News

State court employee charged in theft

Fayette County State Court Solicitor’s employee Sabrina Ann Miller has been charged with felony theft by taking of more than $3,800 in funds from her office at the Fayette County Justice Center. Additional charges could be forthcoming.

Miller between the dates of Jan. 1, 2007 and Dec. 31, 2009 is accused of stealing $3,836.48 in funds that were the property of Fayette County, according to court records filed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The funds taken by Miller represented a breach of her fiduciary obligation, records said. Read More»

Jobless rate hits 8.3% in Fayette, 7.4% in PTC

The U.S. gross domestic product grew by 5.7 percent in the last quarter of 2009, but you could not see any improvement locally by the look of Fayette County’s jobless rate. That rate rose again last month and now sits at 8.3 percent.

Figures supplied by the Ga. Department of Labor showed a jump in Fayette County’s rate from 7.9 percent in November 2009 to 8.3 percent in December 2009; it was 6.3 percent in December 2008. The current breakdown for Fayette shows 6,813 people unemployed out of a workforce of 51,357. Read More»

Jury rules for Fayette man in fire case

Landlord claimed HP scanner sparked blaze at dress shop

A retired Fayette County teacher has won a $110,000 jury verdict against the Hewlett-Packard Corporation for a fire at a downtown Fayetteville building that was tied to a computer scanner used by a tenant.

The fire happened Feb. 16, 2006 at Once in a Lifetime Events on south Glynn Street across from the historic Fayette County Courthouse. The building is owned by former Fayette County High School teacher Larry Graves. Read More»

Ministry cofounder dies unexpectedly

A Better Way Ministries co-director Tony Ingram passed away unexpectedly Sunday night.

A Better Way founder John Barrow said Monday that cofounder and musician Tony Ingram died Sunday night of what is believed to have been a heart attack. Ingram is survived by a wife and two small children.

Barrow said Ingram was a director and one of three charter members of the ministry that opened its doors five years ago. Read More»

Atlanta woman arrested for attempted theft at church

An Atlanta woman was arrested Saturday morning when a Fayette County patrol deputy caught her in the act of stealing an air conditioning unit at Covenant Presbyterian Church on Ga. Highway 314.

Aggie Catherine Miller, 37, was charged with criminal damage to property and possession of tools for the commission of a crime, said sheriffs spokesperson Brent Rowan.

Rowan said the patrol deputy caught Miller in the act. She was working with a second suspect when the deputy arrived, Rowan said. The second suspect was able to flee the scene, he said.

Unemployment still rising in Fayette, PTC

The effects of the recession are still being evidenced in Fayette County and Peachtree City. Fayette’s unemployment for December rose to over 8 percent while Peachtree City’s jobless rate rose to well over 7 percent.

December unemployment statistics from the Ga. Dept. of Labor showed a jump in Fayette County’s rate from 7.9 percent in November to 8.3 percent in December. In Peachtree City, the rate rose from 6.9 percent in November to 7.4 percent last month. Read More»

PTC wants survey results

Residents and business owners are being encouraged to respond to a survey initiated by Peachtree City staff.

Among the questions on the residential survey, the most telling answers might be found on the section about the 2010-2011 budget, which is facing a potential $3 million shortfall.

The survey asks if residents would prefer to cut services and avoid a tax increase; retain existing services and increase taxes “as needed” or a combination of both: cutting some services to reduce a tax increase. Read More»

Space heater led to trailer fire

A space heater is being blamed for causing a fire that destroyed a trailer in downtown Tyrone last week.

The trailer, located adjacent to Tyrone Tire, caught fire Jan. 21 but no one was hurt, fire officials said. The resident had left the space heater on for several dogs while the resident was away, officials said.

The fire was well underway when the first crew arrived on the scene. The crew’s response was delayed initially because the wrong address was given by the person reporting the fire, officials said. Read More»

Falcon Field targeting business clients

Contingent attending trade show to increase corporate traffic

Atlanta Regional Airport Falcon Field in Peachtree City will be participating in National Business Aircraft Association’s (NBAA) 21st Annual Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference that will be held at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center January 27-29 in San Antonio, Texas.

The NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference is an annual event that provides timely and valuable information on topics of interest to those responsible for coordinating the use of business aircraft. The event includes over 350 exhibitors displaying aviation products, along with airports and service providers. Read More»

Dec. unemployment in Coweta at 10.8 percent

New figures released Thursday by the Georgia Dept. of Labor (DOL) show Coweta County’s unemployment rate up more than a percentage point in the past month. November’s 9.7 percent unemployment rate rose significantly to a rate of 10.8 percent in December.

The new December rate of 10.8 percent represents 6,337 people unemployment in a workforce of 58,741. Read More»