Across Georgia

Clinton will attend fundraiser for Baker

ATLANTA --- Attorney General Thurbert Baker is getting some high-profile help in his bid to become Georgia's first black governor.

Former President Clinton will headline a fundraiser for Mr. Baker on Dec. 7 in New York.

Mr. Baker praised Mr. Clinton for building a strong economy, saying he would do the same in Georgia if elected to replace Republican Sonny Perdue.

In 2007, Mr. Baker endorsed then-Sen. Hillary Clinton's bid for president, becoming one of her most prominent backers in Georgia.

Mr. Baker is in a four-way race for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Soldier is promoted despite his disability

COLUMBUS, GA. --- An Army infantryman who lost an eye fighting in Iraq six years ago isn't letting his wound keep him out of the fight.

Sgt. Peter Sprenger rose to the rank of 2nd lieutenant Thursday after graduating from officer school at Fort Benning in west Georgia.

One of the Army's top commanders, Gen. David Petraeus, accepted Sgt. Sprenger's invitation to attend the ceremony and pinned the 26-year-old soldier's new rank insignia onto his uniform.

Sgt. Sprenger of Stockton, Calif., was wounded by a car bomb in Iraq in 2003. Two years later, he became the first disabled soldier known to complete the training for elite Army Rangers.

He downplays his injury and says he hopes to inspire other wounded troops.

Application deadline for flood victims nears

ATLANTA --- Federal officials say time is running out for almost 20,000 Georgia flood victims who picked up applications for low-interest loans but have not returned them.

The loans are available for victims of the record September rains that caused heavy flooding.

Richard Daigle, spokesman for the Small Business Administration, says applications must be postmarked by Monday, Nov. 23.

The loans cover losses not covered by flood insurance or federal grants. So far, the SBA has approved more than $40 million in disaster loans related to the flood.

Woman wins libel suit against novel's author

GAINESVILLE, GA. --- A jury in Gainesville has decided that an author libeled a former friend in a novel.

The jury found on Thursday that Haywood Smith's novel The Red Hat Club damaged Vicki Stewart because it contained a character that closely resembled Ms. Stewart and portrayed her as a sexually promiscuous alcoholic. The jury rejected a claim of invasion of privacy.

The jury awarded Ms. Stewart $100,000 in damages and denied her request for attorney fees.

Ms. Smith said she accepted the verdict and hoped Ms. Stewart would find it healing.