CrossRoadsNews, May 21, 2016 - Section B

May 21, 2016

Section B

www.crossroadsnews. com

Final push for May 24 primary

Forum timekeeper signals 60seconds for DeKalb CEO candidates to answer questions at the May 16 Vote 2016 Forum.

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Marian Boston, mother of district attorney candidate Sherry Boston, came from Baltimore, Md., to help her daughter campaign Saturday in front of the Gallery at South DeKalb mall.

Jennifer Ffrench Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Joscelyn O’Neil, candidate for House District 86,

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Campaign volunteer Janice Ivery (left) joins the sign-waving contingent on Northern Road after casting her vote Saturday at the DeKalb Elections office on Memorial Drive.

CrossRoadsNews

B2

May 21, 2016

All precincts will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 24.

Voters should bring photo identification with them to polls.

Guide to primary, nonpartisan and special elections

“East Metro Atlanta’s Weekly Newspaper” 2346 Candler Road Decatur, GA 30032 404-284-1888 Fax: 404-284-5007

www.crossroadsnews.com editor@crossroadsnews.com

The 2016 Guide to the Elections is a publication of CrossRoadsNews Inc., East Metro Atlanta’s awardwinning weekly newspaper.

Editor / Publisher Jennifer Parker

Reporters Jennifer Ffrench Parker Ken Watts Donna Williams Lewis Copy Editor Brenda Yarbrough Graphics Editor Curtis Parker Circulation Audited By

These candidates are in contested races on the DeKalb County ballots in the May 24, 2016, Democratic and Republican primary elections. This information includes the office they are seeking, the salary for the office, party affiliation, age and occupation.

Candidates who are running unopposed are not listed.

David Neville (D) Rhonda S. Taylor (D)

(D) = Democrat (R) = Republican (I) = Incumbent

DeKalb County Board of Commissioners District 4 Sharon Barnes-Sutton (D)(I) Steve Bradshaw (D) Lance Lawyer Hammonds (D) District 6 Kathie Gannon (D)(I) Warren Mosby (D)

U.S. Senate Democrat Jim Barksdale (D) Cheryl Copeland (D) John F. Coyne III (D) Republican Mary Kay Bacallao (R) Derrick Grayson (R) Johnny Isakson (R) (I) Georgia Senate 43rd District Dee Dawkins-Haigler (D) Toney L. Collins (D) Tonya P. Anderson (D) Georgia House 82nd District Mary Margaret Oliver (D) (I) Brian Westlake (D) 84th District Rahn Mayo (D) (I) Renitta Shannon (D) 86th District Michele Henson (D) (I) Joscelyn O’Neil (D) 87th District Ivy J. Green (D) Earnest L. “Coach” Williams (D) (I) 91st District Charles Hill (D) Vernon Jones (D)

DeKalb CEO Joe Bembry (D) Connie Stokes (D) Michael “Mike” Thurmond (D)

Nonpartisan General Election JUDGE OF STATE COURT (TO SUCCEED DAX E. LOPEZ) Roderick Bridges Dax Lopez (I)

Tax Commissioner (non-partisan) (To Fill the Unexpired Term of CLAUDIA LAWSON, RETIRED)

Irvin J. Johnson Susannah Scott Stan Watson

Democratic Party Questions

n Should private property on rivers and streams be protected by natural vegetative buffers to ensure that Georgia’s waters are swimmable, drinkable, and fishable? n Should Georgia automatically register to vote all legal and permanent residents upon issuance of a driver’s license or state-issued ID which includes an opt-out provision?

DeKalb Sheriff Geraldine Champion (D) Ted Golden (D) Kyle Keith Jones (D) Jeffrey L. Mann (D)(I) Michael Williams (D) DeKalb tax commissioner Irvin J. Johnson (D) Susannah Scott (D) Stan Watson (D) DeKalb Solicitor general Donna Coleman-Stribling (D) Nicole Marchand Golden (D) DeKalb District Attorney Sherry Boston (D) Robert James (D)(I) Nonpartisan General Election JUDGE, SUPERIOR COURT (TO SUCCEED GAIL C. FLAKE)

n Should Georgia invest less than 1% of Angela Brown its annual budget to provide healthcare Gail C. Flake (I) to 500,000 low-income citizens and Nonpartisan General Election military veterans by expanding Medicaid?

