Scott is participating in all sorts of parades and other events all around the circuit today. Pictures from the day's festivities will be posted soon, stay tuned!
07/03/08
Recently Scott’s Challenger has been circulating distortions and half-truths about the District Attorney’s Office. However, the Committee to Re-Elect Scott Ballard wants you to know the whole truth. That’s what the law demands of witnesses in court. Shouldn’t the Challenger to Scott Ballard be held to the same standard? Click here to see how the facts have been spun and learn the truth.
07/01/08
Scott was recently asked by the Fayette Citizen Forum to answer questions about the office's accomplishments over the last three and a half years and what goals he hopes to achieve if he is re-elected. See what was asked and Scott's responses by clicking here.
06/23/08
A Spalding County man is sentenced to 40 years in jail after being found guilty of molesting his stepdaughter. Assistant District Attorney Gail Travillian prosecuted the case and it took the jury only 15 minutes of deliberation to return a guilty verdict. Read more in Shelia Marshall’s article for the Griffin Daily News.
In other news, Scott continues to distribute the proceeds of the YOUR District Attorney’s Office Pre-Trial Diversion program to each of the four counties in the Griffin Judicial Circuit. In these pictures, Scott is giving fat checks to county commissioners in Pike and Upson Counties. The Pre-Trial Diversion program has netted the Griffin Judicial Circuit $115,420.00 since its creation in 2005.
06/19/08
CIRCUIT RECIEVES FAT CHECK - Jack Smith (left), Chairman of the Fayette County Commission, receives a check for $20,600.00 from District Attorney Scott Ballard (right) as Pre-Trial Diversion Program Director, Jan O’Hara (center) observes. The check represents the accumulation over the past 12 months of fees paid by defendants for participation in the program in Fayette County. Since the program’s inception in 2005, the District Attorney’s Office has deposited into the general treasury of the four counties of the circuit a total of $115,420.00 in fees.
Citadel Self Storage, a local Peachtree City business, recently celebrated the expansion of its state of the art facilities. The festivities were attended by numerous VIPs. Here is Scott with legendary restaurateur, philanthropist, and Chick-Fil-A founder, Mr. Truett Cathy. Check out more photos from the party on the Special Events Gallery.
And for one last bit of news for a very busy day, Scott’s billboards are now up! Look for them all over the Griffin Judicial Circuit!
06/18/08
The Peachtree City Rotary Club Forum took place last night at the Wyndam Conference Center. Check out pictures on the Special Events Gallery.
06/17/08
Pictures from last night's Pike County Republican Party Candidate Forum are posted on the Special Events Gallery.
06/16/08
Thanks to everyone who attended the BBQ fundraiser at Minter’s Farm! We had a fantastic turnout and were able to add a lot of donations to the campaign’s coffers! Pictures from the event are posted in a brand new album. We have also posted pictures on the Special Events Gallery from the Griffin June Jam and the Meet the Candidates event that took place at the Tyrone Depot and was hosted by the Greater Fayette Republican Women's Club.
There are scads of events taking place as Election Day draws closer so please take a look at the Schedule Page to see where Scott is headed in the upcoming weeks. We especially hope you will join us this Saturday morning for our Bowling for Ballard fundraiser! Click here for more information about this event and thanks as always for your support!
06/04/08
Check out Lee Coleman's recent interview with Scott for The Thomaston Times.
05/29/08
Today Heaven's Coffee Cafe in Thomaston hosted a "Meet & Greet Scott". Dozens of citizens and community leaders came by to shoot the breeze and enjoy some nice cups of joe and pastries. The Thomaston Times covered the event and interviewed Scott about what your DA’s Office is planning to accomplish during his second term in office. You check out pictures from the meet & greet right here.
Special thanks to Catherine Davison & Ruben Gunter, the owners of Heaven’s Coffee Cafe for their gracious hospitality!
05/28/08
The video of Scott's commencement speech from Braelinn Elementary's 2008 Recognition Day is posted right here.
05/27/08
Pictures and details from the annual Upson County Employee Appreciation Picnic are posted up on the Special Events Gallery. Thanks to Pam Wonnum, Linda Murphy, and all the other event organizers who did a fantastic job planning a great picnic!
05/24/08
Scott was the Commencement Speaker at Braelinn Elementary's 2008 Recognition Day which celebrates the school’s 5th graders graduating and moving on up to Rising Starr Middle School. Scott was extremely honored to be selected to speak! Check out pictures from the ceremony on the Special Events Gallery.
05/18/08
Nice weather means it’s festival time in Fayette, Pike, Spalding, and Upson Counties. Scott kept busy this weekend attending the numerous events that were occurring within the circuit. Check out pictures from The 39th Annual Old Courthouse Art Show, The Pike County Boys & Girls Club Open House, and the 3rd Annual Pike County Pimento Festival on the Special Events Gallery.
We’ll be throwing an event of our own soon, please join us on June 7th at the Minter Farm for the Re-Elect Scott Ballard B-B-Q Fundraiser! Click here for more information or call 770-632-6055 for tickets.
