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THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL. THURSDAY. JANUARY 8. 2009 — PAGE 3A Madison Co. BOC to meet Monday The Madison County Board of Commissioners will meet at 6:30 p.m., Monday, in the county government com plex. Agenda items include: •Chairman Anthony Dove — report to the board. •Chairman Dove — improvement to the BOC room: platform and other changes and pricing. •Chairman Dove—approv al by board of two contracts from GA Food Service dated Dec. 18, 2008. •Judge Harry Rice — obser vance of Martin Luther King Jr. as a holiday. •Chairman Dove — road projects. •Urgent matters. Settlement reached in Duncan, Scogin suit By Zach Mitcham zach@mainstreetnews.com A settlement has been reached in the case of former county chief appraiser Rebecca Duncan and county commissioner Bruce Scogin, but the terms of the settlement have been sealed. Duncan sued Scogin for a letter to the editor he published in The Madison County Journal in 2004, saying that his com ments about her were “made with a callous, malicious and reckless disregard for the truth” in violation of Georgia law. A “dismissal with prejudice” was filed in Madison County Superior Court Oct. 17. County attorney Mike Pruett said this week that the county did not face any expenses from the settlement. “The settlement was handled entirely by the county’s insurer and the attorney the insurer retained, so the county expended no funds and had no input into the settlement terms,” wrote Pruett in an emailed response to The Journal's query about the matter. “The release does have a confidentiality provision.” Watson honored Long-time Danielsville City Council member Roger Watson (right) was presented with a plaque Monday night by Danielsville Mayor Glenn Cross for his ser vice on the council from 1997-2008. ‘Bring One for the Chipper’ A number of volunteers participated in Keep Madison County Beautiful’s annual “Bring One for the Chipper” Christmas tree recycling program Saturday, Jan. 3. Those who left their old Christmas trees for recycling were given seedlings, as long as supplies lasted. Shown are volunteers who were stationed at Da Restaurant’s drop off point. Pictured (L-R) are Rotary Club members Jerry Coutant and Phil O’Neal, KMCB director Sandra Webb, Madison County BOC chairman Anthony Dove and Rotary Club members Linda O’Neal and Ed Brown. Two arrested following high-speed chase in Hull Two men were apprehend ed by the Madison County Sheriff’s Department after a high-speed chase in Hull Tuesday afternoon. Robbie Stringer, 25, Athens, was charged with fleeing/attempting to elude a police officer, obstruction of officers, speeding, passing in a no pass zone, driving on wrong side of road, driv ing while license suspended/ revoked, failure to obey traf fic control device, failure to maintain lane, reckless driv ing and firearm/knife posses sion during a crime. Xavier Fanchon Guest, 20, Athens, was charged with obstruction of officers and firearm/knife possession dur ing a crime. According to a press release from Sheriff Kip Thomas, the county 911 center received a call shortly after 5 p.m. about a possible kidnapping involv ing two black males and a black female. The vehicle was described as a burgundy PT Cruiser with an unknown Florida tag on the vehicle. A vehicle matching that description was spotted by Deputy Matt Pilkington on Hwy. 172 head ing towards Hwy. 72. Deputy Pilkington got behind the vehicle and tried to stop it, but the driver refused to pull over. Deputy Pilkington and Deputy Jim Reavis chased the vehicle down Hwy. 72 towards Hull. The vehicle then turned onto Glenn Carrie Road. Deputy Jason Ring attempt ed to deploy stop sticks but was unable to do so because of traffic conditions on Glenn Carrie Road. When the suspect vehicle got to the intersection of Glenn Carrie Road and Hwy. 29, the vehicle struck Deputy Jeff Strickland’s patrol vehicle, which was blocking the intersection, and spun out of control into the BB&T bank entrance, stop ping on the curb. Two men, Stringer and Guest, ran from the vehicle and were apprehended by Madison County deputies after a short foot chase. The vehicle was searched and approximately four pounds of marijuana and a handgun were found. During this incident, a bystander’s vehicle was also hit and slightly damaged. There were no injuries during the inci dent. “I am extremely proud of the way that my deputies handled this situation,” said Thomas. “Their caution and experienced decision making ability enabled this poten tially dangerous situation to be resolved without injury to themselves or any citizen.” Shorthanded Danielsville council must act in unison to pass anything By Zach Mitcham zach@mainstreetnews.com With Roger Watson resign ing from the Danielsville City Council, the remaining three members must act in unison if they want to get anything done — that’s not a hope for harmony, but a legal fact. City attorney Victor Johnson told council members Monday that the city code requires at least three “yes” votes from the council before action can be taken on any matter. “It takes three council mem bers to take any action, whether