Entries by Staff Writer

The 9-month-old baby who died of a heat stroke after having been left in a vehicle for several hours will be buried Saturday. Click here for story. [ Full Story » ] 

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Colton Standridge reportedly responded to his parents by squeezing their hand over the weekend at Egleston Children's Hospital, where he remains in stable condition.

On Monday, plans were to take him off of the sedatives he has been on since the accident on August 18 and see how he responds. He continues to have swelling of his brain with the degree of pressure fluctuating. He also reportedly had a temperature over the weekend.

Standridge, 13, received serious head injuries when he was struck by a car while driving a four-wheeler near Cabin Creek Road.

Colton is an eighth grader at EJMS. His father, Warren Standridge, is a coach and teacher at JCCHS. His mother, the former Tammy Booth, is a kindergarten teacher at East Jackson Elementary School. Both are graduates of JCCHS.

Business is booming at the Banks-Jackson Emergency Food Bank in Commerce. That is never a good thing.

So many people have come to the food bank that its shelves are nearly bare.

“It’s the lowest I can remember, and I’ve been here 14 years,” remarked Christa Shumake, manager.

The slack economy has dealt a double-whammy to the food bank. More people are out of work - and food - so they appeal to the food bank, and donations of both food and money are also down, for the same reasons.

And, said Shumake, August is always the food bank’s worst month.

Located on Georgia Avenue in a building provided by First Commerce Bank, the food bank supplies the short-term emergency food needs of people referred by a local church or by the Jackson or Banks Departments of Family and Children Services. Recipients typically get a one-week supply of food.

“We’re having so many families come in,” said Shumake. “We’ve been having more than 100 a month.”

For the complete story, see the August 13 issue of The Commerce News.

A Lula man died Monday morning after being shot during a standoff with the Hall County SWAT team.

Stanley Tate was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Atlanta after a shootout with law enforcement officers. He died shortly afterwards.

On Monday, August 11, at approximately 8:30 a.m. an off-duty Gainesville police officer heard several gunshots and spotted a white male walking through downtown Lula holding a large caliber handgun. The perpetrator pointed the firearm at the off-duty officer and then walked into a heavily wooded area to his residence, which was later identified as a camper. A warrant for aggravated assault on a police officer was obtained for the perpetrator.

The Hall County Sheriff’s Office responded to the location and set up a perimeter around the camper. Due to the serious nature of the call, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team responded and attempted negotiations with the man. As negotiators attempted to make contact with the man, he fired upon the SWAT Team. A member of the SWAT Team was struck by gunfire and was transported to Grady by LifeFlight, where at this time he is undergoing surgery.

During this incident the Lula Elementary School was placed on lockdown and a number of Hall County Deputies were stationed around the perimeter of the school for the protection of the students.

At this time, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has been called in to conduct an investigation into the incident.