JUDGE, SUPERIOR COURT n Should Georgia guarantee paid family (TO SUCCEED CLARENCE leave to include pregnancy, serious F “CHUCK” SEELIGER) illness, care of a family member with a serious health condition, or care for a Stephone Johnson newborn, newly adopted child or newly Clarence “Chuck” Seeliger (I) placed foster child?

CrossRoadsNews

May 21, 2016

B3

“In addition to the … tools we offer Georgians, we also work to ensure Georgians have safe, accessible, and fair elections in our state.”

Through May 19, 12,548 of the county’s 377,561 active voters had cast ballots at early polls. All precincts will open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 24.

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Ga. secretary of state expecting heavy turnout on May 24

By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

Election day is four days away and voters now have to pick.

On the ballot are races for DeKalb CEO, sheriff, tax commissioner, district attorney, solicitor general, county commissioners, judges, and state representatives, and a state senator.

Forty-four Democrats are seeking their party’s nomination. Most will win their seat or office with the primary because they have no Republican opposition in the fall.

Through Thursday, 12,548 of the county’s

377,561 active voters had cast ballots at the early polls.

Friday was the last day of advance inperson voting.

All precincts will open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on election day.

Secretary of State Brian Kemp said Thursday that he was expecting heavy voter turnout on election day.

“We have already seen significant turnout for early voting both by mail and in person,” he said. “I expect turnout to remain high on election day when most Georgia voters head to the polls to cast their ballots.”

Lists of qualified candidates for county, state and federal races are available at www. dekalbvotes.com.

Maxine Daniels, DeKalb’s election director, reminds voters to bring photo identification with them to the polls.

The “My Voter Page” or “GA Votes” app also allows voters to check their registration status, view their sample ballot, find their voting location, or request an absentee ballot.

On election day, voters also can use SOS social media to report irregularities or election complaints.

Kemp said complaints are promptly reviewed by the office’s Investigation Division’s P.O.S.T.-certified law enforcement officers, and if warranted, officers will open a formal State Election Board investigation.

Complaints also can be made at the “Stop Voter Fraud” website and hotline at 1-877725-9797.

Kemp said communication with Georgia voters is key.

“In addition to the informational resources and tools we offer Georgians, we also work to ensure Georgians have safe, accessible, and fair elections in our state,” he said.

Join the movement for a new DAy. Vote

SHERRY BOSTON

Amb. Andrew Young

Endorsed by: Sen. Gail Davenport Sen. Emanuel Jones Sen. Elena Parent Rep. Stacey Evans Rep. Billy Mitchell Rep. Taylor Bennett Rep. Earnest “Coach” Williams Fmr. Rep. Tonya Anderson Decatur Mayor Patti Garrett

Rep. Stacey Abrams

Lithonia Mayor Deborah Jackson Commissioner Kathie Gannon Commissioner Joan Garner Commissioner Mereda Davis Johnson Commissioner Jeff Rader Fmr. CEO Liane Levetan Fmr. DA J Tom Morgan Fmr. DA Bob Wilson

Congressman Hank Johnson

Reform DeKalb Atlanta-North Georgia Labor Council DeKalb County Fraternal Order of Police NewPowerPac Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys Advocates for DeKalb Animals Favorable rating by Georgia Equality

Join the DeKalb Community in Supporting Sherry Boston for a new DAy Vote in the May 24th Democratic Primary

www.sherryboston.com

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B4

CrossRoadsNews

May 21, 2016

“I get results. Every year I have been DA, we have had some of the biggest cases for the county.”

DA: I am a good prosecutor, have a lot of compassion

By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

In one of his campaign mailers to voters, incumbent District Attorney Robert James describes himself as “gang-busting and toddler-cuddling.”

He also includes a photo of him kissing his son, Robert James III. He stays on message on his campaign stops too, introducing himself as a husband, father, family man, son of a preacher and teacher, and elder at the Ray of Hope Christian Church.

“I love family, I love children. I love this community,” he told voters at the Cross­ Roads­News May 16 forum. “I want to continue to protect your family, your children, your neighborhoods, the same way I fight to protect my family, my children.”

James, a 16-year prosecutor who has been DA for six years, is facing his toughest fight yet for the DA’s office from challenger DeKalb Solicitor General Sherry Boston.

He says he wants to continue being DA because he loves DeKalb.

