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The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com
Wednesday, February 19, 2020 7A
Dawson authorities searching for
hiker missing near Appalachian Trail
BY JESSICA TAYLOR
jtaylor@dawsonnews.com
The multi-agency search for an Appa
lachian Trail hiker who went missing in
Dawson County late last week is now con
tinuing into a third day, authorities said
Tuesday, Feb. 18.
During a press conference on Tues
day morning, Dawson County Fire Chief
Danny Thompson announced that
the search for Eddie Noonkester,
a North Carolina man who
embarked on the Appalachian
Trail on Friday, Feb. 14, will
continue, with multiple agencies
searching the trail in Dawson
County and the surrounding areas.
According to Thompson, the
search for Noonkester began
on Sunday after Dawson County
authorities received a call expressing con
cern for Noonkester’s health.
Around 11:20 a.m. Sunday shortly after
the call, Noonkester himself called Daw
son County 911 and was interviewed by an
on-duty battalion chief, Thompson said.
“In speaking with Eddie, it did appear
that he sounded confused initially,”
Thompson said.
Authorities believe that Noonkester
became disoriented and may be suffering
from a medical emergency.
“We’ve spoken to the family. He doesn’t
have any known medical issues, but he
does have a family history of dementia,”
Thompson said. “Family and friends have
shared some information with us that
they feel he may have been over the last
several months exhibiting some signs or
symptoms of early onset (dementia); how
ever, please understand that has not been
diagnosed.”
Following the interview with
Noonkester, authorities mobilized a search
but were unable to find any sign of the
hiker until approximately 1 p.m. Monday,
Feb. 17, when staff of Len Foote Hike Inn
located some of Noonkester’s personal
belongings near the Hike Inn trail.
The items have since been verified by
Noonkester’s family members, Thompson
said.
Efforts to find Noonkester continued
into Monday night, with six K-9 teams
searching a large grid area around the
Approach Trail in Amicalola Falls
State Park, and on through Tues
day morning until the weather
deteriorated.
On Tuesday, Thompson said
Dawson County Emergency Ser
vices has called in the Georgia
Emergency Management Agency
to assist in the search.
“Today, we have called in the
assistance of GEMA, numerous
law enforcement agencies, DNR, Dawson
County Sheriff’s department, park staff
here, numerous fire departments... Gilmer
County, Union County, Fannin County are
represented today,” Thompson said.
At least 50 people from multiple state
and local agencies are searching.
“Right now our focus is a grid area of
what’s called the Approach Trail down
High Shoals Road, which is a service road
that leads over to the Len Foote Hike Inn
and then the Len Foote Hike Inn trail
back down towards the visitor’s center
and Cochran Falls,” Thompson said. “The
search area where we’re looking for Mr.
Noonkester is a very, very treacherous
area. Terrain is very, very difficult, and
couple that with the heavy downpours that
we’ve had throughout the day and will con
tinue to have over the next 72 hours, we’re
going to continue to push for this search of
Eddie and hope for a positive outcome.”
Thompson said that those wishing to vol
unteer in the search efforts may do so by
contacting the official search and rescue
Photo for The Times
Eddie Noonkester.
volunteer email, DCSAR@dawsoncounty.
org.
“What we’re asking the volunteers, when
you email into that address, leave your
name, contact telephone number, your
availability and your experience level of
hiking,” Thompson said.
A BOLO is still issued for Noonkester.
He is an approximately 60-year-old white
man, standing at 5-feet and 10-inches tall
and weighing approximately 200 pounds
with gray hair and a gray goatee.
Authorities ask that if you see someone
matching Noonkester’s description to call
the Dawson County Sheriff’s Office’s non
emergency number 706-344-3636.
“Our priority is to try to find him in these
next 48 hours,” Thompson said. “We have a
high focus of trying to locate him as quickly
as we can.”
Noonkester
Man accused of locking girl in room, forcing sexual acts
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A Flowery Branch man allegedly
locked a girl in a room and then forced
the girl to perform various
sex acts on him, according to
authorities.
Hall County Sheriff’s Office
deputies met with the victim and
an adult family member around
10:45 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8 about
an alleged assault that happened
earlier that day.
The victim, the family member
and the suspect, Joshua Todd Allen, 34,
had all left the home where the alleged
assault happened before law enforce
ment were notified.
“According to the initial investiga
tion, Allen assaulted a minor
female child at his residence
on Capitola Farm Road,” Sher
iff’s Office spokesman Derreck
Booth wrote in a news release.
Booth said Allen threatened
the girl and locked her in a room
to prevent her from leaving.
“He forced the victim to per
form various sex acts on him,”
Booth said of Allen.
Investigators obtained warrants for
Allen Feb. 10, and he was charged with
aggravated sodomy, first-degree cruelty
to children, false imprisonment, child
molestation and aggravated assault.
Allen turned himself in to the jail Feb.
12, and he is still being held at the jail
without bond.
No further details were released by
authorities.
Defense attorney Matt Leipold said he
was unfamiliar with the circumstances
in the case when reached for comment
Tuesday, Feb. 18.
Allen
Voter registration
deadline for March
primary upcoming
To be eligible to vote in the March 24 presi
dential preference primary, voters need to be
registered by Feb. 24.
To register to vote, go to the Georgia Sec
retary of State’s My Voter Page website, mvp.
sos.ga.gov, or the elections office at the Hall
County Government Center, 2875 Browns
Bridge Road in Gainesville.
Voters can also check their registration sta
tus on the Secretary of State’s website.
Items on the ballot March 24 include Repub
lican and Democratic candidates for presi
dent, bonds for local schools and E-SPLOST, a
1 % sales tax that school systems use for capi
tal projects.
Megan Reed
Ga. special elections
may not get party
primaries until 2021
BY BEN NADLER
Associated Press
ATLANTA — A proposed change to Georgia
election law to require party primaries before
certain special elections has been amended so it
wouldn’t take effect until 2021, assuring a special
U.S. Senate election this year won’t be affected
if it passes.
That’s good news for recently appointed
Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who is running
to defend her seat in a free-for-all special elec
tion on Nov. 3.
House Bill 757 was approved by the state
House Governmental Affairs Committee on
Tuesday. It could soon go to the full House for
a vote.
Under current law, Loeffler’s race won’t be fil
tered by party primaries and all candidates will
share the ballot in November. A previous version
of the bill would have applied to the race, requir
ing party primaries in May. That setup could
have helped Republican Rep. Doug Collins, who
is challenging Loeffler for the seat, by shortening
the time Loeffler has to build a record to run on.
The effective date was added after Republi
can Gov. Brian Kemp, who appointed Loeffler to
the Senate, threatened to veto the proposal.
Rep. Shaw Blackmon, a Republican from
Bonaire that chairs that committee, said the
effective date of Jan. 1, 2021 was added at the
request of House members and that the Senate
race was a consideration.
The bill was also amended so that the party
primary requirements would apply to special
elections for state House and Senate seats in cer
tain circumstances.
Ryan Germany, general counsel for the Geor
gia Secretary of State, said applying those provi
sions to General Assembly races would require
more elections to be held and that counties
would be responsible for the costs.
s
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