Have You Seen These Missing Children from Gwinnett?

There are 80 missing children listed in Georgia, and several are from the local area.

With the miraculous discovery of three Ohio women missing for a decade, there is a renewed spotlight on how such cases affect communities across America. According to a U.S. Department of Justice report, some 2,185 children go missing every day. That includes children missing from neighborhoods in Gwinnett County. All total, there are 80 children listed as missing from Georgia, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. -- Have you seen a missing child? See below for a list of children missing from Gwinnett County. -- In the case of the Ohio women, they were each abducted between 2002-2004 and feared dead, according to news reports. On Monday, they were freed thanks, in part, to a local man who stepped in when he …

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Child Abuse: A View from Gwinnett's Department of Family and Children Services

How does Gwinnett County's Department of Family and Children Services work to put children first?

April is National Child Abuse Prevention month.  Child abuse is a topic we do not like to think about and yet to prevent it – at least stop it from reoccurring – we first have to become more actively aware.  The law requires all of us to report what we believe to be the neglect, abuse or abandonment of children younger than 18 years old. We may not be absolutely sure of the situation but it is important to realize that it is better to err on the side of caution.  Child Protective Services has procedures in place to investigate each report.  In 2012 there were 3, 402 reports of child abuse, which was up 261 from 2011.  Most heartbreaking, 18 percent of the cases were reports of abuse for the most helpless of children, from 0 to three years …

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Mark Gary Sentencing for Bribery Delayed

Gwinnett developer now scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 28 for bribing former Gwinnett County commissioner Shirley Lasseter.

U.S. District Court Judge Charles A. Pannell Jr. has continued the sentencing hearing for Gwinnett developer Mark Gary until late February. Gary pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge Oct. 1 in Judge Pannell’s courtroom and was scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 3. Gary’s sentencing is now scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Feb. 28 in Courtroom 2307 of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building in Atlanta. Federal prosecutors had requested a sentencing delay of up to 60 days to facilitate matters relating to Gary’s cooperation in an ongoing investigation of government corruption in Gwinnett County. Gary admitted to bribing former Gwinnett County commissioner Shirley Lasseter to obtain commission approval in 2009 of a controversial $4-million waste …

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Nash, Hunter and Brooks to Be Sworn in Sunday

Group swearing-in ceremony will take place at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center.

Gwinnett County District 3 Commissioner-elect Tommy Hunter, Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash and District 1 Commissioner Jace Brooks will be sworn in this Sunday, Dec. 30 at the Gwinnett County Justice and Administration Center.  Nash, who has served 18 months as chairman since winning a special election in March of 2011, was unopposed in both the primary and general election and will begin a four-year term in January. Hunter defeated two-term commissioner Mike Beaudreau in the August runoff and was unopposed in the general election. He takes office in January. Brooks took office in September after he was the sole candidate to qualify for a special election to fill the District 1 vacancy. He was unopposed in the general election and also…

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Brooks to be Sworn in as County Commissioner

Jace Brooks will fill the rest of the Shirley Lasseter's term on the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners.

All seats in the Gwinnett County Commission will be filled by their next meeting on Tuesday.  On Friday, the county announced Jace Brooks will be sworn in as District 1 Commissioner on Monday. He will complete the term of Shirley Lasseter who resigned in May after pleading guilty to accepting bribes. Brooks was the only candidate who qualified for the special election in November to finish Lasseter's term. He is also running unopposed for the full four-year term in the general election. “We are pleased to have the board at full strength again and wholeheartedly welcome Commissioner Brooks to the commission," said Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash in a release. "He will play an important role as we deal with the issues facing Gwinnett …

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Gwinnett, Buford and Monroe Patch Sites Launch

Beginning the afternoon of Aug. 23, see why Patch is up to in three new sites in Gwinnett County, and meanwhile sign up for newsletters.

WITH VIDEO: Atlanta Falcons Bring Friday Night Lights Back to Gwinnett

Over 12,000 fans watch the NFL team complete a workout, drill session, and scrimmage at Peachtree Ridge High School.

Updated 8:36 a.m., Aug 4. The Atlanta Falcons continued their popular annual "Friday Night Lights" scrimmage series at Peachtree Ridge High School in Gwinnett County on Friday, Aug. 3. The event is an extension of the Falcons preseason training camp, and 2012 marked the fifth consecutive year the Falcons have given their fans an up-close look of the team at a high school venue in Gwinnett County. Previous scrimmages were held at Norcross High in 2011, North Gwinnett High in 2010, Brookwood High School in 2009 and Mill Creek High in 2008. -- Have you attended a Friday Night Lights scrimmage in Gwinnett? Tell us in the comments below. As with past years, the event was free to the public and included a small fan fest with inflatable games, …

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Steve Burns

8:39 am on Saturday, August 4, 2012

This now has a must-see video, with action on the field and from the fan fest. Upload your pics here, too.   more ›

Gwinnett Online Campus Expands to Middle School Classes

The charter school, which opened last year as a high school, will serve grades six through eight for the 2012-2013 school year.

The Gwinnett County Online Campus will expand its curriculum to the middle school level this fall, according to a press release. The charter school, which opened in Norcross last year as a high school under Gwinnett County Public Schools, will have 78 students enrolled in grades six through eight this August. The campus will have a total of 236 students for the 2012-2013 school year. Through its unique learning experience and scheduling flexibility, the Gwinnett Online Campus offers a combination of online and face-to-face on-campus learning. The school "seeks to enhance the learning of students in a world-class virtual environment, empowering them with the 21st century knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the local, national and …

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2012 Drought Qualifies Gwinnett as Natural Disaster Zone

With over half the country experiencing drought, Gwinnett County farmers are now eligible for low-interest emergency loans, with minimal processing time.

Effective July 12, more than 1,000 primary counties in 26 states will be designated as natural disaster areas, making all qualified farm operators in the designated areas eligible for low-interest emergency loans from USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA), according to a USDA press release. All farmers in Gwinnett County, which flunctuates between “severe,” “extreme” and “exceptional” drought status, are eligible. An area must be in severe or worse drought status for eight or more weeks during the growing season to qualify. The United States Department of Agriculture historically has responded to disasters across the country in a number of ways: by providing direct support, disaster assistance, technical assistance, and access to credit. Low-…

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A Candidate Meet & Greet at Berkmar High

Candidates running for various offices set up booths and took part in a meet-and-greet with the public before Gwinnett County judicial candidates debated at the The Gwinnett County Judicial Candidate Forum on The Multilingual Voter Engagement Initiative.

In partnership with the Organization of Chinese Americans (Georgia) and the United Ebony Society of Gwinnett County, the League of Women Voters of Gwinnett County hosted a Judicial Candidate forum at Berkmar High School last night. The forum was crowded as candidates with grassroots campaigns took the opportunity to share their message and shake hands with future constituents. David Hancock, a Suwanee man running for Congress against incumbent Rob Woodall, is making his second bid for public office. He ran for State House four years ago. “The reason I ran four years ago is that the guy that had been my representative for years and years, no one would run against him,” said Hancock. Hancock wishes more people would consider running so that …

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