Newspaper Page Text
TUESDAY
April 13, 2004
Volume 135, Number 73
Local folks celebrate Easter in the park
,-f ’ g* . \ r . . ■ Y" WT* ' * /}; / >*jr3r T§ff v v ' '' " v
j rr v f jIJJm kM*.. it
■k r ■■ ° t , jr rnKbiM j 1 *•• \<W . V• P^Wm.
V: ■' .jgfc L - jj|y v
>WT £«■**' > . v % &T r *wk I " w[t*v 1l PffTJi mJLj E
.'■r b*Ljl Vr J A 1 JL, nr fei wtK/Bu ™as?
Isß "T •■ <fS IK? k, ~’ A, |:> ’l JSP\Y*Ffflhj|A iMI 1 I
IP . * J, ,««>• ■» ‘ ~^'■ ■
■
j
,'. r . ■ . - - --■- - - ■— - ■ ■*■•■
HHJ Jon Hu «K>
Eager toddlers take of from the starting line to hunt eggs during Easter in the Park. The event began with an Easter parade, a first for the Warner Robins celebration.
By Jon Suggs
HHJ Staff Writer
WARNER ROBINS - Hundreds
of folks lined Houston, Elberta and
Johnson roads as the city’s first
Easter Parade led the way this
year to the seventh annual Easter
Award-Winning
Newspaper
2003
Bitter Newspaper
Contest
Inside TODAY
CGSA team photos
Today we begin publica
tion of team photos from
the Central Georgia
Soccer Association, with
the U-6 teams. More team
photos will appear in
upcoming editions of The
HHJ.
Sports, page 38
Happy BIRTHDAY!
Cheri Adams
Michael Hamsley
John Kinnas
Area DEATHS
Elizabeth Veatrice Bembry
Roy J. Garvin
Donald Eugene Ludlum
Janet Miller Nelson
Erman Cecil Rowell
Mary A. Scuderi
Margaret Lee “Peggy”
Shatek
Alexandria Francis
Sigwart
William Harris Tucker
Shirley Lucille Marie Foley
Williams
Obits, page 3A
INDEX
BUSINESS 5A
CLASSIFIED 4B
COMICS 7A
CROSSWORD 7 A
OBITUARIES 3A
OPINION 4A
TV LISTINGS 7A
WEATHER 2A
PERIODICAL
U1.11....11..11.....i.1.1.1.11...
8
Georgia Newspaper Project
Services
200 DW BROOKS DR
ATHENS GA 30602-5016
3-DIGIT 306
Serving Houston County Since 1870
(7!Ff \ Jimtstcm Mntne if
Qihe ,jjmmml
LEGAL ORGAN FOR HOUSTON COUNTY,
city of Perry, city of Warner Robins and city of Centerville
in the Park celebration at Peavy
Park.
Floats, cartoon characters cars
and the Easter Bunny himself
joined the procession to the park
on Saturday morning.
The sidewalks were filled with
For the beauty of the earth...
r — ——»
'4*-'
§§§ f \
' •_ A
;*’ gEjjS-/ ■*■■*?' >■ jSTjff' ‘ f’ r ■ r ' *,{’ * , JIT*, f
HHJ Charlotte Perkin*
Members of Perry United Methodist Church celebrated Easter on Sunday morning by deco
rating a cross with fresh flowers.
Officers break up fights at motel
By Emily Johnstone
HHJ Associate Editor
WARNER ROBINS - Law
enforcement from three agen
cies were called to the parking
lot of a Warner Robins hotel
after fights broke out among a
crowd of more than 300 people
Friday night.
According to police reports,
officers were called to the
Guest House Inn at 1440
Watson Blvd. about 11:30
p.m., where they found sever
al fights going on.
www.hhjnews.com
little tykes dressed for the occa
sion, baskets at the ready as they
made their way down to the park
for some holiday fun.