by ordinance, resolution or motion,” Johnson told the coun cil, noting that the three-vote requirement was included in the city charter, which was renewed in 1999. Johnson said the requirement has hampered the council at times, leaving the group unable to take action when there is either a vacancy at the table or an absence for medical reasons. “If you’ve only got two council members (at the table), you can’t do any thing,” said Johnson. “I sug gest removing the require ments of three votes for a motion.” The attorney noted that if there are only three coun cil members and the group votes to do something by a 2-1 vote, then the action fails, since it didn’t have the required three “yes” votes. Danielsville is supposed to have a four-person coun cil, with the mayor voting to break 2-2 ties. Johnson said the three-vote requirement make sense on votes on ordinances, which are rarely changed. “But, for instance, if you had to make a payment on a line of credit, and you’ve For the best buys, read The Journal classifieds. PREGNANT? WORRIED? We Can Help! FREE PREGNANCYTEST Strictly Confidential 795-5012 -NEW HOURS - Mondays 9-2:30 p.m. Tuesdays 10-4:30 Wednesdays 10-4:30 Thursdays 9-2:30 p.m. 245 General Daniel Ave. (next door to Danielsville Methodist Church) • • MADISON City of Colbert SPECIAL ELECTION NOTICE Notice is hereby given that, in accordance with O.C.G.A. 21-2-540, a special election shall be held in the City of Colbert due to a vacancy on the City Council. The special election will be held on March 17, 2009. Those persons wishing to qualify for this election shall file notice of candidacy in the Colbert City Hall, 23 South 4th St., Colbert, Ga., with the Election Superintendent beginning January 26, 2009, and ending January 28, 2009, during the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The qualifying fee for Council person is $45.20. All persons desiring to vote in the special election must be registered to vote by February 16, 2009. Voter registration forms may be picked up at Colbert City Hall or the Registrar’s Office, Danielsville Courthouse Complex in Danielsville, Ga. The completed form must be mailed or carried to the Registrar’s Office in Danielsville. Office hours are as follows: Registrar’s Office - Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Colbert City Hall - Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Early and advance voting will begin February 24, 2009, and end March 13, 2009, in the Colbert City Depot during normal Colbert City Hall business hours. On election day, March 17, 2009, polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. in the same location. only got two council members present, then you can’t autho rize it,” he said. Johnson urged the council to consider submitting a proposed change in the city charter to the Georgia General Assembly at least by next month’s meeting. Council member Barbara Dove has announced that she plans to resign from council, along with Watson. However, if she did that now, the Danielsville council would have only two members, Janice Merk and Junne Temple. But Dove said she will stay with the group until a special election is held March 17 to fill Watson’s seat. ‘This (the three-vote issue) was brought up one time before,” said Dove, noting that she and Watson voted for Johnson’s proposed change back in January 2008, but anoth er council member blocked the measure. Dove said she doesn’t support the change now. “I know you already got somebody thinking who they’re going to put in here to replace me,” said Dove. “So, I’m not going to vote for that. If you want to put it on the agenda, you can, but I’m not going to vote for it. ... But I am staying for the reason there’ll be three here. So if something comes up where the city needs some thing, I will be here.” OTHER BUSINESS In other matters, the investi gation continues into how much money former Danielsville City Clerk Michelle Dills allegedly took from the city. She was arrested in October on a felo ny theft charge for allegedly stealing $56,000 in city funds in 2006, but the total dollar figure is expected to be more than that, once the review of financial records from other years is completed. The council approved overtime pay Monday for employees who are going through city financial records and making copies for investi gators. City clerk Connie Riley told the council that she doesn’t anticipate overtime related to the investigation being neces sary after January. The council agreed to cover part of the cost of a sewer line extension about 300 feet down Hwy. 29 from Graham Law Firm to the Madison Animal Hospital. The council agreed to pay approximately $2,600 so the new line will be an eight- inch, rather than six-inch pipe. That line may eventually be extended to the Golden Pantry. The council also approved Temple as mayor pro tem Monday. Ou, JEWELRY^-GIFTS Tfigsg m TU6 FINAL DAYS AFTER. SO 6PL AT Y6 AKs' I sure am ofmi wss iWs fW• flow OOffiGOWop ^VBRYT IWvq STOREWIDE EVERYTHING MUST GO even the Safe, Cases & Wall Fixtures THIS STORE MUST BE CLEARED Dill Shopping Center | Cook St. | Royston, GA | 706.245.5801 Monday through Saturday 9am til 5:30p ni