Georgia Today: Norfolk Southern settles class action suit; Okefenokee Mine public comments deadline

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Tuesday, April 9. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, Atlanta-based Norfolk Southern agrees to pay more than $600 million to settle a class action lawsuit. It's the last day to submit written comments on a plan to mine near Georgia's Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. And a former chief financial officer for the city of Atlanta pleads guilty to stealing money from the city. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: Norfolk Southern has agreed to pay $600 million in a class action lawsuit settlement related to a fiery train derailment in February of last year in eastern Ohio. The Atlanta-based railroad company said today that the agreement, if approved by the court, will resolve all class action claims within a 20-mile radius from the derailment. It would also resolve personal injury claims within 10 miles. Settlement money could cover health care costs, property restoration or business losses. Norfolk Southern said that the settlement isn't an admission of fault. The settlement is expected to be submitted for preliminary approval this month, and payments could begin by the end of the year.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: A former chief financial officer for Atlanta, has pleaded guilty to stealing money from the city. Jim Beard pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of federal program theft and one count of tax obstruction. In his plea agreement, Beard admitted to using city money on personal trips and two machine guns. He outlined about $5,500 in thefts, while federal prosecutors say Beard stole tens of thousands of dollars. Beard served as the city's chief financial officer from 2011 to 2018 under former mayor Kasim Reed. He's the 10th person to be convicted in an anti-corruption probe into Reed's administration. Beard is scheduled to be sentenced in July. He could face up to 13 years in prison.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: The first revitalization project on Atlanta's Auburn Avenue in 18 years is well underway. GPB's Sarah Kallis has this update.

Sarah Kallis: The Front Porch on Auburn aims to reconnect the historic neighborhood. It's a mixed-use development that will provide affordable housing and retail space. Rep. Nikema Williams represents the Sweet Auburn neighborhood in U.S. Congress.

Nikema Williams: We can't close the racial wealth gap without increasing access to homeownership and investing in entrepreneurs. The Front Porch on Auburn? Y'all, it does both. So I like to say that Atlanta influences everything because it's true. And it's my hope that cities across the country will see what's happening right here in Atlanta.

Sarah Kallis: Rent in the new units will cost about $1,400 a month, with furniture and utilities included. Phase 1 of the project is slated to be finished in August. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: Congresswoman Nikema Williams is challenging a controversial law that led to her arrest when she was a state senator in 2018. Williams's lawsuit against the Georgia Department of Public Safety officers is pending in federal and state court. It claims a Georgia law that bans disruptions during the legislative session violates the state's constitution. State Rep. Park Cannon was arrested for violating the same statute in 2021. Attorneys for Williams filed a 32-page brief last week, laying out new arguments. Gerry Weber is one of the attorneys for Williams.

Gerry Weber: What we have seen is that, kind of the centerpiece of state government is a place where free speech is not only heavily restricted but seems to be heavily restricted as to certain viewpoints. And so we're very concerned about it.

Peter Biello: The state Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in the case next month.

Caption

Eclipse

Story 5:

Peter Biello: More than 1,000 people, young and old, gathered at Fernbank Science Center yesterday for Solar Eclipse Fest. GPB's Amanda Andrews attended the celebration in Atlanta.

Amanda Andrews: The event included food trucks, a DJ, free planetarium shows and activities. DeKalb County Schools created the event to engage students and the public in science and build excitement around the celestial event. Visitors also received free eclipse glasses to view the partial eclipse. Georgia was not in the path of totality, so viewers were only able to see 85% coverage. 9-year-old Sean Atitsogbe attended the festival. He says people need to know even partial sun can still cause real eye damage.

Sean Atitsogbe: The sun doesn't only emit visible light, it emits things in other ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum like radio waves, infrared waves, and also UV rays, which are very harmful to skin, eyes, retinas, all that stuff.

Amanda Andrews: Atitsogbe also goes by "Sean the Science Kid." He loves physics and he says he's already making plans to view the next solar eclipse. If he's not too busy.

Sean Atitsogbe: I'll probably be in med school. Well, maybe out of med school being a doctor or something, but I still be excited and I'll try to go if I don't have a work day scheduled.

Amanda Andrews: The next total solar eclipse in Georgia will be on Aug. 12, 2045. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: Today is the last day to submit written comments on a plan to mine near Georgia's Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Alabama-based company Twin Pines Minerals plans to mine Trail Ridge, which is seen as an important barrier for the swamp. More than 70,000 comments have already come in to the State Environmental Protection Division. The state agency issued draft permits for the mine in February. Opponents of the project say it would threaten the swamp and its ecosystem and jeopardize local tourism tied to the swamp. The Georgia Conservancy urged state regulators in its comment last week to reject the permits. Supporters of the project say it would bring jobs to the area, and blocking it would infringe on the landowner's private property rights.

