SONOMA, Calif. — Martin Truex Jr. snapped a 218-race winless streak with an easy victory Sunday on the road course at Sonoma Raceway.

It was just the second win of Truex’s career, first since Dover in 2007. It put Michael Waltrip Racing in Victory Lane for the second year in a row after Clint Bowyer won here last season.

Truex worked his way to the front and used strategy to stay with the leaders.

He then pulled away after the final restart and built a healthy lead of more than six seconds over Juan Pablo Montoya, who was running second until he ran out of gas on the final lap.

“I’m ecstatic. But I’m not exactly sure how that happened,” said Truex, who admitted he wasn’t pleased with his car following Friday’s practices. “The car was just phenomenal all day long and once I was near the front and didn’t have to run the car 110 percent, it just would stay with me on the long runs and I was able to drive away from everyone.”

Montoya, who came into the weekend knowing if he didn’t win he would at least have a huge points day, dropped all the way to 34th after having to coast to the finish. He took a shortcut to skip the final turn, drifted to the finish line and parked. He then walked back to the garage, annoyed his Chip Ganassi Racing team never told him to save fuel.

“We’ve got tools to prevent things like that from happening,” Montoya said.

“I don’t know if all the fuel didn’t go,” Montoya said. “This is what we’ve been doing all year. We all work together and we’re all trying to do the best we can. Half the reason we’re 20-something in points — we’re not 20-something in points because we’re not running fast. We’re 20-something in points because we had a lot of mechanical problems and days like this we throw them away.”

Crew chief Chris Heroy was perplexed about the shortage.

“We don’t know what happened — we were on the same strategy as (Truex),” Heroy said through a team spokeswoman. “We’re going to go back to the shop and figure it out.”

Montoya got little sympathy from Kyle Busch, who was spun by Montoya early in the race when Montoya drove too deep into a corner and wheel-hopped over a curb.

“Awww. My heart melts for @jpmontoya who ran out of gas,” Busch tweeted moments after the race.

Jeff Gordon finished second a week after he was wrecked six laps into the race at Michigan, but felt like he might have had a chance to win if he had not already committed to pit seconds before a caution came out early in the race.

“I mean, I really do think we had a shot winning this race. We had a tremendous car,” Gordon said. “I knew we were screwed. There was nothing I could do; I was hard on the brakes, fully committed. I couldn’t turn away from it, I just knew we had to eat it and go on, and that’s what we did.”

Carl Edwards was third, followed by Kurt Busch, who climbed back from a pair of speeding penalties.

“Yeah, we were fast, even on pit road. Twice,” Busch laughed. “I messed-up, flat-out. I didn’t hit my tachometer right and I was speeding both times. It was one of those where I’m like, how does that happen? I just put myself in a position that was poor trying to get too much on pit road.”

Bowyer wound up fifth in a strong day for the MWR Toyotas.

Kasey Kahne was sixth and followed by Marcos Ambrose, who was extremely disappointed he didn’t win a race in which he was heavily favored.

“It’s OK. We got a top-10 out of it,” Ambrose said. “I wanted to win. Of course I wanted to win, but that’s the way it goes.”

Greg Biffle was eighth and followed by Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick in the top 10.

The race got off to an inauspicious start before it even began with a pit road accident, a mechanical issue for Jacques Villeneuve and an oil line failure for Bobby Labonte.

The accident occurred as the cars were headed onto the track and David Reutimann stopped his car on pit road. Alex Kennedy stopped behind Reutimann, and Paulie Harraka slammed into the back of Kennedy.

The damage wasn’t significant enough to prevent Harraka from making his Sprint Cup Series debut. But it was a short-lived race for the first driver to advance from NASCAR’s diversity program into a Cup race — Harraka spun and crashed his car six laps later.

Meanwhile, a parts failure caused Labonte to dump oil all over pit road before the race and he was forced to take his car to the garage for a quick repair. Labonte made it onto the track for the green flag, but his engine failed on the first lap.

“It blew up, dude,” Labonte said on his radio. “Something in the bottom engine because it had no oil pressure.”

Villeneuve had an issue shifting his gears and had to stay on pit road for a quick repair before trying to catch up to the field at the start of the race. He made it, but the problem wasn’t completely corrected and he was back on pit road after 19 laps for more repairs.

Busch had back-to-back speeding penalties in yet another race that slipped away. He led 15 laps, lost the lead to former teammate Brad Keselowski, then was flagged for speeding when he went in for a scheduled pit stop. He had to return to pit road for a stop-and-go penalty and was flagged for speeding again.

It dropped Busch to 38th in the running order, from where he had to climb back to steal his strong finish.

His brother also had his share of problems. Kyle Busch was spun early in the race by Montoya to lose a ton of track position, then gave up everything he made up when he was caught speeding on pit road. He also spun at least two more times during the race.

Danica Patrick, thought to be a contender based on her strong runs in Nationwide Series road races, struggled all weekend to find speed and was done in by a flat rear tire just past the halfway point. The tire issue caused her to spin into a barrier and make multiple pit stops for repairs.

