Barrow Journal

Several high-profile races took shape in Barrow County as qualifying closed this week for July’s primary balloting, including three candidates who have qualified for chairman of the Barrow County Board of Commissioners. Incumbent Doug Garrison will be challenged by Danny Yearwood and Jim Beckemeyer. All three qualified as Republicans.

Qualifying closed Friday at noon. Voters have until June 16 to register to vote in the July 15 party primaries.

Candidates qualified either as a Democrat or a Republican.

Non-Partisan elections will be held in November. That will include the three judges of the Piedmont Judicial Circuit. Judge Bob Adamson reportedly plans to retire. Curry Mingledorf of Winder has announced plans to seek Adamson’s vacated seat.
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Auburn City Council members heard a presentation from Casey Vance, Government Tax Solutions, at Thursday’s meeting on the collection of delinquent property taxes for the city.

Vance told the council that his company fronts the funds to run the ads and send notification by certified mail.

“We only get paid if you collect” Vance said.

It is a two-tier process, he said. First, the owner or lien holder is notified. The parcel is researched and the information is entered into a database. On the 100th day of having the parcel in the database, the city should have payment, Vance said. The company provides legal services to the city.

Accounts of $50 or less is a $26 fee. Accounts of $51 and over is a flat fee of $50.

City administrator Ron Griffith told the council that he is familiar with the company. “They are really good and they walk you through every step,” Griffith said.

No action was taken on the proposal.

The council will hold its next regularly scheduled meeting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 1, at city hall.

For more information about the Auburn City Council meeting, see the April 23 issue of The Braselton News.

Linn Jones, wife of former District Attorney Tim Madison, was sentenced in Banks County Superior Court Friday to 180 days in a women’s detention center on theft charges. She was also fined $500 and will have to perform 250 hours of community service.

Meanwhile, Madison has surrendered his Georgia Law License. The Georgia Supreme Court approved the voluntary surrender Monday. Madison moved to give up his license in February.

Jones sentencing last week effectively ends an extraordinary state investigation into the Piedmont Judicial Circuit DA’s office. Madison was sentenced earlier this year to six years in jail on theft charges and former ADA Brett Williams was fined on misdemeanor charges.

Jones was charged with having conspired to defraud the county government by submitting payroll hours for times when she didn’t work. Jones was on both the Jackson County and Banks County DA payrolls at the same time.

According to documents presented in court last week, Jones claimed that she was working at the same time evidence proved she was out of state.

Jones’ attorney said she “accepts full responsibility for her actions” and is “sorry for what she did.”

In her only comment to the court, Jones said, “I would like to tell the court I’m sorry, sir.”

The scandal surrounding the DA’s office was uncovered by The Jackson Herald in early 2007. A series of investigative stories were published in March 2007 questioning Madison’s handling of various government funds. Madison subsequently resigned as DA in June 2007 and was indicted in August 2007.

BY KRISTI REED

Barrow County Commission Chairman Doug Garrison said citizens and local governments must embrace change in order “to create a Barrow our grandchildren will be proud to call home.”

Speaking at the Barrow County Chamber of Commerce's “State of the County” annual luncheon, Garrison said rapid growth is transforming the County. Barrow County is growing faster than 2,988 other counties in the nation and ranked 12th in new growth nationally, Garrison said. [Full Story »]