At 10:00 Thursday morning, Dougherty District Attorney Greg Edwards announced the most meaningful measure against ousted downtown manager and felon Don Buie since he was finally fired by Al Lott. Edwards announced a 17 count indictment against Buie, one which will likely result in some serious prison time if convicted.
But perhaps he won’t see a day in prison…and it won’t be a bad thing?
I have said for some time that Buie wasn’t the problem, he was a symptom. There are deep problems that run through out this city, and Buie simply seized advantage of the culture that was prevalent around him. After he was gone, city “leaders” – and I use that term loosely – urged us to let it go and quit worrying about Buie.
To me, that indicated a deep seated corruption that those same “leaders” didn’t want uncovered. Buie simply mimicked that which was around him, because he honestly believed he could get away with it. Buie knows whether that’s true or not, and he may get a deal.
Does he deserve prison time? Absolutely. But what if he’s as smart as some have claimed? Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that he has information about City Commissioners on the take, various appointed officials who steal from the city, etc. Wouldn’t that make a deal worthwhile?
I don’t know that any such thing will happen. However, Assistant District Attorney Christopher Cohilas told WALB that they would keep digging until they get to the bottom of things. I don’t think he’s right, but I do believe that they will dig until they can’t dig any more. Buie, on the other hand, might try and save his butt by offering up bigger fish for the DA’s office to fry. Oh what a day that would be.
However, the one thing we know is that Buie is indicted. Tim Washington and Nicole Brown have already turned themselves in. Lajuanna Woods is being investigated and will possibly be indicted soon enough. Frankly, some criminal prosecutions is what this city needs. Let’s just keep digging and see what else we can find.
A few people deserve some applause right now though. Tim Coley busted his butt to pressure the city to come up with the records that landed Washington and his deal with Buie. ADICA board member Phil Cannon, the only one on the ADICA board I want to stay there, started the whole thing off with the deposition of Nicole Brown. Kevin Hogencamp was the only local paper covering this for the longest time. Truth be told, Kevin and I were the only ones covering this for some time before the other local media finally jumped on board. I couldn’t have done my part without Kevin and Tim’s help.
Yes, I take this as a victory for SWGAPolitics.com, and for a good reason. We had a hand to play it this coming to light, and I’m damn proud of what we did. However, the work isn’t over. The web of lies is still all over Albany. And, frankly, it’s time to take them all down.
A men!!!!! I am very proud of SWGA Politics and Kevin…you have done a GREAT job. You are the kind of men that Albany needs, to get out there and help expose those things that are wrong and seek the truth. I also have to commend Mr. Richard Thomas, he is trying to shed some light on the corruption in Albany. Oh but Mr. Lott tried his best with his come back remarks at the Rotarian meeting to make Mr. Thomas look wrong, well Lott it didn’t work. Reason being, Mr. Lott lacks accountability when it comes down to selecting his leaders. So why should the citizens have confidience in Mr. Lott?
You are so right, it’s not over yet, because the web is still tangled and the spiders are trying to hide as we speak!
I join in offering kudos to Tom and Jeff @ SWGA P’tics; Kevin @ the A.J.; and Mr. Thomas @ DCTPA. There are many in the community that are grateful for your persistence. In the grand scheme of things, it might just be a spitball flung into the ocean, but justice is a beautiful thing when it works.
Thanks folks. I know how hard it was initially when no one seemed willing to listen, but frankly I’m taking in the awesome feeling of winning the good fight for once.
I’m a Libertarian though, so who knows if I’ll ever feel this again
One can get pretty used to no one listening. Great you guys have an audience. When we as John Q gave the warning yelp, no one cared.
Anyway, I agree with “It’s about time.” There is more to be done, if…..
if?
If it really matters anyway. How quickly will things return to the path that they were on? Almost immediately. In the end, the result is inevitable in Albany, unless there is a radical spiritual transformation….and that is not going to happen…in part due to this crowd. You have to deal with them to really understand.