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Former Superintendent Wilson arrested for theft in Pickens

News April 21, 2022 , by Lonnie Adams

JASPER, Ga. – Warrants were served for the arrest of of Pickens County Schools’ former Superintendent Dr. Carlton Keith Wilson on charges that include both Theft by Deception and Theft by Taking.

The Pickens County Sheriff’s Office and the Adult Detention Center have release the arrest records and warrants on Wilson, who was held in custody on $5,000 bail. Allegations say that these thefts occurred between November 2021 through January 2022. Dr. Wilson became Superintendent of Pickens Schools in May of 2017. He later resigned amid numerous emergency meetings called by the Board of Education in December 2019.

According to the warrants, in May 2020, Wilson served as the Victim Witness Coordinator for the Appalachian Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office. This came with an annual salary of $42,500. In September 2021, the Pickens Board of Commissioners (BOC) approved a Shared Leave Policy allowing employees to donate unused leave time into a Shared Leave Bank. Also in September 2021, the documents state that Wilson sustained injuries in a car accident. Fully expending his own leave, he applied to receive donated leave hours through the Share Leave Bank and was approved.

Former Pickens Schools Superintendent Dr. Carlton Wilson

During his leave, he allegedly began going to the Appalachian Gun Range, a business he owns with a partner and at which he was a firearms instructor. Detectives have investigated the business’ bank records stating that proceeds from the courses “are essential to the success of the company.” In January 2022, Wilson requested additional leave until April 2022, saying his doctor would not release him to work and that he had blood clots in his lungs and leg.

According to the Detectives investigation, during the approved leave time that lasted through January, they state that approximately 138 individuals took courses at the range. The warrants state that Wilson said he taught most of those courses. Under the charge of Theft by Deception, it is noted that Wilson received over $6,300 in payroll checks through the Shared Leave Bank. They go on to state that these payroll checks were deposited into a private account which they allege were used “almost solely for online gambling activities or to pay gambling debts.”

The warrants go on to note the Theft by Taking Offense as Wilson’s alleged operations through Scouts of Hill City Inc. (SHC Inc.), a non-profit organization. As an individual looked to donate 10 acres of land to the Boy Scouts of America in 2009 and were referred to Wilson, the land was eventually donated to Hill City Elementary PTO Inc. with the expressed intent to be used solely to benefit the Boy Scouts in Pickens County.

After BSA Troop 288 disbanded in 2015 and Cub Scout Pack 288 disbanded in 2016, the land was deeded to SHC Inc. in 2018. In 2021, SHC Inc. re-registered with Georgia’s Secretary of State with Wilson as the CEO. The land was split into two tracts and sold in September 2021 for $14,000 each with the funds, minus closing costs, deposited into the SHC Inc. accounts. The warrants state that this money was then used through checks written, payments to personal credit cards, and cashback to Wilson in order to fund “his participation in online gambling activities and payments of debts derived from online gambling activities.

According to documentation, that alleged activity included $1,520 cashback on September 9, 2021, a check for $9,000 on September 10, 2021, a check for $5,000 on September 21, 2021, a check for $5,000 on October 10, 2021, a direct electronic payment to a personal credit card for $5,000 on November 1, 2021, and a check for $900 on December 1, 2021.

These charges were filed with the Superior Court of Pickens County on April 19, 2022. See the full documents of these arrest warrants linked.

Shooting suspect transported back to Pickens

News January 21, 2022 , by Lonnie Adams

JASPER, Ga. – Yesterday, January 20, 2022, a person opened fire near the dollar general in the Golden Springs area of Pickens County. A press release from the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office later confirmed the arrest of Nathan Lewis Highsmith, 26, years old of Canton, Georgia, in regards to the shooting

Today, Pickens Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Hannah Wise confirmed with FYN that the shooting suspect, Highsmith (pictured above), has been transferred into Pickens County from the Sandy Springs Police Department. The Sheriff’s release noted that Highsmith allegedly fled the scene in a Honda Accord and was later arrested by Sandy Spring Police.

Wise also confirmed that the Sheriff’s Office currently believes the incident to be a solitary one with Highsmith acting alone, but asserted that the Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the incident. Officer Wise stated that they have not confirmed the motive behind the shooting either.

