Newspaper Page Text
June 29, 2011
Reporter
PAGE 7A
Assistant DA recovering from stroke
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Monroe County assistant dis
trict attorney Mark Daniel is
back at work after suffering a
mini-stroke in May.
Daniel left his office
at the Monroe County
Justice Center one
day last month after
complaining of not
feeling well. His doc
tor checked him into
the hospital where
tests were run. Daniel
was diagnosed with symptoms of
a mini stroke and was immedi
ately Lifeflighted by helicopter
to Grady Hospital in Atlanta.
Daniel, 53, who lives in Monroe
County with his wife and three
children, has returned to work
but his boss, district attorney
Richard Milam, said he's
nowhere near full speed yet.
Asked if the stress of keeping
Monroe County's criminal cases
moving through the court sys
You can imagine that what we do might
make your blood pressure go up.
- District attorney Richard Milam, on whether job stress may
have played a role in assistant DA Mark Daniel’s mini-stroke
tem might have contributed,
Milam said yes.
'You can imagine that what we
do might make your blood pres
sure go up," said Milam. Daniel
was an assistant district attor
ney even before Milam became
DA. Milam said when he was
first elected, he immediately
offered Daniel the job because of
his respect for him.
"He's a good guy and well
thought of by everybody," said
Milam.
Monroe County com
missioners last Tuesday
approved Milam's
request for funding for a
fill-in prosecutor to help
him for the next six
months while Daniel
eases back into full-time
work. Commissioners also
approved spending $367,250 for
the DA's budget for 2011-12, the
county's share for the judicial
circuit it shares with Lamar and
Butts counties.
Each county contributes a per
centage based on the caseload
each county contributes. The DA
handled 2,018 cases out of
Monroe County in 2010, or 38
percent of its total caseload.
Butts and Lamar counties each
had 31 percent.
Asked why Monroe County had
more cases, Milam noted it has
more miles of interstate than the
other counties and more popula
tion. Plus, said Milam, Monroe
County has excellent law
enforcement.
He
recalled
the one
burglar
deputies
caught
while still
in the
neighbor
hood ear-
Tax assessments running late
Monroe County property
owners won't get their
2011 tax assessments in
the mail this week as orig
inally thought.
"We're finding some
bugs," Monroe County
chief tax appraiser Bob
Simmons said of efforts to
plug the latest property
values into the computer
system so the notices can
be sent.
Simmons had hoped to
mail out 16,800 notices
this week, complying with
a new state law requiring
all property owners to get
notices every year by July
1. In the past, the county
was only required to send
notices to those with
increases in their assess
ment.
Because the law is new,
state revenue officials
have told counties they
won't be penalized if the
notices go out a little late.
It's a good thing too,
because Simmons said
now it could be mid-July
before they're mailed.
The property appraisal
company GMASS just fin
ished a countywide revalu
ation of all agricultural
tracts, and the new values
have to be put into the
computer before the
notices are sent. Those
values by the way, reflect
the decline in the market.
"They're gonna make a
lot of people happy," said
Simmons.
Some officials say they
hope the lower ag land
values will make the large
landowners still appealing
their 2008 property
assessments happy
enough to accept the coun
ty's offer a 15-percent cut
in their 2008 assessment.
Simmons said Monroe
County is far from the
only county to miss the
July 1 deadline for mail
ing notices. As of last
week only 80 out of 159
Georgia counties had
mailed their notices, said
Simmons.
her this year. When he saw the
side of the patrol car said
Monroe County, the burglar
sighed, "I didn't know we were
in Monroe County."
"Let's face it," said Milam,
"people in south Monroe County
think they're in Bibb County,
and the burglars do too."
But Milam said the word is out
in Macon that criminals better
not commit crime in Monroe.
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211
7248 Alexander Court ■ Bolingbroke , GA
Located in the former The Red Tomato
July 4
continued from the front
people in attendance will
receive 3-D glasses
through which to watch
the fireworks. New
Forsyth Better
Hometown director
Lorraine Khoury said she
expects the 3-D glasses
will be very popular.
