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SATURDAY-SUNDAY • APRIL 16-17, 2016
THEWETUMPKAHERALD.COM
VOL. 11, NO. 15
Local jobless rate again among state’s lowest
STAFF REPORT TPI Staff
The good news on the job front keeps coming for Elmore County as statistics released Friday show that the county again can boast the state’s second lowest unemployment rate. Elmore County posted an unemployment rate of 5.2 percent in March, second to only to Shelby County’s 4.6 percent. That rate for the county was better than February’s 5.4 percent, but just
slightly up from the 5.0 percent Elmore County had in March of 2014. The county’s numbers were considerably better than Alabama’s preliminary seasonally adjusted March unemployment rate of 6.2 percent. “Alabama’s unemployment rate continues to hold steady, all the while showing labor force and employment growth,” Gov. Robert Bentley said in a released statement. “The growth is very encouraging, as we continue to see higher numbers of people working than we
have in nearly eight years. Employers are hiring in Alabama, and we have a workforce ready for a job. Our efforts will continue to put Alabamians back to work.” The state’s civilian labor force, which represents those persons 16 and older who are working or actively seeking work, increased to 2,176,457 in March, representing both a monthly and a yearly increase. The number of people counted as employed in March was 2,042,177,
School Board dealing with discrimination lawsuit
County Schools embrace computer science
By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Elmore County School Board is joining a growing effort to train teachers to educate students from kindergarten through seniors in computer sciences in a continual learning push for students to grasp coding like any other subject. Within the next three years, teaching methods will be introduced into middle school students daily learning routines, and following that into kindergarten through third grades. The goal is to have students not only familiar, but proficient in computer programming, so upon entering high school those that choose can continue their training with new AP courses which are set to be offered next year. Tracy Wright, the math curriculum specialist who led the effort to get Elmore County Schools signed on with the group CODE.org, said by the time students graduate they will have created an app and know one of the many coding languages, if they pursue those AP courses. Wright said there are only See COMPUTER • Page 3
also representing a monthly and yearly increase. The last time the number of people working was equal to or above 2,042,177 was in August 2008, when the number registered 2,042,834. “The number of jobs our economy is currently supporting is extremely encouraging – we’re less than 8,000 jobs away from meeting economists’ predictions for job growth in 2016, and we’re only three months into the year,” Alabama Department of Labor See UNEMPLOYMENT Page 3
Corey Arwood / The Herald
Students at Holtville Elementary School release balloons to commemorate Child Abuse Prevention Month. Below, Director of the Elmore County Department of Human Resources Michelle Wood spoke to the students at the balloon-release.
RAISING AWARENESS Elmore County DHR holds child abuse awareness event By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
On behalf of Child Abuse Prevention Month, Elmore County DHR held an event at Holtville Elementary School to help raise awareness to an issue on the rise in Elmore County. Director of the Elmore County Department of Human Resources Michelle Wood spoke to the students at the balloon-release – a fun reminder of a serious issue– to offer resources for parents and children alike. “Our goal here is to educate the children and the families on what resources they have out there that can help them when they get frustrated or when they are
A lawsuit has been filed in federal court and a complaint made to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the Elmore County School Board by an employee over allegations of racially discriminatory hiring practices and retaliation. The charges were made by a Holley O’Dell, 42, and brought against a total of four defendants in the School Board – its superintendent, Andre Harrison, and three of O’Dell’s supervisors. The case is now pending in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama Northern Division. The suit includes 19 pages worth of accusations that were presented to the court by O’Dell’s attorneys at the Montgomery law firm McPhillips Shinbaum and detail her accounts over a roughly two-year period. There were three counts brought against the School Board and presented in the suit: race discrimination, retaliation and a cold and hostile work environment. An email response from Superintendent Andre Harrison said, “We are in the process of reviewing the complaint and cannot comment on the ongoing litigation.” One of O’Dell’s attorney’s, Joseph Guillot, said the EEOC complaint was made Feb. 16, and the suit brought formally against the school board March 30. He said they were awaiting a response and the Board was approaching its 21-day deadline to respond to the court on the allegations. The EEOC response, Guillot said, could take anywhere from three to six
