VOLUME 22 NUMBER 5
FREE
APRIL30, 2016
Published Since April 1995 Serving DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale Counties • www.facebook.com/ocgnews
NHSCA’S COACH OF THE YEAR Honors keep coming for Miller Grove’s Coach Sharman White By Valerie J. Morgan
In 2014, White was named the USA Today All-USA boys Coach of eKalb County’s Miller the Year. Grove High School has “It feels good to be honored. I another reason to be look at the recognition as a reflection proud: Head Coach Sharman White of a team effort. We had great players, has been named Coach of the Year by a great coaching staff. We all worked the National High School Coaches hard together,” said White. “While Association (NHSCA). being named Coach of the Year is an This year, the Miller Grove boys individual award, it’s a team award.” basketball team won its seventh state White said he received word championship in eight seasons, finish- about the national recognition on ing with a 30-2 record. White’s record April 26. As an honoree, White will as a head coach is 372-90. receive a trophy and will be honored Earlier this month, White was in the National High School Sports announced as an assistant coach for Hall of Fame Museum that the NHSthe 2016 USA Basketball Men’s U17 CA will be building in the near future. World Championship Team. Meanwhile, White said he is
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looking forward to continuing to work hard at Miller Grove. “That’s the plan. If the right opportunity presents itself, I will just have to weigh it and see if it works for me,” said White. Georgia has had only one other coach to be named Coach of the Year by the NHSCA since it began giving out the awards in 2000: Doug Lipscomb of Cobb County’s Wheeler High School was named Coach of the Year in 2012.
Army of volunteers make Rockdale’s Great American Cleanup a huge success
Coach Sharman White
Activists demand action against Atlanta officer who beat Wal-Mart customer over tomato
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ommunity activist Derrick Boazman and others are demanding action against an Atlanta Police officer who brutally beat a Wal-Mart customer who was falsely accused of stealing a tomato. Although the attack against Tyrone Carnegay, 53, happened in 2014, the incident came to the public’s Derrick Boazman attention only recently after fact that the charges were media reports. The off-duty dropped underscore the case officer, Trevor King, was working security at the Wal- is problematic. “The officer said Mr. Mart on MLK Drive in Atlanta when he began beating Carnegay was reaching for his gun. It’s the classic lanCarnegay as Carnegay was guage they’ve been trained leaving the store. to use in lawsuits to justify “This case is egregious beating a citizen,” Boazman on so many levels. Not only said. “We see this all the was Mr. Carnegay beaten Kingdom Builders Covenant Church in Rockdale County had a team of 41 volunteers to participate in time.” the cleanup initiative. Photo provided. and his leg broken, he was Boazman, who was falsely accused of stealing ockdale County demonstrated ington, who serves as chair of Keep Cojoined at a news conference what a small army of volunnyers-Rockdale Beautiful and is the county’s when he had a receipt for the on April 28 by Michael tomato and he spent three teers can do when they’re on Chief Deputy Tax Commissioner. “It was Langford, president of the days in jail,” said Boazman. a mission. County officials say this year’s great. We were extremely pleased.” United Youth-Adult ConferCarnegay said after Great American Cleanup, which was held More than 25 teams participated in ence, said he and other combeing handcuffed to his in partnership with Keep Conyers-Rockdale Rockdale’s cleanup event. They disbursed munity activists want Fulton Beautiful, was a huge success, thanks to around the county, including parks, schools hospital bed with a broken County District Attorney volunteers. A record number of them—over and neighborhoods, and along roadways and leg and a severed artery, he Paul Howard and Atlanta was jailed on felony assault 500—turned out for the April 23 event, orga- highways. Police Chief George Turner charges against the officer. nizers said. Richard Oden, Chairman of the Rockto review the case. Boazman Those charges, however, “Last year, we had 350 volunteers. This dale Board of Commissioners, said he was said Turner has asked the year, we decided to step it up. We wanted especially pleased that so many youths were were dropped after Carnegay Office of Professional Stanspent three days in jail. more but we didn’t expect that it would be Boazman said the See Cleanup, page 10 See Activists, page 10 that many more,” said Tisa Smart Wash-
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