05/15/08
Jarrod Gooden pleads guilty to shooting his ex-girlfriend and Fayetteville PD Officer Kevin Ingram and is sentenced to 40 years in jail. Fortunately, both victims survived the incident. Gooden had earlier tried to convince a jury that he incompetent to stand trial, but ADA Warren Sellers was able to secure a verdict that Gooden was faking being insane in a desperate attempt to avoid justice. Read more in Cindy Morley’s article for the Fayette Daily News.
05/14/08
Check out a report from the Fayette County Board of Education about how your District Attorney’s Office has worked with the board to help save the county almost $2 million dollars over the past two years by enforcing strict residency procedures.
05/13/08
Scott has been attending the Upson Lee Elementary School’s career fair for the past two days, educating the bright young students there about the roles the different actors in the criminal justice system perform. You can see some photos from the fair on the Special Events Gallery. Also new pictures and media articles about the Law Enforcement Appreciation Banquet have been posted on the banquet gallery page. Special thanks to Cindy Morley of the Fayette Daily News for the use of her fantastic pictures!
05/12/08
Please check out the new 2008 Law Enforcement Appreciation Banquet page for pictures from the event and a complete list of nominees and award winners. Also be sure to scope out Lee Coleman's excellent article for The Thomaston Times about Lt. Alvin Marshall winning Officer of the Year honors at last Thursday night's ceremonies.
05/11/08
Scott attended a neighborhood coffee over the weekend in Emory Springs. Many residents attended and Scott answered questions and shared his views on issues pertaining to criminal prosecution in Fayette County. Check out more pictures from the coffee on the Special Events Gallery.
05/10/08
Here are some newspaper articles about Thursday night's banquet:
Honoring the badge and those who wear it
by Cindy Morley, Fayette Daily News
Law enforcement officials honored at banquet
by Sheila A. Marshall, Griffin Daily News
05/09/08
The District Attorney’s 2nd Annual Law Enforcement Appreciation banquet was held last night and was attended by hundreds of officers and law enforcement support staff from every county in the Griffin Judicial Circuit. Thanks to all our sponsors and volunteers who helped show our officers how much we appericate them and made the event such a huge success! More details and many, MANY, pictures from the ceremony will be posted soon!
05/04/08
Mark your calendars! We will be having a Bar-B-Q fundraiser at the Minter Farm on Hill's Bridge Road in Inman on June 7th from 12:30pm - 2pm. Tickets sell for a $25 suggested donation. Please see Scott or call Campaign Coordinator Robyn Cobb at 770-632-6055 to get your tickets!
05/02/08
Read Shelia A. Marshall’s article forThe Griffin Daily News for new information about the takedown of Spalding County’s largest drug trafficking ring that occurred earlier this week and find out how a half dozen law enforcement agencies and your DA’s Office worked together to provide “a very impressive display of unity that’s very bad news for the bad guys”.
In other news, today East Fayette Elementary School held its annual Hero Day Parade which honors veterans, law enforcement, and civil servants.
A contingent from the DA's Office marched in the parade and later
Scott spoke to the school's fifth graders about the importance of
making good life choices and preventing bullying.
The parade was truly
a first class event that included Fayette's law enforcement agencies,
participants from all the branches of the armed forces, and over a
dozen civic groups such as the VFW, American Legion, and Sons of the
American Revolution. There was also a color guard, a twenty-one gun
salute, fantastic music by the Fayette High School band, and a very
special flyover by the FCSO's Hawk One. Ms. Leslie Fear has been the
planner and coordinator of this event since it started many years ago
and we would like to thank her and the school's ambassadors for doing
such an outstanding job!!
05/01/08
A press conference was held on the steps of the Griffin Courthouse today to announce that months of intensive operations and close cooperation by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies has led to the decimation of the largest drug trafficking ring in Spalding County. Earlier this week, a Special Grand Jury indicted 34 co-conspriators who were believed to be involved in this massive criminal enterprise. Almost all of these suspected drug traffickers were rounded up and arrested during the early hours of Wednesday morning. Read more by clicking here.
04/30/08
Scott appearing on the front page of the Fayette Daily News from qualifying at the state capitol yesterday. In an interview with Cindy Morley he stated that "we feel like we accomplished a lot in four years and want to continue what we started".
04/28/08:
Today Scott paid the required qualifying fees at the state capitol and is now offically eligable for re-election!
Also please check out the numerous pictures we have posted from the Re-Elect Scott Ballard Golf Tournament that was held this past Saturday at the Hickory Ridge Course in Meansville. We had a wonderful turnout and raised thousands of dollars for the campaign! Thanks to all the players, sponsors, and volunteers who made the event a huge sucess!!
04/27/08
Thanks to everyone who came out and joined us for the Re-Elect Scott Ballard Golf Tournament yesterday! Photos and details from the event will be posted soon. In the meantime, please read this recap of the Faytte County Board of Realtors Forum that was held on 04/14/08.
