Tigers defense shuts down Decatur Page B1
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Hometown newspaper of Martha Landers- since 1933
Hartselle Enquirer WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024
VOLUME 91, NO. 3
By David Gambino For the Enquirer A disabled veteran with PTSD who threatened to shoot Morgan County Sheriff ’s Office deputies responding to a domestic violence 911 call early Jan. 9 was successfully taken into custody unharmed, according to an investigator’s affidavit filed in Morgan County District Court. “While enroute, dispatch advised the male subject was yelling, ‘send everyone, I’m going to shoot every one of them,’” the affidavit reads. “They also advised the male subject had access to a shotgun and rifle and was a disabled veteran with PTSD. The male advised
ons on him, and we could visibly see dispatch that he could make a pipe his hands and waistline to confirm he bomb in the time it was taking for did not have any weapons,” the affidaa response.” vit reads. Sgt. Tony Bowden, Deputy Blake Deputies then approached the vetCurtis and Deputy Tyler Pepper eran and went “hands on,” according to responded to the 300 block of Perthe affidavit, forcefully detaining him kins Wood Road in Hartselle shortly after he resisted. after 1 a.m. and were greeted by the Afterward, a female witness told depveteran in the home’s driveway. The Puckett uties that the veteran recently stayed veteran was behaving aggressively and wanted to fight the deputies, according at a Veteran’s Affairs hospital for 30 days and to the affidavit, but was held back by his son. “changed his medicine around,” according to Due to the threat, deputies held the veteran the affidavit. “She advised that in the last 2 to 3 weeks, at gunpoint and instructed him to get on the ground. He did not comply, according to the (the veteran) has started drinking heavily and having nightmares and started acting like affidavit. “His son advised he did not have any weap- a completely different person,” the affidavit
50 CENTS
reads. On the morning of the 911 call, the woman got into a verbal argument with the veteran, according to the affidavit. When she picked up the phone to call for help, he “smacked her hand out of the way … and started threatening to harm her and everyone else in the house.” Deputies charged the veteran with thirddegree domestic violence, a class A misdemeanor, and booked him into the Morgan County Jail. He was released the next day on a $300 bond, according to jail records. Veterans There are roughly 9,000 veterans living in Morgan County, according to the U.S. Census See DISABLED, page 5
Morgan sheriff ’s office reminds drivers: Be aware of school buses on the road The Morgan County Sheriff’s Office put out an alert on its official Facebook page this past week reminding drivers to be alert while sharing the road with school buses. School buses will be back on the road this week. Watch for them and know what to do around them. Here is a refresher: Make school bus transportation safer for everyone by following these practices: When backing out of a driveway or leaving a garage, watch out for children walking or bicycling to school. When driving in neighborhoods with school zones, watch out for young people who may be thinking about getting to school, but may not be thinking of getting there safely. Slow down. Watch for children walking in the street, especially if there are no sidewalks in the neighborhood. Watch for children playing
and congregating near bus stops. Be alert. Children arriving late for the bus may dart into the street without looking for traffic. Learn and obey the school bus laws in Alabama, as well as the “flashing signal light system” that school bus drivers use to alert motorists of pending actions: Yellow flashing lights indicate the bus is preparing to stop to load or unload children. Motorists should slow down and prepare to stop their vehicles. Red flashing lights and extended stop arms indicate the bus has stopped and children are getting on or off. Motorists must stop their cars and wait until the red lights stop flashing, the extended stop-arm is withdrawn, and the bus begins moving before they can start driving again. Stay alert at all times to keep the roads safer for everyone.
Godfrey, Stiles are Bryant-Jordan Scholarship nominees Special to the Enquirer
Blayne Godfrey and Brooklyn Stiles are the Hartselle High School 2024 BryantJordan Scholarship Nominees. Godfrey, a senior, is a five-time all-state selection signed with Auburn softball. Stiles, also a senior, is a twosport athlete playing volleyball and softball. The Bryant-Jordan Student-Athlete Program was created in 1986 by the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in conjunction with the Ala-
Obituaries • Joyce Jackson Pence • Linda Weaver Vassar • Diane Lewter • Dorothy Ann Wilson Duranc
bama High School Athletic Association. It is supervised by the Board of Directors of the Bryant-Jordan Foundation. The objectives of the program are: To recognize and honor Alabama students who have by ability and effort achieved a level of excellence in the areas of academics and athletics that is commensurate with their potential. To make aware to not only See GODFREY, page 5 For full obituaries, see page A-2
• James Jeffrey (Jeff ) Prater • Gilbert ‘Gibby’ Lee Frost • Fayne Peck • Kathy Steel Wilhite • Brenda Doris Bush Burgess • Sylvia Hill • Kenneth ‘Kenny’ Reeves • MSgt Charles E. Ball • Rickey J. Greer
SPECIAL TO THE ENQUIRER
Jennifer Lane, Union Hill School’s Teacher of the Year, is surprised by students at Union Hill School.
By Rebekah Yancey rebekah.yancey@ hartselleenquirer.com
Teachers in Morgan County Schools were recently treated like royalty after being named elementary and secondary teachers of the year. The educators were surprised at their respective schools and treated to a ride in a limousine and lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse. Jennifer Lane, who teaches fourth and fifth grade mathematics at Union Hill School, was named the district elementary Teacher of the Year this past week. “I felt so honored to be chosen as the Morgan County Elementary Teacher of the Year,” Lane said. “I was totally surprised and overwhelmed with emotion when it was announced. I work with such amazing colleagues at Union Hill, as well as teachers all around the county. I still have a hard time comprehending that I was chosen for such an honorable award.” Growing up in Franklin County, Lane has been a classroom teacher for 23 years in three states. She has been at Union Hill for the SPECIAL TO THE ENQUIRER past three years. “I want my students to remem- Leslie Arterburn, Morgan County Schools Secondary Teacher of the Year walks the halls at Danville Middle School with superintendent Tracie See MORGAN, page 5 Turrentine. Brad Ellis Danville High School
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Special to the Enquirer