By Wayne Grant on November 25, 2013 -
For many people, Thanksgiving evokes a very specific image: a large family sitting around a long dining table with all kinds of hearty and delicious fare cooked up in the kitchen by Grandma. However, some families simply do not have a good cook. Fortunately, there are alternatives to cooking at home.
In Atlanta, numerous restaurants will stay open for the Thanksgiving holiday and provide traditional meals to busy or kitchen-averse families. Reserve a table at one of these spots so you can celebrate a stress-free Thanksgiving with your loved ones: Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on November 13, 2013 -
On the morning of the last day of October, Christian Enterkin, who was a running candidate for Atlanta City Council District 5, received a voicemail from the lawyer of her main political opponent, Natalyn Archibong. The contents of the message gave her quite the surprise.
Natalyn Archibong was suing her for defamation, slander, and libel.
As a part of her campaign strategy, Enterkin sent out fliers to voters claiming Archibong was late or absent for most of the council meetings that took place from 2011 to 2012. Matthew Rinker, another candidate who was running against Archibong, made a similar claim on his fliers. He was also sued by the councilwoman. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on November 6, 2013 -
Kmart Corporation will pay a settlement amount of $2,550,000 to the United States federal government and 32 states, including Georgia, for allegedly having its national pharmacy centers make false prescription claims to government health insurance programs.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade, and the Office of Inspector General of Health and Human Services all joined together to make the announcement of the case’s result. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on October 30, 2013 -
A report by CBS Atlanta states that a 13-year-old girl lost her life in a two-vehicle crash on the afternoon of October 20. The tragic incident took place on I-20 near the Fairburn Road exit.
According to police officials, the teenage girl, who was a passenger, and two of her family members were heading west when another vehicle attempted to enter their lane and collided into the side of their vehicle. This caused them to careen off road into a wooded area. Their vehicle struck several trees.
The female driver sustained severe injuries upon ejection from the vehicle. A male passenger suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Both adults were taken to Atlanta Medical Center by air transport. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on October 22, 2013 -
CBS Atlanta reports that during the early morning on October 11, Gainesville police received an alarming phone call from a couple who were, at the time, driving a 2006 Toyota Highlander on Browns Bridge Road, west of McEver Road. They reported being followed by a red pickup truck, the driver of which appeared to be in a bout of road rage.
According to the transcript of the emergency call, the 48-year-old male driver of the pickup truck was flashing his headlights in an aggressive manner at the Highlander while bumping the vehicle from behind. He then attempted to pass the couple using the opposite lane. The couple says he was going about 70 miles per hour when the unthinkable occurred.
The pickup truck collided head-on with an SUV going the other way. The SUV was being driven by a 20-year-old woman. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on October 15, 2013 -
According to a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Honda has issued a recall of certain model year 2003 and 2004 Odyssey and model year 2003 Acura MDX vehicles. An estimated 374,618 units are affected.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received six reports of inadvertent frontal air bag deployment from owners of the affected Odyssey vehicles. Three of the six reports involved injuries. All six reports stated that the air bags deployed while the vehicles were being driven. An additional 41 reports alleged the air bag warning light to be on without any apparent reason. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on October 11, 2013 -
According to a report by The Augusta Chronicle, on the night of October 3, former Enron Corp. executive and whistleblower Sherron Watkins spoke to a packed hall at Georgia Regents University about her role in uncovering one of the largest corporate scandals in American history.
The 2001 Enron scandal involved large-scale corporate fraud, the revelations of which dominated the national conversation and impacted the public’s trust in monolithic companies and corporations. Thousands of employees were laid off. Billions of dollars in investments went down the drain. Top company executives were tried and sent to prison.
Watkins started working for Enron in 1993. Soon after the scandal erupted, she resigned as vice president of corporate development. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on September 26, 2013 -
On the evening of September 20 in Douglas County, a woman was driving her SUV down the I-20 when she attempted a last-minute exit. The ill-advised maneuver caused the vehicle to flip multiple times, ejecting several children. One, a seven-year-old-boy, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Douglasville policemen who responded to the grisly accident were affected deeply upon arrival. Even the most experienced officers were hit hard by the scene.
“We’ve got officers here that have been here 20 years and it’s the worst accident they have seen,” said a police lieutenant. “A lot of that has to do with the fact that [many of the victims] were children.” Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on September 17, 2013 -
According to a report by islandpacket.com, a federal whistleblower lawsuit alleges that several Atlanta-based hospitals operated by Tenet Healthcare Corp. and Health Management Associates engaged in an elaborate Medicaid fraud scheme. The state of Georgia has filed a coinciding lawsuit.
The suits allege that the hospital companies paid prenatal-care clinics ran by Hispanic Medical Management (HMA) to provide prenatal care to expectant, undocumented Hispanic women. Afterward, the clinics referred the patients to their hospitals for delivery and other newborn care services at Medicaid’s expense.
Under federal and state laws, hospitals cannot have patients referred to them if their procedures are covered by federal healthcare programs such as Medicaid. Although undocumented people are generally not eligible for Medicaid, they do receive coverage for emergency conditions, one of which is childbirth. Hospitals are reimbursed for the care they provide in these situations. Read the rest »
By Wayne Grant on September 12, 2013 -
A 60-year-old woman was heading southbound on Ga. 400 near Pilgrim Mill Road when her vehicle struck the back of a truck. She lost control of the car and collided with a van that was going the same way. She did not survive her injuries.
According to a report by ajc.com, three passers-by stopped after they witnessed the crash. One of them was a construction worker who was on his way northbound. Another was an off-duty Dawsonville paramedic. They immediately went to the crash site to see if they could help.
The Good Samaritans saw that a paralyzed man was trapped in a van. The vehicle had smoke rising from its hood. Read the rest »
