Troup County Breaking News

08/30/2026

God is good!

08/25/2026

-, $50 cash no questions asked if you have found this wallet. -
This is a shot in the dark but has anyone at Burger King on Lafayette or Chipotle found a wallet with a license in it that has Lonna Matthews on it? Or anyone whom had a Dasher driver name that showed up as Matthews as a customer Sunday evening find a wallet? And Toyota key?

08/21/2026

7:57 p.m. Radar
Sponsored by Ricky Smith Roofing

08/21/2026

08/19/2026

LaGrange Police Investigating Potential Misuse of License Plate Recognition System

LaGrange, Ga. August 19, 2026 – The LaGrange Police Department is investigating possible misuse of its License Plate Recognition (LPR) system involving the activity of one of its officers between March and December 2025.

The City and Police Department are committed to a thorough review and appropriate follow-up action. Police Chief Garrett Fiveash has consulted with other agencies that have handled confirmed LPR misuse cases to discuss possible audit red flags such as unusually high search volume tied to a single plate. Flock, one of the LPR companies used by the City, began providing access to its audit function late last year.

Prior to the discovery of possible misuse, Chief Fiveash had already strengthened safeguards including:
Two-factor authentication to access the system
Requiring the offense type, case number, and a written narrative for every search, enforced before a search can be run
Monthly audits by the Office of Professional Standards, reported to the Chief's Office
Automated notifications of unusual activity
An updated LPR policy incorporating newer camera and crime center technology
LaGrange PD was an early adopter of LPR technology and has had a governing use policy since 2018. The tool has helped solve and advance numerous criminal investigations.

"License Plate Recognition technology is an important public safety tool, but with that capability comes a responsibility to ensure it is used appropriately," Chief Fiveash said. "We will be diligent in protecting the privacy of our citizenry, as well as ensuring that this very valuable tool is not abused. We have used this system to great effect, and it has solved or helped to solve numerous cases for our department during my tenure here."

The Police Department will share additional information as it becomes available.

08/18/2026

Municipal musical chairs: LaGrange council sees many called elections

By Jennifer Shrader
BeeTV33 staff writer

Does it feel like the city of LaGrange has had voters at the ballot box—or, okay, it’s a scanner now—far more than the regular amount lately?

Well, that’s because the special called election in November to fill the council seat vacated by Quay Boddie on Aug. 14 will be the city’s sixth since early 2022. The reasons for the previously called elections ranged from normal course of business to absolutely heartbreaking.

It started with an unexpected tragedy. Councilman LeGree McCamey died on Jan. 20, 2022. A special election put Councilman Leon Childs in that seat.

Not long after that, former Mayor Jim Thornton announced he was stepping down from elected office to take a job with the Georgia Municipal Association. That special election installed the Rev. Willie Edmondson as the city’s first black mayor.

In another special election, Jim Arrington won his council seat back after vacating it to also run for mayor.

Tragically, Edmondson died in office on Feb. 16, 2024.

In a special election after Edmondson’s death, Arrington won the race for mayor.

That led to another special election to fill Arrington’s vacant again council seat, and that election was won by Darby Pippin.

The only councilman appointed and not elected was Quay Boddie, who was chosen by the council to fill Edmondson’s seat when he ran for mayor. There was a short enough time period between the vacancy and the end of Edmondson’s term that the council could make an appointment. Boddie had only just been in a close runoff with Childs for McCamey’s seat when council needed to make the appointment.