04/24/08
Earlier this week in Spalding County, Chief Assistant District Attorney Randy Coggin won a hard fought conviction and a life plus five sentence for a man who murdered his girlfriend. The defendant, Antonio Faniel, was also suspected of a previous shooting death years prior in DeKalb County, but was acquitted there. Read more in Sheila A. Marshall's article for the Griffin Daily News.
04/23/08
The re-election campaign kicks into high gear as Mr. Charles Ballard and Mr. Mike Olsen take delivery of a HUGE shipment of signs!
04/21/08
Scott welcomed the new Peachtree City Police Department Chief, H.C. "Skip" Clark at an open house held by the PTC PD this past Friday. Chief Clark comes to Fayette County from the Juno Beach Police Department, where he had previously served for over 30 years.
Check out the Special Events Gallery for more pictures from the open house as well as photos from the Fayette County Realtors Forum, and the Upson Street Dance, which Scott also attended over the weekend.
04/17/08
Scott recently helped kick off National Victims of Crime Awareness Week at the Spalding County Courthouse. You can click on the above clipping from The Griffin Daily News for a better view. Also be sure to read a very special edition of DA's Corner to find out more about the the multiple convictions and tough sentences that were dished out in Fayette County's most recent term of court.
Additionally, Scott will be appearing on WTGA FUN 101.1 FM in Upson County on this Friday, April 18th, from 8AM to 9AM. Be sure to tune in to hear what the DA's office is doing to guard what's ours in Upson and the rest of the circuit. Later at that day we'll be at the Upson Street Dance. Please join us!
04/03/08
Scott recently attended the Law Enforcement/Educators meeting which was held at the Fayetteville Police Department with members of law enforcement and school board officials also in attendance. Ideas were discussed concerning gang activity prevention, issues under the Gold Dome, and plans were made to meet again.
Also please check out registration and sponsorship details for the upcoming Re-Elect Scott Ballard Golf Tournament which will be held on Saturday, April 26th, 2008 at the Hickory Ridge Golf Course in Meansville.
03/28/08
A man extradited from Maryland is found guilty of child molestation and is sentenced to 20 years in prison. Read more in Cindy Morley's article forThe Fayette Daily News and John Munford's article forThe Peachtree Citizen.
This case was just one of many victories for law enforcement and the DA's Office in the just concluded term of court in Fayette County. More details about the numerous convictions and tough sentences that were handed out over the past two weeks in Superior Court will be posted soon.
03/13/08
Read about the multiple life sentences handed out in Spalding County's just concluded term of court in the latest edition of DA's Corner. Trials begin in Fayette County next Monday.
02/15/08
Talented but recently troubled NFL cornerback and kick return specialist Adam “Pacman” Jones pleads guilty to felony obstruction after struggling with Fayette County law enforcement officers. Read all about it in Cindy Morley’s column forThe Fayette Daily News; Pacman a felon for life.
02/14/08
Fayette County Juvenile Court hands out tough sentences for gang members. The District Attorney’s Office draws a line in the sand and sends out a clear warning that Fayette County will show absolutely zero tolerance for gang activity.
Find out more in Gang fighters get years in detention by Cindy Morley forThe Fayette Daily News.
On the same day, Scott also met with Fayette school nurses to thank them for the wonderful work they do and to give them pointers about how to be effective witnesses if they ever have to testify for the State in court.
As with teachers and school resource officers, school nurses are often crucial witnesses for the prosecution in child abuse and molestation cases.
02/09/08
Check out pictures from the Ribbon Cutting of the Fayette County GOP’s new Headquarters and the 2008 Middle School Job Fair on the Special Events Gallery!
02/06/08
Scott joined Fayetteville Middle School Resource Officer Jeremy
Lakeman of the Fayetteville Police Department as a guest speaker for
the school's Law & Order Class.
Officer Lakeman and Scott guided FMS 8th graders through a
role-playing exercise that demonstrated the duties that detectives,
defense attorneys, the DA, and judge all perform from the occurrence
of a crime until a conviction is secured. Check out the pictures from the lecture right here!
02/02/08
Earlier this week, Scott met with Governor Sonny Purdue to discuss
introducing new legislation that would give prosecutors statewide more
options for bringing charges against students who direct terroristic
threats against their schools, teachers and classmates. Scott's son
David Ballard, a recent University of Georgia graduate who is
currently working with the governor's office in the Department of
Budget and Planning, joined with Governor Purdue and Scott for a
photograph after the meeting.
01/23/08
Over the MLK holiday weekend, Scott was part of a NAACP-sponsered panel concerning the threat of gang violence in the circuit. You can read about what happened at the forum in John Munford's article forThe Peachtree Citizen; Fayette DA: No tolerance for gangs and check out pictures from this event and Pike County's Annual King Day Parade on the Photo Gallery.
01/03/08
Gang Recruiter Arrested in Fayette County High School, local law enforcement takes bold steps to combat the spread of gangs from Action News Channel 2 - WSB Atlanta.
11/25/07
YouTube video of Scott talking with Linda Smith of Compassion
Ministries about the dangers of Methamphetamine addiction:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
