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INDEX Feature Opinion Events Obits Sports Arkadelphian
No. 17
Vol. 3
December 9, 2021
Bateman's battle Lance Brownfield
OCE Editor-In-Chief
Photo by Lance Brownfield
Still image from an upcoming documentary about the "Breaking Bad" case by Lance Brownfield.
After two years of legal troubles and his name cleared in court, Terry David Bateman sees a semi-certain future for himself and his family for the first time in a long time. The 47-year-old former HSU chemistry professor of 10 years with a Ph.D. in synthetic chemistry has found himself spending more time in antique shops than labs these days. "The first year I was on house arrest," said Bateman. "Couldn't leave the house. And after that, I was not allowed to leave the county. So it restricted where I could go, what I could do."
Bateman actually began antiquing before he was ever arrested, starting a business with his wife and former friend Bradley Rowland (who was also arrested alongside Bateman.) According to Bateman, the relationship between Rowland and Bateman soured about a year before the chemical spill occurred in an HSU lab that Rowland used to teach in that led to their arrest for the manufacturing of methamphetamine. When Rowland came to Henderson, Bateman was part of the committee to hire him in 2014. The two did not have that much to do with each other the first year. He had issues with faculty evaluations and getting along with other faculty members. Bateman was unofficially made a mentor to Rowland and helped him to adjust to life in Arkadelphia, where he had no family or friends. "Really until about a year, or so, before we were arrested," Bateman said. "We were pretty good friends. We had a falling out. He'd had, what I felt, was an improper relationship with a student. He acknowledged that and broke that off. Then shortly thereafter engaged in another relationship with an underage student that we had a major falling out over and never really recovered from." As several former students testified last month, on the
night of the spill, Oct. 8, 2019, a strong chemical odor filled the third floor of the Donald W. Reynolds Science Center, making several people sick. Bateman was getting ready for bed when his son Jason received a Snapchat from a friend and fellow chemistry major reporting the smell coming from a lab. Smells coming from labs are not that uncommon. When Bateman arrived, Rowland was already there. He'd put activated charcoal down to absorb the chemical, which is standard protocol for most spills. Rowland claimed to have everything under control, so Bateman went home unaware that the spill was far more dangerous than what usually takes place in an average university classroom. "That was all I knew about that spill until our trial when Brad testified in court that he'd been making benzyl cyanide in the lab," Bateman said. "I'd never heard that version of events. I was never asked a single question by university police. At my trial, the prosecutor said that I refused to talk to university police, but the university police never said that. It's never in any transcript. That was a complete fabrication on the part of the prosecuting attorney." Bateman retains that he did speak with Norman Kemper with the Arkansas State Crime Lab but that he
was never interrogated by any agency like Rowland was. "It was made very clear to me early on," Bateman said. "That the prosecutor was not in a hurry to try the case." After less than an hour of deliberation, the jury found Bateman not guilty on all counts. Little Rock attorney Bill Jame s re p re se nte d Bateman in the two-day trial. He believes that his former friendship with Rowland may have been the reason that he was suspected to be involved but that there may have been more behind the motivations of the then-new prosecuting attorney Dan Turner. "First and foremost, I was innocent," said Bateman. "And the prosecution, the case that they put forward, was based largely on another person's testimony that had admittedly lied on numerous occasions. The last version of events that he eventually told in court, he'd never told anyone until the Tuesday before court. So I think that the jury saw the case in its entirety and felt that I was innocent." Chief of University Police Johnnie Campbell, Rowland's lawyer Clint Mathis and Prosecuting Attorney Dan Turner have no comment while Sheriff Jason Watson and then Interim Henderson President Elaine Kneebone have not responded to attempts at contact.
and Visqueen keep the heat from escaping too quickly. Because the supplies that HSCC uses weather easily, the shelter usually needs donations of these materials often. “We always love to have hay donated. We have plenty now but as the month ends we’ll probably need some more,” said Allen, “Donations of tarps are also important because they deteriorate over time and we have to replace them periodically.” But winter brings more than just the cold, it can also bring a change in the types of volunteers the shelter sees. Allen points out that HSCC receives a lot of volunteering from local students, but when these students leave town for winter break, the amount of people volunteering can drop. “During the break, we really depend on the locals who are out of school or have teenagers who are out of school.” HSCC has also set up donation trees to help get the animals during the holiday season. In town, places like Adorn Boutique, Hardman Interiors, The Farmhouse, and Caddo Valley Flea Market have all set up the HSCC’s donation trees inside their business. The trees are decorated with ornaments that each detail a donation the shelter needs, like dog and cat chow. Speaking of the
donation trees, Allen said “We’ve had a really good response from the community, we’ve had a lot of businesses that have requested to have a tree.” The shelter also offers wreaths and mini Christmas trees so smaller businesses can join in. It’s not just businesses that can pitch in to help during the winter. Community members can help out by fostering animals from the shelter. Allen mentions that fostering during the cold months is ideal for the shelter “It gets the dog in the household where it's warm. Most of these dogs have not been in inside environments, and fostering can also help them learn manners by being indoors with a
family.” Allen stresses the importance of taking care of animals when the weather begins to chill; not just at the shelter, but in community members' homes as well. “I would like to encourage people to have a practical approach to taking care of their animals,” she said. “If your dog has to stay outside, add hay in their pins, and if you can’t get hay come see me, and I can make that arrangement.” Allen also points out the value of making sure your pets have fresh water. “Water freezes in the wintertime, so it's best to go out everyday with a fresh bowl of water.”