See ABUSE • Page 7
Clayton sentenced to 30 years for killing his mother CONTACT US 334-567-7811 • Fax: 334-567-3284
Troop 13 honors newest Eagle Scout STAFF REPORT TPI Staff
By MITCH SNEED Editor
Judge Sibley Reynolds sentenced a man who was found guilty of murdering his mother to 30 years in prison Wednesday. Sedric Clayton, 29, of Millbrook was found guilty in January in the August 2014 killing of his mother, 49-year-old Anita Washington. Clayton was arrested and charged with the murder of his mother in 2014 after her body Clayton was discovered wrapped in a sheet in the Sandtown community. See SENTENCE • Page 3
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Scotty Dennis, a sophomore at Wetumpka High School, recently became the newest Eagle Scout at Wetumpka’s Boy Scout Troop 13. In high school, Dennis has been a member of the award-winning WHS Steam Machine robotics team, DECA Club, Key Club, Beta Club, Envirobowl, Science Olympiad, Cyber Patriots and the wrestling team. He was previously a Cub Scout in both Pack 50 and Pack See SCOUT • Page 3
Page 2 • APRIL 16-17, 2016
TheWetumpkaHerald.com
ELMORE COUNTY WEEKEND
Obituaries Richard Haynie
Mr. Richard “Rick” Haynie, 65, of Tallassee, passed away April 12, 2016. He was born October 2, 1950. Visitation will be Saturday, April 16, from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m. service time at Providence Primitive Baptist Church with Rev. David Kelley officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery, Linville Memorial Funeral Home directing. He is survived by his mother, Joyce Huffman; sons, Aubrey Haynie, Blakley Haynie (Sarah) and Albert Day (Chrystal); daughter, Anna Day; sister, Tonia Guthrie; granddaughter, Aria Haynie; and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Rick was a Scottsman to the heart and he loved to play Scottish music. He worked as a father, pilot, fireman, police deputy and lastly his favorite job with Touch of Class Limosine as a chauffeur. He was a beacon of knowledge and a role model for his family. He passed away doing what he loved and he will be remembered as a hardworking hero to those who knew him. Online condolences at www.linvillememorial.com. Linville Memorial Funeral Home Eclectic, Alabama
Audie Hathcock
Mrs. Audie Hathcock, 84, of Tallassee, passed away April 12, 2016. She was born May 3, 1931. Visitation will be Saturday, April 16, from 12 noon until funeral service time of 2 p.m. at Linville Memorial Funeral Home. Rev. Bill Perryman will officiate and burial will follow at Mann Cemetery, Linville Memorial Funeral Home directing. She is survived by her sons, Don Hathcock (Jeanie Young), David Hathcock, Anthony Hathcock (Wendy) and Angelo Hathcock; daughter, Jean Morrison (Lum); grandchildren, Kim Baker, Kristi Morrison, Michael Hathcock (Katee), Kimberly Morales, Jessica Hathcock, Eddie Hathcock (Stephanie), Scott Hathcock (Amanda), Kenneth Hathcock, Cindy Graves (Simon), Selena Hathcock,
Danny Hathcock (Libby), Alyssa Walden (Troy), Alanna Hathcock, Ashlynne Hathcock and Angela Hathcock; and thirteen great grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her husband, David “Edd” Hathcock; brothers, Urban Mann, Delaney Mann and Benoit Mann; sisters, Mardean Lee and Cyrena Morrison; and granddaughter, Ashley Robertson. Online condolences at www.linvillememorial. com. Linville Memorial Funeral Home Eclectic, Alabama
William Glenn
GLENN, William Jackson “Jack”, a resident of Hammond, IN. passed away Friday, April 8, 2016 at the age of 48. Funeral services will be held Saturday, April 16, 2016 at 12:00 p.m. at Gassett Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Larry Gore officiating. Burial will follow at Pine View Gardens with Gassett Funeral Home of Wetumpka directing. Jack is survived by his parents, Bill and Jeanette Glenn, sisters, Renee Glenn, Rhonda (Joe) Carter, niece, Danielle Carter, nephew, Drew Carter, aunt, Sarah Beth Benton, great aunt, Ruth Waites, numerous cousins, and “His Heart” Nora York and her beloved family. Active pallbearers will be Drew Carter, Glen Thornton, Sammy Sanford, Joel Prather, Chet Sanford, and Tim Elliott. Honorary pallbearers will be Chip Graham, Michael Prather and Don Lee. Visitation will be held Saturday, April 16, 2016 from 11:00 a.m. until service time at Gassett Funeral Home. Flowers will be accepted or memorial donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, 3054 McGehee Road, Montgomery, Alabama 36111. Online Guest Book available atwww.gassettfuneralhome.net
