Behind the Investigation with Atlanta News First
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Tragedy in Paradise | An Atlanta News First investigation
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.
Atlanta News First Investigates traveled to the south Pacific island nation to learn what happened and how Georgia and the U.S. can learn from it.
Experts warn the U.S. is on a similar path, with vaccine skepticism growing, amplified by social media and mixed messages from the nation’s top health official, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
'I'm gonna shoot up the CDC' | Behind the Investigation
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 scene of the Aug. 8, 2025, deadly shooting near the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control that would claim the life of a DeKalb County police officer.
The family’s horror would only increase as the hours unfolded. Law enforcement has determined Patrick Joseph White, 30, was the shooter in an incident that claimed the life of a DeKalb County police officer. Patrick White himself took his own life in the aftermath.
In an exclusive interview with Atlanta News First Investigative Reporter Andy Pierrotti, Ken White describes his family’s anguish over the death of their son and David Rose, the officer killed in the shooting.
Mom reunites with children after drug test controversy | Behind the Investigation
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’t give up until the miracle happens,” Hefner said, after a Cherokee County juvenile judge closed the child welfare case against her. That allowed Hefner to be reunited with her two daughters who had been in foster care for three years.
Study finds high PFAS levels in north Georgia residents’ blood | Behind the Investigation
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 Rome and Calhoun. The findings showed that nearly 25% of participants had PFAS concentrations high enough to warrant additional medical evaluations, according to guidelines set by the National Academies of Sciences. These include screenings for cancer, thyroid disease, and high blood pressure.
The research is the first known effort to evaluate potential human exposure in the region since regulators discovered elevated PFAS levels in the area’s drinking water nearly 10 years ago.
Family blames nurse shortage for son’s death in Georgia ER | Behind the Investigation
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 experiencing a mental health crisis. The wrongful death and medical malpractice complaint names several nurses, a physician, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, and the hospital’s parent companies as defendants
He was having a stroke for hours, but ER doctors missed it | Behind the Investigation
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 stroke, one that went untreated for hours.
As a result, Jonathan, now 34, has lived in a chair, immobile, for a decade. He has Locked-in Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder where a person is conscious and aware but unable to move or speak due to complete paralysis of nearly all voluntary muscles, except the eyes.
Renter fights $25,000 packout bill after flood | Behind the Investigation
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.
Great-grandmother fights $580 water bill and wins | Behind the Investigation
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 then two months later, $580, more than 16 times her average bill.
Pullen said there are no leaks in her unit, and Atlanta News First Investigates confirmed her water meter showed no activity when all water sources were turned off.
Metro Atlanta roofer loses $12K after State Farm approves replacement, doesn’t pay | Behind the Investigation
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.
Chronic school absenteeism, timeshare controversies, FBI raids the wrong house | Behind the Investigation
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.
Why is ICE detaining the daughter of an American serviceman? Behind the Investigation
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.
HOA threatened to place a lien on her home. She said, bring it on | Behind the Investigation
Homeowners in this metro Atlanta subdivision said their HOA hasn't provided any financial documentation for nearly two years. Here are your rights as a Georgia homeowner who is living under the rule of an HOA.
Podcast: Parents demand answers after autistic son allegedly abused in state care | Behind the Investigation
The parents of a 27-year-old man with severe autism are calling on state officials to intervene after their son was allegedly assaulted and neglected multiple times while living in a group home run by Brightstar Homes and Services.
Note: This episode was uploaded on May 14, 2025.