Georgia Today: Teen, parents indicted in drunk driving death; Postal delays; Loeffler slated for SBA

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Thursday, Dec. 5. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, a teenager and two parents are indicted in a fatal drunk driving accident. The U.S. postmaster general faces questions over long delays. And former U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler is slated to serve as the head of the Small Business Administration. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

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Trump

Story 1:

Peter Biello: President-elect Donald Trump's lawyers are seeking the dismissal of the election interference charges against him in Fulton County. GPB's Sarah Kallis has more.

Sarah Kallis: Trump lawyer Steve Sadow filed the dismissal, saying the president-elect, who takes office next month, cannot be tried while he's a sitting U.S. president. Georgia State University law professor Anthony Michael Kreiss says the dismissal request is not surprising and it's likely the case against Trump will either be dismissed or delayed until 2029. But a potential dismissal for Trump is not necessarily good news for the other co-defendants.

Anthony Michael Kreiss: Donald Trump get to basically walk away from the Georgia proceedings for at least four years, if not forever. But the case now against some of the co-defendant becomes a little bit stronger because Donald Trump is not part of that.

Sarah Kallis: Trump would also not be able to pardon other co-defendants as president, since they are state charges, not federal. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: A teenager and two parents have been indicted in the death of a high school student who was killed in a drunk driving accident north of Atlanta in February. DeKalb County officials yesterday charged Sumanth and Anindita Rao with letting their underage daughter and her friends drink alcohol in their home before driving. The county's district attorney, Sherry Boston, says the charge sends a message.

Sherry Boston: If you are going to break the law by supplying and or allowing people under the age to consume alcohol in your homes, then you will be held accountable for the foreseeable actions that we know come with that.

Peter Biello: Officials say the 18-year-old Hannah Hackemeyer was driving under the influence when she got into the car crash that killed her friend, Sophia Lekiachvili. Charges against Hackemeyer could lead to 30 years in prison, while charges against the Raos could lead to a decade in prison.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: Seniors and others with qualifying conditions have an important deadline coming up on Saturday. That's when the federally subsidized health insurance program, Medicare, will end its annual open enrollment. GPB's Sofi Gratas has more on what you need to know.

Sofi Gratas: During open enrollment, Medicare recipients can compare plans and make changes to current ones, like making sure prescriptions are covered to take advantage of a new annual cap of $2,000. They can also enroll in something new. Meena Seshamani with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, says even if you're happy with your current plan, it's important to check in, since the number of available plans has grown and people's eligibility for financial assistance may have changed.

Meena Seshamani: And if you miss the deadline, then you may have to wait a full year — until next year's open enrollment — to make sure that you are in a plan that best serves your health and financial needs.

Sofi Gratas: Though Georgia switched to a state-based health insurance exchange this year, Medicare recipients will still use medicare.gov for open enrollment. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: The U.S. postmaster general and U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff are sparring once again over mail delays across Georgia. Their meeting at a Senate hearing today comes during the holiday shopping season and after a transition to a new processing center south of Atlanta led to widespread late deliveries earlier this year. Questioned by Ossoff about continuing delays, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy defended his agency.

Louis DeJoy: 50% of first class mail in Georgia gets delivered a day in advance. We are in the 75% to low 80s on time and 90% is the day after. While we're doing our transitions, OK, that's where we're going to be.

Peter Biello: Ossoff has proposed term limiting Dejoy's post and making it subject to U.S. Senate confirmation.

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Former U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler speaks with the crowd during a Greater Georgia event in Gainsville on Oct. 9, as part of her effort to boost Republican turnout.

Credit: Riley Bunch

Story 5:

Peter Biello: President elect Donald Trump says he will nominate former U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia to serve as the head of the Small Business Administration. Gov. Brian Kemp appointed Loeffler to the U.S. Senate in 2019 after Sen. Johnny Isakson resigned due to health reasons. She was defeated in a special election by Democrat Raphael Warnock. If confirmed, she would lead an agency charged with distributing billions of dollars in loans and regulatory support for small businesses. Loeffler is also known as a former co-owner of the Atlanta Dream.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: All lanes of Interstate 75 southbound in Atlanta are open now after police say they shot and killed a 39-year-old man accused of charging at them with a knife. Atlanta police say they initially responded to a stabbing call on a Greyhound bus on I-75 at Cleveland Avenue. Officers fired at the armed man after attempts to de-escalate the situation with tasers, pepper spray and verbal commands. I-75 southbound was shut down several hours this morning due to the incident. Police say they feared for the safety of motorists if the man were to open the doors of vehicles on the interstate.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: The mayor of a small Georgia town is back in charge after a jury acquitted him of charges that he intentionally left a bottle of gin in a ditch for a state prison work crew. Prosecutors alleged Thompson Mayor Benjamin "Benji" Cranford bought the liquor on June 3 and intentionally dropped the bottle into the ditch. But Cranford defense lawyers suggested the bottle fell out of Cranford's SUV after he opened the door while fiddling with his Bluetooth wireless connection. McDuffie County jurors on Tuesday found Cranford not guilty of two felony charges.

Story 8:

Peter Biello: Six local development authorities will get more than $9 million in grants. Gov. Brian Kemp announced yesterday the grants come through the OneGeorgia Authority's Rural Site Development Initiative, a new state program aimed at fostering economic development in rural communities. Among the grants are $2 million to the Dodge County Eastmond Development Authority toward water and sewer improvements at the Eastman Aerospace Park, located near the local airport and Middle Georgia State University's School of Aviation. All six applicants leverage local funding to match the OneGeorgia Authority grants.

Story 9:

Peter Biello: Hyundai is deploying 21 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks at its new factory in Southeast Georgia's Bryan County. The company said yesterday the trucks will move parts between its electric vehicle manufacturing facility, its area suppliers and Georgia's ports. The new trucks are part of Hyundai's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. Hydrogen-powered electric fuel cells are an emerging technology promising to recharge heavy electric vehicles quickly with fewer emissions than traditional fossil fuels.

Peter Biello: And that's a wrap on this edition of Georgia Today. Thank you so much for choosing this podcast as a way to stay informed about Georgia. Remember, if you're looking for the latest headlines, you could always check our website, GPB.org/news. And subscribing to this podcast is a great way to stay informed. We'll pop up in your podcast feed every weekday afternoon once you do subscribe, if you've got feedback or story idea, let us know by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thank you so much for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news