James Hurt
away Wednesday, April 13, 2016 at University Medical Center in Jackson, MS. Mike was born February 19, 1971 in Starkville, MS to Dr. Verner and Norma Hurt. He was a graduate of Starkville High School and Mississippi State University with a degree in Agricultural Economics. Following his graduation he began his career with RNT (RichNTone) Calls and continued his career in the outdoor industry until the time of his death. Mike was a member of First Baptist Church, Yazoo City. Mike was preceded in death by his grandparents, James Verner and Eugenia Hurt; James Vernon and Christine Whitaker. Mike is survived by his wife, Whitney Wood Hurt, of Yazoo City, MS, and two sons, James Michael “Jay” Hurt Jr. and John David Hurt of Brandon, MS; his parents, Dr. Verner and Norma Hurt of Starkville MS; his father-in-law, Johnnie Wood and mother-in-law, Rebecca Wood, both of Wetumpka, AL; brother, Gene (TJ) Hurt of Vaiden MS; brother, John (Shari) Hurt of Yazoo City MS; sister, Susan Russell of Starkville MS; brother- in-law, Evin Wood of Wetumpka, AL. He is also survived by nephews, Jason (Jessica) Hurt of Cullman, AL, Joseph (Skye) Hurt of Millport, AL, Tyler Russell of New Orleans, LA and niece, Caitlin (Luke) Buckner of Starkville MS. He is also survived by three great nephews and two great nieces. A scholarship fund for Mike’s sons, Jay and John David, will be set up at a later date. Visitation will be held Saturday, April 16 at 3:00 p.m. at First Baptist Church, Yazoo City MS. Funeral service will be held Sunday, April 17 at 3:00 p.m. at First Baptist Church, Yazoo City. A graveside service will be held Tuesday, April 19 at 2:00 p.m. at Antioch Baptist Church Cemetery in Weoka, AL. Stricklin-King Funeral of Yazoo City MS is in charge of arrangements
James Michael “Mike” Hurt, of Yazoo City, MS, passed
Area Calendar April 16
CRATERFEST: Wetumpka Craterfest & Duck Dash will feature National and local music artists, Kidzone, Arts & Crafts, Crater Bus Mini-
Tours, Crater Art Exhibit/ Video Saturday, April 16th from 2-7PM at Gold Star Park. REELTOWN REUNION: The Sixth Reeltown High School Reunion of the
Classes from 1950-1970 will hold its 20-Year Class Reunion on April 16 in the original Reeltown High School Auditorium. The Reunion begins at 10 a.m. for a time to meet, greet and tour the school. The “Assembly” will begin in the auditorium at 11 a.m. The RHS Jazz Band will be guest and play a few jazz tunes. Donations will
be received for new Rebel Pride Marching Band uniforms. All donations greatly appreciated. Welcome, recognitions, etc., will follow. Please bring your “ole fashion brown bag/sack lunch” with a drink. No meal will be available. Classes will meet after assembly in the cafeteria for their sack lunch meal. Tours of the school and grounds will
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April 16-17
FRENCH INDIAN WAR ENCAMPMENT: Fort Toulouse-Fort Jackson Park, the Alabama Historical Commission, and the Friends of the Forts are pleased to announce the annual French & Indian War Encampment taking place April 16-17 at Fort Toulouse-Fort Jackson Park near Wetumpka. Admission is $4 for adults and $2 for children six to eighteen years of age. The event takes place 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. This special event focuses attention on the main protagonists of the French & Indian War - France, Britain and their American Indian allies. Additionally, the event features daily life at a French frontier fort and Creek village in the year 1756. Soldiers will engage in mock battles each day and souvenirs replicating items of the time period will be available from merchants on site. Living history demonstrations of military, Indian, and civilian life will take place on Saturday and Sunday throughout the day. Re-enactors will be dressed
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and equipped as they appeared in North America during the middle of the eighteenth century. Boy Scouts of America Troop 50 will sell food and drink on Saturday; however, there will be no refreshments available for purchase on Sunday so please plan to bring a picnic lunch.
April 17
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY SKATE NIGHT: Come out for a night of skating for the American Cancer Society on Sunday, April 17, 2016 from 6 - 8 p.m. at Skatezone 88 Red Eagle Drive. It will cost $6.00 per person for regular skates and $3.00 more for inline skates. All proceeds go to the Jessica’s Cancer Busters Relay for Life team. For more information call Bubba Wood at (334) 3002134 or Sherry Cole at (334) 313-4311.
