WGPB News

No Comic Book Obscenity

2008-04-22T14:55:00.001-04:00

Floyd County prosecutors have ended a multi year case against Legends Comic Book Store owner Gordon Lee. Officials say Lee had distributed obscene material to minors.

On Halloween night three years ago, Lee handed out over twenty two hundred comic books to costumed children. One of the comics was about Pablo Picasso, and in one of the panels, the famed artist appeared nude.

That comic ended up in the hands of two small children. Their parents brought the comic to authorities, and in all, nine charges related to obscenity were brought against Lee.

The comic book store owner found out he was cleared this Friday.

“We finally got a call from our attorney and he said it’s over. We were just ecstatic that it was finally over, just trying to put it behind us.”

Lee had to postpone his wedding to fight the charges, which cost over one hundred thousand dollars in defense fees. Free speech advocates and the comic industry paid much of that bill. Lee issued personal apologies to the family as part of the deal.

Clean Cities Coalition comes to Rome

2007-06-14T06:51:00.000-04:00

Just days after Bibb County reached EPA attainment for its levels of air pollution, a new partnership hopes to do the same thing in Northwest Georgia.

There may not be any actual cities in the area, but that isn’t stopping the Clean Cities Coalition from locating its newest office here.

Several Northwest Georgia Counties, like Floyd, Walker and Murray, have high levels of air pollution and are in non-attainment with the EPA.

The Clean Cities Coalition is a project of the US Department of Energy. It partners with local industries to decrease the use of petroleum consumption and already has offices in Macon and Tifton.

Georgia Clean Cities Executive Director Charise Stephens said because there are already two bio-diesel producers in Rome, the area has a head start.

Can you imagine the potential? You have the distributor, you have the producers here, and you have 15 counties that can possibly use the project.

Stephens said the coalition will also work to encourage alternative transportation.

Wilson remains in jail

2007-06-13T07:51:00.002-04:00

Genarlow Wilson will spend this Independence Day in jail.

Despite a judge’s ruling on Monday that he should be released, Wilson will spend at least three more weeks in jail.

Wilson, 21, is in prison for having consensual oral sex with a 15-year-old girl when he was a 17-year-old Douglas County High School Student.

Douglas County Superior Court Judge David Emerson yesterday set the bond hearing for July fifth.

Powder Springs soldier dies

2007-06-13T07:51:00.001-04:00

A soldier from the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade has died after suffering injuries during an accident in a motor pool at Fort Campbell.

Military officials say 22-year-old Specialist Crystal Bolling, of Powder Springs, was an ammunition specialist assigned to 1st Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment.

Boy rescued from hot car in Ringgold

2007-06-13T07:49:00.000-04:00

Ringgold police rescued a boy from a hot car yesterday where his mother's companion is accused of tying him up.

Police officials say a Cracker Barrel restaurant employee called them after seeing Raymond Minchew take the six-year-old out of the restaurant and return without him.

The 61-year-old Minchew and the boy's mother -- 35-year-old Rachel Gilchrist -- were arrested and charged with cruelty to children and concealing a weapon. There was a handgun in the car.

Investigators believe the boy was in the hot car for about a half hour.