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Thursday, June 2, 2022 | Volume 135 Number 7 | Jasper, Georgia | 26 pages, 2 sections | Published Weekly | $1-00
Runoff between Tippens and Shouse
for west commission seat June 21st
Primary election
results certified
By Larry Cavender
Contributing Writer
It is often said, "Every vote counts," and at no
time in Pickens County has that sentiment been
more evident than it was following the May 24
primary election.
In a brief meeting, which lasted no more than
five minutes last Friday, May 27, the Pickens
County Elections Board certified the results of the
May 24 primary election to be forwarded to the
Georgia Secretary of State's office. Those returns
show a runoff will be necessary between Josh Tip-
pens and David Shouse for the District 1 (west
end) commissioner's post to succeed long-time
commissioner Jerry Barnes, who did not seek re-
election.
In an election summary report provided to the
Pickens Progress by Pickens County Elections
Supervisor Stacey Godfrey, Josh Tippens received
1,724 of the 3,472 total votes cast or 49.65 per
cent. Runner-up David Shouse had 972 votes or
28 percent in a crowded field of six candidates.
Had Tippens received only 13 more votes, he
would have succeeded in getting the 50 percent-
plus one vote needed to avoid a runoff. Tippens
and Shouse will now face each other in a June 21
runoff.
In another close commissioner's race, Josh
Tatum received 1,962 votes (50.1 percent) to
Dave Gamer's 1,954 (49.9 percent), a difference
of just eight votes separating the two candidates.
The slim victory for Tatum will see him serving
as District 2 (east end) commissioner, a seat pre
viously held by Becky Denney who retired last
year.
In the only other contested local race, Steve
Lowe won out over Suzanne Neville Fowler
3,923 to 3,050 votes in the Pickens Board of Ed
ucation Post 2 race. Amy Gibson and Joe Wiging-
ton ran unopposed for Post 3 and Post 5,
respectively, and as a result, will also serve on the
Pickens Board of Education.
Both unopposed in the primary, incumbent
State Representative Republican Rick Jasperse
will face challenger Democrat Kayla L. Hollifield
in a rematch of their 2020 faceoff.
Another rematch in November will pit incum
bent Republican Governor Brian Kemp against
Democrat Stacey Abrams in a rematch of their
2018 race. Abrams, who had no challengers in the
Democratic Primary, polled 497 votes locally.
Kemp, with 5,631 votes in Pickens, successfully
fended off five challengers including former U.S.
Senator David Perdue. In Pickens County, Kemp
received 74 percent of the vote to Perdue's sec
ond-place 21 percent.
Other statewide results were mirrored locally
in Pickens County. Among notable contests, Re-
See Primary on 13A
Caps fly as 249 graduate Pickens High
The 249 students who make up the class of Dragon Stadium with smiles, pictures, hugs and with friends and families before moving to their
2022 graduated on Friday, May 27 at Dragon sta- handshakes all around. next steps in life.
dium in an evening ceremony. After a rainy week, The graduates wrapped the ceremony up to See more graduation photos from photog-
the weather turned sunny for a full house at their class song and hugs/celebrations on the field rapher Robin Dunn on page 12B.
Cherokee man convicted of
child molestation had ties
to The Academy at Double H
Ranch in west Pickens
Church/school
leader says no
incidents during
brief ten ure here
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@pickensprogress.com
By Angela Reinhardt
Staff Writer
areinhardt@picken-
sprogress.com
Walter Gary DeVault,
who was recently sentenced
in Cherokee County court to
15 years in prison for child
molestation, had ties to a pri
vate school in Pickens
County - but school leaders
said he only worked as a
teacher there for a brief pe
riod of time and was never
alone with students.
DeVault was also a real
tor with Big Canoe Realty
.The DA’s office indicated
that he had lived in the gated
community at one point.
On May 23, Blue Ridge
Judicial Circuit District At
torney Shannon Wallace an
nounced that DeVault, 71,
was sentenced to 40 years
with the first 15 to be served
in the state prison system.
Sentencing came after a
three-day jury trial that
ended on February 11. The
charges stem from allega
tions that DeVault molested
a female in Cherokee
County when she was nine
and 10 years old.
“From 2016-2017, the
defendant, who was a person
trusted within the victim’s
family, spent time alone with
the child, taking her on out
ings. The defendant testified
at trial that he considered the
child his best friend and
would often relay his uncon
ditional love for her,” the
DA states in a press release.
“When the parents became
concerned about DeVault’s
relationship with their
daughter, they cut off all
contact with DeVault. The
defendant continued to seek
out the child and contact her,
even delivering her letters he
had written, which included
disparaging comments about
the child’s parents.”
The press release goes on
to state that DeVault made
the victim touch his genital
area and kissed her on the
mouth.
The Progress was con
tacted by the parent of a
child who attended The
Academy at Double H
Ranch, a private Christian-
based school connected to
Cowboy Church in west
Pickens County, after the
sentencing. This par
ent said she and other par
ents had been concerned
See DeVault on 13A
Bank drive-thru building to be demolished
City votes to start from scratch for downtown bathrooms
New fire truck
ordered, but won’t
arrive soon
By Dan Pool
Editor
dpool@pickensprogress.com
The Jasper City Council
voted Thursday, May 26 to
demolish the bank drive-
thru building on the north
end of Jasper’s Main Street,
bought through the Down
town Development Author
ity in 2016 for public
bathrooms.
Presenting the item to
council, assistant city man
ager Kim Goldener said
after discussion with archi
tects (CPL Architecture, En
gineering, Planning) and
city staff, the best move ap
pears to be tearing down the
shell structure and building
something new “to get what
we want.”
In a later e-mail Gold
ener elaborated, “The deci
sion to propose tearing
down the existing building
See Bathroom, on 13A
Ultralight aircraft crashes at airport
Photo/Pickens County Fire and Rescue
Rescue workers at the site of an ultralight aircraft crash just off the Pickens County
Airport runway Tuesday morning.
By Alex Goble
Staff Writer
agoble@pickensprogress.com
An ultralight aircraft crashed early Tues
day morning, May 31 near the north end of
the Pickens County Airport’s runway.
Pickens County Fire Rescue and Jasper
Fire Department were dispatched at 7:58
a.m. with first units from the county located
across the street arriving on the scene one
minute later. They found the pilot of the sin
gle seat aircraft injured but conscious.
According S ee Ultralight on 13A
Inside this Edition:
Da mar is Landav-
erde, public health
nurse for the
county health de
partment, honored
with state award
Page 7A
Editorial
Geese need to go at
Jasper Duck Pond
Page 4A
Local athletes
take on grueling
Murph challenge
Page 1B
Obituaries -11A
• Charles Gay
• David Reynolds
• David Rosenberg
• Edna Pendley
• John Voudy
• Kenneth Caudill
• Lauren Miller
• Mahria Smith
• Marianne Woltman
• Pauline Stephens
• Vonda Scott
• Walter Gleason Jr.
Contact Us
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