April 19
SQUARE DANCE: Grab your partner and “Do-sido” down to The Kelly on Tuesday, April 19 from noon to 1:00 p.m. Bring a sack lunch! Drinks and desserts will be provided. The Kelly is the Kelly Fitzpatrick Memorial Gallery located at 408 Main Street on the second floor of the city administration building next door to the Civic Center. The program will be the last in conjunction with the Abandoned Rural America exhibition which ends on April 22. The entertainment will be provided by members of the Montgomery Square Dancing Association. Al Stevens will do the calling while Jim & Mary Wolfe, Roger & Marilyn Wright, Duane & Delores Beasley, and Jessie Barron & Martha Lyons will do the dancing. During the lunch time, Mary Wolfe will play the fiddle.
April 18-23
EARTH DAY CLEANUP 2016: Sign up a litter team to pick up around your neighborhood, business or call the Chamber of Commerce for a location. Advanced Disposal Sponsor providing a roll off container at City Hall from 8am-noon on Saturday the 23 for nonhazardous material and litter team debris disposal. Parker Tire & Auto will take used oil, tires and batteries all week from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Electronic Recycling drop off at Tallassee Recreation Center April 21 from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. The city Shop will have a roll off container available for nonhazardous material disposal and appliances from Monday through Friday 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.
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ELMORE COUNTY WEEKEND
TheWetumpkaHerald.com
Unemployment
continued from page 1
Commissioner Fitzgerald Washington said. From January 2016 to March 2016, Alabama’s wage and salary employment grew by 21,500. In January, economists at the University of Alabama’s College of Business and Economic Research predicted wage and salary growth of 29,450. Over the year (March 2015 to March 2016), wage and salary employment increased by 23,900, with gains in the education and health services sector (+6,700), the professional and business services sector (+5,100), and the leisure and hospitality sector (+4,600), among others. Wage and salary employment increased in March by 10,200. Monthly gains were seen in the leisure and hospitality sector (+4,200), the trade, transportation, and utilities sector (+1,800), and the professional and
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business services sector (+1,500), among others. Of Alabama’s 67 counties, 64 counties experienced a decreased jobless rate in March. The other three counties’ rates remained the same. The three counties that saw no change in the unemployment rates are: Lee, Macon, and Tuscaloosa counties. Major Alabama cities with the lowest unemployment rates are: Vestavia Hills at 3.9 percent, Homewood and Hoover at 4.4 percent, and Alabaster at 4.6 percent. Neighboring counties also had positive numbers. Tallapoosa’s rate was down to 6.1 percent, with Autuaga coming in at 5.5 percent. Coosa County had a March unemployment rate of 6.5 percent, down from the 7.0 percent it posted in February. Montgomery had an unemployment rate of 6.0 percent.
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months, depending on its investigation. At this time Guillot said the progress of the case is dependent on the schedules presented to the court by the attorneys of the plaintiff, O’Dell, and those of the defendants, Harrison and O’Dell’s supervisors Stephen McKenzie, Eloyse Seamon, Temeyra McElrath and Jasmine Cravens. O’Dell said in a phone interview she felt she had no other option but the lawsuit. “I was really left with no choice but to do this,” said O’Dell. “I tried to work with the Elmore County Board of Education to work through things.” She said she has been employed as a Section 504 student services facilitator for nearly a year now, after about 14 years teaching. Her current position, she said, consists of coordinating the services for students with disabilities for 11 schools in the Wetumpka and Millbrook areas. A press release from McPhillips Shinbaum stated that O’Dell claimed she had been denied promotions and experienced negative treatment because of her race. A section from the beginning of O’Dell’s case states that Harrison, after taking on the role as superintendent, “supported the hiring of AfricanAmericans over Caucasians.” The case details O’Dell’s separate attempts at promotions and position changes that were given to what are described as lesser-qualified candidates due to race and accounts of retaliation
Computer
O’Dell claimed to have experienced upon reporting the incidents. One incident described O’Dell being told to sit at the “back of the room” in an interview by a defendant, which was called a symbolic gesture to O’Dell that she was not wanted there. It stated there was an environment within the Elmore County school system of exclusion based on race and social circles and O’Dell experienced harassment as a result. Other of O’Dell’s accounts detail a work place culture that tolerated poor work and conduct toward staff and parents based on race where African American employees could get away with certain behavior others could not. When she was given her current position, the case reads that was followed with retaliatory actions from her supervisors. There about 11 pages worth of O’Dell’s evidence and the files state she is seeking declarations of unconstitutional behavior, the implementation of anti-discrimination policy and training along with financial compensation from the defendants and the board for missed work, loss of salary, medical and attorney’s fees and court costs, among others. According to a statement taken from the website of McPhillips Shinbaum, “Mr. McPhillips is better known as ‘The People’s Lawyer,’ a moniker he earned for his work in landmark cases involving civil rights, racial and workplace discrimination, and police brutality.”
