Behind the Investigation with Atlanta News First

A special prosecutor has been appointed to investigate a north Georgia sheriff after an Atlanta News First Investigates report prompted Gov. Brian Kemp to order an inquiry.

A Gwinnett County family endured more than two months without their mother’s death certificate, not because of medical examiner backlogs, but due to a doctor’s failure to sign the required document. Watch and listen to the full story here: https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2025/09/04/gwinnett-county-family-waits-months-mothers-death-certificate/

A Fairburn woman recovering from chemotherapy treatment discovered her homeowner’s association had cleared out her bank account after she fell behind on HOA dues due to her cancer diagnosis.

A Cherokee County mother has been cleared by child welfare officials after false positive drug test results nearly separated her from her children.

With the upcoming University of Georgia game sold out, fans are turning to aftermarket platforms and private Facebook groups to secure tickets while avoiding inflated prices and excessive fees. Austin Lang, founder of The Real Georgia Bulldog, talks with Atlanta News First consumer reporter Harry Samler (of Better Call Harry fame) on what you need to know when securing last-minute tickets to Satur...

Measles cases in Georgia and the U.S. surged to levels in 2025 that haven’t been seen in three decades, fueled by declining childhood vaccinations and misinformation. Public health officials say the trend mirrors a tragedy that unfolded in 2019 on the island nation of Samoa, when false claims about vaccine safety helped trigger a deadly outbreak that killed 83 people, most of them children....

Ken White and his wife were watching television, having just gotten a call from their son, Patrick, around 5 p.m. “I asked him how he was doing,” Ken White recalled, “He said, ‘I’m gonna shoot up the CDC,’ and then he hung up.” The couple changed their television channel to a local newscast, where Ken White saw the unmistakable image of his car at the scen...

Measles cases in Georgia and the U.S. surged to levels in 2025 that haven’t been seen in three decades, fueled by declining childhood vaccinations and misinformation. Public health officials say the trend mirrors a tragedy that unfolded in 2019 on the island nation of Samoa, when false claims about vaccine safety helped trigger a deadly outbreak that killed 83 people, most of them children.&...

A historic bloom of sargassum seaweed, 38 million metric tons, continues to pile up along coastlines in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. It’s also reaching the shores of south Florida and the Keys. Harry Samler - known as Better Call Harry - talks with Dr. Steven Leatherman, also known as Dr. Beach, about what you need to know before planning that next beach vacation.

The mother of an autistic teenage boy who was at the center of a SWAT standoff in Atlanta is outraged over the lack of consequences her son is facing. "If he comes home, I’m not going to be able to stop him,” she says. Full story here .   

Locking your keys inside your house or car can, at times, put you in a dangerous situation. While locksmiths are often called to solve the problem, how do you know that the locksmith you found online is reputable and trustworthy? Full story here .

Homeowners in one metro Atlanta neighborhood say stormwater runoff is flooding their yards—and they’re calling on the city to take responsibility. What looks like harmless puddles has turned into a costly problem.  https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2025/07/16/atlanta-homeowners-find-old-stormwater-pipe-flooding-their-yards-city-says-not-our-problem/

Customers say they paid for yard work that never happened — now the landscaper, Grant Frerking, is facing legal trouble and promising to pay up.

If someone in your family depends on electricity to stay alive, the protections some customers get may not apply — and that’s exactly what happened to a Griffin woman whose power was cut, even with a heart pump keeping her alive. She was still in the back of an ambulance when a city collections manager called, demanding payment.

A Cherokee County family was reunited last week after being separated for years because of Daydrianna Hefner’s alleged drug use. But independent drug tests proved the mother was sober, tests that came after a yearlong  Atlanta News First   investigation  uncovered some of Georgia’s subcontracted labs have a history of  false positive drug screens . “Don’...

 Nearly a decade after state regulators discovered toxic chemicals in North Georgia’s drinking water, a new Emory University study reveals what some residents feared: elevated levels of PFAS — also known as forever chemicals — in their blood. The preliminary study, released this month and still undergoing peer review,  tested the blood  of 177 residents living in R...

Access to high speed internet is crucial for education, health care and the economy. But a national investigative report has found a massive federal government initiative to bring access to everyone is having some unintended consequences.

A Georgia hospital is facing a lawsuit, alleging it failed to prevent the suicide of a 35-year-old man who sought emergency psychiatric care and blames a lack of staff and oversight for his death. The suit, filed by the family of Michael Sharadin, claims  Memorial Health University Medical Center  in Savannah and its staff did not provide the supervision required for patients experiencin...

Jack and Janice Buckelew have turned their garage into an inventory of life-saving medical supplies for their son. In October 2015, their son Jonathan became dizzy and disoriented during a chiropractic visit. He was eventually rushed by EMS to North Fulton Hospital Emergency Room. According to a Fulton County state court jury verdict, two doctors failed to properly diagnose Jonathan was having a s...

Her rental insurance policy had a maximum of $26,000, leaving $1,000 for hotel, food, and damaged contents. Why every renter needs to check their coverage .

India Pullen moved into The View senior apartments in Stone Mountain, Georgia, 10 years ago. She loves her apartment and is an expert at keeping her water bill low, between $30 and $40 a month. Pullen rarely cooks, uses bottled water, and says she’s only run her dishwasher once since moving in. But in recent months, Pullen’s water bill shot up without explanation: $231 one month, and t...

 A Cumming, Georgia, homeowner and his roofer spent three years going back and forth with State Farm Insurance company to get a full roof replacement approved , only to find they didn’t payout after the job was complete. The situation is something metro Atlanta roofer David Garner said he has never seen in the near decade he’s been working with insurance companies on roof repairs.

In this Behind the Investigation special, we look at Georgia's literacy crisis ; how an international crime ring is stealing electronic food stamp benefits ; skyrocketing timeshare fees ; and how an FBI raid on the wrong house cost a man his childhood.

As temperatures climb, so do the chances that your aging air conditioner will say goodbye. If it does, brace yourself. Replacing your HVAC system in 2024 will cost about twice as much as it did five years ago. Here's how to save, along with other summer energy reduction tips.

A Georgia mother who says she’s a U.S. citizen remains locked inside a private immigration detention center, swept up in a wave of federal immigration enforcement that’s bringing historic profits to the company detaining her.