“I have given everything I have to this county,” he said, pointing out that he started the county’s first public integrity unit, investigated 41 public officials and employees, and started the first human trafficking unit and first elder abuse unit, James says he believes that black lives matter and made the tough decision to indict a police officer (Officer Robert Olsen who shot and killed the naked Anthony Hill) even though he works with police officers every day.

“I made the decision to do it because I believe he crossed over the line,” he said.

To critics who says he should have indicted more people, James says he is constrained by the facts of the law.

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

DeKalb District Attorney Robert James, who is being challenged by DeKalb Solicitor General Sherry Boston, speaks at the May 16 forum at New Life Baptist in Decatur.

“My job is prosecute, not to chase news stories,” he said, adding many times investigations point to misconduct, but that misconduct does not rise to the level of criminal activity.

Boston said that there is pervasive perception in the community that some leaders have not been held accountable and that the DA has not always been transparent.

“When you have that type of perception, it is important that you have a district attorney who is going to respond to that perception,” she said.

She said citizens should not have found out that James was not going to indict anyone else from the special purpose grand jury

presentment in a news report.

“What would have been helpful to the community was to have that information as soon as it was made aware,” she said. “It is important that we make sure, as public officials, that the public feels like the things they are most concerned about are being handled. Once you have completed the investigations, you have got to let people know what is going on.”

James said that there was no evidence to indict.

“I don’t make up evidence,” he said. “My job is to take the evidence that is there and charge the case if the evidence warrants it.”

James said that he had two people work-

ing in his public integrity unit to investigate all the corruption that was happening in the county at the time.

“I asked for three years to get an additional person,” he said, adding that he finally got the position last September, “So the perception that I have all the staff and I am sitting on this evidence is just not true,” he said.

James said the grand jury only recommended that one person be indicted.

“They recommended investigations on everybody else,” he said.

James said he didn’t indict former Commissioner Elaine Boyer because his office did not have jurisdiction over 98 percent of her crimes. He also said that he did not want to use a racketeering statute to prosecute P-card crimes and that his office was not privy to her embezzlement.

Even if the federal government asked James to stand down, Boston said it does not change the fact that there were crimes taking place in the county and the information was not shared until a question was asked at a forum.

James defended keeping citizens in the dark.

“One of the biggest parts about being a prosecutor is to know when to keep your month shut and having discretion,” he said.

“One thing I am not going to do is to go out into the public and say I am investigating Commissioner X or Representative Z or Senator so and so.”

James said the voters should keep him.

“I get results,” he said. “Every year I have been DA, we have had some of the biggest cases for the county. I have never lost a jury trial in this county. I believe I am a good lawyer. I am a good prosecutor, but I also have a lot of compassion.”

CrossRoadsNews

May 21, 2016

B5

“I wholeheartedly believe that I can do a better job and I think our county was craving it.”

Boston: DeKalb is not getting all that it can out of the DA

By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

Two years ago when friends began telling Sherry Boston that she should run for DeKalb district attorney, it was not an easy sell.

Boston, who has been DeKalb’s solicitor general for five years, was enjoying the successes she was having running an efficient office that lawyers are clamoring to join.

Plus she did not relish running against incumbent Robert James, who was unopposed for his 2012 re-election for his first full term of office.

Boston said she thought long and hard about taking on the challenge.

“I settle on this very question – which would I regret more – running and losing, or not running at all,” she said. “I am not the type of person to sit down, do nothing, and wait for chips to fall where they may. I am absolutely the kind of person that go, ‘You have got to stand up and do what you think is right, regardless of the risk.’”

She ran because she said DeKalb County is not getting all that it can out of its district attorney.

“I wholeheartedly believe that I can do a better job and I think our county was craving it – not just in this position but in many positions,” she said. “This county was craving new leadership and people were craving for someone to fight for them and be a voice for them.”

At a May 16 forum co-hosted by CrossRoadsNews, New Life Baptist and the Rotary Club of South DeKalb, she told the audience of 160 people that she is running to bring integrity and leadership to the office and to reprioritize what the DA’s office does.

“I want to bring integrity by operating at the highest level of accountability and transparency,” she said. “I want to show that I am a proven leader so to make sure that all cases are handled efficiently and properly.”

Win or lose – everything will change for her and the county where she wishes to be top prosecutor.

