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The fallout over the death of HeeHaw the donkey, explained

The shooting has sparked a state investigation and civil lawsuit. There's also a cryptocurrency involved.

News

The police killing of a 1-year-old donkey named HeeHaw at a farm near Rockmart has sparked a state investigation and legal battle over when officers can use lethal force against animals.Driving the news: Cedartown police officer Trenton Ryan Garner, who was placed on administrative leave after shooting the donkey, has <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="asked" data-vars-click-url="https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/officer-who-shot-killed-heehaw-pet-donkey-wants-lawsuit-dismissed/BY2BIV2BPZHXLGIEHHUNFL6JOE/" data-vars-content-id="5e287002-bd0a-4c30-8886-8fd6c5cd8f08" data-vars-headline="The fallout over the death of HeeHaw the donkey, explained" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/officer-who-shot-killed-heehaw-pet-donkey-wants-lawsuit-dismissed/BY2BIV2BPZHXLGIEHHUNFL6JOE/" target="_blank">asked</a> a federal judge to dismiss a civil rights lawsuit filed against him by HeeHaw&#x27;s owner, Hannah Israel.

Obama to rally in Atlanta for Ossoff and Bottoms

The former president's Oct. 28 visit comes as more than 811,000 Georgians have voted early.

Politics

President Barack Obama will visit Atlanta next week to rally Democratic voters to back Sen. Jon Ossoff in his reelection bid and Keisha Lance Bottom&#x27;s run for governor.Why it matters: The two-term president&#x27;s name still carries weight in the Democratic Party, and his presence could further mobilize voters to bolster already-record turnout numbers in Georgia.

MOCA GA opens its long-awaited permanent Atlanta home

The contemporary art museum's new 26,306-square-foot space includes five galleries and a rooftop.

Culture

The doors are officially open at the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia&#x27;s" data-vars-click-url="https://mocaga.org/" data-vars-content-id="4bb17d9d-21d7-4686-8fe1-8da2fd8870e1" data-vars-headline="MOCA GA opens its long-awaited permanent Atlanta home" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://mocaga.org/" target="_blank">Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia&#x27;s</a> new home.Why it matters: Building a permanent home for Georgia&#x27;s contemporary artists has been one of MOCA GA&#x27;s goals since its founding 26 years ago.<ul><li>The 26,300-square-foot facility includes space to house the more than 1,600-work permanent collection and other archives.</li></ul>

Atlanta construction manager uncovers the city's long-buried history

A local construction manager is saving historic objects discovered beneath Downtown developments.

History

One of the construction experts building the developments shaping Atlanta&#x27;s future is also finding forgotten items from the city&#x27;s past.Why it matters: Bryan Capps, a development project manager by trade and an amateur urban archaeologist by passion, is unearthing a long overlooked layer of Atlanta history.Zoom in: Capps&#x27; <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Relics of Old Atlanta Instagram account" data-vars-click-url="https://www.instagram.com/relicsofoldatlanta/" data-vars-content-id="3e3d8e3d-09b8-4d9d-a033-fa329ea7b042" data-vars-headline="Atlanta construction manager uncovers the city&#x27;s long-buried history" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.instagram.com/relicsofoldatlanta/" target="_blank">Relics of Old Atlanta Instagram account</a> is a growing repository of the interesting objects he&#x27;s discovered while working in South Downtown and elsewhere.

Remember when Atlanta got drive-thru funeral viewing?

Herschel Thornton dreamed up the unusual service as a way to make funeral viewing more accessible.

In the mid-1960s, Atlanta mortician Herschel Thornton dreamed of a novel idea: a series of drive-thru windows where people could view loved ones from the comfort of their cars.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Herschel Thornton Mortuary" data-vars-click-url="https://www.thorntonmortuary.com/about/about-us" data-vars-content-id="11df89a4-a5cf-454f-812c-4b0d4894c790" data-vars-headline="Remember when Atlanta got drive-thru funeral viewing?" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.thorntonmortuary.com/about/about-us" target="_blank">Herschel Thornton Mortuary</a> claims to be the first funeral home in the country to offer a 24-hour drive-thru viewing window.

The Spiller Field Magnolias will live on across Atlanta

Cuttings already grow across metro Atlanta, and the historic trees may even sprout again from their stumps.

Part of one of Atlanta&#x27;s most beloved trees came crashing down over the weekend. But the Spiller Field Magnolias will live on.Why it matters: Cuttings taken the grand magnolias in 2013 have already been planted across metro Atlanta.<ul><li>And experts say the damaged magnolia could eventually send up new shoots from its stump.</li></ul>

Rare photos show Cabbagetown before its transformation

New exhibition of Barbara McKenzie images document daily life before the mill closed and community transformed.

Neighborhoods

A new exhibition of never-before-seen photographs shines a light on the history of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Cabbagetown" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/05/07/cabbagetown-amphitheater-revival-brookshire-legacy" data-vars-content-id="197647c0-3695-4d04-9043-54ec2fc0d96a" data-vars-headline="Rare photos show Cabbagetown before its transformation" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/05/07/cabbagetown-amphitheater-revival-brookshire-legacy" target="_self">Cabbagetown</a>.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Cabbagetown &#x27;76" data-vars-click-url="https://thepatchworks.org/2026/04/15/cabbagetown-76-the-photographs-of-barbara-mckenzie/" data-vars-content-id="197647c0-3695-4d04-9043-54ec2fc0d96a" data-vars-headline="Rare photos show Cabbagetown before its transformation" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://thepatchworks.org/2026/04/15/cabbagetown-76-the-photographs-of-barbara-mckenzie/" target="_blank">Cabbagetown &#x27;76</a>, an exhibition of Barbara McKenzie photographs at the Cabbagetown Community Center, captures the everyday life of the close-knit, hardscrabble community during a time of economic uncertainty.