A diaper dash, puppets, music by
the Centerville Fire Department
Pipes and Drums and - of course! -
Officers from Warner
Robins and Centerville
departments and deputies
from the Houston County
Sheriffs Department respond
ed.
Reports indicate the fights
broke out during a function at
the establishment.
During the incident, a
Centerville officer used his
Taser on one person, and
another used pepper spray in
an attempt to disperse the
crowd.
egg hunts were just some of the
fun activities on this warm, sunny
day in the park.
Two baseball outfields were cov
ered in candy eggs, and children
were divided by age group to
quickly - in a matter of minutes -
One Centerville officer,
Gregory Phillips, said he saw
people fighting across the
street in the parking lot of
another business during the
incident. After using pepper
spray, that crowd scattered,
with people running off in var
ious directions, he said.
Warner Robins Police
Officer Scott Hydrick said
while attempting to get one
person to be quiet and move
along, that person started
Sm FIGHTS, page 2A
TWO SECTIONS • 14 PAGES
More photos, page 88
clear those fields again.
Bright colors, bright smiles on a
bright day in Warner Robins!
Smoking ban just
the beginning of
legislative failures
By Kristen Wyatt
Associated Press Writer
ATLANTA - Smokers can
relax. Green tree frogs need
trr wuit anothcr year.
The legislature has
adjourned without passing
hundreds of proposed bills,
including a statewide smok
ing ban and the naming of an
official state amphibian.
From the dramatic to the
arcane, failed bills stack up
every spring.
Some legislative watchers
root for bills to die as intent
ly as they push for others to
become law.
The smoking ban is a good
example. Republicans in the
Senate led a charge to ban
smoking in most places of
business, including restau
rants. The measure passed
the Senate but hit a road
block in the House, where
lawmakers from both parties
opposed it.
It was a close escape as far
as Hong Lee was concerned.
Lee owns a busy lunchtime
pizza place just down the hill
from the Capitol in down
town Atlanta. With half his
eatery designated for smok
ers, Lee was afraid sales
would suffer if patrons
couldn’t light up.
“Some customers really
like to smoke,” said Lee,
owner of Piccolo’s Pizza &
Pasta.
The smoking ban is just
one in a mountain of dead
bills that never made it
through.
The Legislature considers
thousands of bills and resolu
tions during its two-year
term, but only a couple hun
dred become law. This year
was the second year of the
term, so lawmakers who
want to resurrect a failed bill
next year must re-introduce
it and shepherd it again
through a long process of
committee votes.
There’s a slim chance some
lost bills could get a second
look. Republican Gov. Sonny
Perdue has promised to call
lawmakers back into session
later this spring to rewrite
the state budget. The gover
nor could ask for other meas
ures to be considered, so any
hill could be revived.
See DEAD BILLS, page 34
an Evans Family Newspaper
60*
What didn't
pass
Among the bills that
didn't pass the
2004 Georgia
General Assembly:
■ SMOKING BAN:
A proposal to ban
smoking in all
businesses except
bars.
■ ONLINE
LOTTERY: Would
allow people to buy
lottery tickets on the
Internet.
■ THE TEN
COMMANDMENTS:
A bill authorizing
local government to
display the Ten
Commandments,
and a promise the
state would pay to
defend lawsuits
over displays.
■ RACIAL
PROFILING: Would
require police
officers to record
the race and
gender of every
motorist they pull
over.
■ PROPERTY TAX:
A bill to eliminate all
property taxes and
start paying for
education through a
higher statewide
sales tax.
■ GIFT CARDS: A
proposal to ban
stores from
charging so-called
non-use or
dormancy fees on
gift cards.
■ GREEN TREE
FROG: Would have
designated the
frogs official state
amphibians.
■ SODA IN
SCHOOLS: A ban
on soda machines
in public schools.
■ LIBERAL
PROFESSORS: A
resolution urging
colleges to require
professors to be
tolerant of
conservative view
points in class.