Justice Department Says Georgia Citizen Voter Check Illegal

The U.S. Justice Department says Georgia can no longer screen it's data base to see if newly registered voters are indeed citizens.

The department sent a letter to state officials charging that the system used by the Secretary of State's office discriminates against minorities. Hispanics and African Americans, the letter says, are more likely than whites applicants to be flagged for additional scrutiny.

Secretary of State Karen Handel, who is running for the republican nomination for Governor, condemned the decision. She says she will find a way to make sure all registered voter in Georgia are citizens. Not doing so, she says would open the floodgate for non -citizens to vote

Feds find "critically deficient" problems in state mental hospitals

Conditions at a state mental hospital in Atlanta have been described as "critically deficient" by federal officials. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the U.S. Justice Department found similar problems at two other state hospitals, along with Georgia Regional Hospital in Atlanta. A letter detailing the problems was sent to Governor Sonny Perdue. The AJC says federal officials offered 13 pages of corrective measures. Failure by the state to act by late July could bring a federal lawsuit to force changes.