Pole-sitter Jamie McMurray never even led a lap under green as he was passed at the start by Ambrose, and his race took a big hit when he later ran off course with a tire problem and lost a lap.

MILWAUKEE — The Atlanta Braves had gone 24 innings without a run when Brian McCann stepped to plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the first inning Sunday against the Milwaukee Brewers.

McCann quickly put an end to the streak of futility when he hit a grand slam to left-center off Alfredo Figaro. Chris Johnson and Jordan Schafer added solo shots for the Braves, who went on to a 7-4 victory.

“I usually don’t hit the home runs over that way, so I’ve been working hard to stay on the ball and today, luckily, I put a good enough swing on it to go out that way,” McCann said.

Beaten 2-0 by the Brewers on Friday and Saturday, the Braves received a much-needed offensive lift from McCann when he connected for his 10th career slam.

“That was big for us,” Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “If anything, to get ahead and get four runs and then tack on a couple later on and win the game was big. Games like this, they say hitting is contagious. Hopefully, it catches a couple of guys and keeps going.”

Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez sprained his left shoulder when he fell awkwardly near the center-field wall while making a leaping catch of Andrelton Simmons’ drive in the fourth. Gomez, hit in the left knee by an earlier pitch from Paul Maholm, immediately left the game clutching his shoulder.

Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke said there is no immediate plan to put Gomez on the disabled list.

“Hopefully, it’s not going to be too bad,” Roenicke said. “It could be a couple days, it could be a week. We’ll know more tomorrow when they take a look at him.”

McCann reached base safely four times in five trips to the plate.

Johnson led off the second with an opposite-field homer to right field. A leadoff drive by Schafer in the fourth extended the lead to 6-0.

Schafer had four hits in five at-bats, including a double.

“That’s what he can do for you — give you that spark,” Gonzalez said. “You can pretty much put him in any of those positions in the outfield and he’s a plus defender. He can beat you with his legs or hit one out of the ballpark like he did today.”

McCann also offered high praise for Schafer’s performance.

“I can’t say enough good things about that guy,” McCann said. “He comes back here for his second stint and I think he’s understanding what he can and can’t do on a baseball field. He’s staying within himself and you’re seeing this guy has got tools and we’re starting to see them on a nightly basis.”

Milwaukee scored four times off Maholm in the fifth. Logan Schafer’s one-out single drove in two. Lucroy followed with a two-run homer to straightaway center.

Atlanta added a run in the ninth on Dan Uggla’s RBI single.

Five Braves relievers held Milwaukee scoreless over the final four innings. Craig Kimbrel earned his 21st save in 24 attempts.

The Brewers loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh but pinch-hitter Juan Francisco, acquired in a trade with Atlanta this month, popped out in foul territory to end the threat.

Maholm (8-6) entered 3-11 with a 5.12 ERA against the Brewers and had lost six consecutive decisions to them over eight starts. His last win against Milwaukee Brewers came in 2009.

This time, he gave up four runs and eight hits over five innings while walking one and striking out three.

“The offense was the big thing today,” Maholm said. “I pitched well for four innings and then gave up some runs, but it’s good for the team to leave here with a win.”

Figaro (1-2) lasted 3 1-3 innings, giving up nine hits and six runs. He struck out four and walked three.

It marked the second consecutive poor outing by Figaro, who allowed four earned runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings of a 10-1 loss at Houston on Tuesday.

“He wasn’t locating his pitches,” Roenicke said. “He was up in the zone with his fastball and couldn’t command the off-speed pitches. He can’t pitch that way.”

Savannah officials are considering increasing the city’s debt to spur economic development at the stagnant Savannah River Landing site, as well as alleviate flooding concerns throughout the city.

Under the proposal, the city would issue about $10.6 million in bonds this year and $10 million in 2014 to cover the costs of improvements to President Street, which would be raised about 6 feet to alleviate flooding issues there, and other projects.

The additional bond funds would also be used to complete three drainage projects and provide $10 million owed to the Savannah-Chatham public school board.

The city would have an additional $1.7 million in annual debt payments if the bonds are approved. That obligation would be on top of $1.4 million in annual debt already being paid for 2009 bonds issued for the President Street project, which includes upgrades to General McIntosh Boulevard, Broughton Street and Randolph Street.

The additional funds are being requested after the costs of the projects exceeded expectations.

The President Street project hit some delays due to difficulties in obtaining easements and finalizing the design, since the city submitted an earlier request for proposals in 2009, said John Sawyer, Savannah public works and water resources bureau chief.

After initially allocating almost $18 million for the project at the time, the lowest bid from a second request this year came in at $29.6 million after only two proposals were submitted. Three of the five qualified contractors ended up not submitting bids.

Stoy Marlow, general manager of R.B. Baker Construction, said there was nothing wrong with the city’s requirements, but his company decided not to submit a proposal because of the complexities involved and due to some unusual risk.

The utility work was outside his company’s abilities and an extended warranty would have placed them on the hook for damages for three years, as opposed to typical one-year period, Marlow said.

The company did end up partnering with the second-ranked bidder, TIC — The Industrial Company — to perform the road work, which is one of his company’s specialties, he said. TIC submitted a $37.5 million bid for the project. McLendon Enterprises submitted the low bid.