As an ongoing investigation, the Sheriff’s Office is not releasing detailed information such as if the victims knew Highsmith or other possible connections. Additionally, as a part of the ongoing investigation, the Sheriff’s Office has contacted the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) to assist as well. The GBI has not released a statement about the investigation at all.

The shooting claimed one life and there was no update available to the public on the second victim from Wise today. As of now, the charges still stand at Aggravated Assault and Felony Murder. Wise confirmed that as of January 21, 2022, Highsmith is still in custody and has not been released on bail.

Arrest jasper pickens Police Sandy Springs sheriff Shooting Suspect

Pickens in recovery from storm damage

News March 26, 2021 , by Lonnie Adams

PICKENS COUNTY, Ga. – With schools completely shutdown today, March 26, 2021, citizens and authorities are out in force attempting to recover from the damages caused by last nights storm and tornadoes across North Georgia.

Pickens did not suffer a tornado, but has suffered severe damage from the storm, flooding, and winds during the night.

Earlier today the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office offered a list of known road hazards or roads that are currently impassible from the storms last night.

– Evans Rd has several places that are severely washed out or potentially have damage to the roadway and is shut down.
– Grandview Rd at Pendley Creek below Parkland Dr has a large amount of mud buildup.
– Mineral Springs Rd North just south of Roper Funeral Home has been flooded over.
– Long Rd at the creek is flooded over.
– Talking Rock Road at Highway 136 near Downtown Talking Rock is severely flooded.
– Jordan Road is flooded is some parts.
– Upper Salem Church Road is flooded near the bridge.
– Talc Mine Road is washed out in one area.
– Genett Drive is shut down at Hood Park Drive near the bridge.
– Twin Mountain Lake Circle is flooded and is impassable.
– There is a tree across both lanes of Highway 136 East just west of East Price Creek. There are utility lines involved. State DOT is currently in the process of clearing this obstruction.

The Pickens Board of Education said they worked closely with city and county road officials before canceling class. Due to the storm, many roads have severe washouts that citizens should avoid.

Authorities across the state are warning citizens to not attempt to drive through flooded areas of roads. This is because some of those roads may be so flooded that they only appear to have a foot or two of water, but have washed out the road under it. Risks of severe injury or death could come from driving into such washouts.

The City of Jasper has shared a photo of Gennett Drive (pictured to the right) showing just how bad some of these roads have become.

Roads are not the only effected area as the storm also knocked out power for much of North Georgia. According to Amicalola EMC some of these are quite major including “one large outage affecting 655 members in Pickens County near Cove Road and Grandview. A tree has torn the line down and crews are working to restore power now.”

Due to the calm morning, much of the power has been restored and, according to their outage map, only a few pockets remain that crews are still working to fix.

Pickens County’s Government also issued a statement on the storm saying, “We were extremely fortunate in Pickens County last night to avoid the tornadoes that swept across the south. Our thoughts and prayers are with the many communities that were hit. Unfortunately, we were not spared from several areas experiencing some level of flooding.”

Citizens should also be aware that while the county and public safety officials issued a list of affected roads, there are others not on the list including personal roads and even driveways that can and have been affected.

JoAnn Smith commented on the city’s photo, sharing her own photo of her driveway (pictured to the left) affected by a small creek. Any and all water flows have been affected and could potentially cause similar damage.

Pickens County Government has encouraged citizens to sign up for “Code Red Alerts” by taking a moment to fill out the information at the link. They stated, “Doing so will ensure that you are notified by your local emergency response team in the event of emergency situations or critical community alerts.”

Geological surveys in nearby areas showed rivers reaching over 12 feet in depth.

As the situation continues to unfold, citizens are encouraged to reach out to public safety for emergencies as the county continues clearing debris, repairing roads, and returning itself to safer conditions.

City county Damage government jasper pickens Public Safety sheriff Storms

Pickens County Sheriff’s Office Arrest Report 1/11 – 1/18

Arrest Reports, Police & Government January 20, 2021 , by Staff Admin

Arrest report and photos provided by the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office. The Georgia Open Records Act (O.C.G.A. 50-18-70) allows for FetchYourNews.com to obtain and post the arrest records of any and all individuals arrested in Pickens County. Those arrests are posted on FetchYourNews.com for viewing pleasure. Please remember that all individuals listed have been arrested and charged, however, they are presumed innocent until guilt has been proven in a court of law.

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