Good evening.
Thanks for joining us.
I'm Frank Malloy.
And I'm Leah Johnson.
This is Eyewitness News at 11.
Our top story tonight is weather...
Much of central Georgia is under a tornado watch at this hour.
That's something you usually don't see this time of year..
John Boyer is keeping an eye on the weather...He joins us now with the latest..
John?
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Our other top story tonight - the Bibb County school board spent several hours talking about discipline and safety issues in the schools..
The meeting was called after an audit on school safety revealed many pitfalls---
Last week, there were at least 4 reported incidents of students handling knives and guns at school and at a bus stop.
Candace Adorka and Katelyn Heck followed the meeting.
Candace begins our team coverage..
<building confidence in our public schools is advantageous for staff and for our community at large. To do so, we must all work dilligently to ensure that students and their families have access to accurate information. As the superintendent, I take my responsibility to provide correct information to the public seriously. However I recognize that I share that responsibility with others including board members staff members and the media.>
District officials also talked about the Safe Haven report-- that's the company the district hired to assess safety in bibb schools.
It found many gaps, and as result made many recommendations.
One of those recommendations asked the district to pull out of an agreement with the juvenile justice system to cut down on the number of kids who are sent before a judge for misdemeanors committed at school.
There's a similar program in Clayton County, and at the meeting, Steven Teske, chief juvenile court judge, told board members that was bad idea.
<lets not try to kill a fly with a hammer. This agreement has nothing to do with promoting under-reporting of school offenses. You're required to do it. If there is an issue there, then find ways to resolve that issue, but don't go after an agreement that's trying to find better ways to handle kids disciplinary problems without aggravating them.>
That opened the floor for questions and comments from board members.
The room had been fairly quiet until this point but the board room packed with community members started to react and applaud when board members brought up their concerns.
For example Ella Carter said she spoke to at least 21 school employees and community members, and she listed their concerns.
And susan middleton spoke of her experience in the classroom.
Gary bechtel questioned why the board was only now having this discussion. His questions went unanswered but there were some details that the district did give.
Katelyn heck was with me and has more on what they discussed.
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The called board meeting was supposed be a discussion of the issues, but there were some policies decisions that came up.
First, the superintendent announced he's going to start looking for a public relations and communications first to improve how information gets around within the district and outside district offices.
Also Deputy superintendent of student affairs ED Judie made a few recommendations to the board on more things they could do to improve safety
He mentioned a Campus police task force to identify and interact with at risk students.
He also wants to see random searches at least monthly, where students belongings would be searched for contraband, and canines will be used to search common areas like lockers bathrooms and classrooms.
He proposed a new data reporting policy, were every day, principals would have to input discipline incidents--- including those that happen on busses-- into a computer system
David Gowan, director of risk management went over the safe haven report. He said it would take 6 to 18 months to go through all recommendations, then prioritize and implement them.
HE said they will improve the district's emergency response plans,
and also change the code sytem-- for example code yellow, code red-- and instead use plain language.
They also plan to train all employees in the school to be part of the emergency response plans, not just administrators and teachers.
those are only some of the changes gowan mentioned. But school board members had a lot more questions and concerns that werrent addressed at the called meeting.
Board president tommy barnes says starting in October, they'll get a month update form the superintendent on what theyre doing to improve safety and discipline in bibb schools.
Frank? Leah?
The school board has a regularly scheduled meeting on thursday.
No word yet if they plan to vote or discuss any of the policies that were proposed tonight.
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Macon police arrested three teenagers after shots were fired near Henderson Stadium Friday night. It happened less than an hour after the football game between Northeast High School and Southwest High School.
Police say officers were called to 1700 Wren Street in reference to a large crowd.
They were canvassing the area when they heard shots.
They detained three young men.
A 14-year-old and a 16-year-old were taken to the Youth Detention Center..
Police arrested 18-year-old Shawn Robinson.
He's charged with hindering and interference and loitering.
Robinson is out on bond.
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Deputies in Telfair County seized about 800 pounds of cocaine in Lumber City.
Sheriff Johnny O. Smith said about half the cocaine was found in a rental truck... hidden under crates of tomatoes.
He says the other half was found buried in plastic barrels in the woods..
In a Facebook post over the weekend, Sheriff Smith says the bust was the largest in Telfair County's history, and the largest in the federal Drug Enforcement Agency's Atlanta office in more than 15 years.
<shocked. I couldn't believe that, I mean I could believe that they'd find drugs here because I know we have a drug problem. But I could not believe the amount that they had found. >
The sheriff's department says four people now face cocaine trafficking charges, including husband and wife Bertin Rivera and Silvina Sanchez who lived on the property near Lumber City.