The debt payments would initially have to be subsidized by the general fund, but city officials are counting on the expense to eventually be covered by funds raised in a special tax district that runs south from River Street to Wheaton Street and east from East Broad Street to the Truman Parkway. The revenue that comes from increased property values within the district will be designated for the payments.

Acting Assistant City Manager Dick Evans said he is confident the area is going to live up to its potential.

In addition to the Savannah River Landing site, retail development is being planned for the property across the street. A new hotel on East River Street that is within the district, and part of a larger hotel/retail complex planned by North Point Hospitality, was recently approved by the Savannah Historic District Board of Review.

The vision of a developed President Street and General McIntosh corridor led to the creation of the tax district and the subsequent issuing of the $20 million bond in 2009.

At the time, a $575 million market value was predicted for the Savannah River Landing site, which was to be an extension of the downtown Historic District featuring residential and commercial development, Evans said. The economy took a nose dive and the 40-acre site remains vacant.

Last year, the tax district generated about $400,000.

Now that things are picking up, city officials say interest in the site and surrounding areas is on the rise. Fixing the flooding problems there and providing road access will provide the impetus needed to make the developments a reality, Evans said.

There is no doubt the President Street improvements are crucial to development moving forward, said Will Burgstiner, the local liaison for the Savannah River Landing site. Tenants will not make commitments until they know when access to the site will be completed, Burgstiner said.

“It is imperative,” he said.

The three drainage projects will address flooding problems in the Habersham Village shopping center — along with Abercorn and Paulsen streets — the Baldwin Park neighborhood and downtown.

At least one business owner is not too thrilled about the $25 million Casey South drainage project digging up the street outside of Habersham Village.

Eric Karpf, who owns Punch and Judy’s children’s boutique in the shopping center, said flooding is not as bad in the area since improvements were made about 15 years ago.

The project will disrupt business and use up funds that could be better spent elsewhere, Karpf said.

“They are going to spend millions of unnecessary money, I believe,” he said. “They need to do some drainage work, but not to this extent.”

There have been some opponents to the plan, but there have also been some strong supporters, said city spokesman Bret Bell. At least one Habersham business has had to pile sand bags up to mitigate the flooding, Bell said. Many times, people want the drainage improvements, but not the disruptions that accompany them, he said.

If approved, the bonds will also help the city meet an obligation to the Savannah-Chatham school board. Instead of taking the tax district revenue, the Savannah-Chatham School Board agreed to accept a $10 million payment, which is due by the end of next year.

The Savannah City Council is expected to consider the President Street contract Thursday, with the understanding that approval would trigger the need for the bond issue.

THE PROJECTS

About the President Street/General McIntosh Boulevard road, drainage projects:

The project will raise the elevation of President Street and parts of General McIntosh Boulevard six to seven feet in order to address the tidal flooding that occurs there. The road’s intersection with General McIntosh Boulevard will also be reconfigured and new intersections with planned development on the north and south side of the street will be added.

The road improvements will run concurrently with planned drainage improvements to the Bilbo Canal, which is expected to improve drainage both in the area, as well as a wider area extending south. Construction is expected to take 30 months.

PROJECT NAME/CURRENT COST ESTIMATE

Bilbo Box Culvert Improvement (In tax district): $14,543,882

Casey South Drainage Phase II: $25,390,188

Baldwin Park Drainage Improvement: $1,820,970

Total: $41,755,040

Funding available: $37,104,119

Shortfall: $4,650,921

President Street Improvements: $28,954,662

Randolph/Broughton Street water and sewer: $1,782,147

Total: $30,736,809

Funding available: $24,766,000

Shortfall: $5,970,809

Source: City of Savannah

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — A former Athens rapper and University of Georgia law student is a star in a new documentary set to air on HBO.

But the documentary focuses less on his music and more on his fierce dedication to the impoverished defendants he represents as a Hall County public defender.

"If I don't do all I need to do, somebody's going to go to prison," said Trav Williams, one of three young public defenders profiled in director Dawn Porter's "Gideon's Army."

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and is scheduled for HBO broadcast 9 p.m. July 1.

Williams' job is seven days a week, but he doesn't mind so much. What he does, he believes, is civil rights work by protecting society's least powerful people.

One part of "Gideon's Army" shows a tattoo artist at work on Williams' back. If he takes a case to court and loses, Williams has his client's named tattooed on his back. So far, he's lost eight cases out of 25.

"I really enjoy it and wouldn't do anything else. It's not easy, but anything worth doing is not easy," said Williams, who released his first rap album in 2005, the same year he graduated from UGA law school.

He's also passionate about his music, but rap is for fun, one of the things that keeps him going in a crazy world.

"I just do it for love and for the opportunity it gives me to express myself," he said. "I try to keep a couple of things in my life that make sense and help me maintain my sanity. One is my music, and my work is another."

And in his work as a public defender, he's doing something he's wanted to do since he was a youngster growing up in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where like many other young black males, he was routinely harassed by police.

