Morning, y’all! High temperatures are only in the 60s today, but morning showers are on their way out. So ... win-win?
News-wise, we’ve got the latest on gas prices as you prep for holiday travel, tips for living to 100 and a report from the Hawks’ Dikembe Mutombo tribute.
- Also of note: Special counsel Jack Smith moved to drop the election interference and classified documents cases against President-elect Donald Trump, citing policies against prosecuting sitting presidents.
Will that affect Fulton County’s Trump prosecution? Unclear. But another long-lasting case from Fani Willis’ office is coming to a close.
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COURTROOM SLOG
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Fulton County’s Young Thug trial is almost over.
Of course, Young Thug — the Grammy-winning Atlanta rapper and, according to prosecutors, prolific gang leader — isn’t actually a defendant anymore, having pleaded guilty on Halloween. Lots of other folks tapped out along the way, too.
Nevertheless, opposing sides in Georgia’s longest-running criminal trial spent all day Monday delivering closing arguments. The jury will start deliberating today.
- And since very little about this trial has been by the book, how about we try and sum things up — by the numbers?
692: The number of days between the start of jury selection and today (not normal!).
365: The number of days between opening statements and closing arguments (also not normal!).
28: The original number of defendants. Fourteen headed to trial as a group; all but two took pleas or otherwise dropped out along the way.
16: The number of days (spaced out over nearly three months) that star witness Kenneth “Woody” Copeland took the stand. He “didn’t recall” much, but managed to became a social media sensation along the way.
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
4: The number of mid-trial arrests, including two defense attorneys: one for entering the courtroom with his prescription medication (long story!) and one on a contempt charge that later was vacated.
- Then there’s the courthouse deputy accused of enjoying a romantic relationship with a defendant! And the jailer accused of taking bribes to allow at least one defendant to possess contraband and hang out in restricted areas.
2: The number of judges who have overseen the case. The aforementioned contempt charge ultimately led to Judge Ural Glanville’s removal. Then Judge Paige Reese Whitaker took over.
1: The number of albums dropped during trial. Young Thug released “Business is Business” while in jail last June. Co-defendant Yak Gotti (real name: Deamonte Kendrick) made an appearance, too.
- Kendrick and Shannon Stillwell (who was stabbed in jail last year) are the defendants still remaining in the case.
Will the jury convene for a reasonable amount of time and deliver a straightforward verdict on their charges, which include murder?
Maybe! Stranger things have happened.
Follow reporters @JozsefPapp_ and @ShaddiAbusaid for all the latest from the courtroom. And keep scrolling for more news.
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GET PUMPED UP
Credit: John Spink/AJC
Credit: John Spink/AJC
Hitting the road for Turkey Day? Metro Atlanta gas prices currently sit around $2.94 per gallon, a smidge higher than last year. And expect traffic to be the worst between noon and 6 p.m. Wednesday.
- Flying instead? Don’t miss our guide to navigating Hartsfield-Jackson during the holidays.
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MEANWHILE, AT CITY HALL
» Atlanta reached a settlement in a lawsuit over claims that construction of the city’s new Public Safety Training Center polluted nearby Intrenchment Creek. Terms aren’t public yet.
» Mayor Andre Dickens and his administration, meanwhile, keep pushing for control over possible changes to the city’s Office of the Inspector General.
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SAGE CENTENARIANS
Credit: Robyn Hutson
Credit: Robyn Hutson
Wanna live to be 100? Or, you know, as long as possible? Check out this truly lovely video of local centenarians offering their best advice.
- “You have to make the effort to get up and see what the rest of the world is doing,” 107-year-old Lillian Mortimer said.
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MOVING ON
Channel 2 Action News anchor Justin Farmer is leaving the station (and broadcast news) after more than 16 years. Today’s his last day on the air.
- Readers of a certain age will remember that he’s the son of Don Farmer, another longtime face of WSB-TV.
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LARGER THAN LIFE
Credit: Jason Allen for the AJC
Credit: Jason Allen for the AJC
The Hawks couldn’t slow down Kyrie Irving in a 129-119 loss to the visiting Mavericks. But a night of tributes to the late, great Dikembe Mutombo — “a global ambassador for doing right” — helped put things in perspective.
“What he did in basketball was a steppingstone to do something bigger than himself,” Atlanta legend Dominique Wilkins said.
- Clean Old-Fashioned Hate: Georgia Tech hasn’t beaten Georgia on the gridiron since 2016. But the Jackets have already bested two top-10 teams this year, so ... you never know! (The Bulldogs, meanwhile, say they’re 100% focused on Tech, not the SEC Championship game or the College Football Playoff.)
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DRINK UP!
Thanksgiving wine? Thanksgiving wine.
The AJC talked to some experts for recommendations to up your bottle game, including good options for pairing with turkey and all those desserts (rioja is an affordable crowd-pleaser!). But don’t be afraid to try the unexpected, either.
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MORE TO EXPLORE
» Rivian poised to get $6B federal loan to build Georgia factory
» Teen mother dug hole for dead newborn at Marietta home, police say
» Rapper Drake, a huge dork, alleges distributor falsely inflated Kendrick Lamar diss track
» Jan Dan of Douglasville makes top eight on ‘The Voice’
» T.D. Jakes, megachurch pastor with ties to Atlanta, suffers medical emergency
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ON THIS DATE
Nov. 26, 1941
President Franklin D. Roosevelt — who a few years earlier declared Thanksgiving to be the fourth Thursday in November, not the last — hoped to make it to his Peach State retreat in Warm Springs for a holiday feast.
A month later, Roosevelt signed a law officially changing the Thanksgiving schedule. His largest inspiration? Business leaders pushing for more post-turkey, pre-Christmas shopping days, of course.
Credit: File photo
Credit: File photo
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PHOTO OF THE DAY
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
AJC contributor Ben Gray caught Malcolm Turpin (center) explaining a graffiti technique to Jade Thomasson during a recent class along the Atlanta Beltline. Turpin started teaching the (legal) art of spray-painting after his own struggle to find a mentor.
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ONE MORE THING
President Joe Biden pardoned turkeys named “Peach” and “Blossom” on Monday. They’re not from Georgia, but we can pretend.
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Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at tyler.estep@ajc.com.
Until next time.
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