Georgia Today: How bills fared on Crossover Day; Fani Willis removal hearing; Weekend events in GA

Orlando Montoya: Hello and welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Friday, March 1. I'm Orlando Montoya. On today's episode, we look at how some of the more prominent bills fared in the state legislature on Crossover Day. A judge hears closing arguments in the hearing over whether to remove DA Fani Willis from the Georgia election interference case. And as festival season continues in Georgia, we'll tell you about some of the events happening this weekend. Those stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Orlando Montoya: State lawmakers passed dozens of bills in the state House and Senate yesterday on Crossover Day, a key deadline for legislation to stay alive in this year's General Assembly. One bill that made it through would sever government ties with the accrediting body for libraries. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports.

Sarah Kallis: Senate Bill 390 would prohibit libraries from receiving funding from the American Library Association or ALA. It also bans public colleges from using state funds to offer ALA accreditation courses. Sen. Nan Orrock pushed back against the bill during debate.

Nan Orrock: Does this not give Georgia — does this cast a pall over our reputation as a state committed to learning?

Sarah Kallis: Sen. Larry Walker, who sponsored the legislation, says it aims to protect children from inappropriate content.

Larry Walker: They're the ones that are trying to push a radical, socialist, extreme agenda to our local libraries. They're the ones that started this, not us. They're the ones that are going to lose membership.

Sarah Kallis: The bill passed in a party-line vote. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Lallis at the state Capitol.

Story 2:

Orlando Montoya: The so-called Religious Freedom Bill, and the bill cracking down on immigration, were among the other pieces of legislation that lawmakers kept alive on Crossover Day. Other bills did not pass before the General Assembly's key deadline. GPB's Sofi Gratas reports that among those that failed was a measure that would have bolstered protections for people who are arrested.

Sofi Gratas: The bill would have required law enforcement to hold off on releasing mug shots or booking photos until a conviction. Currently, they're public record following an arrest. The State Sheriffs Association did not support the bill and said these changes would create an impossible load. Clare Norins with the University of Georgia First Amendment Clinic, argues the public has a right to mug shots.

Clare Norins: I certainly understand why people don't want their booking photos to be forever online, but we have to balance that against these other really important interests about government transparency, holding law enforcement accountable...

Sofi Gratas: Because convictions can often take months or years. Existing law already protects against the posting of mug shots for profit and without consent. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas.

Caption

Laken Riley

Credit: Instagram: @lakenrileyy

Story 3:

Orlando Montoya: Hundreds of people paid their respects today for the nursing student killed at the University of Georgia last week. Laken Riley was remembered at a funeral in her hometown, Woodstock, north of Atlanta. Lynn Gainus says the killing has devastated students.

Lynn Gainus: It's very sad. I think that has kind of transferred over now to anger.

Orlando Montoya: Gainus and others are pushing the university to implement new campus security measures.

Caption

Fani Willis

Credit: AP Photo/John Bazemore, File

Story 4:

Orlando Montoya: A judge is hearing closing arguments this afternoon over whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be removed from Georgia's election interference case against former President Donald Trump and others. An attorney for Trump codefendant Michael Roman, John Merchant, says Willis's relationship with a special prosecutor created a conflict of interest.

John Merchant: She put her boyfriend in this spot, paid him and then reaped the benefits.

Orlando Montoya: Willis and Wade have argued their relationship has no bearing on the case. It's unclear when the judge will decide whether Willis can continue to prosecute it.

Story 5:

Orlando Montoya: The district attorney in Augusta has unveiled a new program aimed at steering first-time offenders to jobs and education. DA Jared Williams announced the program, called Checks Over Stripes, this week. Williams says it builds on Georgia's first offender act, targeting 17- to 25-year-olds, with opportunities at Augusta Technical College and America's Remanufacturing Company, among other partners.

Jared Williams: I don't want to do the job of prosecutor and only be able to put someone in prison, or only be able to put someone on probation. We have to be building the infrastructure to provide real services that make people better.

Orlando Montoya: The program requires candidates to maintain a higher level of accountability and supervision in exchange for not being charged with a felony.

Story 6:

Orlando Montoya: Georgia's Public Service Commission is in the midst of the final public hearings on Georgia Power's request to vastly expand its ability to make electricity, in response to what the utility says is unprecedented business growth. GPB's Grant Blankenship has more.