"I always knew I wanted to be a public defender before I knew what a public defender was," he says in the documentary. "I love my job, I love my work, I love my clients, but there are things I hate. I hate how this country treats poor people. I hate how individuals treat poor people. So that's my hate that keeps me fighting."

Williams met Porter, a former corporate lawyer, when Porter visited Alabama's Gideon's Promise, which trains public defenders.

The names of both the movie and the training institute refer to the landmark 1953 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Gideon v. Wainwright, in which a poor Florida man, Clarence Earl Gideon, argued that the U.S. Constitution guaranteed that even poor people had the right to a fair trial. And to get a fair trial, a person needs a lawyer.

The Supreme Court agreed, but 50 years later, the ruling remains more promise than reality, according to Porter.

Authorities arrest about 12 million to 15 million people each year in the United States, far more than any other country in the world. The U.S., Porter says, also leads the world by a wide margin in the number of people behind bars — about 2.3 to 2.5 million at a cost of $74 billion a year.

Public defenders routinely have caseloads in the hundreds, too many to give effective representation to the poor and powerless they serve, argue Porter and Jonathan Rapping, president and founder of Gideon's Promise.

"The greatest civil rights abuses are happening today to poor people and people of color in the criminal justice system," Rapping says in the documentary.

In some states, 80 percent of defendants cannot afford a lawyer, said Rapping. In many places, most notoriously in Florida's Miami-Dade County, there are too few public defenders to effectively represent their clients. The average Miami-Dade public defender has a caseload of about 500 felony cases and 225 misdemeanor cases, all at the same time, according to the movie.

The South in general stands out for the high rate of "broken" justice systems, according to Porter. About 90 percent of people charged with felonies plead guilty, but the choices that leads to many guilty pleas is a grim one, according to Porter — a five-year prison sentence for a guilty plea vs. a possible 10-year sentence if they're found guilty at trial.

"We are funneling people into the prison system," Porter said to interviewer Amy Goodman of Democracy Now at this year's Sundance Film Festival.

If Williams keeps on as a public defender, he might run out of space to tattoo clients' names on his back, but Williams isn't worried about that.

"As long as I'm a lawyer, I'm going to be a public defender," he said.

___

Information from: Athens Banner-Herald,http://www.onlineathens.com

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about Monday:

1. EDWARD SNOWDEN IS ON THE RUN

The NSA leaker flees Hong Kong for a layover in Moscow before he'll to fly to Cuba and then seek asylum in Ecuador, WikiLeaks says.

2. NELSON MANDELA IN CRITICAL CONDITION

"The doctors are doing everything possible to get his condition to improve," South African President Jacob Zuma says.

3. WHY THE TALIBAN KILLED 11 MOUNTAIN CLMBERS

The Pakistani group said the deaths of the 10 tourists and their guide are revenge for a U.S. drone strike that killed a Taliban leader.

4. DAREDEVIL CROSSES GORGE ON TIGHTROPE

Nik Wallenda walked on a 2-inch-thick steel cable, 1,500 feet above a river near the Grand Canyon.

6. KERRY PRESSES INDIA ON GLOBAL WARMING

"The irreversible climate challenge is speeding toward us, crying out for a global solution," the U.S. secretary of state says.

6. SUPREME COURT'S OPTIONS ON GAY MARRIAGE

The justices could strike down state laws that limit marriage to heterosexual couples, uphold gay marriage bans, or say nothing meaningful on the issue.

7. AFGHAN BOMB SCHOOL FIGHTS WAR'S LEADING KILLER

Hundreds of soldiers train to disarm Taliban-planted bombs that kill and maim thousands each year.

8. GIRL SCOUTS NEED MORE THAN A FRIENDSHIP CIRCLE

Their woes include declining membership and revenues, a dearth of volunteers, and rifts between leadership and members.

9. WHAT MEDICS LEARNED FROM GETTYSBURG

A Union Army doctor introduced the ideas of an ambulance corps and three tiers of field hospitals.

10. TWINKIES TO MAKE A SWEET COMEBACK

Hostess reopens its factory and plans to have the snack cakes back on shelves July 15.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

NEW YORK — Hostess is betting on a sweet comeback for Twinkies when they return to shelves next month.

The company that went bankrupt after an acrimonious fight with its unionized workers last year is back up and running under new owners and a leaner structure. It says it plans to have Twinkies and other snack cakes back on shelves starting July 15.

Based on the outpouring of nostalgia sparked by its demise, Hostess is expecting a blockbuster return next month for Twinkies and other sugary treats, such as CupCakes and Donettes. The company says the cakes will taste the same but that the boxes will now bear the tag line "The Sweetest Comeback In The History Of Ever."

"A lot of impostor products have come to the market while Hostess has been off the shelves," says Daren Metropoulos, a principal of the investment firm Metropoulos & Co., which teamed up with Apollo Global Management to buy a variety of Hostess snacks.

Hostess Brands Inc. was struggling for years before it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in early 2012. Workers blamed the troubles on years of mismanagement, as well as a failure of executives to invest in brands to keep up with changing tastes. The company said it was weighed down by higher pension and medical costs than its competitors, whose employees weren't unionized.

