Latest news with #FultonCounty
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fulton County Commissioners Barrett, Arrington bids to unseat Chairman Robb Pitts
The Brief District 3 Commissioner Dana Barrett and District 5 Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr. are challenging longtime Commission Chairman Robb Pitts, citing the need for new leadership in Fulton County. Barrett criticizes Pitts for being disconnected from residents' needs and failing to protect Fulton County's elections, highlighting his controversial nomination of Republican Lee Morris to chair the Board of Elections. Both Barrett and Arrington emphasize the need for progressive leadership, with Barrett specifically pointing to the unsustainable condition of the aging Fulton County Jail as a key issue. ATLANTA - Two Fulton County commissioners have announced plans to challenge longtime Commission Chairman Robb Pitts, saying the county needs new leadership in the face of mounting challenges. What we know District 3 Commissioner Dana Barrett and District 5 Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr. both confirmed they will run for chairman, setting the stage for a high-profile race ahead of the 2026 election. Barrett, a first-term Democrat, criticized Pitts as being disconnected from the needs of residents. "The chairman has been in office since 1977 and he is just really just out of touch with what the citizens of Fulton County need during these modern and challenging times we are living through," Barrett said. She accused Pitts of failing to defend Fulton County's elections during a period of increasing scrutiny and political tension. "Our elections are under attack at the county level, all across the country — in particular in Fulton County," Barrett said. "He has not only not done enough to protect our elections, but he's actually put our elections in jeopardy." Barrett pointed to Pitts' nomination of Republican Lee Morris to chair the county's Board of Elections as an example. Morris later withdrew his name after criticism. Barrett also took aim at Pitts' stance on the aging Fulton County Jail on Rice Street, which she described as unsustainable. "There were six of seven — everybody but the chairman — who said we needed a new jail. Until the political winds shifted," she said. "Whether we need a jail that was originally being talked about at the $1.68 billion or we can do a smaller, newer facility, the building at Rice Street is not sustainable." Arrington, a veteran commissioner known for his outspoken style, has also launched a campaign website and held early fundraisers. Like Barrett, he argues the county needs more progressive leadership. While some observers have questioned why both Barrett and Arrington are entering the race, Barrett said their shared goal is unseating Pitts. "I said I was running before knowing that he was," Barrett said. "He and I have talked about it, and we both have decided we are running because the chairman is not the right leader for Fulton County." The other side Pitts has not yet commented publicly on his challengers. The Source FOX 5's Aungelique Proctor spoke with Fulton County District 3 Commissioner Dana Barrett and District 5 Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr. as well as staff for Fulton County Chairman Rob Pitts.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Ex-Trump lawyer Chesebro disbarred over fake elector scheme
June 26 (Reuters) - A New York appeals court on Thursday disbarred Kenneth Chesebro, a former lawyer for Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign, following his 2023 guilty plea to a charge stemming from efforts to overturn Trump's defeat in Georgia. Chesebro had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit filing of false documents in Fulton County, Georgia, after prosecutors accused him of crafting the legal strategy behind a scheme to use alternate electors to circumvent Democrat Joe Biden's 2020 victory in the state. New York's Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department found that Chesebro's conduct "undercuts the very notion of our constitutional democracy that he, as an attorney, swore an oath to uphold." The appeals court indefinitely suspended Chesebro's law license in October 2024. Chesebro and one of his attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Chesebro has defended his work with the Trump campaign and denied violating New York professional conduct rules. The Third Department's Attorney Grievance Committee, which prosecuted the case against Chesebro, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump and his allies sought to overturn his 2020 defeat to Biden in part by convincing Republican-controlled state legislatures to name their own Trump-friendly electors or refuse to name any electors, according to the congressional committee that investigated the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Chesebro wrote legal memos backing the alternate elector strategy, the committee's final report said. Chesebro is not the only Trump-aligned attorney to face professional consequences for their legal work after the 2020 U.S. election. Rudy Giuliani has been disbarred in both New York and Washington over baseless claims he made alleging the 2020 presidential election was stolen. John Eastman, a former law professor at Chapman University, is facing disbarment in California for drafting legal memos suggesting then-Vice President Mike Pence could refuse to accept electoral votes from several swing states when Congress convened to certify the 2020 vote count. A California judicial panel upheld a disbarment recommendation for Eastman earlier this month.
