COVINGTON, Ga. (AP) — A sheriff's deputy in suburban Atlanta has been arrested after being accused of raping a woman while on duty, Georgia officials say. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced Thursday that George Rahming, 38, was charged with rape, sexual assault and violating his oath of office.

GAINESVILLE, Ga. (AP) — A rabid beaver bit a young girl while she was swimming in a northeast Georgia lake, local news outlets reported. Kevin Beucker, field supervisor for Hall County Animal Control, told WDUN-AM that the beaver bit the girl on Saturday while she was swimming off private property in the northern end of Lake Lanier near Gainesville.

ATLANTA – Georgia tax collections fell slightly last month compared to June of last year, but the state closed out fiscal 2023 with a huge surplus for the third year in a row. The Georgia Department of Revenue brought in $2.84 billion in taxes in June, down 0.4% from the same month a year ago. However, the $33.13 billion in receipts into the state’s coffers for the full 12 months of the last fiscal year far exceeded the $28.4 billion revenue estimate Gov. Brian Kemp made in January, generating a surplus of nearly $4.8 billion.

ATLANTA (AP) — Kia Corp. will invest $200 million in its Georgia factory to begin producing an electric-powered SUV, the company announced Wednesday. The South Korean company said it would hire an additional 200 workers to begin producing its large EV9 vehicle in West Point by early 2024. The company said it would expand overall production at the plant near the Alabama state line southwest of Atlanta.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia health officials laid out efforts on Tuesday to stem the tide of increasing deaths among new mothers in the state as evidence shows that the rate of death from pregnancy has risen more steeply in Georgia than almost any other state. “This needle moves slowly, but we need to start working on things," Dr. Mitch Rodriguez, a member of the Board of Public Health and a neonatal specialist in Macon, said during a board meeting. "It’s going to take us a while to make those changes, but you have to start at some point.”

ATLANTA – A Democratic state representative who was criticized by fellow Democrats for voting with Republicans during this year’s General Assembly session has gone over to the GOP. Rep. Mesha Mainor of Atlanta announced Tuesday that she is turning Republican, adding to the GOP’s House majority.

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — A northeast Georgia teenager has been arrested and charged as a juvenile after authorities say he shot at least 10 vehicles on an interstate highway with a pellet gun. One woman was injured Sunday when she was hit in the back of the head with a pellet. She is expected to recover.

FORT STEWART, Ga. (AFORT STEWART, Ga. (AP) — A former soldier who left the Army a decade ago has been charged with stealing a military Humvee and crashing it into an office building at Fort Stewart in southeast Georgia. On Monday, the armored vehicle plowed through the glass front doors of the Army post's headquarters building, which houses the offices of Fort Stewart's commanding general and other top leaders. No one was injured.

GRIFFIN, Ga. (AP) — Three people have been charged with murder in Georgia after one of them shot a man who confronted them about throwing eggs at his home, authorities said. The suspects — two 18-year-olds and a 19-year-old — wanted to vandalize Johnathan Gilbert’s home about 40 miles south of Atlanta as part of an “ongoing lovers’ quarrel,” Spalding County Sheriff Darrell Dix said in a news release Friday.

ATLANTA – Georgians have taken to early voting in a big way. The Peach State ranked second in the nation for early voting last November, according to a new study released by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. The report found that 58% of Georgia voters cast their ballots before Election Day, up from 48% in 2018.

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. (AP) — Police arrested a man Monday suspected of shooting and injuring an investigator with a metro Atlanta prosecutor's office while both were driving. The investigator with the Gwinnett County district attorney's office was not on duty when he was shot in the leg around 6 p.m. Friday by another driver, police said.

ATLANTA (AP) — Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter are marking their 77th wedding anniversary with a quiet Friday at their south Georgia home, extending their record as the longest-married first couple ever as both nonagenarians face significant health challenges.

ATLANTA — The Georgia State Patrol announced Thursday that 18 people died across the state in crashes over the July 4th holiday period. The period began on Friday evening, June 30, and ended Tuesday, July 4, at midnight. Across the state, troopers investigated nine fatal crashes, and local agencies investigated another nine.

CORDELE, Ga. (AP) — A sheriff's deputy in Georgia was shot and killed Wednesday and the suspect tried to flee in the deputy's patrol car, authorities said. “A Crisp County sheriff’s deputy met evil as he patrolled the streets of Crisp County,” Sheriff Billy Hancock said in a video posted on Facebook.

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta Police Department motorcycles were damaged in an intentional fire caused by devices set inside a training facility early Saturday, officials said. The Atlanta Fire and Rescue Department responded to reports of a multi-vehicle fire around 2:20 a.m. and found multiple motorcycles on fire, WANF-TV reported.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia is offering a new bargain to some adults without health insurance beginning Saturday: Go to work or school and the state will cover you. The program is likely to be closely watched as Republicans in Congress push to let states require work from some current Medicaid enrollees.

ATLANTA (AP) — Christine King Farris, the last living sibling of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., has died. Her niece, the Rev. Bernice King, tweeted that her “beloved aunt” died Thursday. She was 95.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Smaller meat and poultry operators in Georgia and 16 other states will receive $115 million in grants, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Thursday. The USDA grants are the latest in a series of awards intended to increase meat and poultry processing, benefiting farmers and providing more job opportunities in largely rural areas.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A firefighter from Georgia and two fathers who drowned while trying to save their children are among at least 10 recent victims of dangerous rip currents along Gulf of Mexico beaches stretching across Florida's Panhandle to Mobile, Alabama.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A Delta flight landed roughly but safely at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Wednesday without part of its landing gear extended, officials said. The airport said in a tweet that the runway was closed following a mechanical issue with Delta Air Lines. No injuries were reported and all passengers were taken to the terminal. The airport said it was working to remove the aircraft and reopen the runway.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A woman who tried to firebomb a Southern California bank because she was furious at waiting in line was sentenced Tuesday to two years in federal prison. Teranee Millet, 35, of Gardena was sentenced after pleading guilty in March to unlawful possession of a firearm and destructive device, the U.S. attorney's office said in a statement.

ATLANTA (AP) — Federal prosecutors plan to ask a judge to dismiss convictions for wire fraud and to resentence a former high-ranking Atlanta city official who is currently serving a 14-year prison sentence stemming from an investigation into corruption at City Hall, according to a court filing.

ATLANTA – The Georgia Department of Agriculture has regained its status as a law enforcement agency more than a decade after the agency’s Law Enforcement Division was disbanded. Commissioner of Agriculture Tyler Harper has appointed 29-year law enforcement and emergency management veteran Harlan Proveaux to head the newly reconstituted division. Proveaux will serve the agency’s Law Enforcement & Emergency Management Division as both director and inspector general.

ATLANTA – The State Road and Tollway Authority signed off Monday on two major highway improvement projects. Board members unanimously approved resolutions authorizing agreements between SRTA and the Georgia Department of Transportation to split oversight of upgrades to intersections along Georgia 316 and an overhaul of the heavily congested Interstate 285/I-20 West interchange.

CLAXTON, Ga. (AP) — Three men died in the crash of a small airplane in southeast Georgia early Monday, a sheriff's office reported Monday. The Evans County Sheriffs Office said the plane was reported missing around 12:30 a.m. Monday.