A Georgia man who poured gasoline on his ex-girlfriend and set her on fire was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility for parole, according to the Clayton County District Attorney’s office. Mervin Woodard, 40, was found guilty of multiple felonies in the 2016 crime, which left Melita Curtis in a coma for two weeks. Curtis was burned over 25 percent of her body, but survived the attack. Six months before burning Curtis, Woodard also beat the woman, according to prosecutors. In the first incident, Woodard beat Curtis, put a knife to her throat and forced her to drive to an ATM to withdraw $600, the DA’s office said. Curtis told police that Woodard threatened to burn her house down with her inside. Then on June 1, 2016, Curtis came home from work and Woodard was waiting for her, prosecutors said. Curtis tried to run, but Woodard pulled her inside, threw gasoline on her and set her on fire, she told investigators. Woodard put out the fire with a … [Read more...] about Georgia man who set ex-girlfriend on fire sentenced to life in prison
Georgia
Maten’s shot with 5 seconds left pulls Georgia by LSU 61-60
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Yante Maten's field goal in the lane with five seconds remaining gave Georgia a 61-60 Southeastern Conference victory against LSU on Tuesday night. The Tigers (11-6, 2-3) pulled ahead 60-59 on a basket by Duop Reath with 39 seconds left, and the game-winning field goal followed an offensive rebound by Juwan Parker with 23 seconds to play. LSU's Tremont Waters missed an off-balance 3-point shot with two seconds remaining. Maten was held scoreless for the first 17 minutes of the game, but finished with a game-high 21 points. Maten scored 17 of Georgia's 37 second-half points, and grabbed 12 rebounds. Derek Ogbeide added 11 points for the Bulldogs (12-5, 3-3). Brandon Sampson led the Tigers with 17 points. Reath added 12 points and Skylar Mays had 11. Waters, who was averaging 16 points a game, was held to six points. Georgia, which trailed 34-24 at halftime, scored the first eight points of the second half. Maten made two field goals in that … [Read more...] about Maten’s shot with 5 seconds left pulls Georgia by LSU 61-60
Watch for players from Georgia colleges in NFL playoffs
Georgia's season is over but some former Bulldogs are still playing football. Three have key roles in the NFL playoffs and another might be activated this weekend. There's also an ex-Georgia Tech player and a former Georgia Southern standout on rosters for the league championship games Sunday. Watch the video above to find out who the players are so you can watch for them this weekend. … [Read more...] about Watch for players from Georgia colleges in NFL playoffs
Watch a firefighter catch a child thrown from a burning building in Georgia
Daniel Brown, provided by Published 1:00 pm, Tuesday, January 16, 2018 A helmet camera captured a firefighter catching a five-year-old child who was thrown from a burning building in Georgia in early January. The video shows Capt. Scott Stroup catch the child, who was thrown by the father from a ladder three stories up, as people screamed and embers rained down to the ground. A number of other children were dropped from the building and caught by firefighters as well. A four-year-old child was dropped from a balcony and caught by Capt. Jackie Peckrul, according to Inside Edition. Babies as young as one-month-old were also dropped and caught, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Local Channel Now Playing: Now Playing Car drives off bridge near downtown S.A. during storm mysa Woman in England surprised with tickets to see Rascal Flatts at San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo mysa San Antonio man records burglar breaking into home, … [Read more...] about Watch a firefighter catch a child thrown from a burning building in Georgia
The Latest: Snow forecast expands over more of Georgia
ATLANTA (AP) — The Latest on wintry weather in the U.S. (all times local): 2:35 p.m. Forecasters are expanding the portion of Georgia that could get snow. The National Weather Service says as much as 1.5 inches (3.8 centimeters) of snow could fall through Wednesday morning in a patch that extends into southeastern Georgia. That's more snow over a larger region than originally forecast, and isolated areas could get even more accumulation. Metro Atlanta is within the area that could get both snow and freezing temperatures, creating the potential for travel problems. Snow forecasts also are increasing in parts of Alabama, where Gov. Kay Ivey is shutting down government offices Wednesday as a precaution. Some school systems are canceling classes because the wind chill will make already low temperatures feel near or below 0 degrees (-18 Celsius) as far south as the Gulf Coast. ——— 12:35 p.m. Police say multiple people have been injured in a five-vehicle pileup that … [Read more...] about The Latest: Snow forecast expands over more of Georgia
2018 schedule sets up for another Georgia playoff run
