FREE VOLUME 24 NUMBER 49
MARCH 8, 2019
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Serving DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale Counties
Delay angers veterans’ group, community activists By Valerie J. Morgan A veterans group and community activists in DeKalb County are demanding answers in the Anthony Hill murder case as Hill’s fatal shooting by former DeKalb police officer Robert Olsen approaches its four-year anniversary.
The case hit another delay with the news that the trial, scheduled for Feb. 25, is now set for Sept. 23. Hill, a 27-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran who served in Afghanistan, was shot and killed on March 9, 2015 by former Olsen. Hill was
SEE TRIAL page 7
Robert Olsen
Anthony Hill
OPERATION SURPRISE Army vet returns home, surprises family at Rockdale school assembly
By Mackenzie N. Morgan The Hodge family is still basking in its excitement after welcoming home daughter and sister SPC Amneiah Hodge at a military homecoming celebration held on March 6 at Heritage High School in Rockdale County. SPC Hodge, who graduated from DeKalb County’s Arabia Mountain High School in 2014, recently returned to the U.S. after spending nine months overseas in Zagan, Poland and Grafenwöhr, Germany. The Conyers servicewoman and her mother, Candice Hodge, orchestrated the surprise homecoming for Amneiah’s father, Henry Hodge, Jr., who works as an intel specialist at Heritage High, and two younger brothers, Henry and Isiah, who are both in the school’s ROTC program. During a special ROTC exercise, Heritage Principal Latonya Richards announced that a special guest was in the building and asked for Intel specialist Henry Hodge to come forward. SPC Hodge emerged from the ROTC demonstration dressed in camouflage. Students, staff and relatives cheered and clapped as
SPC Hodge was embraced by her teary-eyed and speechless dad. He was joined shortly after by her two equally shocked brothers. “It was a lot to keep all of this bottled in. Now I can stop telling the little white lies and avoiding certain conversations,” said Candice Hodge. Candice Hodge said the weeks of secrecy were well worth the smiles on her family’s faces after seeing her family reunited for the first time in a year. “We couldn’t have done it
without Principal Richards. I am so appreciative of Principal Richards and her staff for helping to make this event so special,” said Hodge. Candice Hodge said she spent several weeks secretly planning the homecoming with Richards, who helped coordinate the event in conjunction with the school’s “Marching Forward” program which highlights student achievement across various disciplines during the month of March while motivating students to excel as they move
toward testing and graduation season. “We were just so happy to welcome back SPC Hodge. The dad works here, and the sons attend here as well and we just couldn’t think of a nicer family to do this for,” said Richards. Mom Candice Hodge said after all of the excitement, the family went home and enjoyed a family dinner featuring Amneiah’s favorite: shrimp and grits. Outside of extended family members, SCP Hodge, 21, is the first person in her immediate family to enlist in the military. SPC Hodge, who was attending Georgia Southwestern State University prior to enlisting in the Army, said she plans to return to school to obtain her degree. For the next two weeks, however, she will enjoy spending time with her family as a civilian. SPC Hodge will be stationed in Fort Hood, Texas as a unit supply clerk. SPC Amneiah Hodge represents Unit HHC BDE 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team 1st Cavalry Division. To see the surprise homecoming celebration video and more photos, visit www.ocgnews.com.
Georgia Lottery opens retail location at Atlanta airport
Pictured from left to right are Erica Owens, Georgia Lottery Vice President of Sales Operations; Charles E. “Chilly” Ewing Sr., Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Director of Concessions; Deborah Gatlin, Georgia Lottery Sales Operations Manager; Gretchen Corbin, Georgia Lottery President and CEO; Michael L. Smith, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Senior Deputy General Manager.
ATLANTA – The Georgia Lottery Corp. celebrated the grand opening of its new store at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on March 7. Located on Concourse T, this is the Georgia Lottery’s first retail location at the airport beyond security checkpoints. “We want to be where people are, and what better place than ‘The World’s Busiest Airport?’ ” Georgia Lottery President and CEO Gretchen Corbin said. “There’s no other venue in the state that can match the volume of consumers that Atlanta’s airport provides. Our new airport location will generate additional dollars for HOPE scholarships and grants, including the Zell Miller Scholarship, as well as lottery-funded Pre-K.” The Georgia Lottery has operated two kiosks in North and South baggage claim since November 2006. Those combined locations rank as the No. 2 retailer in the state
in lottery sales. The Georgia Lottery’s new Concourse T store will reach passengers with connecting flights, which account for approximately twothirds of the airport’s travelers. As with the baggage claim kiosks, players at the Georgia Lottery’s Concourse T store will be able to purchase scratch-off and draw game tickets, as well as claim prizes up to $25,000. Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $20.5 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia’s Pre-K Program. More than 1.8 million students have received HOPE, and more than 1.6 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.