1. Two women arrested for attacking and fatally wounding Buford woman.
Janine Gonzales, 17 of Buffalo, New York, and Antonennta Stevens, 27 of Buford, have been charged with aggravated battery, robbery, and felony murder.
The Gwinnett County Police Department arrested the two women on Thursday after a physical altercation between them and Ashely Bocanegra, 30 of Buford.Authorities claim Stevens and Gonzales lured the victim to their apartment complex.
When Boncanegra reached the complex near 2900 Buford Drive, Stevens and Gonzales attacked her and stole her cell phone.
Bocanegra went to the hospital with serious injuries, where she died the same day.
Authorities believe that a motive for the attack may have had something to do with the fact that Gonzales’ brother was in a romantic relationship with both Stevens and Bocanegra. Read More
2. A Daniesville man and his mother arrested after traffic stop in Forsyth County
A Danielsville man was arrested Friday, hours after fleeing a traffic stop in Forsyth County on foot, and his mother was also arrested in the incident.
In a social media post, the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office said deputies pulled over a vehicle driven by Kevin Turner, 31, near the intersection of Bethelview Road and Canton Highway when Turner fled the vehicle and ran into the woods, leaving his mother in the car.
Authorities say he was wanted in Bartow County for a probation violation and his mother was arrested at the scene due to a warrant in Hart County for an outstanding methamphetamine charge.
According to the Sheriff’s office, Turner came out of the woods three hours later and was met by deputies. After another brief foot chase, he was arrested. Read More
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Jackson County man charged for role in Jan.6 Capitol riot
A Jackson County man received an eight-month federal prison sentence for his role in the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot.
Glen Mitchell Simon, 31, of Jefferson was sentenced on Friday in person in Washington D.C..
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Simon and his attorney, Rebecca Sheperd, asked for no jail time. Instead, they wanted Simon to be sentenced to six months of house arrest and three years of probation.
In contrast, the prosecution team wanted Simon to serve 10 months in prison, a year on probation and serve 60 hours of community service.
U.S. District Court Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell was concerned that Simon would spread his conspiracy beliefs into the community.
Simon admitted to invading the Capitol and showed the videos he recorded in court filings. He urged the mob to march to the Capitol, yelled profanities at Capitol police and used a metal rack to push back police who were trying to keep the mob out of the building.
He is now the 10th of 22 Georgians who have been charged for their role on Jan.6. Read More
4.Gainesville celebrates groundbreaking for The Boathouse at Lake Lanier Olympic Park
The City of Gainesville soon will have a new showcase facility to serve both lake paddlers and the community.
The Boathouse at Lake Lanier Olympic Park should be completed in the spring of 2024.
Friday morning, Officials gathered for a ceremonial groundbreaking for the facility, on Clarks Bridge Road.
The Boathouse will serve as home for the Lanier Canoe and Kayak Club and the Lake Lanier Rowing Club.
Gainesville Tourism Director Robyn Lynch said the facility will be much more than a boathouse. Designed to blend in with the neighborhood, it will serve as a home for the legacy rowing clubs, but also will provide needed meeting space for the community.
Gainesville Ward 1 Councilman Danny Dunagan said the new facility is overdue but is needed to replace one that was never intended to be permanent.
“We've always thought that this park was a great asset to the city and the county,” Dunagan said. “And we worked hard to keep it up. And when the time was right, we were able to move forward, get a master plan together, get the Corps to OK the master plan, and then start the replacement of the boathouses, which were in bad shape. I mean, they were just patched. The heating and air was quitting on them and it was just in bad shape. So, it means a lot. There's a lot of hard work from a lot of good people that got to where we are today.” Read More
5. Lawrenceville Police Department co-responder program has successful first year
A year ago, the city of Lawrenceville and View Point Health entered into an agreement creating a Police-–Mental Health Collaborator to provide a co-responder program that began operation in July 2021.
This agreement allowed the Lawrenceville Police department to have two behavioral health clinicians to dispatch with officers who are on crisis-related calls and to assist individuals in obtaining the proper services after a crisis.These clinicians serve as the Community Response Team. The program is called Project F.I.R.S.T, which stands for: “For Intensive Response & Supportive Transitions.” The ViewPoint Help staff are referred to as FIRST Clinicians.
According to a press release, the CRT defines crises in Lawrenceville broadly, and involves issues such as homelessness, emergency transportation, and substance abuse, among others. In its first year, the CRT responded to 879 crisis calls and only eight resulted in an arrest. In comparison, patrol had 5,809 calls and 504 calls resulted in an arrest.
“Once mental health professionals from Project F.I.R.S.T. were able to assess and direct individuals toward the services needed, crisis-related calls reduced, and in many cases, they stopped completely,” Officer Jacob Baird, Community Engagement Officer said.
Project F.I.R.S.T staff also established relationships with local non–profits to further assist individuals in need. In the last year, the program has provided services to aid with emergency housing, food, and emergency transportation needs.
The program has also been successful in establishing community partnerships including View Point Health, Magnuson, Northside Hospital Gwinnett, Recovery Foundations, Across the Bridge, Uber, Greyhound, Lawrenceville Co-op, Impact46, Lawrenceville Senior Center, Gwinnett Health and Human Services, and Veterans Administration. Read More
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