If she succeeds, Boston will only be the second woman and the third African American to fill that office in DeKalb County.

If she doesn’t, it will be the end of her public career, at

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

DeKalb Solicitor General Sherry Boston, who is seeking the DA’s office, told a May 16 forum that she is running to bring integrity

least for a while.

On the campaign trail, Boston and James have clashed over the issues of integrity, leadership and experience.

Boston has slammed James for his ethics violations and fines.

Last September, James paid $2,850 in ethics fines and penalties for not filing campaign and personal disclosures for four consecutive years between 2012 and 2015.

James says he didn’t file because he didn’t raise any money.

Boston said he is the county’s top prosecutor and the laws were made for everyone, including him.

James has made a point of saying Boston lacks prosecuto-

rial experience.

“He didn’t have any experience when he first became DA,” she said, pointing out that both of them graduated from law school the same year, 1999.

They have battled over the McDuffie lawsuit filed against James and DeKalb Sheriff Jeff Mann and unnamed DeKalb employees of both offices. Darrick McDuffie, who was arrested in a shooting case, was cleared by the victim’s affidavit, but he spent 581 days – from Nov. 6, 2012, to April 19, 2014 – in the DeKalb Jail. The final 52 days of his incarceration came after James’ office dismissed the case against him on Feb. 26, 2014.

Boston succeeded James in the Solicitor General’s Office when Gov. Nathan Deal, who had passed her over for a State Court judgeship but was impressed with her, appointed her to the office that James left to run for DA. Even though Boston and James run the county’s prosecuting offices – she for misdemeanor crimes, and he for felony crimes and cases go back and forth between the offices, Boston said they never developed a good working relationship because James had favored someone else for the job.

“So it means we don’t have any real partnerships,” she said. “That’s a shame and a disservice to the county.”

Boston plans to change that if she becomes DA. “I look forward to being district attorney and having the most comprehensive, expansive relationship that will allow the work in this county to be done extremely well and collaboratively,” she said.

The solicitor’s office has 100 employees and a $7 million budget. The DA’s office has 150 employees and $13 million budget.

Boston said running the DA’s office is like running a large law firm.

If she wins, she said the first thing she will do is take a long hard look at the office’s structure, management and, most importantly, the morale.

“The morale of the office, as I understand it, is very low,” she said, adding that it was the same when she arrived at the solicitor’s office after James.

“At the end of the day, the office needs leadership and they need a leader they can believe in,” she said.

Why is Rod Bridges No Longer a Judge?

Judge Bridges Lopez

1.

Former Judge Rod Bridges UNLAWFULLY ordered the arrest of a defense lawyer without cause.

2.

A COMPLAINT ǁĂƐ ĮůĞĚ ĂŐĂŝŶƐƚ ZŽĚ Bridges for the ILLEGAL arrest

3.

Former Judge Rod Bridges was SUSPENDED for 5 months and then was REMOVED ĨƌŽŵ ŽĸĐĞ

A Judge’s job is to uphold the law, not break it.

DeKalb Deserves Better!

Re-Elect Our Judge

Dax Lopez

www.daxfordekalb.com lopez 10.1x8 bridges.indd 1

Nominated by President Obama

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10+ Year Resident of DeKalb County

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CrossRoadsNews

B6

May 21, 2016

44 candidates in 17 contested races Dekalb chief executive officer

Joe Bembry

Connie Stokes

DeKalb District Attorney

Sherry Boston

Robert D. James (I)

Tax commissioner

Michael Thurmond

Irvin J. Johnson

Board of commissioners, district 4

Sharon Barnes-Sutton (I) Steve Bradshaw

DeKalb Solicitor General

Donna Coleman-Stribling Nicole Marchand Golden

State Representative (82) (D)

Mary Margaret Oliver (I)

Brian Westlake

Paid for by the Committee to Elect Kyle Jones

Susannah Scott

Board of co

Kathie Gann

Lance Hammonds

United States Senate (D)

Jim Barksdale

State Representative (84) (D)

Rahn Mayo (I)

Stan Wats

Renitta Shannon

Cheryl Copeland

John F. Coyne III

State Representative (86) (D)

Michele Henson (I)

Joscelyn Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Neil

CrossRoadsNews

May 21, 2016

B7

Polls open May 24 â&#x20AC;˘ 7am â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 7pm DeKalb County Sheriff

son

Geraldine Champion

Ted Golden

ommissioners, district 6

non (I)