To steer it through its bankruptcy reorganization, Hostess hired restructuring expert Greg Rayburn as its CEO. But Rayburn ultimately failed to reach a contract agreement with its second largest union. In November, he blamed striking workers for crippling the company's ability to maintain normal production and announced that Hostess would liquidate.

The shuttering triggered a rush on Hostess snack cakes, with stores selling out of the most popular brands within hours.

About 15,000 unionized workers lost their jobs in the aftermath.

In unwinding its business, Hostess sold off its brands in chunks to different buyers. Its major bread brands including Wonder were sold to Flowers Foods, which makes Tastykakes. McKee Foods, which makes Little Debbie snack cakes, snapped up Drake's Cake, which includes Devil Dogs and Yodels.

Metropoulos & Co. and Apollo bought Twinkies and other Hostess cakes for $410 million.

Apollo Global Management, founded by Leon Black, is known for buying troubled brands then selling them for a profit; its investments include fast-food chains Carl's Jr. and Hardee's. Metropoulos & Co., which has revamped then sold off brands including Chef Boyardee and Bumble Bee, also owns Pabst Brewing Co.

That could mean some cross-promotional marketing is in store.

"There is certainly a natural association with the two," Metropoulos said. "There could be some opportunities for them to seen together."

The trimmed-down Hostess Brands LLC has a far less costly operating structure than the predecessor company. Some of the previous workers were hired back, but they're no longer unionized.

Hostess will also now deliver to warehouses that supply retailers, rather than delivering directly to stores, said Rich Seban, the president of Hostess who previously served as chief operating officer. That will greatly expand its reach, letting it deliver to dollar stores and nearly all convenience stores in the U.S.

Previously, he said Hostess was only able to reach about a third of the country's 150,000 convenience stores.

Production was also consolidated, from 11 bakery plants to four — one each in Georgia, Kansas, Illinois and Indiana. The headquarters were moved from Texas to Kansas City, Mo., where Hostess was previously based and still had some accounting offices.

In the months since they vanished from shelves, the cakes have been getting a few touchups as well. For the CupCakes, the company is now using dark cocoa instead of milk chocolate to give them a richer, darker appearance.

Seban stressed that the changes were to improve the cakes, not to cut costs. Prices for the cakes will remain the same; a box of 10 Twinkies will cost $3.99.

Looking ahead, Seban sees Hostess expanding its product lineup. He noted that Hostess cakes are known for three basic textures: the spongy cake, the creamy filling and the thicker icing. But he said different textures — such as crunchy — could be introduced, as well as different flavors.

"We can have some fun with that mixture," he said.

He also said there are many trendy health attributes the company could tap into, such as gluten-free, added fiber, low sugar and low sodium.

During bankruptcy proceedings, Hostess had said that its overall sales had been declining, although the company didn't give a breakout on the performance of individual brands. But Seban is confident Twinkies will have staying power beyond its re-launch.

As for the literal shelf-life, Seban is quick to refute the snack cake's fabled indestructibility.

"Forty-five days — that's it," he said. "They don't last forever."

___

Follow Candice Choi at www.twitter.com/candicehoi

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Average retail gasoline prices in Savannah have fallen 3.8 cents a gallon in the past week to $3.38 a gallon on Sunday, according to GasBuddy's daily survey of 262 gas outlets in Savannah.

The national average also has fallen 3.8 cents a gallon in the last week to $3.57, according to gasoline price website GasBuddy.com. 

Prices Sunday were 24.7 cents a gallon higher than the same day one year ago and are 1.4 cents a gallon higher than a month ago. The national average has decreased 9.5 cents a gallon during the last month and stands 12.0 cents higher than a year ago. 

"Gasoline prices are certainly a bit wacky right now across the country with prices moving in difference directions, but from what we saw in the last few days with oil prices, I'm hopeful that most areas of the United States will see new or continued relief for at least the first half of this week, with some areas seeing a continued drop for most of this week," said GasBuddy.com Senior Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan. 

The board of directors of the Georgia Ports Authority today elected Robert S. Jepson Jr. of Savannah to serve a second term as chairman of the board. Jepson was first appointed to the Board of Directors in 2008 and previously served as vice chairman. The new vice chairman will be James A. Walters, and Stephen S. Green will serve as secretary/treasurer.

“Bob Jepson’s steady leadership is exactly what is needed as we shepherd important rail, highway and maritime infrastructure projects to completion,” said Georgia Governor Nathan Deal. “During his first year as chairman, Bob made sure the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project remained a top priority, successfully navigating the final stages of federal approval for SHEP.”

“Over the past year, we have made significant strides in moving SHEP toward construction,” Jepson said. “Much of that success is due in large part to the support we have received from Governor Deal, Georgia’s Congressional delegation, and the talented staff at the Georgia Ports Authority.”

Jepson commended Gov. Deal for his strong support of the deepening, including $50 million in his 2014 budget for harbor expansion, for a total of $231 million in state funds already allocated to the project. Studies by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers show a 5.5-to-1 benefit to cost ratio, meaning that for every dollar spent on the deepening, the nation will reap $5.50 in benefits.

