Newspaper Page Text
To Benefit Wimberly House Ministries
First Liberty Market
Saturday, Feb. 5 • 6:30 -11:00 p.m
For Ticket Information Cali 706-554-6644
WAYNESBORO, GEORGIA
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Vol. 141, No. 50 - Waynesboro, Ga. 30830 Established in 1882 Wednesday, February 2, 2022 - $1.00
Complaint filed against WPD
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
Social media is on fire while resi
dents try to understand why a man
was not arrested for attempting to
kidnap a child.
The Jan. 22 incident at El Cheapo
gas station on Liberty Street has
resulted in a complaint against two
Waynesboro police officers.
The officers responded to a ver
bal disagreement involving Sam
Hendrix around 8:45 p.m. While
officers detained him, it is alleged
that his 7-year-old daughter was
abducted. In a Jan. 27 press release,
the WPD issued the following state
ment: “There has been a complaint
made against two officers with the
Waynesboro Police Department in
reference to the handling of a call
with a juvenile present. The inves
tigation is in the early stages, no
information can be released at this
time. When possible, we will provide
you with further information.”
According to the Jan. 22 incident
report published online, officer Ron
ald Bartlett reported Sam Hendrix
was arrested for disorderly conduct
after he refused to show identifica
tion. While he and Officer Greg
Stroud attempted to put him into the
police vehicle, Sam Hendrix stated
that an unknown black male took his
daughter out of his truck. Bartlett
stated that he went to the black
male’s vehicle and stopped him from
leaving. The black male stated that
he did not know Sam Hendrix or his
daughter. The child also stated that
she did not know the black man.
However, Bartlett said he wit
nessed the black man and Sam
Hendrix speaking earlier. The black
man was instructed to bring the child
back to her dad’s truck. Her mother,
Chundra Burnett Hendrix arrived
and the child went home with her.
A Jan. 30 video on Sam Hendrix’s
Facebook account shows WPD Chief
Willie Burley stating that both police
officers are on active duty while the
incident is being investigated.
The True Citizen has made a pub
lic records request for the incident
reports pertaining to the verbal dis
pute and the abduction. A copy of the
complaint hied against the officers
has also been requested
Burke County T<u Commia&ionor s 33,3S3,5?2
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Representatives from Jefferson Energy Cooperative, Planters EMC and Oglethorpe Power Corporation
present Oglethorpe Power’s 2021 tax payment to the Burke County Tax Commissioner’s office. Pictured
(l-r): Jefferson Energy Cooperative Vice President of Energy Services Wayne Gossage; Jefferson Energy
Cooperative Director of Cooperative Communications Tamika Lampkin; Burke County Tax Commissioner
Marian Jackson; Oglethorpe Power Corp. Director of Community and External Relations Diane McClearen
and Planters EMC Assistant Manager Norman Williams. (Photo credit: Randy Hill)
Oglethorpe Power pays county tax of over $33 million
Oglethorpe Power Corp. recently made its
2021 ad valorem tax payment of $33,388,572 to
the Burke County Tax Commissioner’s office.
The payment represents Oglethorpe Power’s 30
percent ownership in units 1 and 2 of the Alvin
W. Vogtle nuclear plant now operating in Burke
County, and its 30 percent ownership of Vogtle
units 3 and 4, which are currently under construc
tion.
Oglethorpe Power is a wholesale electric power
cooperative owned by and serving 38 electric
membership corporations in Georgia, including
Planters EMC and Jefferson Energy Cooperative,
which provide electric service in Burke County
and other area counties.
For 2021, Oglethorpe Power estimates it will
pay more than $55 million in ad valorem taxes for
power-generating facilities that it owns or co-owns on
behalf of its Member EMCs, including Jefferson Energy
and Planters EMC.
Oglethorpe Power is one of the nation’s largest power
supply cooperatives with approximately $15 billion in
assets serving 38 Electric Membership Corporations
which, collectively, provide electricity to approximately
4.3 million Georgia residents.
Its diverse energy portfolio includes natural gas,
nuclear, hydroelectric and coal generating plants with
a combined capacity of more than 8,300 megawatts.
Oglethorpe Power was established in 1974 and is
owned by its 38 Member Systems. Its headquarters
are in Tucker, Ga
Local man found
dead is identified
The Waynesboro Police Depart
ment responded to a call about a
suspicious situation at the Pizza Hut
on North Liberty Street at approxi
mately 11:21 a.m. Jan. 27. Upon
arrival, the officer found 38-year-
old Shannon Johnson deceased in
a vehicle.
