About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 2, 2021)
Save up to $413 COUPONS INSIDE (the etm t% Weekend Edition - JANUARY 2-3,2021 | $2.00 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com Honestly Local Gainesville boys, girls wrap up Lanierland titles. SPORTS, 7B No charges in deadly police shooting DA sees no criminal intent from officers, makes no judgment on civil liability BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com No charges will be filed against two Gainesville Police officers who fatally shot an Oakwood man in September 2019 on Jesse Jewell Parkway. Northeastern Judicial Circuit District Attorney Lee Darragh said Dec. 31, more than a year after the incident, that after reviewing evidence including video and wit ness statements, he will not pur sue charges against the officers. Adam English was shot around 5 p.m. Sept. 20, 2019, near the Northeast Georgia Physicians Group surgical associates build ing on Jesse Jewell Park way after reports he was waving a gun around. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was called in to investigate the police shooting and turned the file over to Darragh’s office for review in late 2019. “I have concluded that while the death of Adam English was unquestion ably tragic, the evidence would not support a find ing of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt as to Officers (Jose) Hernandez and (Jonathan) Fowler,” Darragh wrote in a letter to the GBI. “Therefore, in good faith as a prosecutor whose obligation it is to seek justice, I have concluded that my office will take no further action on this matter.” Darragh did, however, say he offered “no opinion as to whether there is any civil liability,” which carries a lesser standard of proof. English’s parents filed a civil lawsuit earlier this year against the city of Gainesville and the two officers. Multiple calls for comment to attorneys Craig Thomas Jones and Seth Eisenberg, who are representing English’s parents, were not returned Thursday, Dec. 31. Gainesville Police did not respond to multiple requests for comment by press time Thursday. According to his letter, Darragh reviewed witness statements from Northeast Georgia Medical Cen ter security officers, people in the surgical associates building and police. ■ Please see ENGLISH, 7A English Flat Creek’s comeback Gainesville’s urban stream’ has seen challenges, progress BY MEGAN REED mreed@gainesvilletimes.com Flat Creek, which flows for six miles from midtown Gainesville to Lake Lanier, runs through both industrial areas and less populated areas. The “urban stream” has faced pollution chal lenges over the years, but now those who monitor the waterway say water quality is improving. “Flat Creek is a hard-working urban stream. It’s a natural feature, but it pro vides a lot of services for the community in terms of assimilating waste and provid ing flow into Lake Lanier,” Gainesville Water Resources Director Linda Mac Gregor said. “Historically, it has been quite polluted, but it’s cleaner today than it’s been in decades, and we see that fish are coming back into the creek.” The creek suffered a 2 million gallon sewage spill in October 2020 after heavy rains led to a pump failure at Flat Creek Water Reclamation Facility. But the creek has also seen some steps forward in the past few years. A stream restoration finished in 2018 added 13 rock structures to keep the water flowing and introduce oxygen, along with 2,000 tons of riprap along the sides to help with erosion. A litter trap installed in 2015 off Old Flowery Branch Road catches trash before it can make its way to Lake Lanier. Gainesville Water Resources moni tors water quality in Flat Creek regularly — six sites along the creek are sampled monthly, while 25 spots are visually inspected weekly, according to Environ mental Monitoring Coordinator Tyler Sims. Of the 25 spots inspected visually, two are tested for field parameters such as temperature, dissolved oxygen levels and pH levels weekly, Sims said. Impact of rain and runoff Recent or current rainfall can skew water quality data, though. As rain falls, ■ Please see CREEK, 6A Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times Environmental monitoring coordinator Tyler Sims takes a water sample Wednesday, Dec. 30, at Flat Creek. Water quality is monitored regularly at Flat Creek and the quality has improved in recent years, but the creek still faces some challenges as it runs through an industrial area. Clyde primes for first term as U.S. 9th District rep BY JEFF GILL jgill@gainesvilletimes.com Athens gun store owner Andrew Clyde made a splash in Congress long before he pondered running for a seat in Washington. Now, the Republican plans to get busy in a first term as the 9th District House representative. “We’re going to get this underway in just a few weeks,” the Jackson County resident said in an interview with The Times before the holidays. Current members of Con gress may already be familiar with Clyde, as a 2013 battle with the IRS ended in his favor and led to passage of the federal Taxpayer First Act, which aims to prevent abuse of civil asset forfeiture policies. He testified before Congress as part of the fight. That ordeal pushed him to become a candi date to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, R-Gainesville, and the congressman-elect after the Nov. 3 general election. Clyde, who gets sworn in on the House floor Sunday, Jan. 3, has spent later weeks getting ready for his new role, including orientation in Washington. He said he attended sessions on drafting legislation, ethics, compensation, hiring staff, research and COVID-19. Also, Clyde has worked hiring a staff and setting up offices in Washington and the 9th District. He will keep the same district office that Collins occupied at 210 Washington St. NW, Gainesville. “We should have the staff up and running with major positions filled by the time we get the keys to our office,” or on Jan. 4, he said. A main goal for Clyde is staying in touch with constituents. “I’ll be sending out emails on a regular basis ■ Please see CLYDE, 5A Clyde DEATHS 2B Agnes Bell, 83 Dawn Brown, 52 Haywood Clyde, 88 Janet Marra-Compton Donald Dorsey, 80 Becky Ferguson, 64 Charlotte Grogan, 92 Cindy Lopez- Guerrero, 65 Sara Harkins, 96 Myra Harris Quitina Helms, 40 Donna Hinesley, 53 Margaret Huff, 69 Betty Jackson, 88 Pamela Jarrels, 66 Aubrey Kline Jr., 86 Joseph Lopez, 85 Johnny Mathis, 66 William Mayo Betsy McDonald, 87 Henry Miller, 65 Christopher Parr, 54 Mary Pirkle, 96 Martavious Pittman Gaines Price, 76 Eddie Simmons III, 71 Juanita Southerland, 91 Herman Stewart, 80 Boyd Stowers, 87 Rebecca Stoyle, 70 Bouakhao Thanphachanh, 69 Roy Turner Matthew Wakefield, 98 Joan White, 68 James Wilson, Jr. 40901 06825 nghs.com/COVID