Al Arabiya
7 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Jury Awards $2.25 Million to Georgia Couple in Suit Over Autopsy Images of Decapitated Baby
A jury has awarded a Georgia couple $2.25 million in their lawsuit accusing a pathologist of posting graphic videos of an autopsy of their decapitated baby. A Fulton County jury returned the verdict against Dr. Jackson Gates on Wednesday. The couple, Jessica Ross and Treveon Isaiah Taylor Sr., hired Gates to perform an autopsy on their son, Treveon Taylor Jr., who was decapitated during delivery in July 2023. They have separately sued the doctor who delivered the baby and the hospital where the delivery occurred. That case is pending. In a lawsuit filed in September 2023, the couple said Gates posted several videos of the autopsy on Instagram without their permission. Gates initially removed the videos after receiving a letter from the couple's attorneys, but then reposted them, according to the couple's attorneys. Ira Livnat, an attorney for Gates, said Saturday the jury's finding that Gates did not intend to cause harm 'flies in the face of the plaintiffs' entire case.' His client generally made posts about autopsies to 'educate other pathologists and advocate for independent evaluations when people felt a hospital had engaged in wrongdoing,' he said. The couple received a default judgment for intentional infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy, and fraud after Gates did not immediately respond to their lawsuit. 'Dr. Gates testified that he is deeply sorry for any harm that he unintentionally caused the plaintiffs,' Livnat said. 'Had he known for one second that they would see that and that they would know it was their child, he would never have done it.' Attorneys for the couple said in a statement that the doctor 'poured salt into the couple's already deep wounds.' 'This young couple trusted him with the remains of their precious baby,' they said. 'Gates, in turn, repaid this trust by posting horrific images of their child for the world to see.'
The Independent
7 days ago
- The Independent
Jury awards $2.25 million to Georgia couple in suit over autopsy images of decapitated baby
A jury has awarded a Georgia couple $2.25 million in their lawsuit accusing a pathologist of posting graphic videos of an autopsy of their decapitated baby. A Fulton County jury returned the verdict against Dr. Jackson Gates on Wednesday. The couple, Jessica Ross and Treveon Isaiah Taylor Sr., hired Gates to perform an autopsy on their son, Treveon Taylor Jr., who was decapitated during delivery in July 2023. They have separately sued the doctor who delivered the baby and the hospital where the delivery occurred. That case is pending. In a lawsuit filed in September 2023, the couple said Gates posted several videos of the autopsy on Instagram without their permission. Gates initially removed the videos after receiving a letter from the couple's attorneys, but then reposted them, according to the couple's attorneys. Ira Livnat, an attorney for Gates, said Saturday the jury's finding that Gates did not intend to cause harm 'flies in the face' of the plaintiffs' 'entire case.' His client generally made posts about autopsies to educate other pathologists and advocate for independent evaluations when people felt a hospital had engaged in wrongdoing, he said. The couple received a default judgment for intentional infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy and fraud after Gates did not immediately respond to their lawsuit. 'Dr. Gates testified that he is deeply sorry for any harm that he unintentionally caused the plaintiffs,' Livnat said. 'Had he known for one second that they would see that and that they would know it was their child, he would never have done it.' Attorneys for the couple said in a statement that the doctor 'poured salt into the couple's already deep wounds.' 'This young couple trusted him with the remains of their precious baby,' they said. 'Gates, in turn, repaid this trust by posting horrific images of their child for the world to see.'
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Yahoo
Fulton County school board approves policy that restricts K-8 students from using electronics
On Wednesday, the Fulton County School Board voted in favor of a new policy that would restrict K-8 students from using their electronic devices during the upcoming school year. 'Such as laptops, cell phones, Google glasses, Apple watches for use during instructional time,' Fulton County Chief Communication Officer Brian Noyes said. Noyes says that during the past year, students already adhered to a student code of conduct that restricted lower-grade students from using electronic devices. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] The new change now includes middle school students in Fulton County. Noyes adds that high school students in Fulton County schools don't typically use personal electronics during instructional time unless teachers approve. Atlanta Public Schools officials recently said they are considering changes for how to manage cell phone use among high school students. TRENDING STORIES: Swimmer airlifted to Savannah area hospital after being bitten by shark Deaths of couple who vanished on Lake Oconee spawning massive search ruled accidental Man tries to break into Cobb County home while woman was in bed, police say [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