Khoury said food will
be available, and a DJ
will provide music prior
to the firework show. She
said the night will be a
good fellowship opportu
nity for the entire county.
Also on Monday, High
Falls will host its 18th
Annual 4th of July Boat
Parade at High Falls
State Park. The parade
begins at 10 a.m. pool
side at the park. All
boats and spectators are
welcome. Free event to
all.
DUI
continued from the front
er.
The jogger, Haleigh
Herring, 20, of Forsyth,
was taken by ambulance
to the Medical Center of
Central Georgia with seri
ous injuries.
According to the incident
report, at about 9:44 p.m.
on Monday, June 20, Dep.
Daniel Ruiz went to Rivoli
Road near North Rivoli
Farms Road in reference
to a person being hit by a
car. Monroe County
Dispatch told Ruiz a silver
car had continued travel
ing north on Rivoli Road.
Ruiz was unable to
speak with Herring at the
scene because she was
being rushed to the hospi
tal.
However, Herring's
friend, Analise Lowery,
told Ruiz she and Herring
were jogging on Rivoli
Road toward Pate Road on
the white line in the right
lane. Lowery said she
knew a car was approach
ing behind them, so she
stepped off the road into
the grass. Lowery said she
was well behind Herring
when she got hit, so she
did not actually see the
incident occur.
According to the report,
neither woman was wear
ing any reflective gear.
A short time later, the
car, identified as a 2003
Nissan Altima, came back
to the scene. The driver,
Wright's mother got out
and told Ruiz her daugh
ter was driving the car
when it hit Herring.
Wright's mother said
Wright, who was then sit
ting in the passenger seat,
had driven off because she
was drunk and scared.
Wright told Ruiz she
thought she had hit a
deer. Wright said she
drank a pint of Mr. Boston
liquor about an hour or
two prior. She said right
after she hit Herring, she
received a phone call by
someone telling her a per
son had just gotten hit by
a car on Rivoli Road.
Wright said she then took
her car home, and her
mother brought her back
to the scene.
Ruiz then asked Wright
to submit to field sobriety
testing. She responded
that she would but that
she already knew she was
drunk. Wright then failed
several sobriety tests, say
ing that she was drunk
and could not complete
them.
Wright was then taken
to the Monroe County
Jail. She was released on
June 23.
Sosebee
continued from the front
Chamber of Commerce
sent her the links about
the contest being held by
the state Department of
Revenue and encouraged
her to enter.
Sosebee's work is already
well-known in Forsyth, as
her murals adorn the
Welcome Center as well as
the commissioner's office
at the Department of
Corrections, the latter
based upon a Reporter
photo taken at the opening
of Tift College.
Sosebee said she put
about 15-20 hours into
each of her three license
plate entries. On-line vot
ing will continue at
https://etax.dor.ga.gov/Tag
Contest, aspx until July 8,
at which point the three
most popular license plate
designs will go to Gov.
Nathan Deal for a final
decision by July 15.
Asked which of her two
finalists she likes best,
Sosebee thought for a
minute and finally allowed
that she liked the one with
Georgia in a cursive-type
script because it's simpler.
She said she does like the
other one with the peach
tree though, because it
looks very Southern, bor
dered at bottom by a val
ley of lush peach tree
fields.
Sosebee said the eight
finalists included some
very interesting choices,
but being the artist, she
said she still likes hers.
There's only honor on the
line for Sosebee, since the
state is offering no jackpot
or any money for the win
ner. However, the designer
of the chosen plate will get
a free set of license plates.
A native of California,
Sosebee has only lived in
Georgia since 2001, when
she moved to Columbus
with her husband, Forsyth
native Hugh Sosebee Jr.
The Sosebees moved to
Forsyth in 2005 and have
one son, Hugh III.
Sosebee is used to win
ning competitions -- she is
a two-time world champi
on sporting clay shooter
who competed with the
U.S. shooting team until
she started her family.
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