Wright said when he was in school the opposite was the case. Superintendent Andre Harrison said this approach was all about innovation. “Going into a math class if you continue to do the old traditional math then your going to continue to have the students just sitting there, and what have you, but this is a innovative way to get them excited about teaching and learning,” said Harrison. Wright said it was their duty and in the Elmore County School Board mission statement to have students prepared for changes, and the implication was that this is a big and inevitable change. “Because technology is changing so fast that if we don’t get in front of the wave, that we could end up so far behind the wave that we could never catch up,” Wright said.
Sentence
RODNEY GRIFFITH
Washington had been listed missing for three days prior to her body being discovered in late August 2014. During his trial, jurors heard about evidence that was found in Clayton’s vehicle that linked him to his mother’s death. Prior to Washington’s death, she was the victim of an attempted murder by her ex-husband in 2008. Irilmoskomazerella Washington shot his wife in the parking lot of Prattville Christian School where their child – it was undetermined if it was Clayton – attended school. Washington was sentenced to 20-years in prison.
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2, before joining Troop 13 as a seventh-grader. Troop positions held by Dennis include senior patrol leader, scribe and patrol leader. His favorite thing about Boy Scouts is taking high adventure trips such as Boundary Waters in Minnesota and Sea Base in Key West, Florida. For his Eagle project, Dennis refurbished a deck at the Freeman House owned by First Presbyterian Church of Wetumpka, the chartered organization of Troop 13. Upon high school graduation, Dennis intends to enroll at Carnegie Mellon University and become a software engineer. Many a
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16 states in the country in the program, and just 10 percent of high schools using this strategy. The computer science approach will largely be taught in conjunction the current math curriculum, however its scope spans essentially across all subject areas. “This does impact coding and mathematics, but it impacts so many other areas, literacy, I find that fascinating that they’ve shown results how this other test scores in areas in other subjects, said Jill Corbin with Elmore County Schools. The fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade math teachers are expected to receive training in the program in May. For the elementary schools, the students will be introduced to coding through an array of approaches, on screen and off, even with the use of puzzles and crafts, all in an effort to help them understand programming before learning any specifics.
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APRIL 16-17, 2016 • Page 3
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Kenneth Boone, Publisher Mitch Sneed, Editor Opinions expressed in guest columns and letters to the editor do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the management of The Wetumpka Herald
Page 4 • APRIL 16-17, 2016
OPINION
“Our liberty cannot be guarded but by the freedom of the press, nor that be limited without danger of losing it.” --Thomas Jefferson
TheWetumpkaHerald.com
ELMORE COUNTY WEEKEND
The Herald strives to report the news honestly, fairly and with integrity, to take a leadership role and act as a positive influence in our community, to promote business, to provide for the welfare of our employees, to strive for excellence in everything we do and, above all, to treat others as we would want to be treated ourselves.
On political judgement and flying wallets County Government L Day set for Thursday, April 21 STAFF REPORT TPI Staff
As part of the National Association of Counties National County Government Month, the Elmore County Commission will host over 300 senior high school students from across the county to increase awareness of the roles and responsibilities of county government. This year’s theme is “Safe and Secure Counties.” The event gives students the opportunity to become familiar with various county agencies and their functions. Activities include: • Groundbreaking ceremony for Courthouse Annex • Commission work session and business meeting • Emergency Management Agency saferoom ready races • Highway Department equipment demo & discussion • Sheriff’s Department Special Operations demonstration • Registering to vote with the Board of Registrars • Educational booths from various county agencies Who: Elmore County Commission, countywide elected officials, Elmore County senior high school students When: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Thursday, April 21, 2016 Where: Elmore County Courthouse, 100 Commerce St, Wetumpka.
