Morning, y’all! A new entry in the scary bug chronicles: caterpillars. I see the ones with fur or little horns or nettly tufts and think, “What nightmare do you turn into?” A harmless moth, probably, but I’d rather not be there to find out.
Let’s get to it.
FANI WILLIS OUT IN GA ELEX CASE
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis won’t be reinstated to the Trump election interference case that made her a national figure of controversy.
- The Georgia Supreme Court said it won’t hear Willis’ appeal of an earlier ruling that she be disqualified from the case because of an improper romantic relationship.
- The case is now in the hands of a nonpartisan state agency that will try to find another prosecutor to take on the case.
- The 2023 indictment is the last active criminal prosecution against President Donald Trump. Trump and others are charged with participating in a racketeering conspiracy and other crimes related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
🔎 READ MORE: Willis’ reaction to the decision
What happens next? Glad you asked.
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SPOTLIGHT: THE PROSECUTING ATTORNEYS’ COUNCIL OF GEORGIA
Now that Willis is off the case, the issue will be turned over to the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia.
Here’s an overview so you can tell your friends how much you know about the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia:
- Known as PAC, this legal professional group provides training and guidance for professionals in Georgia’s 50 judicial circuits.
- The council itself is made up of nine rotating members, plus about 40 supporting staff.
- PAC steps in when local DAs can’t pursue a case. They’ll consider several different factors to match a new DA instead.
🔎 READ MORE: Become a PAC expert with this explainer
THINGS ARE EXPENSIVE
The numbers don’t lie:
- The price of coffee is up 20% over last year.
- Ground beef is up almost 13%.
- Apples? 10%.
- You’ll pay about 6% more for a used car or truck.
- Household items and furniture costs are up 5%.
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows prices across the country have risen significantly for food, housing and other necessities. No surprise there.
Inflation isn’t quite as bad in metro Atlanta as the national average, but it’s worse in one critical area: food.
That leads us to today’s trivia question ...
❓Which food group saw the greatest inflation in price in metro Atlanta over the last year?
A. meat and eggs
B. milk and cheese
C. produce
D. grains
Answer at the bottom, as usual.
RIVIAN BREAKS GROUND
Rivian Automotive broke ground Tuesday east of Atlanta, despite President Trump’s push to roll back electric vehicle tax credits. Beginning Sept. 30, buyers will no longer qualify for savings of up to $7,500 per car.
Here are a few more notes on Rivian’s groundbreaking:
- The ceremony brought together stakeholders, media representatives and government officials — among them Gov. Brian Kemp.
- The Georgia plant — a $5 billion project — was first announced in 2021. Through setbacks and delays, Kemp’s administration remained committed to Rivian, framing the plant as a cornerstone of Georgia’s manufacturing future and a linchpin for the 7,500 jobs it promises.
- Rivian, in turn, rewarded the state with plans for an East Coast headquarters in Atlanta that could eventually employ hundreds more.
- Tuesday’s groundbreaking near Rutledge carried its own urgency: the company must begin construction to access the federal loan that leaders say will help fund the project.
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
⚖️ FBI Director Kash Patel is in the hot seat on Capitol Hill. He’s fielding questions about Charlie Kirk’s murder and accusations of illegal political retribution.
🔨 Home Depot got the go-ahead for a tax break on a roughly $140 million project to expand its Vinings headquarters, along with two other corporate campuses.
✈️ The U.S. Department of Transportation nixed Delta Air Lines’ joint venture with Aeromexico. The partnership began in 2016 and allows antitrust immunity for joint price and capacity setting. The DOT has been threatening to undo it for nearly two years.
🐘 Clark Dean, a Harvard-trained business exec, has entered the Georgia governor’s race as a GOP outsider.
SUSPECTED BEYONCÉ MUSIC-NAPPER ARRESTED
Remember when Beyoncé’s unreleased music, set lists and footage plans for her tour shows were stolen from her team’s car while she was in town for the “Cowboy Carter” tour? Behold, we have an arrest.
- An Atlanta man has been charged with multiple crimes in connection with the theft. He has an extensive criminal history in Fulton County.
- The stolen items included hard drives with watermarked music, some unreleased music, footage plans for her shows, past and future set lists, laptops, clothes, Tom Ford sunglasses, a book bag and a pair of AirPods Max headphones.
Imagine stealing a trove of top-secret Beyoncé information and nicking a nice pair of sunglasses for good measure.
🔎 READ MORE: More on the suspect and what happened that night
NEWS BITES
Film icon Robert Redford has passed away at 89
Which movie is your core “First Time I Saw Robert Redford” memory? It’s “Out of Africa” for me.
Many sports fans are unhappy with how much it costs to watch their games, new poll says
The “new poll” being any conversation with any sports fan anywhere. Oh, we long for the days of cable and $33 visitor’s bullpen seats at Turner Field.
Roasted salmon with sour cherry rice. What a magical combo of words.
Atlanta is one of the loneliest cities. What can we do about it?
Do we need to “get out more” or do we need “significantly expanded, reliable public transit?” Depends on who you ask.
ON THIS DATE
Sept. 17, 1975
From the front page of The Atlanta Journal: What’s that screaming? A panther? Early in the morning it screams in the woods behind Tom Seymour’s house. Dogs bark and the men load their deer rifles, but the sound stops and the piney woods around Stockbridge grow quiet again. Some people claim they’ve heard a scream “that’ll turn your blood cold.” Others have seen glimpses of a sleek black cat with a long tail and eyes “as big as silver dollars” stalking through back yards and nearby woods. But none of them can say for sure what’s been lurking in the woods that surround their community since early September. Some people believe the black animal is a panther but the state’s Game and Fish Division officials are skeptical. … a panther hasn’t been seen in Georgia in more than 30 years.
What a spooky little tale!
ONE MORE THING
The answer is A: meat and eggs have risen the most in price over the last year, by about 7% overall. That includes poultry and fish, all the good stuff. My freezer is stocked up with whatever cool meat was on sale at Publix the week before. To put a silver lining on it, it makes dinner planning more interesting!
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
AJ Willingham is an National Emmy, NABJ and Webby award-winning journalist who loves talking culture, religion, sports, social justice, infrastructure and the arts. She lives in beautiful Smyrna-Mableton and went to Syracuse University.
