CLASSIC CITY NEWS

Athens, GA - Touring one-man puppet company, Puppet Pants of Atlanta, GA will perform an evening of handmade marionette entertainment at Dead Beat Club on June 24 at 8:00 pm. The club is located at 585 Barber Street. In a true “old world” style form of entertainment, the puppeteer in full view brings string puppets to life without the use of electronics, artificial intelligence or 3D printing, reigniting a cultural artistic renaissance of art and craft to revitalize one of th

By Albert DeSimone Jimmi Hendrix used it. Jimmy Page, Pete Townshend, Dave Davies, and Tony Iommi used it, as did many others from the 1960s hard rock scene. We’re talking about the power chord and how it was incorporated into the distorted sound of rock music in the 1950s. The process of the heavy, distorted sound of hard rock goes back to Sister Rosetta Tharpe. The Godmother of Rock and Roll, as she is often referred to, is credited with creating the first rock and roll s

ATHENS, GA — The Classic City Juneteenth Music & Arts Fest 2026, hosted by the Athens Anti-Discrimination Movement (AADM), will take place on Saturday, June 20, 2026, from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Georgia Square Mall, located at 3700 Atlanta Highway, Athens, Georgia 30606. Under the theme, “For the People. By the People,” means that Classic City Juneteenth Music and Arts Festival is more than an event. It is a community gathering, a cultural experience, and a reminder that w

By Joe Johnson Brandon Leon Evans, 37, of Mitchell Bridge Road, is facing a felony cruelty charge for an incident in which his infant son’s skull was fractured. According to court documents, Evans was arrested as the result of an investigation into why the 6-month-.old child had been brought by his mother to the hospital with head injuries in October 2022. The woman told police that the infant was injured while Evans was caring for him the night before. An investigation deter

From the Gwinnett County Police Department (Buford, Ga., Jun. 14, 2026) – Gwinnett County Police is seeking the public’s help in locating a 71-year-old man with dementia from Buford. Timothy Garcia Burce, also known as "CoJack," was last seen near 610 Forest Streetin Buford at approximately 10:50 p.m. on June 13, 2026. He is five feet nine inches tall and weighs around 180 pounds. He was last seen wearing a white shirt, blue jeans, and black and white shoes. Burce has stitche

The Madison County Sheriff’s Office posted the following on its Facebook page: We’re asking the public to help us find a missing elderly male with dementia in the area of 1416 Frank Bird Rd. He is 88 years old wearing a flannel shirt, blue jeans, and a Georgia ball cap.if you see him call 911 or (796)795-2101. The post did not include the man’s name, but a commenter said it is Nelson Scoggins,

By Joe Johnson Dwayne Scott Johnson, 59, of Rolling Ridge Drive, has been indicted for allegedly sexually assaulting a 7-year-old boy. He was charged with child molestation, aggravated child molestation and sexual battery against a child under 16, according to the indictment filed on May 28th in Superior Court. The indictment stems from Johnson’s arrest in March. He is being held without bail and is scheduled to be arraigned on June 24th.

By Joe Johnson A 54-year-old Athens auto shop worker will spend the rest of his life in federal prison after using his employment as a front to distribute hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine across northeast Georgia, federal officials announced on Friday. James Len Ramey of Comer received two concurrent life sentences in federal prison Friday, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia. U.S. District Judge Tilman E. "Tripp" Self III presi

Released by the United States Department of Justice MACON, Ga. – The man who distributed hundreds of kilograms of methamphetamine from the Rapid Lube in Athens where he worked, covertly stashing boxes in the shop, was sentenced to life in prison today as part of a Homeland Security Task Force investigation into a cross-border drug ring moving thousands of kilograms of drugs from Mexico in boxes of jalapeños to a conversion lab in Monroe, Georgia. James Len Ramey, 54, of Comer

By Joe Johnson A 15-year-old girl was shot by her boyfriend last week in an apartment in westside Athens. The shooting happened on the evening of June 7th at Broadacres Homes when 16-year-old Elijah Isiah Smith shot the victim in her thigh. According to police, they were with a group of others in the apartment when the Smith shot the girl in response to her saying that one of the other boys was her best friend. Smith fled from the apartment and the girl was transported to the

