Friday, January 23, 2026

Tifton, Georgia

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'PROACTIVE APPROACH' REDUCING TIFTON CRIME

SAYS TIFTON POLICE CHIEF HYMAN

By BONNIE SAYLES

Tifton Grapevine

The Tifton Police Department has started a new “proactive approach” to policing, Chief Steve Hyman told the Tifton Rotary Club on Wednesday, and it has people asking if he has hired more officers.

Hyman said that starting last June, he encouraged the officers to get out of their cruisers and walk around more businesses and to spend more time cruising through neighborhoods around the city.

“We set up a plan, and I’m happy with it, because I’ve seen a difference in our crime rate,” Hyman said, “It has slowed down.”

The department has 51 fulltime officers, with 48 positions currently filled and three openings. Officers work 12-hour shifts. Eleven civilians work in support services in the police department. 

Hyman said 73% of officers’ time is spent responding to calls for service, handling disturbances, making welfare checks, and responding to emergencies. Another 13% is dedicated to traffic enforcement. Writing reports takes up about 7% of the officers’ time. Arrests only account for about 4% of their time, and the remaining 3% is responding to traffic accidents.

Many situations are resolved, he said, through problem solving, mediation, and finding appropriate assistance in lieu of arresting individuals. Hyman said he learned from the late Chief Jim Smith that “the problems we’re having, you can’t arrest your way out of these problems.”

“Policing in Tifton is largely service driven,” Hyman said. “Officers spend most of their time responding directly to citizens and preventing problems before they escalate.”

From January to December 2025, Hyman said the department answered 45,232 calls for service, including burglar alarms and welfare checks.

“Not all calls involve criminal activity. Law enforcement is more of a social service type thing,” he said. 

In that time period, the department made 950 arrests, issued 7,292 citations, completed 3,714 incident reports, and investigated 1,083 traffic accidents. Violent crime in 2025 included three murders, 19 rapes reported, 13 robberies, and 101 aggravated assaults. There were five murders in 2024, he said, adding that “one murder is too many.”

The majority of assaults, including drive-by shootings, were random acts where the perpetrators knew each other, he said. Hyman said too many 14, 15, and 16 year olds are out at 2 or 3 a.m., and parents should be monitoring them. 

“Some parents are not paying attention to what their children are doing,” he said.

Tifton does have gangs, and two officers are dedicated just to monitoring and investigating gang activity. A new gunshot-detection system picks up gunshots, firecrackers, even vehicle backfires, and sends a message to computers, mobile phones, and the 911 operators. “We’ve recovered a bunch of guns,” thanks to the system, Hyman said. 

He noted that the community is still the eyes and ears of the police department and should call 911 or use the anonymous tipline to help control crime. Also, people still need to do better at locking up their vehicles. There were 62 burglaries and 578 thefts in 2025.

“Eight out of 10 vehicles broken into are left unlocked,” Hyman said, “and often left with guns in there.” Then those guns are used to commit crimes.

Hyman has been with the department since 1983 and experienced something for the first time in all those years in early December when two detectives were shot trying to serve a search warrant. The suspect was under suspicion of setting a neighbor’s house on fire. 

Both the officers are doing better, he said. Detective Michael Gaskins is better with some shoulder issues, and Detective Jerry Fulford is improving, although he will lose an eye, Hyman said. 

“What we have now, even with the three vacancies, we are well staffed to make sure this community is safe,” Hyman added.

Donald Chase, Georgia Peanut Commission chairman, left, unveils portrait of Don Koehler, right, as he is named to the Georgia Peanut Hall of Fame during last week's Georgia Peanut Farm Show in Tifton. The portrait is on display at the Georgia Peanut Commission's headquarters on Fulwood Boulevard.

KOEHLER NAMED TO GA PEANUT HALL OF FAME

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

The Georgia Peanut Commission has inducted Don Koehler of Tifton as the eighth member of the Georgia Peanut Hall of Fame.

Koehler, senior executive director of the Georgia Peanut Commission (GPC), has served as executive director of GPC since 1986. Throughout his 40 years of service to Georgia’s peanut farmers, he has represented their interests on initiatives such as farm bills, disaster assistance, and appropriations requests.

A portrait of Koehler was unveiled at the Georgia Peanut Farm Show last week and is being displayed at GPC headquarters in Tifton.

