🌱 140-Year Prison Sentence + Three New Appointments To Central Office

Good morning, Dacula! I'm here in your inbox today to get you caught up on everything you need to know about what's going on around town.

First, today's weather:

Partly sunny and warm. High: 95 Low: 66.

Here are the top three stories in Dacula today:

1. A Gwinnett County resident narrowly escaped his home before it was completely consumed by fire. The incident occurred in the 1500 block of Ridgewood Drive on Sunday night. It took fire crews operating multiple hoses about 50 minutes to control the blaze. Thankfully, nobody was injured and the fire was contained to just his home. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. (Fox 5 Atlanta)
2. A Gwinnett County judge has sentenced a teen to 140 years in prison for killing a woman in a Dacula area subdivision in 2021. Damia Mitchell, 17, shot and killed Faith Burns on Valentine's Day. According to prosecutors, the killing was a gang-related ex-lovers' quarrel. Mitchell's family is arguing that the 140-year sentence is too much. (WSB-TV)
3. The Gwinnett County School Board has announced three new appointments to central office administrative positions. DeNelle West will become the district's chief learning officer. Walt Martin will become the district's new chief business operations officer. Al Taylor will become the district's chief of schools. Click the following link to learn more about the appointments. (Gwinnett Daily Post)

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Today in Dacula:

• Rainbow Roundtable At The Dacula Branch Public Library (4:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• Dacula City Hall will be closed on Jul. 4 for Independence Day Observance. Please plan accordingly. (City of Dacula)
• Today, Jun. 21, is the General and Nonpartisan General Runoff Election. Voting will be from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Need help finding your polling location? Click this link. (Gwinnett County)
• Are you searching for a way to give back to your community this summer? Gwinnett County has numerous volunteer opportunities. Click for the full volunteer calendar. (Gwinnett County)

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• Wellness Together Walk-Along At Cumberland Mall (June 21)
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• Pressure Washing and Soft Washing (Details)
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Thanks for following along and staying informed. I'll catch up with you bright and early tomorrow with a new update!

— Danielle Fallon-O'Leary

About me: Danielle Fallon-O’Leary is a senior writer with content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and assists Patch.com with community newsletter curation. Danielle also holds a Master’s Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders and works part-time as a pediatric speech therapist.