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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024
Homer, Banks County, GA 30547 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. • 12 Pages, 1 Section Plus Supplements
Vol. 58 No. 5
CARTER
Man
charged
in robbery
of Homer
business
A Baldwin man has been
arrested in connection with
the 2022 robbery of a Ho
mer business.
Jarrid Diontae Carter, 38,
was arrested by the Banks
County Sheriff’s Office in
the case.
Banks County Sheriff’s
Office officials said the ar
rest came after “an in-depth
evidentiary investigation”
of the case.
“On December 24, 2022,
Banks County deputies re
sponded to a robbery that
had just occurred at the Ho
mer Golden Pantry,” report
ed Sheriff Carlton Speed.
The sheriff added, “Re
sponding deputies discov
ered that the suspect had en
tered the convenience store
by kicking through the glass
of the front door and pro
ceeded to take money from
the cash register.”
The suspect then quickly
fled the scene.
“Due to pertinent ev
idence left on the scene
and discovered through the
investigation, Carter was
successfully identified and
arrested,” Sheriff Speed
states.
SPEAKING TO
BCHS STUDENTS
Members of the GBI are
shown speaking to Banks
County High School students
about forensic science. See
Page 5 for story and more
photos.
MAILING LABEL
Effort to move Banks out of Piedmont
Judicial Circuit to
By ANGELA GARY
An effort to move Banks
County out of the Pied
mont Judicial Circuit and
into the Mountain Judicial
Circuit is moving forward
following approval by the
state Judiciary Committee
in a hearing in Atlanta last
week. House Bill 368 will
now move to legislators for
a vote.
Numerous meetings have
been held on this in the past
year with the judges in the
Piedmont Judicial Circuit
earlier speaking in opposi
tion to the move. The judges
were not at the latest hear
ing in Atlanta and it was
reported that they no longer
oppose the action.
“The judges in the Pied
mont Circuit did not like it
(at earlier meetings),” said
Rep. Stan Gunter, head of
the Judiciary Committee.
“At this point, they have no
opposition to it.”
Rep. Chris Erwin, who
represents Banks County,
spoke on House Bill 368
and said it is a matter that
has been “well looked at
and studied.”
“This has been a very vet
ted bill,” Erwin said. “This
is not a talk that is new in
Banks County. It has been
talked about for over a de
cade.”
Erwin said the change
would give Banks County a
better opportunity for repre
sentation in allowing county
residents to be elected.
“After studying and vet
ting it, it is an opportunity
for better representation,”
he said. “Banks Coun
ty is a community that is
not growing at the pace of
Jackson County or Barrow
County (other counties in
the Piedmont circuit). There
has never been a district at
torney elected from Banks
County or a judge living in
Banks County.”
Sen. Bo Hatchett, who
represents Banks County,
also spoke, stating, “Cul
turally, Banks County fits
better with Habersham, Ste
phens and White. You have
two of the fastest growing
counties in the state, Jack-
son and Barrow, in the Pied
mont circuit.
It is going to better po
sition the Mountain circuit
now because bringing in
another county will allow
them to pool their resources
to be more efficient. They
may now be able to justify
a circuit administrator. It not
just about representation. It
Banks County Board of Commission chairman Charles Turk
spoke at a Judiciary Committee hearing in Atlanta last week.
go to legislators for a vote
Rep. Chris Erwin (left) and Sen. Bo Hatchett spoke in favor
of Banks County moving out of the Piedmont Judicial Circuit
and into the Mountain Judicial Circuit.
is about logistics. It will al
low a judge to be housed in
Banks County.”
OPPOSITION
Two lawyers spoke in op
position to the change, Jim
David, who has an office in
Homer, and Wanda Barnett,
who has a practice in Jeffer
son.
David, who stated he is
the only attorney with a
practice in Banks County, as
well as serving as the public
defender, spoke on earlier
reports of a conflict between
the sheriff and district attor
ney.
