Newspaper Page Text
Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - Pike County Journal Reporter - Page 3A
Pike overwhelmingly Republican; 68% turnout in runoff
Pike County residents
voted overwhelmingly
Republican in the Jan. 5
runoff election as 68.8%
of registered voters cast
their ballots with 41.5%
taking advantage of early
voting.
In Pike, David Purdue
got 85.7% of votes at
6,336 compared to Jon
Ossoff’s 14.2% at 1,235;
Kelly Loeffler got 85.5%
of votes at 8,225 with
Raphael Warnock at
14.4% with 1,386; and
Lauren Bubba McDonald
Jr. got 86.4% of votes at
8,241 compared to Daniel
Blackman at 13.5% of
votes with 1,296.
A total of 7,581 voters
cast ballots out of 13,991
registered voters.
Pike County voters
took advantage of early
voting with 4,612 voting
in person and 1,114 re
turning absentee ballots
by mail during the early
voting period.
With 14,232 registered
voters able to vote in
the Jan. 5 election, just
over 40 percent of them
cast their ballots early or
returned absentee bal
lots, coming close to the
record for early voting.
For the presidential
election in November,
Pike voters set a record
with 55% voter turnout
during early voting.
At the state level,
the number were much
closer for the Senate
runoff and Senate special
runoff. Democrat Jon Os-
soff got only 50,997 votes
more than incumbent Re
publican David Perdue.
In the Senate special
runoff, Democrat Raphael
Warnock got 89,236 votes
more than incumbent
Republican Kelly Loeffler.
PHOTO BY RACHEL McDANIEL/
PIKE COUNTY JOURNAL REPORTER
At right, poll worker Sharon
Casey and election super
visor Lynn Vickers collect
absentee ballots from the
county’s drop box on elec
tion night. There were 1,114
absentee ballots returned
during early voting and on
Election Day with 4,612
voters casting their votes in
person and a 68.8% voter
turnout in the runoff election.
COVID-19 cases continue to rise in
Pike; vaccine clinic set for Jan. 19
COV1D-19 cases in
Pike are rising rapidly,
with 142 confirmed cas
es in the past two weeks
and an additional two
deaths from the illness.
In total there have been
744 confirmed cases,
15 deaths, 8 probably
deaths and 55 hospital
izations since March.
Vaccines at the Pike
County Health Depart
ment are only available
by appointment because
of the limited amount
available. A vaccine
clinic is planned for
Tuesday, Jan 19 from 9
a.m. to 1 p.m. To make
an appointment, call
800-847-4262.
Appointments are
available for anyone in
Phase 1A which includes
healthcare workers in
clinical settings (e.g.,
nurses, physicians, EMS,
laboratory technicians,
environmental services),
staff and residents of
long-term care facilities,
all law enforcement and
fire personnel (including
volunteer departments)
and adults aged 65 and
older (and their caregiv
ers as applicable).
“Please be patient
with us. We will open
more clinic dates as
the vaccine arrives. We
are updating this page
- district4health.org/
covid-19-vaccine/ on our
website as clinics open
and appointments fill
up,” said Hayla Folden of
District 4 Georgia Depart
ment of Public Health.
The number of
confirmed cases in the
school system is down
for students and up for
adults, according to
pike.kl2.ga.us as of Jan.
8. There are six fewer
students with COV1D at
17 and 13 more adults
at 60, compared to the
previous week.
Students with CO
VID-19 include 10 at the
high school, three at the
Ninth Grade Academy,
two at the middle school
and one each at the
primary and elementary
schools.
As of press time
Monday, there were 14
COV1D-19 positive adults
at the high school, eight
at the NGA, four at the
middle school, nine at
the elementary school,
nine at the pre-K and 16
non-school staff mem
bers.
There have been a
total of 116 students
with COV1D-19 since the
school year started and
60 adults.
CLOSED: Magistrate court, tax commissioner’s
office affected by positive COVID-19 tests
FROM PAGE ONE
The magistrate court
office was closed for 14
days with all employees
under quarantine and
“requested to cooper
ate with DPH inquiries
to allow contact tracing
and notification of non
employees and others
at high risk of exposure,
all as required by the Su
preme Court of Georgia’s
Ninth Order Declaring
Statewide Judicial Emer
gency.”
Judge Edwards said
court employees who are
not sick may work from
home to accept e-filings
and provide any other
services. The order asks
that they have a COVID-19
test on the tenth day.
Those who wish to
file stalking actions and
family violence actions
may do so at the office of
Judge Scott Ballard who
is assigned all Pike civil
cases. New civil actions
and other pleadings
and documents may be
e-filed at any time via the
magistrate court’s web
site at magistratepikega.
com. Deadlines to file
complaints or responses,
all discovery practices
and deadlines, time in
which to serve a party,
time in which to appeal
or seek a right to an
appeal and all motions,
briefs, trials, hearings
and corresponding dead
lines were suspended by
the order.
