Brendan Keefe - Atlanta News First Profile picture
Chief Investigator @ATLNewsfirst. National Investigator @InvestigateTV @GrayTelevision . Peabody, duPont, Emmys, Murrows. Kenyon alum. brendan.keefe@gray.tv
Sep 2, 2023 5 tweets 2 min read
The sheriff said Donald Trump & his co-defendants would be processed like anyone else accused of felonies. So why is there not a single frame of surveillance video from the Fulton County Jail?
@ATLNewsFirst demanded copies under the Open Records Act. This was the response: Image @ATLNewsFirst They had 3 days to respond & they gave us booking photos we already had & didn't request. Once @ATLNewsFirst attorneys got involved, the Sheriff's Office & County Attorney now claim -- out of all the surveillance cams inside and outside the jail -- not one recorded Trump, et al.
Aug 31, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
#BREAKING Judge McAfee says there will be a live YouTube stream — operated by the court — of all Fulton County hearings & trials related to the Trump indictment, in addition to pool media coverage Judge McAfee says he’s following Judge McBurney’s practice that follows the spirit of open courts in Georgia. This came up when the court was asked to provide an overflow courtroom with a live feed. The current pool order expires Sept. 8 & will be refiled.
Dec 2, 2022 5 tweets 2 min read
I’m at the back of the line on the final day of early voting in Fulton County. The line of voters wraps out of sight around the entire perimeter of the library to the non-fiction section. Current wait time is estimated at 128 minutes. Updates to follow. ImageImage A few peopl ahead of me have dropped out. “I’ve got to get back to work. I hope I can vote on Election Day,” one said. Image
Jun 7, 2022 5 tweets 3 min read
Remember this? An email the day before my tweet told GOP electors to keep the whole thing secret, even from Georgia's Capitol Police. “If there was nothing wrong with it, why go through such extraordinary lengths to hide what you’re doing?” @washingtonpost
washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/… @washingtonpost Georgia law says the electors must meet in the state capitol. Fake electors were turned away from other state capitols the same day. The photo inside the room was taken by freelance journalist @haistenwillis whose twitter is now locked down. Trying to find out why...
Nov 24, 2021 4 tweets 1 min read
Please accept my apologies -- I was live-tweeting each verdict separately & caused some confusion. Here's what you need to know:
Travis McMichael GUILTY on all charges, Greg McMichael and Roddie Bryan GUILTY of felony murder.
23 of 27 counts = guilty.
11alive.com/article/news/c…
Nov 24, 2021 5 tweets 2 min read
That's the Johns Creek Police cruiser that parked in front of my home the day after the mayor called to complain about my reporting on the confidential $325,000 settlement with his police chief. We filed more records requests which led to all of this:
11alive.com/article/news/i… Records show it was a 'residential check.' The address automatically populated by the CAD system showed it was the empty lot across the street. The mayor told me it was part of a new program to get officers to write their reports inside gated HOAs.
Aug 9, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
This is the demonstration I posted in March of last year, when only 187 had died in the US. The reproductive rate (R0 or R-naught) of the COVID virus was believed to be around 2. The estimated reproductive rate of the delta variant is greater than 5. So 1, 5, 25, 125, 625, 3,125 Some people said 17 months ago that my post was alarmist, when deaths were still counted in 3 digits. Now 617,000 are dead and there have been 35.8 Million cases just in the US. We now know the reproductive rate of the original strain was higher (2.5 to 2.7). Delta is 5 - 8.
Apr 11, 2021 5 tweets 1 min read
What inspired me to become an investigative journalist? Reading Caro's 1,300+ pages detailing the methodical, brutalist reshaping of NYC and LI by Robert Moses. 1975's The Power Broker is not some 'woke fantasy' about 'racist highways.' It's documented, devastating history. (2)
A few highlights for those who haven't read it:
• Moses created the South Bronx & its requisite challenges by literally plowing the Cross Bronx Expressway through established neighborhoods
• Moses tried the same thing in Greenwich Village in his final act
Feb 18, 2021 5 tweets 2 min read
NY Times has the group texts from Heidi Cruz saying their house was 'FREEZING' & inviting friends to join them at the Ritz Carlton in Cancun through the weekend. Meanwhile, NBC has confirmed Ted Cruz's R/T ticket was hastily changed this morning.
NY Times reporting:
nytimes.com/2021/02/18/us/…
Feb 17, 2021 4 tweets 1 min read
No. Not 'frozen wind turbines'
The Texas power failure was caused by a failure of those in power
1) ERCOT, the Texas grid operator, failed to winterize infrastructure after similar 2011 outages
2) Texas is not connected to the national power grid by choice
khou.com/article/news/i… Wind can supply up to 1/4 of power in Texas, but the winter percentage is in the single digits. Wind turbines can be winterized. Utilities & the grid operator chose to avoid the expense even after 2011. Opportunists blaming renewable energy are literally tilting at windmills.
