(GA. NEWS NETWORK)
*Six residents escaped a house fire in Lawrenceville after investigators say a man was caught on camera intentionally setting fire to it while they were sleeping. A Ring camera video shows the suspect approaching the house, lighting an object and throwing it into the garage. One resident happened to be awake when the power went out, noticed the fire, and rushed inside to wake the others. The house and their belongings were destroyed, and the suspect remains at large.
*The Georgia State Board of Education has unanimously recommended that Governor Brian Kemp suspend all members of the Dublin City Board of Education. 41NBC reports the recommendation follows a state hearing triggered after Cognia placed the district one step away from losing accreditation. State officials cited concerns tied to the district’s financial crisis, which includes a $20-million deficit. Governor Kemp will now decide whether to suspend the board members with pay and appoint temporary replacements. Board members could also later petition for reinstatement under state law.
*Alexander Woods III, the man convicted in the 2004 execution-style murders of a Colquitt County family of five has been released from prison after his conviction was overturned on a legal technicality. WALB reports Woods walked free August 8. The execution-style slayings were discovered by two pre-teen family members when they returned from school. The district attorney says retrying the case is now impossible.
*A stray cat is safe after surviving an 800-mile journey from New Jersey to the University of Georgia. The cat had hidden itself under the car of UGA Junior Jadyn Sawyer, who was traveling back to Athens. Sawyer discovered the cat nearly 11 hours after leaving Mount Laurel, New Jersey, when she noticed a paw reaching out from beneath her parked vehicle. With the help of mechanics at an Athens auto repair shop, the feline, now named Jersey and awaiting adoption, was finally freed.