Newspaper Page Text
July 2, 2008
PAGE 7A
"Reporter
Firefighter
How you can help
Benefit yard sale • Saturdays 8 a.m. until
464 Loblolly Lane
Lake Wildwood subdivision
off Zebulon Road
Donations also accepted in the name of
Jason Burns
Monroe County Bank
Bolingbroke and Forsyth
just finished his shift at
the Bolingbroke station
and was riding his motor
cycle on Highway 41 to
work another shift at the
Forsyth station when he
was struck by a car. The
driver of the car, Suzanne
Newman, 68, of Rumble
Road, was traveling south
bound on Highway 41 and
was attempting to turn left
on Pea Ridge Road when
she hit Burns. A witness
said Burns never even had
time to attempt to elude
the crash.
Although he was wearing
a helmet and a protective
jacket, Burns was severely
injured. His injuries
included a broken femur,
T-l spinal fracture, shat
tered pelvis and broken
wrist. Burns was taken to
the Medical Center in
Macon where he remains
in the critical care unit.
Paramedic Richard
Weires was first on the
scene of the accident.
“As soon as the call came
in and I heard it was a
motorcycle, I knew it was
him,” said Weires. “He had
just left the station.
You hope against it,
but I knew it was
him.”
Burns has already
been though over 20
hours of surgeries to
repair his broken
pelvis, leg, knee and
wrist. He may face
even more.
“He’s not out of the
woods yet,” said
Katie. “But he should
recover. They say it could
take six months.”
Even if all goes well,
Burns is expected to be in
the hospital at least a
month.
But Everett says he
knows all too well the road
ahead for Burns and his
family. He used to be a
firefighter for Monroe
County. In 2003 he suf
fered a back injury that
kept him disabled for five
years and has recently
undergone hip-replacement
surgery.
“I know it’s going to be
tough for him,” said
Everett.
That’s part of the reason
Everett says he feels such
a need to do what he can to
help.
“A lot of those guys in
Bolingbroke (firefighters)
helped me. This is my way
of giving back just a little.”
But, it’s not just firefight
ers who are helping.
Mattingly says several peo
ple from the neighborhood
have pitched in, made
donations and offered
prayers for Burns.
“He’s very well thought of
around here,” said
Mattingly. “First of all, he’s
a friend and we want to
help our friend. Secondly,
he’s a firefighter who
serves his community well.
The least we can do is
Bittick
The Ferris E. Lucas
Award for Sheriff of the
Year, named after former
NSA President and
Executive Director Ferris
E. Lucas, recognizes an
outstanding sheriff for the
contributions he or she has
made to improve the office
of sheriff on the local,
state, and national levels,
as well as for his or her
involvement in the commu
nity above and beyond the
responsibilities. For 26
years, Bittick has served
Monroe County and the
National Sheriffs’
Association in this capaci
ty-
Bittick began with the
Monroe County Sheriff’s
Office as a radio operator
in 1972, under his father
who was the current
Sheriff of Monroe County.
When he was sworn in as
sheriff in 1983, he became
the third member of his
family to hold the office of
sheriff, following in the
footsteps of both his grand
father and father. Under
Bittick’s leadership and
guidance, the Monroe
County Sheriff’s Office
grew from a 28-employee
and 32-inmate operation in
1983, to a full service,
nationally accredited law
enforcement agency with
118 employees and a jail
that can house 174
inmates.
The Monroe County
Sheriff’s Office has been a
pioneer among law enforce
ment agencies. The sher
iff’s office was accredited
in the first round of
awards from the National
Commission on
Correctional Health Care
in 1979 and was the third
law enforcement agency in
Georgia to receive accredi
tation from the
Commission on
Accreditation for Law
Enforcement Agencies
(CALEA) in 1993. Bittick
opened the first child advo
cacy/victim witness pro
gram to be operated out of
a law enforcement agency
in 1992. The program
began in the 1980s as a
victim/witness program,
called the C.A.R.E. Cottage
(Child Abuse Reporting
Enforcement), which
assisted those affected by
crime and its outcomes. In
creating services such as a
victim/witness program
and a child advocacy cen
ter, Bittick provides those
in Monroe County who
need assistance with a
means to access not only
law enforcement but other
resources as well. Because
law enforcement comes in
contact with each and
every victim and only
about one third of all cases
go to trial, operating a vic
tim/witness and children’s
advocacy center out of a
law enforcement agency, as
opposed to the courts or
district attorney’s office, is
ideal because one hundred
percent of those touched
directly by violence or
crime can be contacted and
provided service.
Throughout his career
Bittick has been active in
law enforcement associa
tions and criminal justice
issues. He served as presi
dent of the National
Sheriffs' Association in
2001. Because of the
events of Sept. 11 during
his presidency, Bittick
focused on how the nation’s
sheriffs could work togeth
er to promote and open the
means of communication
between local and federal
law enforcement. Since his
presidency, Bittick has con
tinued his participation in
NSA as chair of both the
Intelligence Sub-
Committee and Legislative
Affairs Committee. Bittick
is a 1982 graduate of the
FBI National Academy and
the 1983 FBI Law
Enforcement Executive
Development Program. He
also completed the
Executive Leadership
Program at the National
Post Graduate School in
Monterey, Cal. in May
2007.