Caption

Bobby Rush performing in Macon in 2006, in his early 70s.

Credit: Grant Blankenship/GPB News

Story 7:

Peter Biello: Bobby Rush was one of the last performers from what was once called the Chitlin Circuit. That was a network of nightclubs and venues across the country where, especially in the days of Jim Crow, Black audiences could hear black performers away from the gaze of white people. Bobby Rush is performing tomorrow as part of the Savannah Music Festival, in a tribute to some of the greats of American blues music. A few years ago, GPB's Grant Blankenship sat down with rush backstage at Macon's Capitol Theater to hear his origin story.

Bobby Rush: When I was 7 or 8 years old, I know exactly what I wanted to be. I left Louisiana in 1947, went to Pine Bluff, Ark., with my father, who was a preacher and a pastor of a church. I didn't want to sing in a choir. I didn't want to go to church with my daddy, because I wanted to have that time away from my father so I could sing what I want to sing, not "Glory, glory, hallelujah." I wanted to sing the blues, man.

In his day and time and my day and time, when I came up, most people [who] came up around when I came up, were talking about the devil music, or some sinful music. But my daddy never told me about those kind of things. He never told me to sing the blues, but he never told me not to.

I remember — I often tell this story — I remember my daddy. I had a diddley bow playing. My cousin gave me a guitar. He said, "bring the guitar here, boy." Oh, I just thought he wanted to look at it, but I didn't know he could play. He tuned it up. He said let me sing a song I used to sing when I was a little girl older than you. I thought he was gonna talk about my mama. My mom was in the kitchen cookin'. He said, "Me and my gal went to Chinquapin huntin', she fell down and I saw something." My daddy being a preacher, talking about a woman's fell down, he saw something? Man, I jumped this high. I said "Daddy, sing it again!" 

So ever since then, "I said I'm gonna be a blues singer. I'm going to finish them kind of songs."

I love some Muddy Waters. Love some B.B. King, love some Howlin' Wolf. Jimmy Reed. I love some Sonny Boy Williamson. Like some Little Walter. I like a lot of things about Prince and Michael Jackson. The newer kind of stuff. When you put them all together, I got a piece of all of that and put it in my craw, and I put it in a bowl and stir it up. You get a Bobby Rush soup.

MUSIC: Bobby Rush: "You see my daddy, he's a preacher. He told me, said Bobby Rush, you ought to leave ol' Sue alone. Then my mother told me one day she said, Bobby Rush..."

Bobby Rush: You can't teach a man how to do what I do. What Elvis Presley did, or what Ray Charles did. You gotta be born to do that.

MUSIC: Bobby Rush: "So I sit my mother down. I said, mama —"

Bobby Rush: I'm born to do this. I'm born to do this.

Peter Biello: That was Bobby Rush on how he started his life in blues music. Rush performs with the North Mississippi Allstars tomorrow at the Savannah Music Festival.

Story 8:

Peter Biello: In sports, the Atlanta Braves take on the New York Mets at home tonight after losing to their National League East rivals last night — final score, 8 to 7. Last night, starter Charlie Morton threw 5 2/3 innings, allowed four earned runs on five hits, struck out four and walked five. But reliever Pierce Johnson took the loss. Atlanta's bullpen had its 14 2/3 scoreless innings streak snapped in the seventh inning on a solo home run by New York's Brandon Nimmo off A.J. Minter. The last run Atlanta's relievers had allowed was in the eighth inning of their loss to the Chicago White Sox on April 2. In the NBA, Atlanta Hawks All-Star guard Trae Young has been cleared for team practice and contact after missing 22 games because of an injury to his finger. The Hawks say Young has been cleared after his six-week evaluation post-surgery in late February. And in volleyball, the Atlanta Vibe took down the Vegas Thrill last night in another three set sweep. The win keeps the Vibe in the top spot of the Pro Volleyball Federation standings. The five now head to San Diego to face the Mojo tomorrow, and they're scheduled to return for the next home match on Saturday.

Peter Biello: And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, visit GPB.org/news. And if you haven't subscribed to this podcast yet, you are missing out. We'll pop up automatically tomorrow afternoon if you do, so subscribe now and we'll be current in your podcast feed. If you've got feedback, we would love to hear from you! Email us. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org I'm Peter Biello. Thanks as always for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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