In other business, the board heard a report from GPA Executive Director Curtis Foltz, detailing growth in all major business segments for the month of May. Container trade, autos and machinery, bulk and breakbulk all saw year-over-year increases. In May, GPA moved 261,520 twenty-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), for a 1.9 percent increase over the same month last year.

“In three out of the last four months, our container volume has grown in the range of 5,000 to 10,000 TEUs each month,” Foltz said.

See  Tuesday's Savannah Morning News or return to savannahnow.com for the full story.

Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic will market each other’s flights, now that Delta has completed a deal for a 49-percent ownership stake in the British airline, the airlines announced Monday.

Delta purchased the stake to gain access to the lucrative London market. The European Commission and the U.S Department of Justice signed off last week on the transaction.

Starting July 3, the airlines will jointly market flights on 108 routes. Fliers can earn and redeem miles on each carrier. Each airline will honor the elite status and lounge privileges of the other’s frequent fliers.

The two airlines hope to start sharing revenue on trans-Atlantic flights sometime in 2014.

Virgin CEO Craig Kreeger said his airline is still considering whether it will join the larger SkyTeam alliance anchored by Delta.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Deen re-scheduled for NBC's "Today" show on Wednesday

NEW YORK (AP) — Paula Deen lost another part of her empire on Monday: Smithfield Foods said it was dropping her as a spokeswoman.

The announcement came days after the Food Network said it would not renew the celebrity cook's contract in the wake of revelations that she used racial slurs in the past.

Smithfield sold Paula Deen-branded hams in addition to using her as a spokeswoman. In a statement, the company said it "condemns the use of offensive and discriminatory language and behavior of any kind. Therefore, we are terminating our partnership with Paula Deen."

QVC also said it was reviewing its deal with Paula Deen Enterprises to sell the star's cookbooks and cookware.

Earlier today:

NEW YORK — Paula Deen will appear on NBC's "Today" show on Wednesday, according to host Matt Lauer.

Lauer's announcement came Monday, three days after the celebrity cook abruptly canceled on the morning show, where she was scheduled to answer questions about her past use of racial slurs.

Lauer said Deen "told us she will be here this time."

While questioned last month in a discrimination lawsuit, the 66-year-old Food Network star admitted to using the N-word in the past, but she insisted she and her family do not tolerate prejudice.

Deen issued videotaped apologies Friday afternoon seeking forgiveness from fans and critics.

But hours later, the Food Network announced it wouldn't renew her contract when it ends this month.

• INTERACTIVE: Mainstream media in Deen case parroted tabloid, social media reaction to latest Paula Deen news
• Click here to view the deposition of Paula Deen in full

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

A Savannah man was in critical condition today after being shot in what has been described as a robbery attempt Saturday night.

 The victim was taken to Memorial University Medical Center by another man who reported he was shot during a robbery near Joe and Rockefeller streets in the Eastside neighborhood about 10 p.m., said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham police spokesman.

The man told police he and the victim were approached by two men who tried to rob them. The victim was shot when he resisted.

Downtown Precinct Patrol officers had responded a few minutes earlier to a shots fired call in the area.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Crimestoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637). Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

A confidential Tip Line also is open directly to investigators at 912-525-3124.

A black man wearing a cowboy hat and an orange vest is suspected in an armed robbery of the First Effingham Bank on Monday.

Effingham County Sheriff’s Office spokesman David Eshanipoor said the man used a silver revolver in the robbery that occurred about 2 p.m. 

He fled after the robbery and took an undisclosed amount of money.

Ehsanipoor did not immediately know whether the suspect fled on foot or by vehicle.

Ehsanipoor said investigators will be reviewing surveillance video from other businesses.

The bank is located at 5671 Ga. 21 in Rincon.

The Effingham County Sheriff’s Office,  Rincon Police and the FBI are investigating.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff's Office at 912-754-3449 or the Rincon Police Department at 826-5200.

Effingham County commissioners have agreed to have a Savannah law firm try to get damages for the county from King America Finishing for a May 2011 fish kill on the Ogeechee River.

Commissioners voted unanimously on June 18 to allow Commission Chairman Wendall Kessler to execute a contract with Oliver Maner LLP for their engagement in the matter.

The deal calls for the county to invest no money in the effort. The law firm will be paid only if a settlement is reached.

Kessler said he heard that some people who own property on the Ogeechee River in Effingham County were receiving settlement payments from the plant, which is in Screven County.

In May 2011, the Ogeechee was the site of a fish kill that left 38,000 fish dead, one of the largest fish kills in state history. The 70-mile kill zone began just below King America Finishing’s discharge pipe.

An investigation by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division officially linked the dead fish to a bacterial infection but also revealed the company’s fire retardant processing line had been operating without a pollution permit since its inception in 2006.

Kessler said he knows someone who had a new Ford pickup truck and when Kessler asked him about the vehicle, the man said King America paid for it.

Kessler said one landowner reportedly got $34,000 in a settlement from the manufacturing plant. Kessler said he thinks the county should receive damages, too.

