Dougherty Grand Jury: If necessary, bring in National Guard to fight crime

Sep. 12—ALBANY — The Dougherty County Grand Jury was presented with 101 indictments, and 100 were returned as true bills in July presentments. There was one no bill, and an additional 33 were filed by the District Attorney's office for accusations.

Among the recommendations offered by the Grand Jury were:

— We recognize that the Albany State University Homecoming is the pre-eminent event bringing visitors to Albany; we therefore recommend that East Oglethorpe (Boulevard), beginning at the exits at the intersections near U.S. 19 through to the Albany State Coliseum be maintained not just during the Homecoming weekend, but fully maintained year-round. This maintenance should include keeping the median and both sides of the roadway mowed and litter free. We recommend further that the city of Albany take steps to develop consistent polices and take appropriate actions regarding all of its public roadways so as to develop civic pride in its citizens.

— We recommend that the Albany Utilities Board set policies and engage in continuing efforts to lower the rates of utility costs; these efforts should include implementation of a rate comparison study to assist in setting rates that are comparable to neighboring communities and counties.

— We recommend that all appropriate governmental and law enforcement agencies engage in social programs and community policing to directly address gangs, drugs. and domestic violence in a manner that focuses on prevention. For this purpose, programs. such as Champs, Star, Beyond Scared Straight. etc. for youths should be strongly supported financially and with sufficient personnel.

— We recommend to address issues of gangs, drugs, domestic violence, and gun violence without having sufficient law enforcement capabilities to address these issues, that new and innovative thinking be applied to these issues:

—For example, if the police cannot be available in numbers in high-crime areas, personnel may be supplemented with the use of drones and cameras to patrol and surveil the areas;

—If personnel shortages become even more critical in high-crime areas where repetitive crimes are committed, it should be appropriate to activate the National Guard to assist local law enforcement.

— We recommend that the city of Albany take steps to do a better job at advertising and recommending programs that will assist all its citizens, for example:

—LIHEAP Assistance with energy bills is a program that should be presented to the public to assist those citizens who are qualified for assistance.

— We recommend that city and county governments increase proactive and collaborative measures, including working with private corporations and investors, to bring more family-oriented entertainment and physical activities to the city. Examples of such could include a water park, an adventure theme park, a sky zone, skating rinks, sports courts, etc. The Grand Jury believes these family-oriented activities will serve to bring in more jobs for teens and college students and more general revenue to assist in public safety costs, i.e., providing for competitive salaries for law enforcement and for procuring drones, surveillance cameras, and other technical assistance for eliminating high-crime areas.

— We recommend that the homeless citizens of Albany be provided a specific location that will both temporarily house them and serve as a resource center to assist them in being able to successfully re-enter society. The Grand Jury recommends further that an unused school building might be designed for this purpose. For example, the Isabella School Complex is an older unused school with many classrooms that could be converted into temporary living areas. This facility could provide break-out areas where social workers could provide homeless persons with assistance and direction ranging from personal needs, health care needs, mental health counseling, drug abuse rehabilitation, and related needs. Some space could be used to provide a safe place for counseling for battered women, and some classrooms could be used for education and training to help provide jobs for homeless citizens to help them transition back into the community in a self-sustaining manner.

— The Grand Jury recommends that the Albany area surrounding the new state-of-the-art transit center be considered for urban renewal and revitalization. Specifically, we recommend that the 200 block of South Jackson Street be cleaned up all the way to the 800 block of West Highland Avenue. All unused and decrepit properties should be demolished and sidewalks improved. The Grand Jury recommends that all unused and decrepit properties on West Highland, including the Royal Inn near the House of Jazz, be demolished. The Grand Jury commends the revitalization and demolition of unused and decrepit buildings in the Gillionville Road/Slappey Boulevard area, which was recently cleaned up, and we point to this area as a means to begin to provide a welcoming experience when going to and from the city.

— We recommend that city and county governments take steps to re-utilize and renew the downtown area. We recommend that incentives be offered to businesses to encourage that more restaurants be built downtown and to bring back some of the stores that have been closed to foster the return of places to shop in a revitalized downtown, rather than having to shop online.

"The Grand Jury would like to thank District Attorney Gregory W. Edwards and his staff, in particular Chief Assistant District Attorney April Wynne, for the high level of professionalism and respect they demonstrated the entire time we were under their care, the grand jurors wrote at the end of their session. "We further commend District Attorney Greg Edwards for enlightening us on the various crimes happening in our community and the laws that are to be enforced regarding those matters. We specially commend the District Attorney's Office along with the Clerk of Court's Office for their hard work and dedication in preparing the cases for the Grand Jurors."