"I was surprised, honored, and humbled to receive this recognition in the presence of the very people who have made me what I was able to be: My wife and family, my work family, my board, and my farmers. Praise most of all for guiding my path goes to God," Koehler said.

Koehler is currently serving as senior executive director until his retirement on July 31. The GPC has hired Taylor Arnold to succeed Koehler as executive director. Arnold began his role on Jan. 1.

Jones Brothers Farms in Chula receives the Outstanding Georgia Peanut Farmer of the Year Award for District 2 by the Georgia Peanut Commission during the 49th annual Georgia Peanut Farm Show and Conference last week at the University of Georgia Tifton Campus Conference Center. Pictured from left are Joey Williams, Georgia Peanut Commission advisory board member representing District 2, with Dalton Jones, Derrick Jones, and Larry Jones.

CHULA FARM AWARDED GA DISTRICT PEANUT FARMER OF YEAR

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

During the 49th annual Georgia Peanut Farm Show and Conference last week in Tifton, Jones Brothers Farms of Chula was awarded Outstanding Georgia Peanut Farmer of the Year in the Georgia Peanut Commission's District 2.

The Peanut Commission selected a farmer from each district the commission represents.

The district recipients were:

• District 1: Willard Mims of Donaldsonville
• District 2: Jones Brothers Farms of Chula
• District 3: Carl Hood of Midville
• District 4: Keith Moore of Cordele
• District 5: Rodney Locke of Dawson

The awards honor producers who have devoted much of their lives to peanut production and improving the industry for future generations. The farmers were recognized for their dedication, innovation, and leadership within their communities and across the state.

STAR students and teachers at Tiftarea Academy are, from left, student Ridley Monk with teacher Natalie Rippy, and teacher Donalyn Garrick with student Addison Pieplow.

TIFTAREA ACADEMY NAMES STAR STUDENTS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Tiftarea Academy has named its STAR students: Addison Pieplow and Ridley Monk recorded a tie for the highest SAT score.

Addison selected Donalyn Garrick as her STAR teacher, and Ridley selected Natalie Rippy as his STAR teacher.

The STAR program in Georgia honors outstanding high school seniors and the teachers who have had a significant impact on those students' academic success.

TIFTON CITY COUNCIL APPOINTS VICE MAYOR

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

During Tuesday's Tifton City Council meeting, Councilman M. Jay Hall was appointed and sworn in as vice mayor following Councilman Josh Reynolds' two-year term as the city's vice mayor.

Tifton's City Charter requires council to appoint a vice mayor from among its members every even-numbered year. The vice mayor handles mayoral duties when the mayor is unavailable.

City Attorney Rob Wilmot conducted Hall's swearing in as vice mayor with his family beside him.

Mayor Julie B. Smith and council members thanked Reynolds for his service and support during his two-year term as vice mayor. Reynolds then moved to appoint Hall.

"I think it's right that we rotate this honor," Reynolds said.

FIRST TUESDAY CONCERTS RESUME

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College resumes its popular First Tuesday Concert Series on Feb. 3.

The ABAC Arts Connection will host concerts in February, March, and April featuring the Trillium String Quartet, the ABAC Concert Choir, and "The Songs of Broadway!" respectively. All First Tuesday Concert Series events are free and open to the public.

Trillium, which will perform at ABAC’s Howard Auditorium on Feb. 3, focuses on classical pieces while exploring new ways to present traditional music. The group formed in 2024 and has entertained audiences nationwide.

“This concert will bring a wonderful evening of music and will provide a holistic educational opportunity to everyone with a special interest in chamber music,” said Dr. Jennifer Huang, head of the Department of Fine Arts.

On March 3, the ABAC Concert Choir will present Requiem in D Minor, Op. 48 by Gabriel Fauré at St. Anne’s Episcopal Church in Tifton. The requiem was composed to reflect Catholic Mass through flowing, peaceful melodic lines.

“We chose this piece for its variety and transcendent properties,” said Marti Schert, director of the ABAC Concert Choir. “Not only is the piece extremely dynamic, but the emotion it conveys is palpable. It was written in memory of Fauré’s parents, and those who hear it truly get a sense of how much they meant to him.”

Wrapping up the series on April 7 is "The Songs of Broadway!" to be performed by past and present ABAC music majors at ABAC’s Howard Auditorium. Now in its 22nd year of production, this concert will take its audience into a “whole new world” as it explores a variety of classic and modern show tunes.