The cause of death of the Waynes
boro man found dead in his car is still
undetermined. However, it does not
appear to be suspicious and looks
as if no crime was committed, said
Burke County Coroner Vat Prescott.
Wimberly Gala
is Saturday
It’s time for a southern soiree, and
guests are invited to dine on some of
the best local food while dancing the
night away for a good cause.
Tickets for “A Taste of Burke
County,” the Wimberly House’s
annual gala, are still available, and
organizers have been busy planning
the event, which serves as the minis
try’s largest fundraiser each year. The
gala is slated for Saturday, Feb. 5, at
First Liberty Market in Waynesboro,
from 6:30-11 p.m.
Eighteen restaurants, caterers
and local foodies will be serving up
their best dishes, everything from
appetizers to delicious desserts.
Gala attendees can stack their plates
with samples from Brown’s Sea
food, Burke Perk, Byne’s Blueberry
Farm, Camino Real, Country Boys
Cooking, Delmac, El Toro Taqueria,
Finely Seasoned Catering, Fish Eye
Grill, Fuji, Good Day Cafe, JJ’s Cra
zy Nuts, Lakeview Restaurant, Pau
lette’s Fine Food, Pineland Bakery,
Round’s on Winthrope, The Rabbit
Hole on Liberty and The Wing Joint.
In keeping with tradition, the gala
includes both silent and live auctions
as well as live music.
Over the last 25-plus years, Wim
berly House Ministries has provided
vital programs within the community
for all ages and from all walks of life.
The gala makes it possible these
services to continue.
For more information about the
gala or to purchase tickets, contact
Lynn White at 706.554.6644. Indi
vidual tickets maybe be purchased
for $50 in advance and are $60 at
the door. Corporate sponsorships are
available for $350 each.
Monitoring local gang activity in Burke County
SHELLIE SMITLEY
thetruecitizen.shellie@gmail.com
Gang-related crimes locally in
clude anything from graffiti to thefts
to murder.
“Gang activity in Burke County is
very high,” said Sgt. Johnny Snyder,
gang investigator with the Burke
County Sheriff’s Office.
Tracking procedures indicate that
gang-related crimes are increasing
among high school students and re
cent high school graduates. Recruit
ment activities are targeting middle
school children. The BCSO keeps
track of known gang involvement.
“We are still tracking adults in
Burke County,” Snyder said.
There are members of nationally
affiliated gangs who reside in Burke
County, but the BCSO is also seeing
an upward trend of neighborhood
gangs. A neighborhood gang is a
hybrid-gang, formed within a spe
cific neighborhood that has a hier
archy of members. Snyder attributes
social media and the current media
culture, including the glamorization
of gangs, with not just an increase in
gang involvement but also involve
ment of younger aged children. .
“We see kids as young as 12 years
old start displaying hand signs and
committing crimes for the gangs
and we see them as old as 25 or 26
years old,” he said. “If you turn on
a music station right now a lot of
the rap and hip-hop culture is about
gang violence. In America right now,
gang violence is being uplifted. Gang
members are sitting down with a
former vice president or president
on CNN and FOX News.”
Females are not immune to joining
gangs either. They commit crimes
and help recruit other members.
“They have a lot of influence
sometimes on what males decide to
do,” Snyder said.
Snyder spoke during the BCSO
Youth Intervention Seminar Jan. 22.
One of the problems he mentioned is
the fact that there are gang members
coaching at the county’s recreation
facilities. It’s not illegal to be in a
gang. Only after a crime has been
committed, does it become a legal
issue. The coaches with gang affilia
tion don’t necessarily possess crimi
nal records. However, the BCSO has
received complaints.
“Some people in the community
that are volunteering for coaching
positions are validated gang mem
bers,” Snyder said. “As a community
we have to get more involved with
the youth. If gang members are be
ing involved with our youth, not
all gang members are bad, but you
don’t know who is out there teaching
your son things. Sometimes they use
grooming techniques and become
a leader to a young kid. If they are
a leader to them on the basketball
court, you don’t know if they are
going to be a leader of them to the
street.”
Before team selection, the Burke
County Recreation Department
requires that all coaches hit out an
application and submit it for a back
ground check through the Sheriffs
department. Additionally, the BCSO
provides security during g^
all of the games.
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“If there was an issue
with a coach or coaches, ^
Sgt. Johnny Snyder spoke at the
BCSO Youth Intervention Semi
nar Jan. 22.