Will We Finally Have Ethics Reform in Georgia?

The 40 days of the next General Assembly session will not be boring.

As we turn the calendar to 2013, we leave behind a year of successes and failures. It is easy to begin listing the failures, but I refuse to invest my time in being negative. Rather than dealing in the past, let us look forward into the future in our state of Georgia. On the second Monday of January, the Georgia General Assembly will open for the 40-day legislative session. There are some new people in places of leadership under the Gold Dome. Hopefully, this will be positive in terms of moving legislation that is needed to help make our state stronger in ethics reform and care for those who need a voice. Without making sweeping statements about former or even current leaders, I choose to deal with issues. When this session begins, I will …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)

Behind The Badge

Four (Moving) Words

Stan Hall, director of the Gwinnett County Victim Witness program, weighs in on the current illegal immigration issues facing the country.

Despite what my seventh-grade English teacher might say, I am an ardent student of words. Well, she may admit that even as a seventh-grader, I had a good resource of words. But, it was not the list of words she may have approved of. Over the years I have noticed a pattern of words that lead to change. While the change can be both for good or bad, and can be both popular or negative, they literally all end in the same fashion. It seems that any word that ends with “gration” usually stirs up trouble to some degree once it is uttered. I remember clearly the history lessons of the migration to the west by the early settlers in our country. The move was one with potential reward, but many dreams never came to fruition and many lives were lost …

• Photos (1)

Lawrenceville Man Pleads Guilty to Immigration Crime

Zeljko Zekic lied to officials about his residence and employment during the Bosnian war, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

A 48-year-old Lawrenceville man who served in the Serbian paramilitary police during the 1992-95 Bosnian War pleaded guilty Tuesday to lying to immigration officials about his background, the U.S. Justice Department said in a news release. Zeljko Zekic had filed paperwork saying that he was unemployed and living in the Serbian Republic, disguising his true role in the conflict under accused war ciminal Ratko Mladic, according to the release. U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates charged that Zekic and his family applied for refugee status in the United States in 2002 and eventually were allowed to move here based on the false information. Zekic later received a green card and is now a permanent resident alien, according to the release. Later …

• Photos (1)