A 125-year-old Atlanta mansion hits the market

The former museum and Peachtree landmark comes with history, tax credit potential and a motivated seller.

Real Estate

For 125 years, the historic Rufus M. Rose House on Peachtree Street has been a family home, an eclectic museum and antique store, and preservation offices.<ul><li>Now you can make it yours for $2.58 million.</li></ul>Why it matters: The Victorian mansion — built in 1901 for Rose, an Atlanta physician and founder of the R.M. Rose Distillery in Vinings — has waited decades for a new chapter.<ul><li>The red-brick home is the last house standing from a pre-automobile era when Peachtree was Atlanta&#x27;s Millionaires&#x27; Row.</li></ul>

New AJC podcast resurfaces Georgia Guidestones mystery

A new podcast explores the Guidestones' origins, destruction and why the quirky monument remains fascinating.

A new AJC podcast probes the origins and 2022 destruction of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Georgia Guidestones" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/07/07/investigation-underway-after-georgia-guidestones-bombed" data-vars-content-id="2e44b84a-b33d-44fc-9bf2-0d2369c2239f" data-vars-headline="New AJC podcast resurfaces Georgia Guidestones mystery" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/07/07/investigation-underway-after-georgia-guidestones-bombed" target="_self">Georgia Guidestones</a>, reviving questions about one of the state&#x27;s most enigmatic landmarks.Why it matters: Before their mysterious destruction in 2022, the Georgia Guidestones were simultaneously a roadside attraction and magnet for conspiracy theories, from New World Order fears to claims it was satanic.<ul><li>In &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Who Blew Up the Guidestones?" data-vars-click-url="https://www.ajc.com/about-us/2026/03/new-ajc-podcast-investigates-who-blew-up-the-georgia-guidestones/" data-vars-content-id="2e44b84a-b33d-44fc-9bf2-0d2369c2239f" data-vars-headline="New AJC podcast resurfaces Georgia Guidestones mystery" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.ajc.com/about-us/2026/03/new-ajc-podcast-investigates-who-blew-up-the-georgia-guidestones/" target="_blank">Who Blew Up the Guidestones?</a>,&quot; journalist Tyler McBrien investigates who may be behind the monument&#x27;s creation and 2022 bombing — and why we care so much about the mini-Stonehenge to this day.</li></ul>

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter's personal items go up for auction

A handwritten note, campaign items, jewelry and even the former president's handmade furniture are part of the sale.

If you ever wanted to own one of former President <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Jimmy Carter&#x27;s ties" data-vars-click-url="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/group-ties-worn-president-jimmy-carter-864/286672?ldp_breadcrumb=back" data-vars-content-id="c7354490-6b2c-447d-84ee-74d283d18ea9" data-vars-headline="Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter&#x27;s personal items go up for auction" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/group-ties-worn-president-jimmy-carter-864/286672?ldp_breadcrumb=back" target="_blank">Jimmy Carter&#x27;s ties</a>, now might be your opportunity.Driving the news: Christie&#x27;s is <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="auctioning" data-vars-click-url="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/viewing-room/1/3949?sc_lang=en" data-vars-content-id="c7354490-6b2c-447d-84ee-74d283d18ea9" data-vars-headline="Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter&#x27;s personal items go up for auction" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/viewing-room/1/3949?sc_lang=en" target="_blank">auctioning</a> dozens of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter&#x27;s personal mementoes and memorabilia, some of which have strong links to historic events or the family&#x27;s inner lives.

The viaducts that lifted Atlanta above its railroads

A new GSU exhibit explores how the blink-and-you-miss-them bridges fueled growth — and left some old streets behind.

Around the turn of the 19th century, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Downtown Atlanta" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/06/06/folio-house-atlanta-affordable-housing-constitution" data-vars-content-id="a929617b-af9f-484b-bfa8-67abfb6e0559" data-vars-headline="The viaducts that lifted Atlanta above its railroads" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/06/06/folio-house-atlanta-affordable-housing-constitution" target="_self">Downtown Atlanta</a> was increasingly congested as the growing city center tried to coexist with some of the Southeast&#x27;s busiest railroad crossings.<ul><li>To keep apace, city leaders decided, one could only go up.</li></ul>

Remember when Georgia fell for the ole alien monkey trick

In 1953, two barbers and a butcher sparked a martian mania with a dyed green monkey

For one glorious week in 1953, Georgia was the middle of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="martian" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2024/02/26/georgia-ufo-sightings" data-vars-content-id="8bedd04b-e4cf-4f59-8d41-8b783d999c83" data-vars-headline="Remember when Georgia fell for the ole alien monkey trick" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2024/02/26/georgia-ufo-sightings" target="_self">martian</a> mania. Then reality reared its ugly head.Why it matters: The list of great hoaxes wouldn&#x27;t be complete without a tricky trio who tried to pass off a dead, hairless monkey dyed green as an alien body.

Decades-empty Atlanta Constitution building gets new life

A long vacant downtown building will soon offer affordable homes for essential workers in Atlanta.

Development

A historic but beat up South Downtown building that sat vacant for five decades is getting the overhaul it has long deserved.Why it matters: Developer Gorman and Company plans to turn the former Atlanta Constitution building into <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Folio House" data-vars-click-url="https://www.gensler.com/projects/143-alabama-st-folio-house" data-vars-content-id="57093d34-68f9-4b46-a95f-1b66e74402a9" data-vars-headline="Decades-empty Atlanta Constitution building gets new life" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.gensler.com/projects/143-alabama-st-folio-house" target="_blank">Folio House</a>, a mixed-income housing development with rents affordable for service workers, bus drivers and more.