WABE's Week In Review

In this special episode of the Week in Review, we showcase our series "Six Million and Lonely" by All Things Considered host Jim Burress and producer Christopher Alston. It looks at the growing problem of loneliness, especially in the metro Atlanta area, where a U.S. Census Bureau quarterly survey found people here were the second most isolated in the country. The series highlights the problems and finds some solutions to combat social isolation and loneliness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Georgia appeals court ruled this week that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her office should be removed from the election interference case involving President-Elect Donald Trump and 14 others. the judges said Willis' her personal relationship with a special prosecutor created an “appearance of impropriety.” And we'll also look at why thousands of Amazon drivers picketed this week at multiple facilities across the country, including in Atlanta. Plus, we take a tour of Atlanta's controversial Public Safety Training Center. The facility dubbed "Cop City" by its opponents is now built after years of clashes and protests. We look at how police aim to provide security there while building a community and repairing relationships. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Georgia governor Brian Kemp signs on with some two dozen other republican governors across the country in expressing support for President-elect Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. Plus, we examine where tens of millions of dollars in opioid settlement money is going in Georgia. Also the spotted lanternfly, a tree-sucking, rapidly multiplying insect that’s already invaded other U.S. states, is now in Georgia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three Georgia politicians, who didn't win their last election bids, are set to join the new Trump administration. We'll look more at what former Senators David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler as well as former Congressman Doug Collins are slated for. Plus, the man found guilty last month of murdering Laken Riley on the campus of University of Georgia is asking for a new trial. The case became a political flashpoint during an election year as Jose Ibarra was in the country illegally. Also we explain the milestone hit by Georgia's school voucher program. And we go to the coast, where the first critically endangered right whale calf of the season has been spotted. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jose Ibarra, who was in the country illegally, was found guilty of killing nursing student Laken Riley in case that became a political football this election year. Plus, a Georgia State Election Board member wants the state to provide voters’ personal information to the makers of EagleAI, a controversial tool for challenging voter eligibility. Also, we look at how the incoming Trump administration may impact environmental and immigration issues Georgia. And TSA officials predict this Thanksgiving travel season will break records with score of passengers set to travel through Atlanta's Hartsfield Jackson International Airport. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A federal investigation has found Fulton County Jail is violating the civil rights of people in its custody by failing to protect them from violence, using excessive force, and holding them in filthy and unsafe conditions. Sheriff Patrick Labat says the issues predate his tenure but he believes the problems outlined by the department of justice are fixable. Plus, DeKalb County is planning to raise water and sewer rates to make major improvements to its water system. And we go inside a program that sends medical professionals to new and expecting moms in an effort to curb Georgia's extremely high maternal mortality rate. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We spend the first half of the show detailing some of the impact from Tuesday's election on Georgia: From taxes to transit to runoff races. Then we remember billionaire co-founder of Home Depot Bernie Marcus, who died this week. Plus, the late music producer Rico Wade is honored by East Point with monument dedicated by the city and his closest friends and colleagues. Also, we hear an auctioneering prodigy in action. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jeffrey Williams, also known as rapper Young Thug, is now pleading guilty in the massive gang and racketeering trial. Plus, we explore the complicated relationship between former President Donald Trump and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp after the Kemp is not at another Trump rally in Georgia. And metro Atlanta’s housing prices have surged in the last couple of years, so what are Trump and vice president Kamala Harris saying about what they would do to help those who can't buy and are being priced out on rent? Also, we have more on what some metro Atlanta law enforcement officials are doing to increase security this heated election season. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WABE's Marisa Mecke explores a 2023 raw sewage spill from a Fulton County water treatment plant that forced officials to close off huge swaths of the river. The incident poured in millions of gallons of raw sewage into the river that supplies Atlanta with a majority of its drinking water. How officials handled the situation has left doubts about how seriously authorities take sewage pollution in Atlanta for many of the groups aiming to protect the river. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Georgians continue to be courted by presential candidates and their surrogates. Both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris were here this week with Harris campaigning alongside former president Barack Obama for the first time. And an update on the three white men who are serving life sentences after murdered Ahmaud Arbery as they seek a new trial. Plus, "Jailbots!" The sheriff in Cobb County is using high-tech guards to keep watch on inmates. Also, right whales are showing some positive population numbers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The chemical fire just south east of Atlanta in Conyers at the Biolab facility last month has some lawmakers calling for the facility to be shuttered, some lawyers talking class action lawsuit. Meanwhile, the state has opened a community center to help residents. Plus, a Georgia grand jury has indicted a father and son for their alleged parts in last month's mass shooting at Apalachee High School that killed two students and two teachers last month. And the former Atlanta Medical Center site is taking another step toward redevelopment. