Author: Staff Reports

Monday morning, the Heritage Station Museum celebrated its reopening with a well-attended ribbon cutting in front of the museum, which is located at 219 West Ward Street, just a short walk from downtown Douglas. “Coffee County Historical Society members have been busy getting the museum ready for this event,” says Carol Morgan, President of the Coffee County Historical Society. “We are currently working on developing a research area and inventorying items at the museum.” The Heritage Station Museum, once an old railroad depot, originally opened in 1999. The museum features a variety of permanent exhibits commemorating local history. The Coffee…

The Douglas Lions Club recently contributed $500 to the Trojans Touchdown Club for the purpose of assisting with costs associated with feeding players during summer workouts. Coffee High Head Football Coach Robby Pruitt, flanked by Trojan seniors, is pictured here accepting a $500 check from members of the Douglas Lions Club, John Higgs and Larry Britton.

Being elderly will not get you a free pass if you’re convicted of selling drugs in Coffee County. Eighty-year-old county resident Nathan Taylor managed to avoid a felony conviction his entire life, until last week. Taylor appeared in Coffee County Superior Court to answer to one charge of manufacturing/distributing a controlled substance in regards to a 2012 incident in which he was accused of selling narcotic painkillers. Taylor pled guilty to the charge and was given a 10-year sentence to be served on probation by Judge Dwayne Gillis. He will also be made to pay court costs. “I hate to…

Want to dip, smoke, or chew? Then after Aug. 1, South Georgia State College isn’t the place to be. Per a vote back in March by the University System of Georgia Board of Regents, all campuses as well as properties owned by the USG will be tobacco free. The policy will go into effect Aug. 1 at SGSC to prepare for fall semester, which begins Aug. 25. The policy applies to all locations as well as employees, students, contractors, subcontractors, and visitors. Plus, all events hosted by SGSC, or on one of its locations, will be tobacco and smoke free,…

Cast and crew members filming the production of The Last Pedestrian have been working feverishly since Thursday and will complete the three-day project this weekend with a scheduled four-hour shoot at the new offices of the Douglas-Coffee County Chamber of Commerce at the Atrium Event Center. The project is headed by Vernon Eckleberry, President and CEO of Guiding Star Cinema, LLC. It centers around the story of a corrupt mayor and his city council as they seek to rescue their town from bankruptcy by obtaining a government grant for the purpose of studying and improving pedestrian safety. In order to…

Employees of Domino’s Pizza on North Peterson Avenue were the latest victims last night of another armed robbery in the city. While details are limited at this time, sources with the Douglas Police Department have confirmed that three men robbed the store at gunpoint shortly after 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, taking an undisclosed amount of cash from the premises. The suspects fled the scene on foot. DouglasNow.com will continue to update this story as further details are provided by authorities.

Douglas was well represented last week in Dalton during the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association’s state golf tournament, as three local boys took home trophies for first, second, and third place finishes. Ben Fussell claimed the top prize, with Javon Mizell and Billy Roberts earning second and third, respectively, in the 8U division.

Representatives from Universal Leaf Tobacco Company were welcomed to Douglas on Wednesday with a ribbon cutting ceremony marking the company’s official opening. According to their web site, Universal Leaf is the world’s leading leaf tobacco merchant and processor. They are located at 1515 Pope Drive.

Georgia voters will go to the polls once again today, this time to decide candidates for the November general election for the offices of state school superintendent and U.S. Senator. On the Republican ballot, Jack Kingston faces opposition from David Perdue for U.S. Senate. In the superintendent race, Michael “Mike” Buck is in the runoff against Richard L. Woods. Alisha Thomas Morgan and Valerie D. Wilson are contenders for school superintendent on the Democratic ballot. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., and all local polling locations will be open including Ambrose, Broxton, Bridgetown, Douglas, Nicholls, and…

A Douglas woman was jailed recently after authorities determined her methods of corporal punishment exceeded the limits allowed by law. Officers responded to a residence on Ethel Street after receiving a complaint of alleged child abuse. The complainant told police that she had observed 45-year-old Joann Marie Jackson beating her juvenile son excessively with a belt. Police examined the juvenile victim and determined he had marks on his body they believed to be consistent with ‘excessive disciplining,’ as noted in the responding officer’s report. Jackson was arrested at the scene and charged with one count of first degree cruelty to…