the downtown Jasper celebra
tion Wednesday night, featuring
a ball drop, fireworks and music.
The first annual downtown
New Year’s Eve ball drop drew
more than 1,000 people last
year. Planners are following the
same model as last year and be
lieve, with good weather, an
even bigger crowd.
“We have been getting a lot
of calls about it from outside the
area,” Mayor John Weaver said.
“This is a unique event for this
area. No one else hosts anything
similar.”
Weaver said it may appeal to
people who want a festive and
safe event to celebrate the
changing of the year. Weaver
said people are encouraged to
have a good time and are wel
come to “tailgate with RVs”
parked on side streets in town.
“But we will not tolerate a
rowdy crowd,” he said. “This is
a family-oriented event.”
Even if the weather is cold,
city officials encourage people
to come out. “If they can do it in
Times Square in New York, we
can handle it here in Jasper,
Georgia,” Weaver said.
Fire Chief Steve Roper said,
“It’s New Year’s Eve, not the 4th
of July, it’s supposed to be
cold.”
According to early forecasts,
the weather should be in the 30s
that night but with very little
chance of precipitation.
Events kick off on the north
end of Main Street at 7:30 p.m.
Aerial maps of Pickens to be updated
An aerial photograph of downtown Jasper taken from the Pickens County Tax Assessor’s QPUBLIC website, which makes mapping,
land parcel and tax data available online.
Following audit,
2013 tax digest
accepted by
state, Page 15A
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
The Pickens Tax Assessor’s
Office has plans to spend
$17,000 updating aerial photog
raphy used on mapping websites
available to the general public.
Pickens chief assessor Roy
Dobbs, speaking at the Board of
Assessors meeting on Thursday,
Dec 18, said he has “confidence”
in the update, which is part of the
2015 Georgia Mountains Re-
See Maps Page 11A
Obits - Page 7A
Betty Tidwell
Bernice Duncan
Bobbie Stanfield
Mildred Williams
Don Pharr
Jean Payne
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