ook! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s … it’s … it’s … the governor’s wallet?!? The hits just keep on coming from Alabama’s esteemed Gov. Robert Bentley. The latest? A state helicopter was used to fly the governor’s wallet to him at his Fort Morgan home after he forgot it when he stormed out of a tiff with ex-wife Dianne over his refusal to end his relationship – whatever it may have been – with Rebekah Caldwell Mason, his former senior policy adviser. Folks, I’ve always been proud to be an Alabamian. I was born and bred here. I’ve lived through George Wallace’s racial rants and Guy Hunt’s ignorance. Never has an Alabama governor made me want to hide my head in shame like Gov. Robert Bentley. Our governor, elected on a platform of family values, has: • Divorced his wife of 50 years for a relationship
DAVID GRANGER
Staff Writer
with an advisor almost 30 years his junior. • Personally – in the flesh! – purchased burner (disposable) phones at Best Buy, presumably for the purpose of having untraceable conversations with Ms. Mason. • Been recorded bemoaning his absence from Mason like an adolescent child bemoaning his separation from his eighth-grade sweetheart. • Had the audacity to chide reporters who have asked him about the relationship with, “Did you hear what I just said?” like some dictatorial father. • And, now, it’s been found out that he ordered state law enforcement officials to airlift his wallet, forgotten in a sanctimonious gubernatorial huff, to rendezvous with him at his Gulf Coast home.
Must have needed that credit card to drop by Best Buy for more burners, I’m guessing. I don’t like the word “idiot” and I won’t use it here. But I am tempted. Let’s take the governor’s Best Buy shopping sprees, for example. Granted, the Best Buy in question was located in Tuscaloosa, a city that is – was? – friendly to the governor. Still, if mine is one of the most recognizable faces in the state and I’m in need of burner phones to talk to my “Baby,” I think that’s a task I delegate. Why not find that staffer that feels overlooked, ignored and say, “Sally, I have a very important job I need you to do for me.” Makes her feel good and you’re not running the risk of being recognized on an errand to buy equipment necessary to pursue your tryst. Just watch Sally, feeling needed by the governor (!), walk, smiling, out the door. Then sit back, relax and wait for your cache of phones.
It’s that easy. But, nooOOoo. Ol’ Robert goes traipsing into Best Buy himself, probably in a suit, shaking hands with all who approach him – maybe even an autograph or a selfie sprinkled in. “Yes, yes, uh, what’s your nametag say? Frank! Yes, Frank, I’m the governor. Now, I need six burner phones.” Frank may be a member of the Geek Squad, but you better believe he’s going to remember he sold disposable cell phones to the governor. Probably told his friends about it often over games of “Call of Duty.” And that selfie? Right to Instagram! All I’m saying here is that I value judgment in my elected officials. Our governor has, time after time, shown little. It’s not our fault. He talked a good game. I mean, he wasn’t going to accept a salary! What a guy, right? And speaking of guys, remember Guy Hunt? Man, those were the days!
334-567-7811 • Fax 334-567-3284 email: news@thewetumpkaherald.com THE WETUMPKA HERALD (681-260) is published twice weekly on Wednesday and Saturday by Tallapoosa Publishers, Inc., 548 Cherokee Road, Alexander City, AL 35010. Periodical postage paid at Wetumpka, Alabama. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Wetumpka Herald, P.O. Box 99, Wetumpka, AL 36092-0099. ISSN # 1536-688X. We reserve the right to refuse to print any advertisement, news story, photograph or any other material submitted to us for any reason or no reason at all. •Obituaries - $.25 per word per paper. Additional $15 charge for a photo per paper. (Herald, Weekend, Observer, Tribune). •Weddings/Engagements - $.25 per word per paper. $15 charge for a 2-column photo. •Birth Announcements - $.25 per word per paper. $15 charge for a photo.
