BEFORE THE SUPERIOR COURTS OF GEORGIA COUNTY OF DOUGHERTY REGARDING: MAY TERM GRAND JURY PRESENTATIONS | Other

BEFORE THE SUPERIOR COURTS OF GEORGIA COUNTY OF DOUGHERTY REGARDING: ARRANGEMENT OF GRAND JURY PRESENTATIONS AT THE MAY TERMINAL The Grand Jury concluded its session today and is making its written and oral presentations in open session. These are filed by the court clerk and published in the statutory organ as required by state law. So, arranged, this June 22, 2022 DOUGHERTY COUNTY GRAND JURY PRESENTATION MAY TERM 2022 To: The Honorable Willie E. Lockette The Honorable Denise Marshall The Honorable Victoria S. Darrisaw (Judge of the Superior Court) The Grand Jury would like to Thank you to the District Attorney Gregory W. Edwards and his staff for the high level of professionalism and respect they have shown at all times while we have been under their care. We also commend District Attorney Greg Edwards for enlightening us on the various crimes that are happening in our community and the laws that need to be enforced in relation to them. We especially commend the District Attorney’s Office along with the Office of the Court Clerk for their hard work and dedication in preparing grand jury cases. The policies and procedures put in place at the courthouse regarding CO VID precautions were followed without issue. We would like to thank those involved in providing a safe and clean operating environment for the Grand Jury Duty service. We also thank the Albany Police Department, Dougherty County Police Department, Sheriffs Department, Albany-Dougherty Drug Unit and officers who have provided us with information about drugs, gangs and other criminal activity in our community. Our thanks go to these and other special employees for their hard work and concern for the citizens of Albany and Dougherty County. This grand jury appreciates the attention and help of our bailiffs. Bailiff Ernxnett Williams, Bailiff Clarence Lanier and Bailiff Don Lamb, Bailiff Shardajah Gaines. The grand jury saw 139 indictments, 136 were returned as true bills and there were 3 no bills. Another 18 were charged by the District Attorney. The Grand Jury made the following recommendations: * We recommend that Albany Utilities (Water, Gas and Light) provide an “easy to use” app that allows customers to view their daily/monthly electricity consumption. *We recommend that alleyways in the city be repaired as needed and maintained regularly by trimming all overgrown bushes and trees. * We recommend allocating additional funds to expand the available housing for Albany’s veterans, seniors, and increasing homeless population. * We recommend that local governments engage in more activities to develop community support and opportunities for veterans and the homeless. *We recommend partnering with local farmers to produce boxes of fresh groceries and/or ready meals for our elderly and disabled citizens who may not be eligible for other support. We also recommend that this should not be an income based program and that meals should be delivered to this community on a weekly basis. * We recommend that the Albany Utilities Board take steps to update all meters to ensure bills are accurate and more cost effective. We also recommend making an overall effort to lower utility rates. * We have found that law enforcement is truly a stressful and demanding career that can impact a person’s personal mental health. We therefore recommend that all law enforcement officers undergo a comprehensive mental assessment as part of the mandatory hiring process, and that they also undergo an annual mental assessment during their employment, to help protect the well-being of officers and the public they serve. * We also recommend giving officers one paid day off after their annual appraisal. * We encourage all relevant agencies to engage in programs and community policing by tackling gangs, drugs and domestic violence in a prevention-focused manner. In particular, these efforts should emphasize the importance of continued development of programs and activities for youth. We believe current programs may be outdated and may need to be adjusted to reflect current trends for positive engagement with youth. * We encourage and encourage the expansion of community garden projects within the City of Albany. * As an educational experience during milestones of a student’s enrollment and as a crime prevention measure, we encourage all fifth grade students and all ninth grade students to tour the county jail. * We recommend that the identities of convicted gang members be published on all available media platforms. * We recommend increased enforcement of lockdowns and truancy, as well as measures to hold parents more accountable for their children’s actions in violation of these laws. * We recommend increased training for law enforcement officers. before beginning public patrols and interventions, with an emphasis on recognizing and responding appropriately to the various issues they may encounter, such as: B. Individuals with mental illness or drug-induced episodes. We also encourage officers to increase the use of body cameras to collect examples of this training and use as evidence in cases. * We recommend that low-income social housing tenants who are able to work should be required to work or enroll in a work-study program with eventual gaining employment and private housing to utilize social housing resources for the disabled. * We encourage using all available grants, foundations and donations to help the homeless, disabled and elderly find housing. * We encourage the City of Albany to encourage and enable more family-centric activities for citizens, and also encourage these activities to be held in downtown, south and east Albany. * We recommend that all emergency responders in ambulance and police vehicles turn on their emergency lights in all appropriate instances before entering traffic and when exceeding the speed limit. * We recommend continuing the Scared Straight program as a juvenile delinquency prevention program. We further recommend that the Scared Straight program be recognized as the primary juvenile delinquency prevention program and that it deserves and should receive financial support. * We are recommending that the county enforce a underage curfew. If minors are found unattended, they should be returned to their homes and parents and guardians should be fined if their children breach curfew. * We encourage our civil society leaders to work with community-based and faith-based organizations to intervene with families and young children for gang/crime prevention purposes; We also recommend that joint early intervention teams be established to identify vulnerable families and provide them with the widest range of services to support them. * We have identified several cases involving various motels, hotels and nightclubs in our area that appear to have been a magnet for criminal behavior. We recommend increased surveillance of these hotels and clubs. We also strongly recommend that management be held more accountable for what goes on at their properties, such accountability possibly including the revocation of their operating licenses. Yours sincerely submitted June 22, 2022. 1. Donna Lightsey Peak – Foreman 2. Darian S. Mathis Assistant Foreman 3. Tiffany C. McCullough Secretary 4. Denatra B. Vanover 5. Jalil H. Moore 6. Sandra B. Jones 7 Marquez J McGee 8 Monica L Paramore 9 Walter L Johnson 10 Vannazquela U White 11 Jaton M Johnson 12 William D McDaniel 13 Shabreka S Chappell 14 Ricardo M Hayes 15 Joann Thomas 16 .Christopher P Jones 17 Patricia A Hamilton 18 Carolina McIntyre 19 Lailani M Meadow 20 Tawana J Williams 21 Kimberly V Barkley-Calvin 22 Lee Asiya Asa 23 Michael A Thomas