Warren Mosby

Kyle Keith Jones

Roderick Bridges

Toney L. Collins

Clarence Seeliger (I)

Superior Court Judge

Dee Dawkins-Haigler

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Coachâ&#x20AC;? Williams (I)

Stephone Johnson

Dax Lopez (I)

State Representative (87) (D)

Ivy Green

Michael Williams

Superior Court Judge

State Court Judge

State Senate (43) (D)

Tonya P. Anderson

Jeffrey L. Mann (I)

Angela Brown

Gail C. Flake (I)

State Representative (91) (D)

Charles Hill

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CrossRoadsNews

B8

May 21, 2016

The winner of the race will go up against Republican and former DeKalb Reserve Lt. Harold Dennis in November.

Low employee morale consume sheriff ’s challengers

By Donna Williams Lewis For CrossRoadsNews

Employee morale emerged quickly as the focus of a DeKalb County sheriff ’s candidates forum in Decatur this week.

Sheriff Jeff Mann called rumblings of morale issues a “false premise.”

“There’s always this morale problem during election time,” he said. “It never comes up during non-election time.”

Retired DEA Special Agent Ted Golden responded that morale is indeed low.

He added that of five candidates on the panel, four had been uniformed law enforcement officers, throwing a barb at Mann.

“It’s very difficult for anyone to take leadership of any department when they haven’t walked the walk,” Golden said.

Mann was elected in 2014 to fill the unexpired term of Sheriff Thomas Brown, who left office to challenge Hank Johnson for his congressional seat.

Mann has been with the Sheriff ’s Office since 2001, working in labor relations and legal affairs until his promotion to chief deputy under Brown. In that position, he oversaw the day-to-day operations of the office, 860 full-time employees and an annual budget of more than $78 million.

All five Democrats vying for the job appeared at New Life Baptist Church for the May 16 forum sponsored by CrossRoadsNews, New Life Baptist Church and the Rotary Club of South DeKalb.

Retired Atlanta Police homicide Detective Geraldine Champion, former DeKalb Sheriff Lt. Kyle Jones and law enforcement Officer Michael Williams join Mann and Golden on the ballot for the May 24 primary.

The winner of that contest will go up against Republican and former DeKalb

Geraldine Champion (from left), Ted Golden, Kyle Jones, Sheriff Jeff Mann and Michael Williams participate in a May 16 forum at New Life Baptist in Decatur.

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Reserve Lt. Harold Dennis in the Nov. 8 general election.

Dennis’ presence at the forum was acknowledged. He was not invited to participate on the panel because he is uncontested.

Mann said he is executing the missions he set in 2014 such as increasing staff development, expanding technology and reducing the level of warrants.

“We have continued to maintain a national Triple Crown accreditation of distinction awarded by the National Sheriffs’ Association, and we will continue to do that,” Mann said.

Asked to name three challenges the Sheriff ’s Office faces, candidates spoke mainly about matters relating to officer morale, alleging lack of training, pay raises and paths to fair promotion and forced overtime.

Williams, currently an investigator in

ing federal lawsuits for violation of the civil rights of DeKalb County inmates.

Mann said his challengers’ allegations of employees not getting pay raises and being inadequately trained were “incorrect.”

Mann praised Sheriff ’s Office employees in his closing remarks.

“You don’t become one of the top sheriff ’s offices in the nation by accident,” he said.

“You don’t receive the certifications and accreditations and go through the processes unless you’re viewed as the best. I’m proud of the work of the men and women who have done that.”

Champion made several campaign promises in her final statement.

Among them was this: “I’m going to give – I want this printed – a whole month of my salary to start a drug rehab program that doesn’t come up only during election,” Champion said. “These people need some help.”

the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office, said deputies are “leaving in droves.”

He wants the Sheriff ’s Office to become active in enforcing DeKalb County’s laws.

“The truth be known, we’ve got to do something about it because the Police Department is already operating at a critical level,” he said.

Champion said she will have an opendoor policy and meet monthly with employees and county citizens.

Jones said he would work on the time it takes for inmates to be booked, review the treatment of inmates, and improve security of the jail and courts.

Both he and Golden talked about working with youth.

Golden said the Sheriff ’s Office needs to help “shut down that pipeline from the schoolhouse to the jailhouse.”

