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THE LEADER THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2012 ▪ VO L . 1 2 8 , N O. 1 6 ▪ T H E VO I C E O F TIPTON COUNTY S I N C E 1 8 8 6 ▪
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Early voting in primaries set to begin By JEFF IRELAND jireland@covingtonleader.com Voters, get ready. Election season officially gets underway in Tipton County next Wednesday when early voting for the presidential primaries starts. The Tipton County Election Commission office, located at 113 E. Church St. in Covington,
as well as the City of Munford board room (69 College St.), will be open for early voters Feb. 15-28, Monday through Saturday. The hours for Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays will be 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The offices will be open 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 8:30 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.
Both offices will be closed Feb. 20 for President’s Day. Election day is March 6. Leading candidates for the Republican nomination will be Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, Michelle Bachmann and Rick Santorum. Barack Obama will be the only name listed on the Democratic ballot. A government-issued photo
ID will be required for the first time. “We’re asking everybody to please remember to bring a photo ID this year,” said Neil Bell, Tipton County’s administrator of elections. Driver service centers are offering free photo IDs to those who want to vote but do not have one. Proof of citizenship (i.e. a birth certificate) and Ten-
nessee residency are required. More information on photo IDs can be found at www.tn.gov/ safety/photoids.shtml. Voters who show up without a photo ID can cast a provisional vote. The voter will have until two business days after the election to provide an ID. On Aug. 2 the county general/state primaries election SEE VOTING, PAGE A3
Take a (chocolate) tour around the square Chocolate lovers will want to be on the Historic Square in Covington this Saturday, Feb. 11 as the merchants on the square and the Covington Economic Development Corporation present the very first Chocolate Tour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Each of the 17 participating stores on the square will have a “signature” Chocolate Tour chocolate available When: Saturday, Feb. for customers who 11, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. purchase a Chocolate Tour punch Where: Historic ticket. Tickets are Square in Covington $5 and allow the Why: Delicious holder the opporchocolate - why not? tunity to taste a chocolate delight Cost: $5 from each participating business. Tickets are punched at each location on the Chocolate Tour and at the end of the day, completed tickets will be entered into a drawing for a gift basket full of chocolate goodies, including chocolate donated from Charms, and gift certificates. Participants may also vote on their favorite chocolate treat by marking their favorite store on the ticket. “This is going to be a fun day,” said Covington-Tipton County Chamber of Commerce director Lee Johnston. “Most of everything will be homemade and the variety of chocolate is amazing.” ▪ Participating in the Chocolate Tour are: ▪ Past Times – chocolate and coconut bon-bons ▪ Grain Antiques – triple chocolate chip cookies ▪ Freckled Frog – Sandy Lane chocolate and green M & M’s ▪ Merle Norman – chocolate fountain ▪ Dizzy Daizy – assorted chocolate cup cakes ▪ Eva Belle – white chocolate cranberry fudge ▪ Le Chic – chocolate trifle ▪ Jezabel’s – assorted decadent choco-
FIRST PLACE Brighton’s Raven Campbell gets a hand in the face of Munford point guard Shaliyah Wiggins during action Friday night in Brighton. Munford won, 60-42, clinching the program’s first district title since 2006. For more on the game and the upcoming district tournaments, see page B1. Photo by Jeff Ireland
Mason man convicted of animal cruelty By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com A Mason man has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty charges, police chief James Paris said Wednesday. In late December, a German Shepherd and a mixed breed puppy were removed from the School Street residence of Kendall Spencer and Tabitha Hensley. The German Shepherd appeared to be starving, Paris said, and photos show the German Shepherd’s ribs were clearly visible through her fur. But Spencer and Hensley said they weren’t starving the dog. “As far as feeding her, we fed her,” Hensley said. “We don’t deny at all that she needed to go to the
vet, though.” The couple said their dog had a litter of puppies and lost weight after giving birth. The couple said they were not living in the home they rented from former Mason alderman Eddie Noeman, but they visited every day to feed their dogs. Hensley said Noeman wanted the couple out of the home and made the calls reporting abuse. Both were charged with animal cruelty in regards to the German Shepherd. Spencer appeared in court Tuesday and pleaded guilty to the charges, Paris said. “I plead guilty because it was the easiest way to get out of it,” Spencer said. “They charged both of us
A German Shepherd was removed from her School Street home in Mason in late December. Her owner pleaded guilty to animal cruelty charges on Tuesday. Photo courtesy Mason Police Department. and by pleading guilty I could take her charges.” He had to serve two days in jail and will be on probation for the next year.
Additionally, he will have to pay $100 in restitution. “Being $100, I don’t think she was too sick,” he SEE DOG, PAGE A3
SEE TOUR, PAGE A3
Reader’s Guide
MHS teacher arrested for alleged assault
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I DO! GUIDE Don’t miss our annual WEDDINGS guide, inside today’s edition. HOW TO REACH US Call 901.476.7116 Fax 901.476.0373 Email news@covingtonleader.com Visit us at 2001 Hwy. 51 South, Covington, TN 38019 or online at covingtonleader.com
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By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com A Munford High School physics teacher was arrested Friday after allegedly attempting to hit his wife with his vehicle, the Tipton County Sheriff’s Office released Monday. Dalton Huffman, 52, is currently out on a $1,500 corporate bond. His wife reportedly called the police,
reporting her husband tried to drive over her in the driveway of their Hwy. 59 West residence. Huffman, who has recently made news as Gilt Edge Mayor Steve Fletcher’s choice to fill a vacancy on the town’s city council, lost a seat as alderman in 2010 by only two votes. He has been charged with domestic aggravated assault.
Sources say Huffman’s superiors, including Director of Schools Dr. Buddy Bibb, are aware of the charges. Bibb does not expect any employment action against Huffman. Ellen Huffman was not injured during the incident and has told the media she is dealing with the matter privately.
HUFFMAN SEE PAY, PAGE A3
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