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Ukrainian president pays
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INSIDE, 3A
Thursday, December 22, 2022 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com
Jan. 6 panel prepares to unveil final
report on insurrection, inside, 4A
Honestly Local
Hall preps for icy roads, possible outages
BY BRIAN WELLMEIER
bwellmeier@gainesvilletimes.com
Crews with the Georgia Depart
ment of Transportation will begin
treating busy roads in Hall County
Thursday as the area prepares
for some of the coldest weather in
years.
Crews will start to brine Interstate
985 and Ga. 365 with a wet-mixture
solution to counter the possible for
mation of black ice as temperatures
begin to drop later that night, said
GDOT’s District Communications
Officer Joe Schulman.
“Thursday night, we’ll switch
to salting - hitting those spots that
are the most likely to freeze... like
bridges,” Schulman said. “Once it
starts to dry Friday, we’ll be salting
and just hitting any trouble spots
that come up.”
Schulman urged drivers to stay
home.
“We recommend that people stay
off the roads,” he said. “If you don’t
have to be out on the roads Thurs
day evening into Friday around
lunchtime.. if you do have to be on
the roads, and you see our crews
out there, make sure you give them
enough room to work.”
GDOT will also close all express
lanes at midnight Thursday and into
Friday as officials continue to moni
tor the weather, reopening express
lanes as the extreme cold relents.
Hall County officials say they’re
keeping a close watch on the
weather as it continues to develop,
though “no pretreatment of road
ways is planned” at this time.
“County departments are pre
pared to deal with any black ice
that occurs and have equipment
ready to respond to those areas as
needed,” said Zachary Brackett,
operations and special projects
manager with Hall County Emer
gency Management. “These prepa
rations have been made and any
additional preparations will occur
as soon as they are needed. Work
to address icing will occur as soon
as it is identified and located. Pri
mary roads will be addressed first
as needed to ensure the movement
of public safety vehicles and the
public.”
Brackett warned residents to pre
pare for potential power outages as
strong winds come through north
Georgia Friday and frigid temper
atures last through the weekend.
“The main threats that are fore
cast for this system are currently
extremely cold temperatures and
high winds that could cause power
outages,” he said. “Wind speeds
may limit the ability to restore
power, and citizens should be pre
pared to shelter without power for
an extended period of time through
the weekend. Wind chill values will
be at or below 0° for most of the
weekend so care should be taken to
limit time outside and wear appro
priate clothing.”
In Gainesville, officials have not
yet ordered pretreatment on city
roads, though they also remain on
standby in the event ice forms along
the roadways.
“Public works staff has prepared
the necessary response equipment
and is continuing to monitor the
weather situation in anticipation of
any necessary activity,” Gainesville
spokesperson Christina Santee said.
GDOT advises residents to call
911 and report fallen trees and
downed power lines to authorities.
■ Please see ROADS, 3A
3 die in apparent double murder-suicide
Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times
Family members gather outside a home on Holland Drive Wednesday, Dec. 21, where earlier three people were found dead in a
suspected double murder-suicide, according to authorities.
Sheriff’s Office: Man believed to have killed two women
A shocked Tim Ragan stands along Holland Drive Wednesday, Dec. 21, where he said members
of his family were killed in what authorities are calling a double murder-suicide.
BY BEN ANDERSON
banderson@
gainesvilletimes.com
AND NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
Three people, including
twin sisters, were found dead
Wednesday, Dec. 21, in a Hol
land Drive home in Gaines
ville in a suspected double
murder-suicide.
The Hall County Sheriff’s
Office was called around
11:30 a.m. to the 4200 block
of Holland Drive.
Two women were found
dead in a bedroom, and a
man was found dead in the
living room from an appar
ent self-inflicted gunshot
wound.
The Sheriff’s Office said
the man is believed to have
killed the two women, though
the cause of death is still
under investigation.
The Sheriff’s Office has
not released the names or
motive for those involved.
Family members said the
dead man’s name is Andrew
Newberry. They identified
the women as his mother and
aunt, Ruth and Ruby New
berry, respectively.
The women were twin sis
ters, according to their older
sister Jackie London, 80.
“They were good Chrisitan
girls and hard workers,” Lon
don said.
Tim Ragan, who said Ruth
Newberry was his ex-fiance,
said the killings came as a
“total shock.”
“They were real good
girls,” he said.
He said he wasn’t sure what
the motive might have been.
The 58-year-old sisters
were living in the same house
with Ruth Newberry’s daugh
ter and her two daughters,
Ragan said.
Client sues
lawyer, firm in
job injury case
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A man who lost his legs in a workplace inci
dent has filed a lawsuit against his former
attorney, alleging that the lawyer did not turn
over the man’s files after he hired new counsel,
according to court documents.
Zach and Jennifer Johnson filed a lawsuit
Monday, Dec. 19, against Michael Weaver Jr.
and the Weaver Law Firm in Hall County Supe
rior Court.
Attorney Matt Cook said his client, Zach John
son, was working for the city of Toccoa when his
legs were entrapped Dec. 2 in a baler machine.
The attorney said Zach Johnson lost both legs
below the knee and is still hospitalized.
■ Please see LAWYER, 3A
Man charged
with break-ins at
11 storage units
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A Clarkesville man was accused of breaking
into 11 storage units in May at a Gainesville busi
ness with bolt cutters, taking an SUV, watercraft
and other items, according to
authorities.
Jeremy Alan Martyne, 35,
was charged with 11 counts of
second-degree burglary and
theft by taking a motor vehicle.
The Hall County Sheriff’s
Office began investigating a
series of break-ins on May 12
at Happy Pappy’s Storage on
Thompson Bridge Road.
Items taken in the break-ins included a 2004
Ford Expedition, a trailer, two personal water
craft and other items, according to the Sheriff’s
Office.
Many of the items have been found and
returned to their owners, the Sheriff’s Office
said.
The Sheriff’s Office said Martyne left for Flor
ida but was arrested Tuesday, Dec. 20, when he
returned to the area.
Martyne was booked in to the Hall County
Jail, where he remains with no bond.
The Sheriff’s Office said the SUV and the
watercraft were worth more than $10,000.
“While renters of the units could tell there
were missing items, such as tools, it was difficult
to get an accurate inventory of what exactly was
stolen, so we’re not going to wager a guess on the
dollar amount,” Sheriff’s Office spokesman Der-
reck Booth said.
Martyne
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