Golden also hammered in on the treatment of inmates, saying there are 14 pend-

Devoted to a Better, Safer DeKalb I am ready to get to work for you: a lifelong connection to DeKalb County, extensive trial experience, day-to-day courtroom supervision and the balanced perspective of handling cases both as a prosecutor and a defense attorney prepare me. I can make a difference. We can build safer communities and more secure families together.

“Jim Barksdale is an authentic, caring and successful businessman who supports policies that promote prosperity for all, not just the wealthy. Jim has my wholehearted support to be Georgia’s next US Senator.”

- US Rep. Hank Johnson Endorsed by: US Rep. Hank Johnson Former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin GA House Democratic Leader Stacey Abrams GA House Minority Chairman Virgil Fludd

“Donna Coleman Stribling is an exceptional candidate for Solicitor General. She is an experienced, seasoned prosecutor, and she is a product of DeKalb County with a passion to serve the citizens of DeKalb.”

Congressman Henry "Hank" Johnson

GA House Minority Whip Carolyn Hugley GA Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick GA Rep. Brian Prince • GA Rep. Debbie Buckner Rev. Raphael Warnock

Vote Jim Barksdale Tuesday, May 24th

“I support Donna because she understands the importance of service.

She believes in transparency and she has an unquestionable reputation of integrity and high moral values.”

DeKalb County Commissioner Mereda Johnson Vote for Donna in the Democratic Primary. www.DonnaForDeKalb.com

Paid for by Donna Coleman-Stribling for Solicitor, P.O. Box 360248, Decatur, GA 30036

Jim Barksdale Georgian. Democrat.

Standing against the Washington crowd.

www.JimBarksdale.com

Paid for by Jim Barksdale for Senate

CrossRoadsNews

May 21, 2016

B9

The winner of the Democratic primary on May 24 will face Republican Jack Lovelace in the Nov. 8 general election.

DeKalb CEO candidates want to transform county

By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

Michael Thurmond wants to “change the trajectory” of the county and build a model community that others will look to emulate.

Connie Stokes wants to put her experience to work for the county.

Joe Bembry wants to dispatch 1,800 new police officers to fight crime.

Only one of them will get to be the next DeKalb CEO. On May 24, voters must pick.

Thurmond, a former DeKalb superintendent, state labor commissioner, and DeKalb Family and Children Services commissioner, is also a lawyer. Supporters drafted him to run in hopes that he can steady the county, much like he did with the DeKalb School District when it faced loss of its accreditation due to governance and other issues.

The county that the new CEO will lead has been battered by a spate of corruption indictments. Suspended CEO Burrell Ellis, whom they will replace, has served time in state prison on a conviction for corruption, and former Commissioner Elaine Boyer is currently serving time in federal prison for misuse of county funds. Citizens are frustrated by the lack of economic development and curb appeal in South DeKalb.

Thurmond told voters at a May 16 Vote 2016 Forum co-hosted by CrossRoadsNews, New Life Baptist Church and Rotary Club of South DeKalb that the county is facing many challenges but he is tired of hearing about how great it used to be.

“If we come together and work together, we can make DeKalb as great as it has ever been.”

Thurmond said we must have an open and transparent government that is focused

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

DeKalb CEO candidates Michael Thurmond (from left), Connie Stokes and Joe Bembry speak at the May 16 forum at New Life Baptist Church in Decatur.

on serving the citizens.

“I am convinced that working together as your CEO, with commissioners and people in this room, and all across this great county, we can rise above our differences, find solutions to seemingly intractable problems,” he said.

“We will put real focus on improving our economic environment. We will create jobs for our young people. We will support our school system, and reduce crime.”

Stokes, a former DeKalb commissioner and state senator, said she chaired the BOC’s budget committee for six years and is ready to run the county.

“I am really passionate about public service,” she said. “I am running for office to create opportunities, to create jobs, to make sure that this is a safe place for us to live, that we can close our eyes at night and wake up

Re-Elect Judge Gail Flake Experience is Essential • DeKalb Superior Court Judge since 1993 • Former Judge of DeKalb State Court and Recorders Court • Graduate of Emory School of Law and Georgia Institute of Technology • 40+ year resident of DeKalb County

“I thank the citizens of DeKalb County for your continued support over the years and ask for your vote on May 24th and the privilege of continuing to serve you on the Superior Court.”

