A Guyton City Councilman is accused of using taxpayer money for personal purchases, and now he’s facing five felony charges. Residents say they want answers.
🎯Why It Matters: The charges accuse a sitting official of using public funds for private gain. If true, that’s not just theft—it’s a betrayal of public trust.
🔍 What’s Happening: 26-Year-Old Theodore Hamby was indicted by an Effingham County grand jury on Monday. Prosecutors say the charges stem from his time in office and his alleged misuse of a city credit card.
- He faces three counts of financial transaction fraud and two counts of making false statements.
- He was arrested in March after a theft investigation began in February.
Key Terms
Indictment: An indictment is the formal legal accusation of a crime.
⚖️ Between the Lines: This isn’t a minor accusation—it involves Hamby’s alleged actions while in public office. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation got involved at the request of local police.
🧭 The Big Picture: City and county governments depend on trust. If officials misuse that trust, it damages public confidence far beyond the borders of their town.
⚠️ Reminder: Crime articles contain only charges and information from police reports and law enforcement statements. Suspects and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
How to Read and Understand the News
Truth doesn’t bend because we dislike it.
Facts don’t vanish when they make us uncomfortable.
Events happen whether we accept them or not.
Good reporting challenges us. The press isn’t choosing sides — it’s relaying what official, verified sources say. Blaming reporters for bad news is like blaming a thermometer for a fever.
Americans have a history of misunderstanding simple things. In the 1980s, A&W rolled out a 1/3-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder. It failed because too many people thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If we can botch basic math, we can certainly misread the news.
Before dismissing a story, ask yourself:
- What evidence backs this?
- Am I reacting to facts or feelings?
- What would change my mind?
- Am I just shooting the messenger?
And one more: Am I assuming bias just because I don’t like the story?
Smart news consumers seek truth, not comfort.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