The county owns Steel Bridge Landing, off of Ga. 119 at the crossing of the Ogeechee River, said Adam Kobek, the county’s director of community relations.

Kobek said the property is a little over 2 acres and has a pavilion and boat landing.

The boat landing was closed during the fish kill, Kessler said. “The county shut it down,” he said. “People couldn’t go tubing.”

“If anybody’s got a claim, it’s the county,” he said. “If everyone else can get money, the county should be able to.”

Kessler said he doesn’t have any guess about how much money the county might collect or when it might collect. He said the money could be used to improve the site.

Paul H. Threlkeld, an attorney with Oliver Maner, had no comment about which court or location the firm might use.

Savannah-Chatham Metro police will be operating radar hot spots along Jimmy Deloach Parkway.

Police remind drivers there is zero tolerance for speeding in school zones. 

24-hour jail bookings for Savannah-Chatham County are now posted. Visit booked.savannahnow.com to view photos and information.

All information has been obtained from the Chatham County Sheriff’s Department.

All individuals posted have not been convicted of a crime and are innocent until proven guilty.

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about Tuesday:

1. WHAT'S ANGERING THE WHITE HOUSE

Hong Kong's decision not to detain Snowden has "unquestionably" hurt relations between the U.S. and China, the Obama administration says.

2. ZIMMERMAN TRIAL OPENS WITH STARTLING LANGUAGE

The prosecution begins by repeating obscenities that the ex-neighborhood watchman uttered to a police dispatcher moments before his deadly confrontation with Trayvon Martin.

3. IMMIGRATION OVERHAUL PASSES KEY TEST

Monday's vote clears the way for Senate passage of a bill calling for more than $30 billion in new border security and a chance at citizenship for millions.

4. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION SURVIVES SUPREME COURT REVIEW

But the ruling regarding the University of Texas seems certain to generate more challenges to race-conscious admissions plans.

5. LEFT, TOO, CAME UNDER IRS SCRUTINY

The AP obtains an internal agency document showing terms such as "Progressive" and "Occupy" were used to help pick groups for closer examination.

6. 'BUNGA BUNGA' LANDS BERLUSCONI A 7-YEAR SENTENCE

Italy's ex-premier is also banned from politics for life after paying an underage prostitute for sex during one of his infamous parties, then forcing a cover-up.

7. WHY A SAFETY NET IS IN TATTERS

House investigators say Social Security is approving disability benefits at strikingly high rates, leaving the fund on the brink of insolvency.

8. SOUTH AFRICANS URGED TO PRAY FOR MANDELA

The nation's president says doctors are doing everything they can for the critically ill former leader.

9. WHICH HOLLYWOOD STAR IS DISPARAGING HIS OWN FILM

Jim Carrey says "Kick-Ass 2," in which he plays a superhero vigilante, contains violence that he cannot support after the Connecticut school shootings.

10. ANOTHER EARLY WIMBLEDON EXIT FOR NADAL

The Spaniard is bounced out in the first round by 135th-ranked Steve Darcis of Belgium. Last year, Nadal lost in the second round.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Jamie and Bobby Deen, sons of embattled Savannah celebrity cook, TV star and restaurant owner Paula Deen, appeared live from Savannah on CNN's "New Day" this morning to talk about their mother coming under fire for admitting to using the "N" word in a deposition in a civil lawsuit against her and her brother. Click play to watch.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a key provision of the landmark Voting Rights Act cannot be enforced unless Congress comes up with an up-to-date formula for deciding which states and localities still need federal monitoring.

The justices said in 5-4 vote that the law Congress most recently renewed in 2006 relies on 40-year-old data that does not reflect racial progress and changes in U.S. society.

The court did not strike down the advance approval requirement of the law that has been used, mainly in the South, to open up polling places to minority voters in the nearly half century since it was first enacted in 1965. But the justices did say lawmakers must update the formula for determining which parts of the country must seek Washington's approval, in advance, for election changes.

Chief Justice John Roberts said for the conservative majority that Congress "may draft another formula based on current conditions."

That task eluded Congress in 2006 when lawmakers overwhelmingly renewed the advance approval requirement with no changes in which states and local jurisdictions were covered, and Congress did nothing in response to a high court ruling in a similar challenge in 2009 in which the justices raised many of the same concerns.

"The coverage formula that Congress reauthorized in 2006 ignores these developments, keeping the focus on decades-old data relevant to decades-old problems, rather than current data reflecting current needs," Roberts said.

The decision means that a host of state and local laws that have not received Justice Department approval or have not yet been submitted will be able to take effect. Prominent among those are voter identification laws in Alabama and Mississippi.

Going forward, the outcome alters the calculus of passing election-related legislation in the affected states and local jurisdictions. The threat of an objection from Washington has hung over election-related proposals for nearly a half century. At least until Congress acts, that deterrent now is gone.

That prospect has worried civil rights groups which especially worry that changes on the local level might not get the same scrutiny as the actions of state legislatures.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, joined by her three liberal colleagues, dissented from Tuesday's ruling.

Ginsburg said no one doubts that voting discrimination still exists. "But the court today terminates the remedy that proved to be best suited to block that discrimination," she said in a dissent that she read aloud in the packed courtroom.