PLEASE VOTE

Judge Gail Flake - DeKalb Superior Court NON-PARTISAN PRIMARY May 24th

without someone kicking our door down.”

Stokes, who spent 16 years between her two previous elected offices, said everywhere she goes, people are talking to her about public safety.

“People just need to feel safe,” she said.

Stokes said citizens want open and honest government and that most of DeKalb’s employees are honest, hardworking people.

Bembry, who has run multiple times for CEO and for the DeKalb Commission and other offices, said that every direction he looks, he sees a mess.

“I keep saying to myself if they had supported me way back when, we wouldn’t have none of this,” he said.

Bembry said that “everything that’s done in this county is done wrong.”

“That’s one of the first things we are go-

ing to have to address. Take the corruption problem,” he said. “I have been trying for the last 40 years to bring it to the light. I am about to bring it to the light.”

Bembry said he wants to give county employees a 6 percent raise.

Thurmond said that we need more police officers and more men and women working in the county’s 911 center.

“It’s a shame that so many people call and can’t get their calls answered in a timely manner,” he said.

Thurmond said that we must put young people to work.

“When I was labor commissioner, I learned that the crime rate for young black males with jobs is the same as the crime rate for young white men with jobs,” he said.

“We have to be about creating employment opportunity for young people and increasing the graduation rate.”

Thurmond and Stokes promised that they will clean up the county and push for street sweepers to keep the curbs clean.

Bembry did not answer the question, saying instead that he was just trying to get his message out about crime and corruption. He accused both of his opponents of protecting and shielding crooks.

In his closing statement, Thurmond said that he has never been arrested, tried or locked up.

“I know Ms. Stokes can say the same thing,” he said. “I don’t know about the other candidate,” Bembry, a Decatur businessman, has spent time in jail for code violations associated with the rundown conditions of some of his properties.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Jack Lovelace in the Nov. 8 general election.

CrossRoadsNews

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May 21, 2016

“People can’t grow businesses when others don’t have enough money to buy your cars, buy your houses.”

Ken Watts / CrossRoadsNews

U.S. Senate candidate Jim Barksdale speaks with Cheryl Board (left) and Elaine Davis-Nickens.

Barksdale going after Washington

By Ken Watts

ON MAY 24

Millionaire Jim Barksdale, who wants to leave the business world for the U.S. Senate, says the burdens of underemployment and income inequality hurt everyone.

“People can’t grow businesses when others don’t have enough money to buy your cars, buy your houses,” he said. “People can’t grow business when people can’t pay their mortgages. That’s not good for anybody.”

Barksdale is one of three Democrats vying for their party’s nomination in the May 24 primary.

The others are AT&T manager Cheryl Copeland and businessman John F. Coyne III. James Knox, an information technologist, withdrew from the race in April.

Barksdale stopped by the Greater Lithonia Chamber of Commerce luncheon meeting on May 18 to listen in on a panel discussion on the 2016 General Assembly session with state Reps. Pam Stephenson, Dar’shun Kendrick and Dee Dawkins-Haigler.

Barksdale said after the meeting that U.S. free trade deals with Mexico, China and other countries lead to American companies shutting down factories in the United States and moving jobs overseas to exploit cheaper labor.

“It’s very hard for an American worker to compete against a dollar an hour income or compete against someone who doesn’t have running water or an educational system,” he said. “We need to uphold our standard of decency in all our [trade] agreements.”

Barksdale, 63, is president and chief in

vestment officer at Equity Investment Corp., which he founded in 1986.

If he wins the nomination, Barksdale hopes to unseat Republican Johnny Isakson, 71, in the Nov. 8 general election.

Isakson, who has been in the Senate since 2005, is facing opposition in the GOP primary from MARTA engineer Derrick Grayson and college professor Mary Kay Baccallao.

Barksdale, who was born in Macon, has an M.B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Finance.

After several years in various corporate positions in the United States and Europe, he relocated his family to Atlanta in 1986 and begin his investment firm in a spare bedroom at his house. The firm now manages about $5 billion for clients across the United States.

U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson said Barksdale has the best shot against Isakson.

Barksdale said that in his Buckhead neighborhood, down from the Governor’s Mansion, he has been fearless in standing up for what he believes in.

