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On the Porch 4A
On the Outside Looking In 5A
SPORTS ► ►►
Lady Dogs
face big
game at
Spalding
Friday
SEE PAGE 8C
Rocksprings
Clinic marks
10 years
SEE PAGE 8A
Welcome
TO THE FAMILY
Mary Watson
Britt & Ben Thomason
Beth Youmans
Vicki Anderson
Andrea Daniels
Ed Voss
Hugh Rader
Tom & Heather
Sickman
Dixie Tollman
www.MyMCR.net • Vol. 47 • No. 10
4 Sections • 28 Pages • Wednesday • March 14,2018
MONROE COUNTY SHERIFFS OFFICE
Man arrested after shooting hand, wrecking SUV
By Richard Dumas
forsyth@mymcnnet
A Forsyth man was arrested after
apparently shooting himself in the
hand, wrecking his girlfriends SUV
and then leaving the scene of the
accident on Edge Road on Feb. 26.
Klay Wesley Estal Cash, 30, will
face multiple charges including
leaving the scene of an
accident once he’s released
from the hospital
According to the incident
report, at about 12:35 a.m.,
Cpl. Kevin Powell of the
Monroe County Sheriff’s
Office went to Edge Road
about a white Kia Sportage
SUV with a Colorado tag
CASH
abandoned on the side of
the road following a wreck.
A witness, Benjie Wilford,
told Powell he saw an older
model Honda Civic pull in
front of him off of Natures
Trail. Wilford said the Civic
stopped at the wrecked
SUV and picked up the
male driver, later identi
fied as Cash, a tall, lean white male
wearing blue jeans and a gray shirt.
Wilford said Cash’s left hand was
bleeding profusely and his shirt and
jeans were covered in blood.
Meanwhile, a homeowner, identi
fied as Doug Langer, said he owns
the property where the SUV was
See WRECK . Page 6A
Slammed Saturday Soaked Sunday at 31 st Forsythia
Thousands of visitors and locals descended upon downtown Forsyth on Saturday for the 31st Forsythia Festival. Saturday was fantastic, said Cheri
Sparks, director of the Forsyth-Monroe County Chamber of Commerce that organizes the festival. Saturdays turnout was huge in part because fore
casters had called for rain on Sunday so folks knew it was the day to go. Sure enough, rain on Sunday morning made that day mostly a washout. Still,
Sparks said it was a good weekend. “Thank you to all who came out to support our beloved Festival. We had a fabulous Saturday. Thank you City of
Forsyth, Volume Chevrolet and our many sponsors for assisting us. Our volunteers are amazing. Special thanks to our businesses on the square who so
allow us to hold the Festival at their front doors each year. We look forward to next year adding new vendors and growing the footprint.
CITY OF FORSYTH
NEW SUBSCRIBERS
OF THE WEEK
DEATHS m6A
Corine Bowden
James Bowden
Robert Dumas
Howard Neal Johnston
Dorothy Walker
INDEX ► ►►
Fox City again? Plans for statues all over town
These small
mice statues
in downtown
Greenville,
S.C. are one
of the inspira
tions for the
Leadership
Monroe class
that plans
to put small
fox statues
throughout
Fox City, aka
Forsyth, Ga.
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcnnet
By the end of the year, Forsyth may
be known as Fox City again if the 2018
Leadership Monroe Class has its way.
The group presented its class project to
Forsyth city council on March 5, with
Byerly Vaughn and Tommy Johnston
speaking on behalf of the class and
several other class members present to
support them and answer questions.
Vaughn said the 2018 Leadership
Class set goals of finishing its project
within the year, making sure that its
project is obtainable and that the proj
ect will continue to be a part of the city
without needing high maintenance.
The result is the Forsyth Foxhunt
project, which has the purpose of
bringing foot traffic to downtown, giv
ing visitors and residents something to
do in town and giving merchants and
other businesses a unifying theme to
See FOX CITY . Page 6A
MCR VENT. 3A
Opinion & Letters 4A
Sports 1B
Community Calendar. 1C
Church News 5C
Public Record 5B
Classified ID
Legals 2D
fi 06605 H341b
a
'0 4879 16264
3
MONROE COUNTY SCHOOLS
They knew? BOE told of sub’s molestation
District attorney: Independent probe, perhaps grand jury, may be considered
By Will Davis
publisher'-mymcr.net
The Monroe County school
system had been told that Javis
Stewart had a prior conviction for
attempted child molestation before
it hired him as a substitute teacher,
according to the Monroe County
sheriff’s office.
Monroe County Lt. Lawson
Bittick confirmed on Friday that
it provided school officials with
Stewart’s background check, which
included his prior offense, on
Sept. 15,2016. Bittick said school
officials confirmed that they had
received the background check.
School officials have said that be
cause Stewart pled under Georgia’s
first offender program, which
clears a criminal history after an
offender’s sentence is up, they
couldn’t hold that against him.
Bittick said school officials got
put into a difficult situation as
they talked to an employment
attorney, normally Cory Kirby of
Harbin, Hartley and Hawkins in
Gainesville, about whether to hire
Stewart.
But district attorney Jonathan
Adams said if an attorney told the
school system it had to hire Stewart
despite his past, they were misin
formed.
“That’s bull ,” said Adams,
who has three daughters in Mon
roe County schools. “We’re an
at-will state [i.e. employers can hire
who they want]. The only reason
you can’t use for not hiring some
one is if they’re a protected class.
So you can’t not hire someone
because they’re black, for instance.
But someone’s criminal history
or moral and character concerns?
Those are absolutely reasons you
can not hire someone.”
See SUBSTITUTE . Page 7A
