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I-75 pileup, attorney arrest and Ted Turner’s roots: Top Macon news

By Reporting by Myracle Lewis, Alba Rosa and Becky Purser. Edited by Lauren Gorla. Produced with AI assistance.

May 13, 2026 5:30 AM

It was a busy week in Middle Georgia. A major interstate pileup sent a dozen people to the hospital, a Macon attorney landed behind bars on drug charges, and a long-running vehicular manslaughter case was dropped after new video surfaced.

There was also some lighter fare: fresh restaurant inspection results, a look back at media mogul Ted Turner’s Macon years and a Warner Robins.

Here’s a quick rundown of last week’s biggest local stories.

I-75 multi-vehicle crash sends 12 to hospitals

A massive crash involving a travel bus, four tractor-trailers and 11 passenger vehicles shut down I-75 southbound near mile marker 180 in Monroe County on Thursday morning, with 12 people transported to local hospitals and three of them suffering life-threatening injuries, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office. Monroe County Dispatch got the first call around 11:42 a.m., and the Georgia Department of Transportation said emergency crews worked the scene.

Kevin Bradley walks out the courtroom after being denied bond on Friday, May 8, 2026, at the Bibb County Superior Courthouse in Macon, Ga. Bradley, who practices law in Macon, was accused of communicating with an incarcerated man at the Bibb County Jail, who was not his client, before dropping off an envelope containing synthetic marijuana. Katie Tucker The Telegraph

Macon attorney accused of bringing K2 into Bibb County Jail

Kevin Bradley, a 60-year-old Macon attorney, was arrested Tuesday and charged with possession of a Schedule I controlled substance with intent to distribute and crossing county guard lines with drugs without consent after correctional deputies allegedly found him bringing an envelope soaked in synthetic marijuana, or K2, into the Bibb County Jail on April 25. In a hearing Friday, Assistant District Attorney Rachel Smith said the envelope contained 83 documents soiled with the substance, worth about $48,000.

Charges dropped in 2022 fatal crash after new body cam footage

Vehicular manslaughter, DUI and reckless driving charges against Godfrey Dewayne Gay were dismissed Wednesday after previously unknown body camera footage revealed Gay was actually the passenger — not the driver — in the September 2022 crash that killed 62-year-old Angela Dawn White. Gay spent three and a half years in jail before his release. Jeff Banks, Gay’s attorney, said an anonymous tip originally led investigators to arrest his client.

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 19, 2011: Turner Enterprises CEO Ted Turner address the Newsmaker Luncheon on renewable and alternative energy at the National Press Club April 19, 2011 in Washington, DC. Turner died Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at age 87. Chip Somodevilla Getty Images

Ted Turner’s career got its start right here in Macon

CNN founder Ted Turner, who died May 6 at 87, started his career in 1960 working for his father’s billboard company, first in Savannah and then managing the Macon operation while living in a Shirley Hills home, according to the New Georgia Encyclopedia and the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation. Turner took over Turner Outdoor Advertising at age 24 after his father’s suicide. He later founded CNN, which Turner once called the “greatest achievement” of his life, according to CNN.

Macon, Warner Robins restaurants get C’s on April health inspections

A Subway at 630 North Avenue scored a 75 for a “C” its April 25 routine inspection in part after meatballs were found being held below the required food-safety temperature, while Tropical Smoothie Cafe at 5791 Zebulon Road landed a 76 on April 15 partly because an employee failed to wash their hands before putting on new gloves after preparing food. Most Macon restaurants earned “A’s” during the April 1-30 reporting period, with more than a dozen pulling perfect 100s and no one receiving a “U.”

Three restaurants in Warner Robins and one in Perry received “C” grades on April health inspections, with violations including moldy onion rings at Krystal, raw meats stored above safe temperatures at Fogata Street Tacos and the Hilton Garden Inn in Perry, and cooked rice above safe temperature at Kobe Express. Other issues cited in the state inspection reports included flies inside a restaurant and black buildup in an ice machine. All four restaurants improved to “A” grades on required follow-up inspections within 10 days.

Bonaire Nutrition owners Kent Jordan and Laura Waters pose with their dog Daffy inside of their store in Warner Robins, Georgia. The new shop specializes in dietary-supplement drinks, including loaded teas, protein coffees and meal replacement shakes. Katie Tucker The Telegraph

Bonaire Nutrition opens

Laura Waters and Kent Jordan opened Bonaire Nutrition in Warner Robins on April 9, a Herbalife-supplied shop at 840 Ga. 96, Suite 2300, specializing in loaded teas, meal replacement shakes, protein coffees and wellness drinks. Waters, who previously owned pet boarding and grooming businesses in Hazlehurst and Fort Lauderdale, handles day-to-day operations while Jordan, market president for Planters First Bank on South Houston Lake Road, manages finances. The shop, which also features a certified emotional support dog named Daffy, held its grand opening and ribbon cutting May 12.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by Telegraph journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by Telegraph journalists.