About The Madison County journal. (Hull, Ga.) 1989-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2025)
JANUARY 1, 2025 Madison County Journal Merged with The Corner News and The Danielsville Monitor, 2006 • U MadisonJournalTODAY.com Merged with Vol. 41 No. 48’ Publication No. 1074-987* Danielsville, Madison County, Georgia 30633 • A Publication of MainStreet Newspapers Inc. ’12 Pages, 1 Section Plus Supplements $1.00 Jimmy Carter, longest living ex-president, dies at 100 By Dave Williams Capitol Beat News Service Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States, died Sunday after noon at the age of 100 at his home in Plains. Carter, a Democrat and the only Georgian to serve as the nation’s chief execu tive, served a single term in the White House from 1977 until 1981, losing to Repub lican Ronald Reagan in 1980 after a presidency marred by high inflation, an oil cri sis, and the kidnapping of 53 U.S. diplomats and other American citizens held hos tage by Iranian militants for 444 days. “He showed the world the impact our state and its people have on the country,” Gov. Brian Kemp said Sun day. “And as a son of Plains, he always valued Georgians and the virtues of our state, choosing to return to his ru ral home after his time in public office.” Carter, the only former U.S. president to live to 100, made important con tributions for decades after leaving the White House. The Carter Center in Atlanta continues to address global health issues, while Carter worked to support various charities including Habitat for Humanity. “President Carter’s life time of work and dedication to public service changed the lives of many across our state, our country, and around the world,” said U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga. “Among his lifetime of ser vice and countless accom plishments, President Carter will be remembered for his commitment to democracy and human rights, his endur ¬ ing faith, his philanthropic leadership, and his deep love of family.” Carter’s most significant accomplishment as president was bringing together the leaders of Israel and Egypt in 1978 to hammer out the Camp David Accords, a pair of peace agreements between the two countries that have held up for nearly half a cen tury. Before running for presi dent, Carter served as a state senator and as Georgia’s 76th governor. Carter entered home hos pice care in February 2023. His wife of 77 years, Rosa lynn Carter, died in Novem ber of last year at the age of 96. Carter is survived by sons Jack, Chip, and Jeff, as well as daughter Amy. Grandson Jason Carter ran for governor in 2014. Image courtesy of LBJ Library Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter Unemployment claims down in region, state The Georgia Department of Labor announced re cently that unemployment claims were down in all of Georgia’s regional commis sions during the month of November. “Georgia proves that smart leadership and bold policies drive econom ic success,” said GDOL Emergency Interim Suc cessor Louis DeBroux. “While other states strug gle with overregulation and economic uncertainty, Georgia’s economy is thriv ing—job numbers are up in 12 regions, unemployment claims are down across the board, and businesses con tinue to choose our state as the best place to grow and invest. These results don’t happen by accident; they are the product of strong fiscal policies and a com ¬ mitment to empowering job creators and hardworking Georgians. As we close out the year, Georgia remains a perennial leader in opportu nity, innovation, and pros perity.” Highlights from the Northeast Georgia Region al Commission include the following: • The unemployment rate was down one-tenth to 3.3% over-the-month, the rate was 2.6 percent one year ago. • The labor force was down 1,070 over-the-month and up 5,636 over-the-year, to 340,910. • The number of em ployed was down 493 over- the-month and up 3,078 over-the-year, to 329,693. • Initial claims were down 284 over-the-month and up 261 over-the-year, to 1,315. Madison County’s top headlines from 2024 8 Index News — 1A-3A Opinions — 4A Crime — 5A Socials — 3A Churches — 7A Obituaries — 8A-9A Sports — 7A,12A Classifieds — 10A Legals — 11A MAILING LABEL 4879 14144 Gov. Kemp appoints Athens attorney Georgia Governor Brian Kemp announced 38 appointments to the Judicial Nominating Commission on Dec. 13, one of which is Ath ens attorney Drew Hill. Governor Kemp first ap pointed Hill to the JNC in 2019. The Judicial Nominat ing Commission reviews