News

Carter Center to send election witnesses to Egypt

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012, 8:54am

Carter Center to send election witnesses to Egypt

ATLANTA -- The Carter Center has been accredited by Egyptian authorities to send international election witnesses for that country's presidential election.

The Carter Center says it received approval from Egypt's Supreme Presidential Election Commission to deploy 22 witnesses from 14 countries. The presidential election is set for May 23 and 24.

They will be joined by a larger delegation of 80 witnesses from over 35 nations who will travel to Egypt several days before the election, led by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter.

The delegates will witness the activities of the election administration, election campaigning, voting, counting and tabulation processes, and other issues related to the overall electoral process. They also plan to meet with election officials, political party and civil society representatives, members of the international community, and others.

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Seniors to Learn How to Guard Against Scams

Submitted by FeleciaChurch on Tuesday, May 15th, 7:03 am

ATLANTA -- Fulton County Seniors can take advantage of a workshop on how to protect themselves against scams. The next session of “Be Aware of the Tricks of the Trade: Guarding against Senior Scams” will be held on Tuesday, May 15, 2012. The one-hour program will be held at the Dogwood Neighborhood Senior Center from 10:00 am until 11:00 am.

The Dogwood Neighborhood Senior Center is located at 1953 Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway NW in Atlanta, GA 30318. The session is sponsored by the Fulton County Housing and Human Services Department, Office of Housing and Community Development.

All Fulton County meeting facilities meet ADA accessibility requirements. Citizens in need of reasonable accommodations and communication in an alternative format, please contact the Department of Housing and Human Services at (404) 613-7944. For relay-type services, dial 711.

For more information, call 404-613-7944.

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Mayor Reed pressured to endorse same sex marriage

Submitted by Paul Crawley, 11Alive Reporter

Monday, May 14th, 2012, 6:16pm

ATLANTA - Three years ago State Senator Kasim Reed and Atlanta City Councilwoman Mary Norwood practically stumbled over each other courting the city's sizeable gay and lesbian vote in the mayor's race.

Reed ended up winning a squeaker by just over 700 votes.

Most observers believe he and Norwood split the LGBT vote.

But now some in that vocal and politically active community are threatening to vote against Mayor Reed next year if he doesn't follow President Obama's recent example and personally endorse same sex marriage.

"His refusal to come out and endorse same sex marriage in line with President Obama's endorsement of same sex marriage equality overshadows a lot of the great things that the mayor has done," LGBT activist Charlie Stadtlander told 11 Alive News on Monday.

Stadtlander has started a Facebook page to put pressure on the mayor.

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Breeze card machines down as result of upgrade

Submitted by Eden Godbee, Where U Live Producer

Friday, May 11th, 2012, 6:13pm

ATLANTA -- Some metro MARTA riders may need cash or credit to purchase Breeze cards at local MARTA stations due to a vending machine upgrade glitch.

According to MARTA, a Breeze system upgrade has resulted in the debit card function being unavailable at vending machines in seven stations until further notice.

The affected stations, include: North Springs, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, Medical Center, Brookhaven, Lindbergh and Georgia State.

However, the machinces are still able to accept cash or credit. Riders can also still use debit cards at all other stations and at RideStores.

For additional information, please call Customer Information at 404-848-5000 or visit www.itsmarta.com.

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HIV crisis facing black women in metro Atlanta

Submitted by 11Alive News Staff

Wednesday, May 9th, 2012, 12:26pm

ATLANTA -- 11Alive News is sounding the alarm.

Research shows African-American women, many living in Atlanta, are being infected with HIV -- so much so that the new cases are being compared to African countries.

Data collected in 2009 from the health departments in Clayton, Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Douglas and Gwinnett counties indicates infection rates of HIV and AIDS, respectively, as follows: (This is for women and men combined, all races.)

Fulton: 4,213 and 7,342

DeKalb: 3,257 and 3,983

Clayton: 847 and 943

Cobb and Douglas: 1,030 and 1,288

Gwinnett: 884 and 1,041

In another study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, black women make up 60 percent of all new HIV cases among women. That's 15 times higher than white women and four percent higher than Hispanic women.

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4th prescription drug take-back a big success

Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Friday, May 4th, 2012, 12:09pm

4th prescription drug take-back a big success

ATLANTA -- Last weekend's National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day was a big success in Georgia, with residents turning in an estimated 6,913 pounds of unwanted medication.

This number greatly exceeds the amount of drugs collected during the last take-back event in October, where Drug Enforcement Administration officials collected about 3,794 pounds.

Nationally, the event saw Americans turn in approximately 276 tons (552,161 pounds) of drugs.

"The Prescription Drug Take-Back campaign was a huge success," Harry S. Sommers, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division, said in a statement. "This event was critical in stemming the tide of prescription drug abuse in this country."

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CAPTURED | Alexis Stokley

Submitted by Kevin Rowson, 11Alive Reporter

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012, 10:26pm

UPDATE (March 3, 2012) -- One of three suspects in a violent armed robbery at a check cashing store inside a pharmacy has been apprehended by U.S. Marshals.

After Alexis Stokley and two others were featured as 11Alive's Fugitives of the Week on February 8, 2012, Crime Stoppers got a tip indicating Stokley was living in Riverdale. "Once we received the information, we conducted surveillance in the area and were able to locate Stokley," said Deputy U.S. Marshal Eric Heinze.

Stokley was arrested coming out of a Walmart on Ga. Highway 85. "They identified him inside the store but didn't want to take him down in such a public area," said Inspector James Joyner. "The arrest went without incident."

When he was arrested, Stokley recognized one of the investigators who arrested him as the US Marshal who profiled him on Fugitive of the Week. "He then showed [Eric Heinze] where he had saved the profile of himself on his cell phone," Joyner said.

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