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County to hire firm to manage justice center construction
JD justicenew
An architect’s drawing shows what the justice center is supposed to look like from the corner of South Main and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. - photo by Submitted / Coastal Courier
Liberty County’s new Justice Center will be built under the supervision of a construction management firm, according to a decision by the commissioners this week.
Architect Craig Buckley told the commission he had been going through the drawings of the building to make sure it included all the features that would be needed. As an example, he said the sally port — secure entrance and driveway — had been moved because of parking considerations.
Buckley said he had realized the new design did not allow space for vans carrying prisoner to court to turn around, and needed to be modified.
Buckley told the commissioners his architectural firm builds about $200 million in construction annually and that about of 40 percent of customers now use construction management firms. These are companies, frequently general contractors, that have the expertise to oversee large construction projects for governments and private customers.
Buckley said someone from his firm would still be present during the construction “every day, or almost every day.”
Plans for the new justice center include a 25,000 square foot building fronting on Main Street and a 50,000 square foot parking lot in the rear. The Justice Center will house the district attorney, sheriff’s office, public defender, superior, state and local judges. The complex will be built on 2.61 acres over 11 parcels of land, which were owned by nine different people. It is bounded by Main, Martin Luther King and bagley. Earlier cost estimates were as high as $20 million. Brown has said more current figures are between $17 and $18 million.
In other business Tuesday, Barney Maley, owner of the Sunbury Crab Co. restaurant, asked commissioners to consider Sunday alcohol sales in unincorporated areas.
Maley told the commissioners that allowing the drink sales would bring the county in line with current laws in Hinesville and Flemington and “help stem the flow of tourist dollars to other counties.”
Commission Chairman John McIver thanked Maley and said, “Let us study this.”
County Attorney Kelly Davis advised the commissioners that Sunday alcohol sales would have to be approved by voters. He said the commission should act three or four months before when they wanted to schedule the referendum.
The state law allowing local governments to authorize Sunday alcohol sales restricts them to restaurants earning more than 50 percent of their income from food and hotels earning more than 50 percent of their income from room rental.
The commissioners also approved two budget amendments connected with the court system, one dealing with State Court and one for the juvenile prosecuting attorney.
State Court Judge Leon Braun is becoming a fulltime judge due to the caseload. The commissioners added $32,992 to the State Court budget to cover the cost of making it a fulltime operation. Another adjustment will be needed for the judge’s salary when an official starting date is set to start fulltime operation.
The Atlantic Circuit District Attorney’s Office is hiring an in-house attorney to prosecute juvenile cases instead of contracting for that service. The commissioners moved $32,876 from the professional services line item to be used for personnel costs of the new position.
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3rd ID, Army, allies mourn four soldiers lost in accident
Farewell ceremony set for Thursday morning in Lithuanian capital
four soldiers

The four U.S. Army soldiers assigned to 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry found deceased near Pabradė, Lithuania have been identified.  

The Army has confirmed the four soldiers who died when their vehicle sank into a bog as Staff Sgt. Edvin Franco, 25, Staff Sgt. Jose Duenez, 25, PFC Dante Taitano, 21, and Staff Sgt. Troy Knutson-Collins, 28.

"First and foremost, we offer condolences to the loved ones of our soldiers,” said Gen. Christopher Donahue, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa. “I can't say enough about the support our Lithuanian Allies have provided us. We have leaned on them, and they, alongside our Polish and Estonian Allies - and our own sailors, airmen and experts from the Corps of Engineers - have enabled us to find and bring home our soldiers. This is a tragic event, but it reinforces what it means to have Allies and friends.” 

The four soldiers, who were the crew of a M88A2 armored recovery vehicle, went missing in the early morning hours of March 25. Their vehicle eventually was found March 26 but it was beneath approximately 14 feet of water and sunk into more than six feet of mud.

Crews worked to drain the area around the vehicle to make it stable for heavy equipment needed to pull out the M88. U.S. Navy divers were flown in and attached cables to hoist points so the submerged vehicle could be lifted out of the bog.

"This past week has been devastating. Today our hearts bear the weight of an unbearable pain with the loss of our final Dogface Soldier," said Maj. Gen. Christopher Norrie, 3rd ID commanding general. “Though we have received some closure, the world is darker without them.” 

Knutson-Collins, Duenez Jr., and Franco were all posthumously promoted to the rank of staff sergeant.

Knutson-Collins was an artillery mechanic with over seven years in the Army. He arrived at Fort Stewart in February 2018 and was assigned to 1/41 Field Artillery Battalion.

Knutson-Collins graduated from the Army Basic Leader Course, the Advanced Leaders Course, the Tracked Vehicle Recovery Operations course, and the Combat Lifesaver course. He deployed to Korea in 2020.

His awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, Army Good Conduct Medal, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and Master Technician Badge.

“Words cannot express how deeply this loss is felt by everyone in our unit,” said Capt. Jackson Patillo, commander, Foxtrot Company, 1/41 Field Artillery Battalion. “Staff Sgt. Troy Collins was an exceptional friend to all of us and an irreplaceable member to our entire Fox family that we will truly miss.”

“The pain we feel from this loss is insurmountable,” said Lt. Col. Erick Buckner, 1/41 Field Artillery Battalion commander. “Staff Sgt. Knutson-Collins was well loved throughout our unit and a brother to all. He was an expert, an incredibly talented mechanic and a warrior. We will never forget his dedication to his unit, his family and his country.”

“We are incredibly relieved that we were able to bring this recovery to an end and bring closure to all the families, friends and teammates of our soldiers,” said Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commanding general of the 1st Armored Division, who also grew up on Fort Stewart. “We cannot thank our Allies and fellow service members enough, especially the Lithuanians, who spared no resource in support of this mission. Together, we delivered on our promise to never leave a fallen comrade.” 

Throughout the seven-day recovery effort, the combined and joint team worked day and night to find the soldiers. 

“As the fourth and final soldier has been recovered from this tragic accident, we will continue to mourn their loss as we work to quickly return our Dog Face Soldiers home to their families,” said Lt. Gen. Charles Costanza, commanding general of V Corps and former Fort Stewart and 3rd ID commanding general. “It has been truly amazing and very humbling to watch the incredible recovery team from different commands, countries and continents come together and give everything to recover our Soldiers. Thank you, Lithuania, Poland, Estonia, the U.S. Navy and the Army Corps of Engineers. We are forever grateful.” 

All four soldiers were deployed to Lithuania in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve to provide credible ground deterrence alongside Allies and partners, and were permanently stationed at Fort Stewart. 

“I'm immensely proud of our entire team. They have been relentless in their efforts to search and recover our soldiers and get every capability and asset necessary to enable this effort,” Gen. Donahue said. 

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also posted on X his sorrow at the loss of the four soldiers.

“I want to personally extend my deepest condolences to the families of all four fallen soldiers,” he wrote. “Our hearts are heavy across the Department of Defense. We are deeply grateful to our brave servicemembers who enabled this difficult recovery and to our Lithuanian hosts who labored alongside them. The recovery was conducted with urgency, resolve and deep respect for the fallen. We will never forget these soldiers — and our prayers are with their families.”

A farewell ceremony for the soldiers will be held Thursday morning in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital.

“Every soldier is also a Lithuanian soldier, and their families’ pain is our pain,” said a statement from the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense.

The U.S. Army is investigating the cause of the accident. Updates will be provided as more information becomes available. 

"We continue to stand by the families and loved ones through this incredibly difficult time,” said Maj. Gen. Norrie. “Now, it’s time to bring them home.” 

 

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