An article in the newspaper last week revealed that one of our local law enforcement officers has been arrested and charged with fraud in not only lying to the GBI but actually falsifying documents in regard to the qualifications of the narcotics agent that, in my opinion, murdered Pastor Ayers last year in Toccoa. DA Rickman was the leading defender of the rogue cop, declaring that his actions were appropriate. He now seems to allude to this latest arrest as being an example of how the idea of "cops protecting cops" does not apply in his jurisdiction. After our "grand jury debacle", I feel led to address my neighbors in the most basic way. [continues 134 words]
Pastor Ayers' wife has filed a $5 million-plus civil suit in what I perceive to be the murder of her husband by a drug agent. This, in my opinion could be the first step in exposing the ring of corruption that exists in Toccoa. At last, enough money is involved to entice competent outside legal experts to involve themselves in what has always been Toccoa's "good old boys" business. Let's examine facts. Already Atlanta attorneys have uncovered possible criminal activity in the past of the drug agents involved. [continues 128 words]
The much anticipated and long delayed investigation is complete. After amending the rules in favor of the narcotics agents, D.A. [Brian] Rickman turned the Ayers case over to a grand jury. The result: A group of local citizens found that this was indeed a situation where it was justified to shoot an unarmed man sitting in his car, in the middle of town, in broad daylight. I'm 62 years old, and the disgust I feel about living in an area where there are people who not only allow but condone this abuse of the law is overwhelming. Many weeks ago, I suggested in this paper that control of this case should be taken out of local hands. Federal intervention was the only hope for justice to prevail. The corruption and dirtiness that exists in this "good old boys" network is stronger than even I suspected. [continues 202 words]
Hopefully, by the time this piece is printed, the Ayers shooting will be satisfactorily addressed. If my intuition is correct, it won’t be. In my opinion, the only action that will serve to speed any type of investigation will be federal intervention. I’ve been mystified as to why no one locally has contacted the U.S. Attorney General and requested help to resolve this situation. Anyone who thinks local officials are scurrying to bring closure to this matter is indeed naive. It is my opinion that certain drug task force leaders believe that if enough time is allowed to pass, people will forget. People do tend to do just that. [continues 137 words]