applications and makes recommendations to the Governor to fill vacan cies in state, superior and appellate courts in Georgia. Hill is a shareholder at Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley, P.C in Athens. His practice focuses on representing injured parties in many different types of per sonal injury cases. He is a “Double Dawg” See Attorney, page 2A Take a look back at the top stories of 2024: 1. COUNTY HEARS PRESENTATION ABOUT “THE ROSE” The number one most-viewed sto ry of the year online goes all the way back to the end of 2023. Matt Coutu of Woodland Asset Management presented plans for “The Rose” premier golf club to county leaders and citizens on Dec. 12, 2023. The proposal was controversial, with some locals expressing con cerns about disrupting the small town culture of the area, while oth ers considered it an opportunity to draw new businesses to the southern end of the county. The zoning request associated with the plan would later go before the Board of Commissioners on Jan. 8, where it would be approved. 2. COLBERT COUPLE’S DEATHS BEING INVESTIGATED AS MURDER/SUICIDE The second most-read story of 2024 took place in October, when a Colbert couple were found dead in their home in Colbert’s Brittany Point subdivision. Family members became con cerned after seeing a troubling Face- book post from the husband. Authorities were called to the home later that day where they found two bodies, both with gunshot wounds to the head. Authorities said that based on the evidence available at the time, ev erything pointed to a murder-sui cide. 3. THREE DEAD, ONE ARRESTED AFTER ACCIDENT The number three most-viewed story was about a fatal vehicle ac ¬ cident in May, caused by a drunk driver. According to Georgia State Pa trol, a Toyota Camry attempted to turn right on Hwy. 172 to travel west from Madico Drive. A Ford truck was traveling west on Hwy. 172 and it struck the driver’s side of the Toy ota Camry. The 22-year-old driver of the Camry, Moo Thaw of Danielsville, was charged with DUI, first degree vehicular homicide and failure to yield. The Camry’s three rear-seat pas sengers were pronounced deceased at the scene. A GoFundMe page was created to raise money for the families of the deceased, which generated over $22,000. 4. FORMER MCHS PRINCIPAL CHARGED WITH FINANCIAL CRIMES IN TIFT COUNTY The fourth most popular story comes from February, when Chad Stone, a former Madison County High School principal, was arrested by the Georgia Bureau of Investiga tion for theft by taking and unautho rized use of a financial transaction card; misuse of government issued cards. Stone served as principal of MCHS from 2009 to 2012. He then became principal of Eighth Street Middle School in Tift County, be fore becoming principal at Tift County High School in 2020. He was named the Georgia Associa tion of Secondary School Principals (GASSP) Principal of the Year in 2023. According to the GBI’s investi gation, Stone misused school credit cards and made unauthorized pur chases while serving as the principal of Tift County High School. Stone resigned from his position on Feb. 21. 5. CITY ATTORNEY FOR COLBERT, HULL GETS DISBARRED Coming in fifth was a story about the disbarment of Dale Perry, who was serving as the city attorney for Colbert and Hull, in January. According to the opinion issued by the Supreme Court of Georgia, Perry was alleged to have aban doned three clients. The Court’s opinion examined three claims, all related to Perry rep resenting clients in divorce cases. In all three cases, he failed to properly communicate with clients, declining to provide them with im portant information pertaining to their cases. 6. TWO DEAD AFTER SHOOTING IN COLBERT The number six most-read story was from January, when the Mad ison County Sheriff’s Office re sponded to a report of two people that had been shot at the Breadbas ket off Hwy. 72 in Colbert. The caller was a 47-year-old fe male. Her and her 21-year-old son suffered gunshot wounds from an offender the woman identified as a former boyfriend. A vehicle determined to belong to the offender was later found on Lin da Street, in the same neighborhood the incident occurred. The offender, a 54-year-old male, was located in the vehicle, deceased from an apparent self-inflicted gun- shot. According to the Sheriff’s Of fice, the 21-year-old victim, Hunter Swafford, was pronounced deceased on Jan. 29 after he succumbed to his injuries. 7. WOMAN FOUND SHOT AT ROYSTON ANIMAL HOSPITAL DIES See Headlines, page 3A