Justice Clarence Thomas was part of the majority, but wrote separately to say again that he would have struck down the advance approval requirement itself.

The decision comes five months after President Barack Obama, the nation's first black chief executive, started his second term in the White House, re-elected by a diverse coalition of voters.

The high court is in the midst of a broad re-examination of the ongoing necessity of laws and programs aimed at giving racial minorities access to major areas of American life from which they once were systematically excluded. The justices issued a modest ruling Monday that preserved affirmative action in higher education and will take on cases dealing with anti-discrimination sections of a federal housing law and another affirmative action case from Michigan next term.

The court warned of problems with the voting rights law in a similar case heard in 2009. The justices averted a major constitutional ruling at that time, but Congress did nothing to address the issues the court raised. The law's opponents, sensing its vulnerability, filed several new lawsuits.

The latest decision came in a challenge to the advance approval, or preclearance, requirement, which was brought by Shelby County, Ala., a Birmingham suburb.

The lawsuit acknowledged that the measure's strong medicine was appropriate and necessary to counteract decades of state-sponsored discrimination in voting, despite the Fifteenth Amendment's guarantee of the vote for black Americans.

But it asked whether there was any end in sight for a provision that intrudes on states' rights to conduct elections, an issue the court's conservative justices also explored at the argument in February. It was considered an emergency response when first enacted in 1965.

The county noted that the 25-year extension approved in 2006 would keep some places under Washington's oversight until 2031 and seemed not to account for changes that include the elimination of racial disparity in voter registration and turnout or the existence of allegations of race-based discrimination in voting in areas of the country that are not subject to the provision.

The Obama administration and civil rights groups said there is a continuing need for it and pointed to the Justice Department's efforts to block voter ID laws in South Carolina and Texas last year, as well as a redistricting plan in Texas that a federal court found discriminated against the state's large and growing Hispanic population.

Advance approval was put into the law to give federal officials a potent tool to defeat persistent efforts to keep blacks from voting.

The provision was a huge success because it shifted the legal burden and required governments that were covered to demonstrate that their proposed changes would not discriminate. Congress periodically has renewed it over the years. The most recent extension was overwhelmingly approved by a Republican-led Congress and signed by President George W. Bush.

The requirement currently applies to the states of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia. It also covers certain counties in California, Florida, New York, North Carolina and South Dakota, and some local jurisdictions in Michigan. Coverage has been triggered by past discrimination not only against blacks, but also against American Indians, Asian-Americans, Alaska Natives and Hispanics.

Towns in New Hampshire that had been covered by the law were freed from the advance approval requirement in March. Supporters of the provision pointed to the ability to bail out of the prior approval provision to argue that the law was flexible enough to accommodate change and that the court should leave theVoting Rights Act intact.

On Monday, the Justice Department announced an agreement that would allow Hanover County, Va., to bail out.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

MusicFile Productions, LLC (the parent company of Savannah Stopover Music Festival) announced today the creation of a new fall festival celebrating the best in Southern tinged music, local and regional foods, crafts, beer and spirits.

Revival Fest will take place Sept. 14 at the Paint Shop and adjoining grove at the Georgia State Railroad Museum on Louisville Road.

The day-long festival will feature two stages, 12 bands, an authentic pig roast, and an oyster roast. Additional plans include a craft bourbon tasting tent, local and regional craft beers as well as select food and crafts vendors.

Sandra Baxter, executive director of The Coastal Heritage Society, added: “we are very excited about hosting Revival Fest at the Georgia State Railroad Museum in an area that will be open to the public for the first time ever. This event is expected to be a fantastic fit with our site and mission and should prove to be a win-win for us, the Revival Fest producers, the audience, and our community as a whole”.

A portion of the proceeds of the event will benefit the Savannah Children’s Museum, also located on the site.

Music for the festival will focus on blues, Southern rock, Americana, bluegrass, gospel, folk and soul with a combination of local, regional and national acts. A sneak peek is available at Revivalfest.org.  

According to MusicFile Productions CEO Kayne Lanahan “it’s an idea we've been kicking around for a year or two; to marry the Roots/Americana revival in music with our great local and regional food; sort of like a New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival for the Low Country. There are all these amazing people here brewing, growing, cooking and creating amazing things. We wanted to bring them together in one big celebration.”

The full lineup and schedule will be announced July 2. Tickets will go on sale at noon that day at the Savannah Box Office. Festival goers will have the option to choose a Festival Pass that is ‘music only’ or one that includes the Pig Roast and Oyster Roast. Additional food and beverage options will be available for purchase on the festival grounds.

Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RevivalFestSav

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/SavRevivalFest

Hashtag:  #revivalfest

A study commissioned by the Savannah City  Council to study the feasibility of building a cruise ship terminal on the Savannah River has recommended Savannah River Landing as the preferred site for a potential terminal.

Other sites considered were the silos on Hutchinson Island and the Powell Durffryn property, also on Hutchinson Island.

See Wednesday's Savannah Morning News or return to savannahnow.com for the complete story.