Canton Legal Blog

The first few months of the new year always see a bump in divorce. No parents in Georgia want to tell their children during the holidays that their family will be breaking up. And no adult children really want to tell their parents, either, for the same reason.

So if you know you are headed to divorce, it's important to take control of your finances – especially as we head toward the holiday spending extravaganza.

There may come a time when you strongly believe that asking your spouse for a divorce is the best way to improve your life and better enjoy the future. While it's common to go down this path, it's a big decision that requires quite a bit of preparation.

Here are five questions to answer before you decide in favor of divorce:

• Have you considered other options? In other words, you should think long and hard about the best way to stabilize your marriage. For example, some people find that counseling works for them. However, there may come a point when you realize there is nothing you can do to make things better. Regardless, look into all your options.
• Are you thinking with a clear mind: There may be something clouding your judgment, such as a recent job loss or some source of anger in your life. Clear your mind before you decide to seek a divorce.
• Do you know what the divorce process entails? It's easy to assume that divorce is the answer, but that doesn't mean that pushing through the process is easy. You must prepare yourself accordingly, as it will impact your personal life and finances in many ways.
• How will you handle this in regard to your children? If you have a child or children with your soon to be ex-spouse, you need a plan for keeping them safe and secure during this difficult time.
• Do you know how your life will change after divorce? With a better idea of what to expect, it's easier to plan accordingly, such as finding a new place to live and getting on board with the idea of co-parenting.

Police in Savannah, Georgia, are searching for the culprit or culprits who decided to alter the statue of a Revolutionary War general with what they're calling "googly eyes."

Recently, someone covered the sculptured eyes on the historic statue of Nathanael Greene that stands in the city's Johnson Square area with the round, white, plastic dots covered with black eyeballs. They are similar to the plastic eyes that often are found in the small toy vending machines at the front of supermarkets.

The Georgia Supreme Court has thrown out a man's murder conviction in Fulton County, faulting law enforcers for violating his right to remain silent.

The court ruled that officers in the Milton Police Department immediately should have stopped their questioning of the man in a 2013 case when he repeatedly declined to waive his Miranda rights. The justice who wrote the opinion for the unanimous Supreme Court said the state never should have tried to prosecute this "baseless" case.