Prepping for the pups Emberlynn Pendergraft
Contributing Reporter
Many people are starting to tackle the negative effects of winter as frigid weather begins to settle in, but people aren’t the only ones having to deal with the cold. Animals from the Humane Society of Clark County (HSCC) are starting to feel the effects too. Every year, HSCC prepares their animals for the cold by winterizing the shelter. One way they winterize is by adding hay to the inside of the dog pins and throughout the yard to keep the dogs off the ground when it freezes. “Hay inside the dogs' houses will give them a little bit of warmth and put something between them and the cold plastic,” said HSCC’s president Jamie Allen. “I like to put extra hay on the ground because the ground freezes and conducts chill, and keeping a good layer of hay helps with that.” It doesn’t stop with hay though. HSCC goes through a hefty number of tarps and Visqueen every winter to try and keep the dogs warm. “What we do is we try to wrap the cages in the Visqueen and tarps, and the only spot we leave open would be the door. That creates a greenhouse effect. The sun will shine in the morning and warm up the insides of the pins,” said Allen. After the pins warm up, the plastic tarps
Visit www.hsuoracle.com to read more
Photo by Emberlynn Pendergraft
The Humane Society of clark County is located at 627 Walnut Street in Arkadelphia.
Merry Grinchmas from ArkaWHOville
Photo by Kolby Reck
Arkadelphia Fire Department rides through town with jolly dancers aboard. Kolby Reck Contributing Reporter
After taking a year off due to Covid-19, the streets of downtown Arkadelphia were filled for the annual Christmas parade on Dec. 2. The event was held on Main street from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Joy was in the air as the community gathered to celebrate the festivities that the month of December brings. The parade brought out the Arkadelphia High School Marching Band, the high school cheerleaders, and Christmas floats full of jolly children. Anyone was allowed to sign up to ride in the parade whether it was on a float or vehicles decked out with Christmas
spirit. Joining the fun were also locals riding on ATVs and side-by-sides. Police officers and the fire department joined in on the fun as well, along with local churches and the high school JROTC program. To top the festivities off, local pageant winners showed off their crowns as they cruised through the parade. This year marked yet another successful Christmas parade for the City of Arkadelphia. If you missed out on this year's event, you had a second chance to catch Santa Clause before Christmas at the meet and greet with Santa on Dec. 6 from 4:30 to 7:30 in the evening at the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Arkadelphia.
The festival of lights Emberlynn Pendergraft
Contributing Reporter
With the holiday season now in full swing, Hanukkah has officially come and gone once again. The festival began Sunday, Nov. 28, and was celebrated for eight days -ending Monday, Dec. 6. However, while Hanukkah is widely celebrated in other parts of the country, Hanukkah is a lesser-known holiday in Arkansas. In fact, according to the Jewish Virtual Library, only about 0.1% of the state’s population is Jewish. There are only a handful of substantial congregations in Arkansas and even fewer public Hanukkah celebrations throughout the state. Though they are few and far between, Jewish communities across the state persevere and continue to hold public menorah lightings in celebration. The state’s biggest menorah is currently located in Little Rock, and it was used for the Lubavitch of Arkansas’ annual public Hanukkah Celebration. State officials like Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin, and Mayor Frank Scott were all in attendance and the
director of Lubavitch of Arkansas, Rabbi Pinchus Ciment. Hot Springs also saw a small Hanukkah Celebration, including the lighting of the city’s largest menorah with Mayor Pat McCabe on Monday, Nov. 29, to celebrate the festival’s second night. Both events also included other Hanukkah traditions, such as the serving of latkes and doughnuts (fried foods used to commemorate the miracle of the cruse of oil) and the gifting of Hanukkah gelt (chocolate coins given to children in celebration). While Hanukkah may not be the most widely celebrated holiday in Arkansas, it continues to bring light and fellowship to Jewish communities across the state. “We have been a small number throughout the ages, even here in Arkansas,” said Ciment to Fox 16 KLRT, “but we have always committed ourselves to helping grow and develop the betterment of our community.” For more information, visit https://www. conghouseofisrael.org (Hot Springs) or https:// www.arjewishcenter.com/ (Little Rock).
Info from Weather.com
FRI - Dec. 10 thunderstorms
SAT - Dec. 11 rain
SUN - Dec. 12 sunny
MON - Dec. 13 sunny
TUE - Dec. 14 mostly sunny
WED - Dec. 15 partly cloudy
THU - Dec. 16 partly cloudy
78o 54
59o 31
56o 27
60o 31
65o 40
69o 44
72o 49
Precipitation: 66% Wind: SSW 12 mph Humidity: 86%
Precipitation: 64% Wind: NW 10 mph Humidity: 70%
Precipitation: 6% Wind: WSW 5 mph Humidity 48%
Precipitation: 5% Wind: SSE 6 mph Humidity: 58%
Precipitation: 7% Wind: SSE 6 mph Humidity: 58%
Precipitation: 7% Wind: S 8 mph Humidity: 70%
Precipitation: 24% Wind: SSW 9 mph Humidty: 75%
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