ATLANTA

Roswell Road to close one lane each way

Atlanta officials say one lane in each direction on Roswell Road between Sardis Way and Irby Avenue will be closed between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. today as crews repair a sewer line in the area.

CLAYTON COUNTY

Commission approves beefed-up litter law

Clayton County police will begin training county workers to write tickets for littering within the next few weeks.

The Clayton County Commission unanimously approved a strict litter policy Tuesday that gives code enforcement officers, sanitation workers, lawn mowers and other county employees the authority to issue tickets to anyone caught improperly disposing of trash. The workers will be outfitted with citation books similar to the ones Clayton’s 327 police officers carry, Chief Jeffrey Turner said.

The tickets include a summons to Magistrate Court and could carry fines up to $1,000, six months in jail and mandatory cleanup of county properties.

Police say litter and other small quality of life violations lead to drugs, prostitution, burglaries and violent crimes.

—- Megan Matteucci

Superintendent to ride the bus

Clayton County Schools Superintendent John Thompson will ride a school bus with students today as part of National School Bus Safety Week.

Thompson will ride with students from Jonesboro’s Arnold Elementary and M.D. Roberts Middle schools, district spokesman Charles White said.

The week is designed to encourage drivers to use caution around school buses, bus stops and school zones. Clayton County police also will have extra patrols around schools, White said.

The district transports 32,000 students daily on 525 buses.

—- Megan Matteucci

Information sought in hit-and-run of 2 teens

Clayton County authorities are seeking the community’s help in identifying a car that struck two teenagers on Oct. 4, leaving one in a coma.

Capt. Greg Dickens said Kail Barnaby, 17, of Jonesboro is in a coma at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. Devontay Tace, 16, also of Jonesboro was treated for injuries and released.

Dickens said the pair were returning home about 9:45 p.m. from the Quik Trip at Ga. 54 and Tara Boulevard.

They were walking along the shoulder of Ga. 54 with their backs to traffic when a vehicle hit them both near the entrance to Town Gate subdivision, Dickens said.

Dickens said police don’t have a vehicle description but that it would show damage to the front and passenger side.

Anyone with information is asked to call Detective James Walker at 770-477-3780 or Clayton police at 770-477-3648.

—- Kathy Jefcoats

COBB COUNTY

R&B singer arrested on gun charges

R&B singer/songwriter Lyfe Jennings was arrested Sunday on gun charges in Smyrna while trying to locate the mother of his children, police said.

Jennings, 30, whose real name is Chester Jennings, kicked in the door of a residence on Springwoods Drive in Smyrna while looking for Joy Pound, according to an arrest warrant.

He fired the gun in the street and later tried to run from Smyrna police when they arrived, police said.

He posted a $50,000 bond Monday night. Jennings could not be reached for comment. In addition to the gun charges and trespassing, he has been charged with eluding police and driving under the influence.

Jennings served 10 years in prison from 1992 to 2002 on a felony charge when he was 14.

Jennings’ music career started after his December 2002 prison release when he won the amateur contest at the Apollo Theatre five times.

His first album, released in August 2004, was titled “Lyfe 268-192,” with the numbers representing his prison number. Jennings’ biggest hit was “Must Be Nice,” which was on the first album.

Smyrna police chased Jennings after receiving a call about gunshot fired. Police followed Jennings in his red Corvette along Concord Road, where he was going about 70 mph according to the warrant.

Once he was stopped, Jennings refused a field sobriety test. The warrant said he “had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage” coming from his breath.

—- Derrick Mahone

Public hearing set for proposed trail

A public hearing on a multi-use trail from Tower Road to South Cobb Drive in Marietta is scheduled for Tuesday.

The meeting is 5-7 p.m. at the Marietta City Hall lobby for the project that is to be constructed with special purpose local option sales tax money.

The proposed concept of the Kennesaw Mountain to Chattahoochee River trail will be presented.

This segment includes a trail connecting the existing trail on Tower Road to the trail along Atlanta Road that will be built by Cobb County.

Representatives of Marietta’s Public Works Department will be present to answer questions. Construction is expected to begin in 2010.

—- Kay Powell

DEKALB COUNTY

Man charged in death of pregnant mother

A 32-year-old Decatur man has been charged with fatally shooting a pregnant mother of three earlier this week, police said Wednesday.

Eric Lamar Ferrell, 32, was charged with felony murder for his part in the death of Quishanna Loynes.

Ferrell and another man were arguing outside Loynes’ home in south DeKalb County on Monday night when the two men began shooting at one another, witnesses told police.

A stray bullet penetrated the first-floor window of Loynes’ townhouse, hitting her in the back and killing her as she sat with her three daughters, ages 11, 9 and 8.