If you didn’t win the national championship, it’s never too early to start looking toward next season. In case you’ve been asleep the last week, Georgia didn’t win the championship. The Bulldogs, those remaining anyway, will be eager to get back on the field and start hunting for their revenge on Alabama in next season’s SEC Championship game. The schedule certainly stacks in their favor. Note that there’s a reason the games are played. Schedules rarely shake out as they appear in August, better yet in January. But Georgia should be favored in every contest. The SEC East appears weak again, with South Carolina the most formidable challenger on paper. The Gamecocks return quarterback Jake Bentley and have been trending upward in the Will Muschamp era. Florida and Tennessee will be implementing new systems, so their futures are yet to be determined. The Volunteers will be a project, but Florida could surprise if Dan Mullen can extract production … [Read more...] about 2018 schedule sets up for another Georgia playoff run
Georgia named one of the worst states in America for retirement
If you’re looking for a place to settle down during your golden years, Georgia may not be the best location, according to a new ranking. To determine the list, researchers from the personal finance site compared the 50 states across 41 key indicators, including highest life expectancy, lowest property crime rate and highest percentage of workforce aged 65 and older. They then categorized those metrics into three major sections: affordability, quality of life and health care. While Florida and Colorado took first and second place, respectively, Georgia fell to the bottom of the pack at No. 37, overall. Here’s a snapshot of Georgia’s findings: Overall, the southern region ranked low. Georgia was not the lowest ranked for retirment of all the South. Alabama was No. 41, Louisiana was No. 44, Arkansas was No. 46 and Mississippi was No. 47. In fact, Mississippi and Alabama had the lowest adjusted life expectancy, and Arkansas and Louisiana had the highest … [Read more...] about Georgia named one of the worst states in America for retirement
Georgia-LSU tabbed a top game to watch in 2018 season by SI
Mark your calendars, Georgia fans, because Oct. 13 in Baton Rouge, LA., won’t be a game to miss. Sports Illustrated went through the 2018 college football schedule and picked out the best game from each week. Week 7’s selection was Georgia at LSU in battle of resurgent programs. “This will be the first matchup between these SEC elites since 2013, and it should be a doozy,” SI’s Daniel Rapaport wrote. “The Bulldogs will enter the season as one of the nation’s top teams, fresh off an appearance in the national championship game. Sure, they will miss the graduating running back tandem of Sony Michel and Nick Chubb, and yes, they’ll also lose their leading receiver (Javon Wims) and best defensive player (Roquan Smith), but they get quarterback Jake Fromm back and welcome the best recruiting class in the country to campus. On the flip side, here is what Rapaport had to say about the Tigers: “This offseason has been notable … [Read more...] about Georgia-LSU tabbed a top game to watch in 2018 season by SI
Officials: 1 dead, 1 injured in mobile home fire in Georgia
Published 7:31 am, Tuesday, January 16, 2018 DACULA, Ga. (AP) — Officials say a man was killed and another man was injured in a mobile home fire in Georgia. News outlets reported Saturday that the deadly fire happened in Dacula. Officials say the structure was fully aflame when crews arrived at about 1:35 p.m. Tommy Rutledge with the Gwinnett Fire Department says a man was found dead inside the home. The other man was found outside and taken to a hospital for treatment. Their identities have not been released. Officials say the cause of the fire is still under investigation. … [Read more...] about Officials: 1 dead, 1 injured in mobile home fire in Georgia
How UWM peer Georgia State figured out how to graduate more black students
ATLANTA – Tyler Mulvenna wanted to achieve more than a high school diploma.His sisters had babies as teenagers. One dropped out of high school but later earned her GED; the other finished high school. His mother, a single parent, worked two jobs and did not go to college.Mulvenna noticed white students at his racially mixed high school, 45 minutes south of Atlanta, typically went to college, the second or third generation in their families to do so. He saw their posts on Facebook from campus visits with their parents, who were successful college graduates.“It was a fork in the road: The people who went to college, and those who didn’t,” Mulvenna recalled years later. The path he chose led to graduation from Georgia State University last spring.Mulvenna started college in 2013, shortly after the urban research university made a commitment to not just admitting students but teaching them how to succeed.Leaders at the … [Read more...] about How UWM peer Georgia State figured out how to graduate more black students