Archived News

Georgia Supreme Court rules against MCI in its 2007 loss-of-service lawsuit

In 4-3 decision, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a company that accidentally severed a telecommunications company’s fiber-optic cable while doing excavation work.

In March 2007, CMES was working on a roadway improvement project in Stone Mountain, DeKalb County, when it inadvertently cut an underground fiber-optic cable that ran between MCI’s terminals in Atlanta and Augusta, according to a press release from the Georgia Supreme Court.

As a result, an outage occurred that MCI claims resulted in more than 568,000 blocked calls and 242 customer complaints. Further disruption in service would have occurred had MCI not previously installed $6.4 million worth of spare restorative capacity for just such an emergency, according to the press release.

MCI sued CMES in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, alleging trespass and negligence and seeking recovery of the cost of repair – roughly $27,000 – punitive damages, and approximately $362,000 in damages for “loss of use” of the cable during the time it took to repair it, the release stated.

In January 2010, CMES sought “partial summary judgment” on MCI’s claim for loss of use damages, arguing that MCI could not show any monetary loss because its service was only momentarily interrupted due to its spare restorative capacity and that estimating loss of use damages on a theoretical rental value would be improper, the release stated.

MCI then appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, which asked the Georgia Supreme Court whether a telecommunications service provider whose cable is severed recover loss of use damages that are measured by the rental value of substitute cable when it has not rented such cable.

In the majority decision, Chief Justice George Carley wrote that “MCI cannot recover loss of use damages absent some showing of monetary loss apart from the cost of repair.”

Inaugural Diabetes Awareness Bike Ride set

DeKalb Commissioner Larry Johnson is sponsoring the inaugural Diabetes Awareness Bike Ride in Decatur June 24.

The eight-mile bike ride is in support of the U.S. first lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” initiative.

The event will run 8:30-11:30 a.m. and will begin in the Macy’s parking lot at 2801 Candler Road, Decatur.

The event is designed to raise awareness about the debilitating effects of diabetes, which is a cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations, and new cases of blindness among adults. It is also a major cause of heart disease and stroke.

DeKalb Workforce Development exceeds state performance levels, to hold expo

DeKalb Workforce Development (DWD) has exceeded the state’s designated performance levels for the third consecutive quarter of the program year. 

A report released in June by the Georgia Department of Labor shows that DWD exceeded all nine measures applicable to the county’s adult, dislocated worker and youth populations. 

Performances measured in the report include employment and retention rates, average earnings, attainment of degree or certificate, and literacy or numeracy gains.

DWD will host a DeKalb Community Resources Expo June 28, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at DeKalb Workforce Development, 320 Church St., Decatur. The event is free and open to the public.

Refugee, LGBT groups to celebrate World Refugee Day

Refugee Resettlement & Immigration Services of Atlanta and the Atlanta Pride Community will celebrate World Refugee Day: Taking Pride in Atlanta June 19.

The event is designed to bring more awareness to the issues facing refugees and the LGBT refugee community, an emerging population in the metro Atlanta area.

The program will be held 7-9 p.m. at The Phillip Rush Center, 1530 DeKalb Ave.,

Atlanta. The schedule include a careening and discussion of Welcome to Shelbyville, testimonial by a LGBT refugee guest speaker and dance and musical performance by MBondAfrika.

The price is $15 cover includes appetizers and two drink tickets.

World Refugee Day event set for June 20

Georgia will celebrate World Refugee Day 2012 at Clarkston Community Center by celebrating the contributions of the many refugees in Georgia and remembering all those around the world who are living in refugee camps.

Activities include outdoor games, a resource fair, lunch and cultural programs, including naturalization ceremony, ethnic dancing and refugees speaking about their journeys.

The event is sponsored by Catholic Charities, Center for Pan Asian Community Services, The City of Clarkston, The Clarkston Community Center, The Georgia Center for Developmental Disabilities, International Rescue Committee, Jewish Family and Career Services, Lutheran Services of Georgia, Refugee Resettlement and Immigration Services of Atlanta, Refugee Health Program, Refugee Family Services, Segart Radio, Tapestri Inc, and World Relief.

The event is set for June 20, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. at the Clarkston Community Center, 3701 College Ave., Clarkston.