Close ties among Atlanta's elected officials
Thousands of employees at metro Atlanta area governments have co-workers who are relatives or who have other close ties. They include these top officials:
Richard Alexander
Position: Gwinnett clerk of court
Relationship: Alexander lives with his secretary, Lori Taylor.
What he says: Because they’re not married, their romantic relationship does not violate a county policy prohibiting relatives from working in the same department division. Alexander says the relationship has caused no problems in the clerk’s office.
Michael Julian Bond
Position: Atlanta city councilman
Relationships: Brother Horace Bond is a city jail lieutenant. Sister Julia Bond works for the Department of Parks and Recreation. Siblings Jeff Bond and Phyllis McMillan work for city contractors.
What he says: Their positions do not impact how he votes. He discloses their jobs in annual city ethics filings to show voters he has nothing to hide.
Jeffrey Turner
Position: Clayton County Commission chairman
Relationships: Sons Christopher and Brandon work in the county parks department. Son Ryan had a seasonal parks job in 2010.
What he says: Turner says his sons may have benefited from their relation to him, but they had to win the jobs on their own merit. “I’m not going to ever require anybody to hire anybody.”
About the Author
Willoughby Mariano is an investigative reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where she focuses on housing and criminal justice issues. She previously worked for the AJC's PolitiFact Georgia, where she fact checked the claims of elected officials, and at the Orlando Sentinel, where she covered crime and breaking news.