In his television commercial, Barksdale says he is not a politician.

“I am an investment manager who stood against the Wall Street crowd to protect my client’s retirements,” he said. “Now I am running for the Senate to stand against the Washington crowd.”

Barksdale said data suggest that his ideas about social justice are gaining traction with voters.

“This is going to be a much more competitive race than anybody expected,” he said.

Re-Elect Commissioner

SHARON

Barnes-

Sutton

Proven, Effective

Leadership

“Over the past 8 years I have worked hard and KEPT MY PROMISES to you. Now I ask for your SUPPORT and YOUR VOTE to continue the work of making DeKalb BETTER!” WĂŝĚ ĨŽƌ ďLJ &Z/ E ^ K& ^, ZKE ZE ^Ͳ^hddKE͕ /E ͘

CrossRoadsNews

May 21, 2016

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Two races will be on the May 24 ballot – a special election to replace Claudia Lawson and the Democratic primary.

Tax Commissioner candidates face two elections on May 24 Interim Tax Commissioner Irvin Johnson and attorney Susannah Scott present their views at the May 16 forum at New Life Baptist Church in Decatur.

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Watson was a no-show again

By Donna Williams Lewis

For a political forum, it was rather refined.

Interim Tax Commissioner Irvin Johnson and attorney Susannah Scott answered questions about their qualifications for the tax commissioner’s job in a May 16 forum at New Life Baptist Church.

Stan Watson, who resigned his Super District 7 County Commission seat to run for tax commissioner, was a no-show at the forum that was co-sponsored by CrossRoadsNews.

Two tax commissioner races will be on the May 24 ballot – a special election to replace Claudia Lawson, who retired in December, and the Democratic primary for a new fouryear term starting in January 2017.

During the forum, Johnson emphasized his 15-year experience in the tax office and the fact that the office is doing its job – to collect taxes and distribute tax funds.

“Our tax office consistently year in, year out has been within this county and within the state of Georgia held up as a model tax office,” Johnson said.

He said there is always room for improvement, but it would be hard-fought.

“We collect currently 99 percent of the assessed taxes in the county,” Johnson said.

Scott pushed public access and a “fresh perspective.”

“I agree it is hard to improve on that kind

of … collection rate,” but the office can work better for the citizens, she said.

Scott said she is aware that taxes can be paid online and at satellite self-service kiosks for tag and tax renewal that were recently introduced at two Kroger locations.

“But if you have a problem and you need to talk to someone in the office, we need to make sure the office is accessible to you when you need it to be,” said Scott, who said extended or Saturday hours should be considered.

Scott, daughter of late former Tax Commissioner Tom Scott, said she learned a lot about managing people and budgets through her work with the League of Women Voters and the Junior League in DeKalb County.

Johnson began at the Tax Commissioner’s Office as a computer technician and was chief deputy of the office before becoming its interim director.

“I started back in 2000,” Johnson said, “and I’m looking forward to continuing the reputation that we have in securing the future in terms of success, ethical behavior, transparency and long-standing performance.”

On May 24, Vote To Keep Judge Clarence Seeliger

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CrossRoadsNews

B12

EŽŵŝŶĂƚĞĚ ďLJ WƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚ KďĂŵĂ

“JUDGE LOPEZ IS A HIGHLY QUALIFIED CANDIDATE WHO ENJOYS DEEP SUPPORT FROM BOTH SIDES OF THE AISLE.”

May 21, 2016

www.daxfordekalb.com Re-Elect Judge Dax Lopez May 24, 2016

Paid for by the Committee to Elect Judge Dax E. Lopez

-WHITE HOUSE

ZĞͲ ůĞĐƟŽŶ ŶĚŽƌƐĞĚ ďLJ͗ Endorsed by

Johnson

ZĞƉ͘ ^ĐŽƩ ,ŽůĐŽŵď

Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver

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State Senator Elen a Pa

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Rep. Doreen Carter

Frmr State Senator Jason Carter

Commissioner Mereda Davis Johnson

Lithonia Mayor Deborah Jackson

“

Congressman Hank

For six years now I have served as your Division Six State Court Judge and it has been an honor. I humbly ask for your support and your vote on or before May 24th so I can continue working for our communities and our families. -- Dax

Community. Family. Justice.

Re-Elect President Obama’s Nominee

Dax Lopez www.daxfordekalb.com

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