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Georgia and other states were trying to recover from hurricane Helene, Milton hit. We look at the impact from the two storms. Plus, fallout from the chemical fire at the Biolab facility in Conyers continues as some residents want the facility shutdown as the blaze sent plumes of chemicals into the air around metro Atlanta. And Atlanta has one of the largest Jewish communities in the country. We are with them as they remember and mourn the October 7th attack that saw scores of people killed, injured and kidnapped one year ago. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We explore the impacts of Hurricane Helene in Georgia: Thousands still without power, scores of homes and businesses ruined and at least 33 people in Georgia alone were killed. Plus we have more from the visits this week by President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump (both times). And some are calling for the closure of a plant near Atlanta where a chemical fire sent a huge plume to the air. We'll also have a look at a damning Department of Justice report on Georgia's prisons. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At least 11 people died in Georgia as Hurricane Helene rolled through the state. Plus, former President Donald Trump stumped in Savannah this week. He was pitching a plan to stimulate manufacturing, but unlike during his last Georgia rally, Trump refrained from antagonizing Governor Brian Kemp. Also, the controversial State Election Board is preparing to investigate eight heavily Democratic counties for dismissing thousands of voter challenges. And the Ports of Savannah and Brunswick are preparing for a potential strike next week. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Republicans on the controversial Georgia State Election Board approved a rule this week requiring a hand count of ballots cast on election day. That's in opposition of the republican attorney general and secretary of state, who fear the last-minute change could cause delays and confusion on election night and the days that follow. Plus, we have the context behind visits from candidates Kamala Harris, J.D. Vance and Tim Walz. Also, we have more on a company seeking to mine next to the Okefenokee Swamp benefiting off a state tax credit meant for conservation. And how a racial disparities in maternal healthcare is furthering the mistrust between communities of colors and the healthcare system. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Georgia judge is dismissing three more counts in the election interference case against former President Donald Trump and his allies. Plus, attorneys for the man whose son is accused of opening fire at Apalachee High School argued in a new court filing that he needs to be separated from the general population behind bars for his own safety. And Georgia’s Republican State House Speaker says lawmakers will consider new gun regulations during the 2025 legislative session. Also, diseases from Georgia's ticks are spreading faster due to climate change. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We take a look back at the deadly Barrow County school shooting that left two students and two teachers dead and nine people injured. The 14-year old alleged shooter is in custody along with his father and neither are seeking bail. We hear from the community about those who lost their lives, how a community is trying to recover and what some lawmakers are saying. Plus, we have a special feature on Georgia's foster care system: When parents have their kids taken into foster care, the state orders them to pay support. We explore how this move is impacting parents being able to bring their kids back home. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A lawsuit supported by the Harris Campaign is challenging new rules for certifying elections in Georgia that could result in some local election boards voting against certifying results this fall. Plus, Georgia’s presidential ballot will have six candidates for voters to choose from, which is unusual as the state has had at most only three presidential candidates on the ballot each election since 2004. And we examine the strategy of the Harris campaign to hit places outside metro Atlanta. Also, thousands of people adopted from outside the country before the year 2000 may not have U.S. citizenship, and we hear the story of Georgia man who was deported because of a loophole in U.S. adoption law. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WABE's Molly Samuel and the environment team of Emily Jones and Marisa Mecke review the flooding in Georgia after Tropical Storm Debby. The team also looks at the future of flooding as climate change makes storms more severe and expand their reach across the state. Plus, we look at if some metro Atlanta stormwater systems can handle more severe storms. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The State Election Board faces bipartisan scrutiny after approving another rule change that could disrupt the certification of Georgia's election results this November. Plus, we hear from Georgians who spoke at the Democratic National Convention and those who were there as delegates. Also, after much controversy at the beginning of the school year, some Georgia educators are now teaching the Advanced Placement course in African American Studies. And The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is allocating $2 million to transform the former site of the Chattahoochee Brick Company, which has a horrific past, for recreation. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.