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Take religion out of your voting decision
W
e, as voters, have a responsibility to vote for the candidate who we deem to be the best fit for the position they wish to hold. That is our responsibility, and the candidate we plan to vote for should make and uphold promises for the betterment of our community, state, or country. He or she should stick to his or her word. That is the bottom line. The problem is, however, that we often want to vote for a candidate who we view as being a “good person.” And, we often equate that “good person” with being a good Christian – someone with Christian morals and Christian beliefs. This is especially true here in the Bible Belt. More often than not, we vote for a candidate based on their principles, and we often assume that a candidate who promises to use his or her Christian values while in office to be the truth. We don’t see past the fact that the candidate claiming to be a good “Christian,” is not as “Christian” as he or she claims. The truth then becomes a lie. Or lies. We don’t need to discuss Governor Bentley again
LIZ ELY Staff Writer
to make this point clear. For argument’s sake, let’s take out voting for the Christian. Let’s take religion out of the equation. Let’s assume, for once, that we are all human. Even politicians. Politicians make bad judgment calls, as do we. We’re human. Why then, after all this time, do we continue to vote for the candidate who claims that he or she will use his or her integrity, morals, values and Christianity to do the job “right?” This should be a non-factor when voting. We should be voting for the candidate who looks to the community, state or country and sees the issues that need to be addressed. He or she should address them appropriately and he or she should omit religion as the reason why he or she reigns supreme over his or her opponent. If you look to the past or look at the present, you will see that a great deal of politicians have deviated from a con-
structive “moral” path. Politicians can be philanderers, liars and cheaters. They can be devious. Yet we continue to vote for a candidate who promises that Christianity, that being a “good person,” will allow him or her to do the job “the best.” It’s not true, folks. It just isn’t. And, if you believe that, if you vote for someone because they are a “good person” with values and morals that supercede even those of Jesus himself, you are being fooled. Why? Because politicians are human. True, mistakes happen. But what if these “mistakes” are actually intentional deviations from leading a life driven with a moral compass? Then what? Well, we’ve been duped. Again. My point in all of this is to state that it’s time, for lack of a better term, to “wake up.” Wake up to the fact that no one is going to live up to our expectations of what really makes someone a good leader. If they use their Christian foundation to sway your vote, you are being duped. It’s been proven throughout history, and it’s happened to us, right here in Alabama. I personally, don’t
fault anyone. At least not the politicians. Like I’ve said: they can be devious liars and cheaters. That’s a fact. If I were to place blame, I would place it on the voters for electing “Christian leaders” into office. Vote for the right candidate. A candidate who addresses the issues headon and doesn’t lead you to believe that because he or she is a “good person,” they will not lead you astray. Don’t vote for the candidate who sugarcoats his campaign with copious promises to do “good.” Let their words – about the issues, about the problems, about the concerns – speak clearly and loudly. And don’t be tricked into voting for someone because they walk a “straight line.” The truth is, no one does. So, don’t be surprised when the next elected official veers off-course – personally or professionally. It happens because we are all human. Take religion out of your voting decision. It doesn’t make a difference. Liz Ely is a staff writer for The Herald.
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APRIL 16-17, 2016 • Page 7
Miles pleads guilty on two additional counts Abuse By CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writer
After showing up late for his plea hearing, former Tallassee Assistant Police Chief Chris Miles entered a guilty plea for an armed burglary and theft of property, both in the second degree. Elmore County District Attorney Randall Houston did say that Miles was late, but did show up and plead guilty. “Miles wasn’t there at first call, but did show up after much
of the media had left,” Houston said. “He entered a guilty plea to burglary second, armed, theft of property second. The 24 months will run concurrent with his federal time.” On March 25, Miles was sentenced to 41 months in prison for depriving a Miles suspect of his federally protected rights by beating the suspect
with a phone book-sized packet of paper during an interrogation and then lying about the incident to an FBI agent investigating the matter and selling marijuana that he stole from the police evidence room. Because the most recent sentence is allowed to run concurrent with Miles’ federal sentence of 41 months, this 24 month sentence will not impact Miles’ prison time, given no further issues arise during prison stay.
continued from page 1
having difficulties,” said Wood. “We do it to make sure that we don’t have as many reports next year as we did this year.” The presiding juvenile judge in Elmore County, Patrick Pinkston, was at the event and spoke solemnly about the issue that he says grows yearly. He said there are hundreds of new cases every year involving abuse, neglect and death of parents in what are called “dependency cases.” Pinkston said they have increased substantially over recent years. “This was the third balloon drop that I have attended as juvenile judge. For me it is a bittersweet event as I reflect on the many absolutely heart wrenching and completely unnecessary cases of child abuse I have seen over my time as juvenile judge,” said Pinkston. “Yet I remain hopeful that as our community comes together to prevent child abuse, our incidence of child abuse can and will decline.”
Driver in 2014 fatal crash gets 10-year sentence By MITCH SNEED Editor
Submitted / The Herald
The Wetumpka Pops, a community band, played its first concert under new director Anthony Vittore. The band meets every Thursday night from 7- 8:30 p.m. on the second floor of Wetumpka City Hall for practice.