Feb 5, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
Marjorie Taylor Greene said from the House floor that her time at South Forsyth High School shaped her views on guns at school. In those formative years, her county was entirely white & the site of angry protests against Blacks trying to integrate Forsyth.
11alive.com/article/news/i… In Marjorie Taylor Greene's senior year, the county slowly started diversifying. Today, Forsyth is 72% white, 13% Asian/South Asian, 10% Hispanic & nearly 5% Black (vs. 10% Black in 1912). Just 2 weeks ago, a county-approved marker was unveiled near the site of the 1912 lynching.
Jan 28, 2021 7 tweets 2 min read
Volatility continues with $gme and $amc in the popular uprising against #hedgefunds that shorted these #stonks. Both Game Stop & AMC plummeted after some retail traders were locked out. Best explanation I’ve seen. Author unknown.
Jan 24, 2021 6 tweets 2 min read
Clearer picture of the full-court press to overturn Georgia's presidential election emerges with new pieces of the puzzle. Just 5 days after Jan. 6, GA's General Assembly would meet in regular session. That was the end game if Congress delayed Electoral College certification.
1/6
Gov. Kemp had refused Trump supporters' demands to call a special session of the General Assembly. Attempts by Trump to get Secretary of State Raffensperger to 'find' 11,780 votes under threat of prosecution -- and previous cajoling from Sen. Lindsey Graham -- had failed.
2/6
Jan 22, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
A teacher's dying wish was for people to wear masks during the pandemic. 3 Cobb County, GA educators have died during COVID. At a school board meeting Thursday, 2 board members & the superintendent refused to wear masks even during a moment of silence. A staff member responds: The latest deaths in the district:
11alive.com/article/news/h…
Jan 9, 2021 4 tweets 1 min read
These are not patriots. An officer crushed by rioters. He was holding the line against a siege mob thrusting in unison to invade the seat of democracy. Shame on all of those who have lied about election fraud, inciting rioters to commit insurrection & murder. Image The video:
Jan 8, 2021 6 tweets 2 min read
I covered the 1998 murders of Officer Chestnut & Det. Gibson inside the US Capitol. I have always remembered their names & their sacrifice. Their heroism will never be forgotten, but just as Officer Sicknick’s killing during this week’s insurrection, their murders were senseless.
Jan 8, 2021 4 tweets 1 min read
Where were they radicalized?
Pres. Trump: “If I lose, the election was rigged.”
Don Jr: “We’re coming for you.”
Giuliani: “Trial by combat.”
@realDonaldTrump: “We are going to have to fight much harder...[let’s] walk down to the Capitol.”
After the assault, this confession: The body count is currently five including a police officer. Congress was stopped (temporarily) from certifying the electoral college votes. Protective-detail officers had their Glocks drawn as a last line of defense to prevent a takeover of Congress (the invaders succeeded)
Jan 7, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
When do the Democrats take over the Senate?
Two things have to occur:
1) Kamala Harris has to be sworn in as VP
2) The Georgia election has to be certified
The first happens at Noon on Jan. 20
The second? 159 counties have until Friday of next week, then the state week after that Could happen sooner. Military & overseas ballots plus curing of absentee ballots have deadlines by close of business Friday. If either candidate concedes (or both), the winner(s) could be sworn in immediately with consent from the Senate, prior to certification.
Jan 7, 2021 4 tweets 1 min read
Georgia update: Ossoff's lead now 41,306. Perdue has not conceded, but his Senate website has vanished. Counting continues in both races even though they've been called. Military/overseas ballots & signature curing continue through Friday. Certification starts a week later. The numbers keep updating in real time. Here's the latest as of 4:39pm Thursday
Jan 5, 2021 4 tweets 2 min read
David Perdue is not a sitting senator unless he wins reelection in today's runoff & until results are certified. His term expired over the weekend. The only Georgia senator in joint session Wednesday will be Kelly Loeffler no matter who wins tonight(-ish). Unless someone concedes Image Loeffler was appointed to fill Isakson's seat until the special election results are certified. Isakson's term expires after 2022. So she is still a senator today & tomorrow.
Jan 5, 2021 5 tweets 2 min read
#BREAKING VP Pence handed the Senate gavel to Grassley this morning. Roll Call is reporting that Sen. Grassley will preside over the joint-session electoral vote count Wednesday & Pence will not be there. We're keeping on eye on this. While Roll Call is reporting Grassley's claim, others are saying Pence is still planning to be there. Remember, today is November 66th 2020, so anything can happen.