By Joe Johnson Recently filed court documents describe the cold-blooded behavior of a man accused of murdering two people in downtown Athens three months ago. According to a homicide detective’s sworn affidavit, early in the morning of March 14th Mark Anthony Desousa walked up to Dylan Bentley in a parking lot lot off North Jackson Street and shot him in the back of his head. The bullet passed through the victim and struck Christopher Skinner in the eye. DeSousa then shot a

From ACC Leisure Services; The Athens-Clarke County Unified Government welcomes the community to celebrate Independence Day at the Star Spangled Classic on Saturday, June 27 at Southeast Clarke Park at 4440 Lexington Road! Complete details and map are available at www.accgov.com/fireworks The event is free and starts at 6:00 pm with activities including carnival rides, face painting, inflatables, a photo booth, and more. A special concert by the Original Splitz Band will tak

Issued today by the Gwinnett County Police Department: Lawrenceville, Ga., June 9, 2026) – Gwinnett County Police detectives are requesting the public's assistance in locating a missing juvenile. On June 2, 15-year-old London Henville was reported missing by her father. It was learned that she left her residence in Lawrenceville between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. that morning. After receiving the report, London was entered into the Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) and National

By Joe Johnson Izalee Tasha Cooper, 32, of Vine Street, has been sentenced to five years in prison for a car crash last year in which her teenage niece was seriously injured. She pleaded guilty in Superior Court last week to driving under the influence of a controlled substance and causing serious injury with a motor vehicle . Judge H. Patrick Haggard gave Cooper a total sentence of 15 years, with the first five to be served in prison and the balance on probation, The crash o

By Joe Johnson The Cedar Shoals High School community is mourning the death of an alumna who was a star athlete. Retana Yvette Hayes was found deceased in her car on the evening of June 4th. The cause of death is pending an autopsy at the state medical examiner’s office. Ms. Hayes, 55, had been a standout basketball player at Cedar Shoals who last year was inducted into the school’s athletic hall of fame. “Retana was schooled on the basketball court by Marvin Nash. She could

By Joe Johnson Authorities are investigating after woman was found dead in her car at Intown Suites on South Milledge Drive. The body of 55-year-old Retana Yvette Hayes was found in her car at around 9:20 pm on June 4th, according to police, who said they found no indications that she died from foul play. A witness told police that he saw Hayes arguing on her phone in the car less then an hour before she was found deceased. The extended stay hotel was listed as the woman’s ho

By Joe Johnson The Athens-Clarke County Police Department is investigating two rapes that women reported to them over the past week. The first was reported on June 2nd by a 36-year-old woman who said she was raped in her West Broad Street boarding house. Police said they learned about the second rape on June 7th when officers responded to a person-down call at the victim’s home. Upon arrival they found the victim crying hysterically and with her clothes disheveled. She would

By Joe Johnson A Superior Court judge this week denied a request for bail by a man who killed two people and injured a third in downtown Athens Following a hearing on Wednesday, Judge H. Patrick Haggard denied bail to 22-year old Mark Anthony DeSousa on grounds that he was a flight risk and posed a significant danger to the community. In custody since March, DeSousa is facing murder charges for fatally shooting Dylan Bentley and Clayton Adams in a parking lot off North Jackso

By Joe Johnson Thomas Randall Culp Jr., 63, of Pamela Drive, was arrested on May 27th following an investigation into animals living in deplorable conditions in a house he owned on Timothy Road. Arrest warrants obtained by Athens police state as follows: “Said accused did knowingly and intentionally allow 30 cats to live in a house that has not been lived in by a human in more than one year, is littered with feces, multiple puddles of urine with an extremely strong ammonia sm

By Joe Johnson The Georgia State Patrol is investigating a fatal crash that occurred on Epps Bridge Parkway In Oconee County. It happened late Wednesday afternoon when a pickup truck reportedly sped through a red light at the Athens Perimeter exit ramp and struck a car that was turning onto Epps Bridge Parkway, The driver of the Chevrolet Malibu was pronounced dead at the scene. A van was also struck but no serious injuries were reported. The incident is under investigation b