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Students at Mossy Creek Middle School in Houston County remembered their classmate who was killed over the summer.
She was allegedly shot multiple times by her sister... Carmen.
India Collins would have been a seventh grader this year.
Today her friends.. Teachers and family came together to remember her.
Principal Andy Gentry dedicated a plaque to her parents.. John and Angela.
He also showed them the memorial outside of the school with a weeping willow tree and India's name on a memorial stone.
India's parents also spoke to the students.
< She was so big at heart, sweet innocent , just minded her manners. And when I speak of India, I've got to say Carmen too. Because my girls are so sweet and I miss them so very
much >
India's 17-year old sister Carmen is still in the Houston County jail charged with her murder.
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The Warner Robins mayor fought a losing battle with a majority of council members to create a project manager position within the city.
The contentious issue took center stage for the third council meeting in a row.
Council member Daron Lee battled along side the mayor for the job that would've paid about 48-thousand dollars.
Lee said the city needs a project manager to oversee construction projects like a welcome center... Renovations to city hall... And an expansion to the animal shelter.
Council members Mike Daley... Carolyn Robins and Mike Davis stressed that the city has never had a project manager... And it's not in the budget to add one now.
They believe department heads can handle the work.. as they have in the past.
When Lee called for a vote on the job... He couldn't get a second... And the motion died on the floor.
Shaheen talked about his frustration with the decision.
<I just think it's a lack of cooperation among the council to get projects done. They feel like I should disseminate this to the employees and then not pay them, or they want me to do the projects. It's just good business acumen to have a point of contact for the media, for our contractors. Thanks to the citizens for getting SPLOST projects done. We owe the citizens the right that these projects get done.>
Shaheen says he plans to work around council's objections... by hiring someone with a contracting background into the vacant purchasing agent position.
Then.. That person would handle project management duties.
Council member Mike Daley said he doesn't think that will work... Because state law prohibits cities from being in the general contracting business.
He says it places too much liability on the city.
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From New York to California..members of the "occupy" movement celebrated its first anniversary.
Crowds were smaller than they were a year ago..
Randall Pinkston reports that the group says it's still fighting for the 99 percent.
NATS
SUPPORTERS OF "OCCUPY WALL STREET" RETURNED TO NEW YORK'S FINANCIAL DISTRICT MONDAY TO MARK THE MOVEMENT'S FIRST ANNIVERSARY.
NATS
HUNDREDS OF ACTIVISTS RAISED THEIR VOICES AND CARRIED SIGNS, HOPING TO DRUM UP THE KIND OF SUPPORT THEY HAD A YEAR AGO.
NATS - woman being arrested
SEVERAL PROTESTERS CLASHED WITH POLICE.. ABOUT 150 PEOPLE WERE ARRESTED AS MARCHES BLOCKED OFF BUSY INTERSECTIONS.
SOT 19:33:52
"sometimes, you have go get into the street, make some noise and disrupt the morning flow of traffic in order to get your point across."
MARK BRAY IS AN OCCUPY ORGANIZER. HE SAYS TODAY'S MOVEMENT IS AS MUCH ABOUT FIGHTING FORECLOSURE AND HIGH STUDENT LOAN RATES AS IT IS ABOUT ENDING CORPORATE GREED.
19:30:46
"all these issues are related to the issue of Wall Street... How corporations and financial institutions have too much power in our government, and how if we vote for Obama or Romney, Wall Street wins."
STANDUP BRIDGE:
ONE YEAR AGO, THIS SMALL PARK IN NEW YORK'S FINANCIAL DISTRICT WAS FULL OF 'OCCUPY' ACTIVISTS LIVING IN TENTS. THEY STAYED FOR TWO MONTHS. THIS YEAR, ACTIVE PROTESTS ARE WELCOME... SLEEPING PROTESTERS ARE NOT.
SOME WALL STREET EMPLOYEES SAY THE SO-CALLED 99 PERCENTERS SHOULD GO OCCUPY WASHINGTON. OR JUST GET A JOB.
SOT 13:24;14
"the people, unfortunately, I feel like they just need to find a home, or potentially find work, so that they can take care of themselves a little better."
PROTESTERS SAY THEY *ARE* TAKING BETTER CARE OF *EACH OTHER.* ALL BY SUPPORTING A NATIONAL MOVEMENT THAT IS STILL GROWING.
At its peak..there were hundreds of "occupy" protests around the world..including right here in the Macon.
The largest one in the state was the "Occupy Atlanta" movement.