Loynes was about 10 weeks pregnant, family members said.

Ferrell had his first appearance in DeKalb County Magistrate Court on Wednesday night, walking on crutches, wearing a cast on his left foot.

A preliminary hearing on his homicide charge was scheduled for Nov. 17. Ferrell is being held in the DeKalb County Jail. Police are seeking the other man in the incident.

—- Marcus K. Garner

Job fair set today for DeKalb Medical

DeKalb Medical will have a job fair today to fill 164 positions —- 125 nursing positions and 39 registered health care professionals.

Some of the jobs will help staff a new orthopedics unit that will open Nov. 3.

The job fair will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at DeKalb Medical at Hillandale, 2801 DeKalb Medical Parkway, Lithonia.

A session from 9 to 11:30 a.m. is for registered nurses, and the noon-3 p.m. session is for registered health care professionals such as physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, radiology technicians and others.

Applications also can be submitted online at www.dekalbmedical.com, or by calling 404-501-5010.

—- Craig Schneider

Dunwoody swears in final council member

Dunwoody has sworn in its final member of the City Council and also created e-mail addresses for officials, all in preparation for when the city begins operations on Dec. 1.

Dentist Adrian Bonser, the sole female member of the six-person council, was sworn into office during a work session earlier this week.

Also at the meeting, the city announced that e-mail addresses will follow the format of first name, a dot, last name, at the city’s proposed new Web site, www.dunwoodyga.gov. So, the newest council member would be Adrian.Bonser@dunwoodyga.gov.

Not all members have full access to e-mail but will have the system up and running by Nov. 1.

—- April Hunt

FULTON COUNTY

DOT to repair hole at Johns Creek bridge

The McGinnis Ferry Road bridge spanning Johns Creek in its namesake north Fulton County community developed a hole in the westbound lane Wednesday, necessitating immediate repairs by the state Department of Transportation.

The hole in the bridge, east of the intersection at McGinnis Ferry and Sargent roads, was discovered over the weekend, said DOT spokeswoman Melany Reynolds.

It was examined by contractors and a bridge inspector, who determined it needed to be repaired before it worsened, she said.

The bridge, which Reynolds said is sound, is scheduled to be replaced about the first of the year, when McGinnis Ferry is realigned.

Workers were to close one westbound lane on the bridge starting at 7 p.m. Wednesday and reopen it by 5 a.m. today. Flaggers will assist with traffic control . DOT officials urge motorists to use extreme caution in the work zone.

—- Doug Nurse

GWINNETT COUNTY

Buford center plants to be drought tough

A garden club will plant dozens of drought-tolerant native trees and shrubs today at the Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center in Buford.

About 50 plants, from sweetshrub to beautyberry, are to be planted at the Memory Garden starting about 9 a.m. The Stonehedge Garden Club, a local women’s group, is paying for the $3,000 project, said publicity coordinator Kathy Vashaw.

—- Shane Blatt

Commission OKs $3 million in projects

Gwinnett County commissioners have approved 10 projects for various nonprofit, city and county entities totaling more than $3.4 million under the federal Community Development Block Grant Program.

The two largest projects are for securing quarters for the home health and nutrition programs for low-income seniors and for the Hope Clinic, which provides health care to nearly 3,000 low-and moderate-income residents. Each will receive $1 million in grant money.

—- Patrick Fox

GREATER ATLANTA

Colorado man’s body pulled from Allatoona

The body of a Colorado man who drowned in Lake Allatoona on Saturday was recovered from the lake Wednesday morning.

Joel Felix, 33, of Windsor, Colo., was boating with family and friends near the Victoria Day Use Area when he decided to go swimming, Cherokee County sheriff’s Sgt. Jay Baker said.

Felix’s wife and two children, a 5-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl, were on the boat when he went under about 4:30 p.m. Saturday, according to Tim Cavender, spokesman for Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services.

Dive and rescue teams from Cherokee and Forysth counties, as well as from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, took part in the search.

The drowning was the fifth at Lake Allatoona this year. The four previous drownings occurred in Bartow County sections of the lake, Cavender said.

—- Mike Morris

New state post for ex-DOT official

Mike Evans, former chairman of the state Transportation Board and a Cumming builder, has been called back into service by Gov. Sonny Perdue. Evans has accepted an appointment to the board that oversees the state Department of Community Affairs.

He resigned from the DOT board this summer and, in September, married Gena Abraham, the agency’s commissioner. Evans is the owner of Mike A. Evans Homes Inc. and was a member of the Georgia House for eight years.

—- Nancy Badertscher