Grant Blankenship: Among the remedies Georgia Power wants for what it says is a largely data center-driven explosion in electricity demand is the delayed sunsetting of carbon-emitting fossil fuels. But during lengthy cross-examination, staff for the Public Service Commission like KarAn Pol, here speaking to attorney Robert Baker, cast doubt on the depth of Georgia Power's future energy deficit.

Robert Baker: The case we're making is that the company has not demonstrated empirical evidence that their assumptions are supported. Rather, they refer to informed judgments.

KarAn Pol: Is "informed judgment" another way of saying "educated guess?"

Robert Baker: Sure.

Grant Blankenship: A PSC member, Trisha Pridmore, asked why it was okay to question the educated guesses of industry leaders in the state often lauded as being the best for business. The PSC is expected to decide the issue later this spring. For GPB News, I'm Grant Blankenship in Macon.

Story 7:

Orlando Montoya: Georgia Power said today the second of two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle near Augusta, has connected to the electric grid. The milestone marks another step in ongoing testing for the unit, expected to be fully in service by the middle of the year. The unit and another new one before it are seven years overdue and $17 billion over budget.

Story 8:

Orlando Montoya: Authorities in Southeast Georgia say they discovered an estimated $1 million worth of stolen cargo inside a warehouse a few miles from Savannah's busy seaport. The Effingham County Sheriff's Office said in a statement Wednesday that investigators with a search warrant found pallets of consumer goods, including cellphones, food and Peloton exercise equipment.

Caption

In this frame from U.S. Capitol surveillance video, the man in the yellow circle is identified by the FBI as Dominic Box, entering through the Senate wing door of the building on Jan. 6, 2021.

Credit: FBI

Story 9:

Orlando Montoya: Federal prosecutors have upgraded their charges against a Jan. 6 defendant, who at the time of the insurrection, was a car salesman in Savannah. GPB's Benjamin Payne reports.

Benjamin Payne: A new indictment filed this week against Dominic Box adds three felony counts to his criminal docket. Previously, the 34-year-old had been charged only with misdemeanors, to which he had pleaded not guilty. The most serious felony Box now faces? Obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress. It stems from his alleged role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, when supporters of then President Donald Trump violently sought to overturn Joe Biden's 2020 victory. The obstruction charge alone carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. Two other felony counts of civil disorder carry up to five years. This comes after Box withdrew from a tentative plea deal offered last year by prosecutors. An attorney for Box did not respond to GPB's request for comment on the new indictment. His arraignment is set for March 19 in Washington, D.C. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne.

Story 10:

Orlando Montoya: Macon tourism and cultural officials have released a report on how the city could amplify its music industry. The report, released this week from Visit Macon and the Macon Arts Alliance, says music employs about 1,100 people in Macon. Its recommendations include hiring a cultural officer and creating a downtown entertainment district.

Story 11:

Orlando Montoya: A new hotel opened up yesterday on top of northwest Georgia's Lookout Mountain. The Cloudland at Macklemore Resort, part of the Hilton family of hotels, is described as the first hotel to be built on the mountain since the Great Depression. Developers expect it to generate $43 million in annual spending.

Story 12:

Orlando Montoya: It's the first weekend in March, and festival season in Georgia is now in full swing. And if you're a fan of barbecue, you'll find it being celebrated all over the state. The ninth annual Sip and Swine Barbecue Festival is Friday and Saturday at Cool Ray Field in Lawrenceville. Also, Friday and Saturday is the Saint Patrick's Pig in the Park Barbecue championship in Dublin. And you'll find the Rhythm and Ribs Barbecue Festival this weekend at Fulwood Park in Tifton. Yum yum. I want some of that sauce all over my sandwiches. Now, if barbecue is not your thing, Friday is the 14th year of Toast of the Town, an annual food and beverage extravaganza benefiting the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. On Saturday, Atlantic Station in Atlanta will play host to the first of two Atlanta Brunch Festival dates. Mmm. Mimosas? Downtown Roswell has the Roswell Beer Festival, and there's the downtown Albany Street Festival in South Georgia. And finally, if you need a way to burn off all of those calories, the Georgia Appalachian Trail Club will host AT gateways, formerly known as the Appalachian Trail Kickoff, at the Falls State Park.

Orlando Montoya: Now, all we gotta do is get the weather to cooperate, right? That's it for today's edition of Georgia Today. If you'd like to learn more about these stories, visit GPB.org/news. We'd like you to hit subscribe on this podcast. That way you can always stay current with us in your feed. And if you have feedback or story ideas, send those to us and GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Orlando Montoya, filling in for Peter Biello. I'll talk to you again on Monday.

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