“I see an extreme person
ality conflict among all the
members and it is very trou
bling to me,” he said. “It is
troubling to see a sheriff and
district attorney’s personali
ty conflict that can lead to
this.”
He also pointed out that
Banks County residents will
be voting on two judge’s
seats in the Piedmont Cir
cuit this year. He questioned
what would happen if a
Banks County resident is
elected to serve as a Pied
mont judge.
David also took this op
portunity to announce that
he plans to be a candidate
for one of the judge’s seats.
“As a campaign promise,
I will be housed in Banks
County,” he said. “I have
no reason not to be housed
in Banks County. My office
is there.. .1 believe this elec
tion could be determined by
Banks County.”
Among Barnett’s con
cerns are also that Banks
County residents will be
voting in an upcoming elec
tion with two empty judge’s
seats and if this changes,
they will not be represented.
“Banks County will be
voting for a representative
that will not serve them,”
she said. “It is problematic
to put in a bill where people
will be voting for someone
who will not be their repre
sentative.”
She added, “No where
have I seen this kind of
shift that someone decides I
don’t want to be here. What
is going to stop it from hap
pening over and over.. .This
is eroding court integrity...
This bill doesn’t benefit
the state. It doesn’t benefit
the counties. Most of all, it
doesn’t benefit the people.”
BOC CHAIRMAN
SPEAKS
Banks County Board
of Commission chairman
Charles Truk spoke in favor
of moving to the Mountain
Judicial Circuit.
“People I’ve heard oppos
ing it do not live in Banks
County,” he said. “We have
support from all five com
missioners. We are a lot
Attorneys Wanda Barnett and Jim David spoke in opposition to Banks County moving from
the Piedmont Judicial Circuit to the Mountain Judicial Circuit.
BOC reviews proposed update to comprehensive plan
By ANGELA GARY
The Banks County Board
of Commissioners reviewed
the update to the compre
hensive plan when it met
Thursday night.
Members of the planning
committee that provided in
put to the update were also
present.
“This is an update to a
document that had proved
to be problematic,” stat
ed Adam Hazell, planning
director for the Georgia
Mountains Regional Devel
opment Center.
He added, “We can al
ways come back and adapt
the document in the future.”
Hazell reported that the
state has approved the up
date.
BOC chairman spoke on
items were proposed to be
changed in the update.
“A lot of seemed to make
it wordier than it is,” BOC
Charles Truk said. He add
ed that he felt most of those
suggestions didn’t change
the intent of the document.”
Hazell said the next proj
ect for the regional com
mission for Banks County
would be to develop a mas
ter plan for Banks Crossing
and/or the Martin Bridge
Road exit.
OTHER
BUSINESS
In other business at the
meeting, the board of com
missioners:
•approved the athletics
manual for the recreation
department.
•approved the alcohol li
censes for the year.
•approved addition
al funds, $15,370, to KCI
Technologies for road proj
ects. The funds will come
from the roads and bridges
tax.
•approved surplus proper
ty for a sale on Jan. 20.
•recognized public safety
staff who have been pro
moted.
Qualifying to be held
March 4-8 for Banks
county election
BY ANGELA GARY
Qualifying will be held from 9 a.m. Monday, March 4,
through noon on Friday, March 8 for the county races that
are to be decided in 2024.
The Banks County Board of Commissioners set three
percent of the base salary as the qualifying fee for each
county race on the ballot this year.
The fees are as follows: $1927.65, sheriff; $1,660.32,
tax commissioner; $1,660.32, clerk of superior court;
$1,660.32, probate judge; $1,693.53, magistrate judge;
$313.93, coroner; $1,800, commission chairman; $450
each for BOC District 2 and District 4; $50, county sur
vey lor; $49.50, Board of Education Post 1 and Post 2; and
$34.50, Board of Education Post 4.
HOMER OFFICIALS SWORN IN
James Dumas, Judy Harper and Stephen Parson take oaths of office as Town of Homer coun
cil members. City clerk Carol Ayers is shown giving the oath of office.
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