Bittick has also served as
the president of the
Murderer
continued from page 1A
B. Irwin ruled that the
crime was fueled by men
tal illness and that Cook’s
lawyer Kevin Wangerin
failed to properly represent
him in the sentencing
phase of the trial. Cook’s
conviction was upheld, but
his sentence was commut
ed to life.
But, in Monday’s 33-page
ruling, the state Supreme
Court concluded that those
arguments had no merit
and reinstated the death
penalty. Cook remains in
the Georgia Diagnostic
Prison in Jackson, but it is
unlikely his sentence will
be carried out any time
soon. According to District
Attorney Richard Milam
Cook has 10 days to file for
reconsideration.
“It’s not likely that the
Supreme Court will
reverse its own decision,”
said Milam. After that,
Cook will have another 90
days to try and get his case
heard by a federal court.
Milam says he does not
believe Cook will succeed
in even getting a federal
court to hear his case
because there is no consti
tutional issue.
“He’ll file though. It’s a
way to stay alive a little
longer and drag the family
through it all over again,”
said Milam. Milam said he
is prepared to retry the
case if Cook’s sentence is
reversed again.
“If there ever was a death
penalty case, this is one,”
said Milam. “He acted in
such a vile way. It was an
act of absolute meanness.
He didn’t even know the
victims.”
Around midnight on
January 2, 1995, Mercer
students Grant
Hendrickson and Michele
Cartagena were parked on
a small peninsula known
as “the Point,” which juts
into Lake Juliette. Cook
drove onto the Point,
parked his car nearby and
shot 14 times with an AR-
15 rifle from a distance of
about 40 feet and then
fired five more times with
a nine mm Ruger hand
gun. Grant and Michele
were each hit multiple
times and killed.
Cook then dragged
Michele out of the car,
undressed her, knelt
between her legs, and spit
on her and drove away.
The investigation revealed
Cook did not know the vic
tims prior to killing them.
The investigation
dragged on for almost two
years. Cook became a sus
pect when records surfaced
connecting him with one of
the murder weapons. Cook
was arrested in December
1996 after his confessing to
his father, an FBI agent at
the time. He was convicted
in 1998 and sent to death
row.
Mrs. Hendrickson says
she believes justice will
only be served when Cook
is finally put to death.
“I really hate to feel that
way,” said Hendrickson.
“But it’s the truth. He
deserves to die for what he
did.”
Grant Hendrickson was
her only child.
continued from page 1A
serve him back.”
Mattingly says he
understands the economy
has a lot of people tight
ening their belts, but
hopes anyone who can
possibly spare anything
will remember Burns.
The group plans to keep
having yard sales as long
as they have stuff. All the
proceeds will go to help
Burns during his recov
ery. Mattingly says they
are also planning to hold
other fundraisers, includ
ing raffling a big screen
TV. Tickets are $5 each
and are available at the
yard sale each Saturday
beginning at 8 a.m.
“We will also take dona
tions of items. If anyone
has some things they’d like
to get rid of that we can
sell in the yard sale, bring
it by, we’ll take it.”
Newman was determined
to be at fault in the acci
dent but was not cited.
An account for Jason
Burns has been set up at
Monroe County Bank in
Forsyth and Bolingbroke
for monetary donations.
continued from page 1A
Georgia Sheriffs’
Association and Georgia
Sheriffs’ Youth Homes and
was a member of the
Georgia State Board of
Children and Youth. As
president of the Georgia
Sheriffs’ Association he
worked with other sheriffs
and legislators across
Georgia on laws and legis
lation that could affect
sheriffs currently in office
as well as those who hold
the position in the future.
As president of Georgia
Sheriffs’ Youth Homes he
furthered the Youth Homes
mission to provide guid
ance, care, and a means to
lead a prosperous life to
those children who might
not have had a chance to
do otherwise. Since begin
ning his career as sheriff
in January 1983, Sheriff
John Cary Bittick has
played a pivotal role in bet
tering the Monroe County
community by providing
outstanding leadership and
protecting those who live
and work in his communi
ty-
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VOTE FOR AND ELECT
LORI ANDREWS
TAX COMMISSIONER
★★★★★★★★★★ ★★★★★★
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- GRADUATED Mary Persons High School 1995
- EMPLOYED by Tax Commissioner's Office JAN. 2000 TO PRESENT
Has hand-on experience in all applicable areas of tax administration
Appointed CHIEF DEPUTY TAX COMMISSIONER 2005
Excellent managerial and administrative capabilities
Appointed DEPUTY REGISTRAR IN 2001
Assumes supervisor responsibilities associated with registering voters
on absentee voting
Attends training to keep up with changing laws
- Known by peers as a PROBLEM SOLVER
Approaches problems directly and solves them in timely manner
POSITIVE ATTITUDE inside/outside office
Friendly, Courteous, Conscientious, Effective, Energetic
- MOST QUALIFIED by formal training and experience
Attends annual State Tax Commissioner Training each year
Attends training each year for Property Tax and Motor Vehicles to
keep up with current changes
Trained by Tax Commissioner in accounting procedures used
in the tax office
SERVES CUSTOMERS FAIRLY AND COURTEOUSLY
Serving YOU the taxpayer first and foremost
Goes above and beyond job requirements to serve you the customer.
Your vote and support will be greatly appreciated in the
Democratic Primary.
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* July 15,2008 *
Ir Paid for by Candidate
,★★★★★★★★★★ ★'*★★★★★★★★ ★★★★★★ j