The magistrate court
will reopen at 9 a.m. on
Jan. 19.
Williamson man arrested in GBI
A man from Pike Coun
ty was among the dozens
arrested on Dec. 16 after
a drug investigation by
the GBI West Metro Re
gional Drug Enforcement
Office, Henry County
Sheriff’s Office, Spalding
County Sheriff’s Office
and Clayton County Po
lice Department. Several
search warrants were
executed that resulted in
the seizure of more than
1.5 kilograms of metham-
phetamine with a street
value of approximately
$12,000, a stolen mo
torcycle, nine firearms,
five vehicles, and ap
proximately $41,436.70 in
U.S. currency from drug
proceeds in October.
This was a spin-off case
from a much larger case
led by the Butts County
Sheriff’s Office.
Steve Yancey, 57, of
Williamson was arrested
and charged with con
spiracy to possess meth-
amphetamine, using a
communication facility
to commit a felony. He
was placed in Spalding
County Jail.
The following people
have arrest warrants
and are wanted: Heather
Lipps, 40, of Jackson for
conspiracy trafficking
methamphetamine, using
a communication facility
to commit a felony, rack
eteering influenced cor
rupt organization; Frank
Sliker, 47, of Thomaston
for conspiracy trafficking
methamphetamine, using
a communication facil
ity to commit a felony;
Edward Williams, 63, of
The Rock for racketeer
ing influenced corrupt
drug bust
organization, conspiracy
trafficking methamphet
amine, using a communi
cation facility to commit
a felony; Tondrea Avans,
39, of Hampton for
racketeering influenced
corrupt organization,
conspiracy trafficking
methamphetamine, using
a communication facility
to commit a felony; and
Amy Pitts, 37, of Barnes-
ville for conspiracy to
purchase/possess meth
amphetamine and using
a communication facility
to commit a felony.
SPECIAL PHOTO
Help us find the first baby born to Pike parents in 2021.
New Year's baby for Pike sought
Each new year, the
Journal Reporter features
the first baby born to
Pike County parents.
Help us welcome the
first baby of 2021 with
a special feature story
about them and photos
of them and their family.
Call the newspaper office
at 770-567-3446, email us
at news@pikecounty
georgia.com or stop by
the Journal Reporter
office on the courthouse
square to share the news.
EDGE: Arrested with
six charges of felony
theft by deception
FROM PAGE ONE
Initial investigation
identified former credit
union employee, Gregory
Ryan Edge, as a subject
with alleged involvement
of theft of approximately
five customers’ funds
during various loan
activities.
Further investigation
identified a total of 22
victims from 2014-2019,
many of whom were
stolen from multiple
times. Most of the alleged
thefts occurred as a part
of refinance loans where
Edge would create a
payoff check that con
tained more money than
required to close the old
loan. Edge would then
take that check to a bank
teller, then essentially
“make change” with the
excess amount and keep
that excess amount for
himself. Sometimes the
excess amount was ex
plained to the customer
as loan fees to the credit
union and other times
there was no explana
tion and customers later
discovered the discrep
ancies. The total amount
of loss is estimated to be
in excess of $35,000.
This investigation
is ongoing and will be
turned over to the Griffin
Judicial Circuit District
Attorney’s Office for
prosecution. Anyone
with information regard
ing this investigation
may contact the Georgia
Bureau of Investigation
Region 2 Field Office at
706-565-7888. Tips can
also be submitted by call
ing l-800-597-TIPS(8477),
online at gbi.georgia.gov/
submit-tips-online or
by downloading the See
Something, Send Some
thing mobile app.
24-7 Emergency Service Available
On Call 24-7-365
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Call us and talk to a live dispatcher, not a recording!
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N
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PRAYER POWER SEEKS NOMINEES
We are accepting nominations for the 2021 “Saints
in Light Award” which is to be presented to an indi
vidual in Pike County who is a non-clergy, but has
been a spiritually inspiring, motivating, and encour
aging influence in the community.
AND
Nominations for the 2021 “Prayer Power Faith
Award/ Scholarship” which is awarded to graduat
ing Pike County Seniors who have displayed growth
and maturity in their spiritual life during their high
school experience. They many be home schooled or
have attended private or public school.
All nominations must be received by
the first day of April, 2021.
For more information and the
nomination forms go to;
www.prayerpower4u.net
or by email;
prayerpower4u@bellsouth.net
or by mail’
Prayer Power
PO Box 1263
Zebulon, GA 30295