All events are at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6:45 p.m.

TIFTON WOMAN'S CLUB INSTALLS OFFICERS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Janice Blanchard, pictured at left, who is the Azalea City Woman's Club president and past president of the GFWC Georgia South West District, recently installs the new officers of the Tifton Woman's Club, a member of the General Federation of Women's Clubs.

The officers are, pictured from left, Jamie Stewart, parliamentarian; Miriam Jordan, treasurer; Gail Merlin, recording secretary; Bonnie Sayles, second vice president; and Debbie Thompson, president. Not pictured: Melanie Hasty, first vice president; and Genie McCook, recording secretary.

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

• KEMP DECLARES WEATHER EMERGENCY: Gov. Brian P. Kemp declared a State of Emergency Thursday ahead of the winter storm hitting the state this weekend. Several North Georgia counties are under a winter storm watch for the major system that will stretch across much of the nation. "As forecasts continue to evolve, Georgians should be prepared for freezing precipitation that causes dangerous conditions and the potential for damage and power loss beginning Saturday," Kemp said. As of now, the storm is expected to be most severe above Atlanta.

• GBI ARRESTS ELLAVILLE CITY MANAGER: The GBI has arrested and charged Donna Lynn McChargue, 50, of Ellaville with 29 counts of theft by taking. McChargue, the Ellaville city manager, is accused of making suspicious purchases and withdrawals totaling more than $400,000. McChargue was booked into the Schley County Jail.

• DOUBLE HOMICIDE IN PELHAM PROBED: GBI agents are investigating the deaths of Desmond Daniels, 24, of Baconton, and Tobias McIntyre, 33, of Camilla. On Sunday, Daniels and McIntyre were found dead near the intersection of Castleberry Street and Cannon Street in Pelham. Both men had been shot.

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CORRECTION: The Rev. Tracy McGeathey, who spoke at Tifton's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day breakfast, is pastor of Allen Temple AME Church in Tifton and not the Allen Temple AME Church that is in Jacksonville, Fla. McGeathey, a Jacksonville native, previously worked in various capacities in Jacksonville.

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YOUR GUIDE

TO ACTIVITIES

THIS WEEKEND

IN THE GREATER

TIFTAREA

Saturday, Jan. 24, is National Peanut Butter Day. While often mistakenly credited with inventing peanut butter, agricultural scientist George Washington Carver significantly popularized peanuts and developed hundreds of peanut-based products, but did not invent the original spread. No single person invented peanut butter, but key figures include Marcellus Gilmore Edson, who patented a peanut paste in 1884; Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, who developed a version for his patients in 1895; and Joseph Rosefield, who invented the hydrogenated, non-separating smooth peanut butter in the 1920s, while Aztecs and Incas made early peanut pastes thousands of years before.

Born on Jan. 23: John Hancock, first person to sign the Declaration of Independence, 1737-1793; Edouard Manet, French impressionist painter, 1832-1883; Lead Belly, folk & blues singer-guitarist, 1888-1949; Randolph Scott, cowboy-western actor, 1898-1987; Django Reinhardt, jazz guitarist, 1910-1953; Ernie Kovacs, comedian, 1919-1962; Chita Rivera, dancer, singer & actress,1933-2024; Mariska Hargitay, actress, 1964–; Nora O'Donnell, TV journalist, 1974–.

FRIDAY, JAN. 23

• Home School Hangout – At the Park, hosted by the Tifton-Tift County Public Library, 11 a.m., Fulwood Park, Tifton

• Home School Club: Vision Board Bash, 11 a.m., Victoria Evans Memorial Library, 605 North St., Ashburn

SATURDAY, JAN. 24

• Tift County High Blue Devils boys & girls basketball @ Valdosta High Wildcats, 6 p.m., Valdosta

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TIFTON GRAPEVINE'S DOG OF THE WEEK

"Flonnie" is about a year old and only 33 pounds, a truly petite little lady. She is sweet and already knows all her basic commands, making her an easy and wonderful companion. She has a gentle, loving nature and is eager to please — the kind of dog who just wants to be close to her people and soak up all the love she can get. Come meet Flonnie and see other pets available for adoption between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, or call 229-382-PETS (7387).

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