Wetumpka community band plays first concert with new director By Corey Arwood Staff Writer
The Wetumpka Pops, a community band led by new director, Anthony Vittore, meets every Thursday night from 7 – 8:30 p.m. on the second floor of Wetumpka City Hall. They perform three times a year, during their spring, Fourth of July and Christmas concerts.
Recently they had their spring concert, and played six selections from multiple genres including Broadway numbers, jazz and contemporary pieces. It was Vittore’s first performance as director of the Pops, previously he played in the band. Vittore is also band director for Elmore County High School. “It was great,” said Vittore. He lauded the local musicians and said
he was very happy with turnout April 12. “The musicians, they blow my mind every time I get in front of them,” Vittore said. He extended an offer for anyone in the community to come and play with the group. “(The) ultimate goal is to give back to the community,” Vittore said.
The driver in an Oct. 9, 2014 fatal crash has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. Judge Sibley Reynolds also sentenced Miles Donovan Pepping, 21, to 10 years in prison Wednesday. Pepping plead guilty to manslaughter, third-degree assault, possession of drug paraphernalia and obstructing a governmental operation in Elmore County Circuit Court in March. The plea deal meant that Pepping did not face possible murder Pepping charges. Pepping was the driver of a 2000 Infiniti which left Caesarville Road near Flatwood Road, struck several trees and ejected two backseat passengers. Austin Jones, 23, lost his life as a result of the crash. Following the investigation by State Troopers, it was determined speed and alcohol were factors in the fatal accident and shortly after the investigation was complete Pepping was arrested and charged with one count of reckless murder and two counts of reckless endangerment.
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ELMORE COUNTY WEEKEND
WINLESS DAWGS TO ‘SHARPEN’ THE SAW By CORY DIAZ The Wetumpka Herald
Editor’s note: The Wetumpka Herald is examining each coverage-area football team leading up to the opening of spring practice. At 20 games, Holtville has one of the state’s longest current losing streaks. During their second straight winless season in 2015, opposing offenses blistered the Bulldogs’ defense for 469 points and Holtville held opponents to under 33 points just twice. It’s going to take a lot sharper saw to slash opponents’ offensive production and cut off the losing streak, but that’s Holtville’s focus as it kicks off spring camp April 26 (or May 2, dependent on the outcome of spring sports teams), head football coach Hunter Adams said. HHS closes spring May 13 at Bullock County at 7 p.m. Q: What’s the main focus for your team this spring? Adams: An emphasis on our returning guys sharpening the saw in spring. There were only two seniors on the team last year; we return all but two. Coming off our record, I know that may not seem like much, but that’s big because there’s not a lot of re-teaching going on. We’re looking for progression. Q: What are you looking for on the defensive side of the ball?
Adams: I want to find a group of guys that have an unrelenting willingness to get to the football. A combination of youth and injuries caused us to play with a revolving door of personnel. We need to establish continuity. I really want to have continuity established coming out of spring before we get into summer and fall camp.
AHSAA allows home-school students to play sports
Q: What’s the position/unit battle that is key this spring? Adams: We’ve got to put our linebacking corps together. We bring back Evan Headley, who started nine games and really started to grasp the position more toward the end. He was only a sophomore. We need to find a couple of guys that are smart enough to understand how to manipulate fronts and have that relentless attitude to be around the football. Q: Are you sticking with the flexbone option attack on offense? You have rising senior Reece Burbage at quarterback. Who lines up beside him in the backfield? Adams: We’re still going to be an option team. It’ll definitely be expanded in terms of the playbook and what comes off of different formations. (The backfield) is completely up for grabs this spring. For our B-back (fullback), we need somebody that has a hard, straight-ahead burst and doesn’t lose ground on contact. They can generate two or three yards
By CORY DIAZ The Wetumpka Herald
File / The Herald
Holtville sophomore defensive back Brady Richardson (6) pursues a Munford ball carrier during a game last season.
regardless. Our A-back (wing), we need somebody who can block well on the perimeter and keep the pitching lanes open at all times. It’s a very demanding position. Q: Who are your leaders
this spring? Adams: Rising junior receiver/defensive back Brady Richardson, senior receiver/ defensive back Cody Gibson, junior receiver/defensive back Todd Buck and senior tight end/ defensive end Zach Weldon.
WHS finishes area slate undefeated, beat Carver
By CORY DIAZ The Wetumpka Herald
Wetumpka closed out the regular season unblemished in area play, as it routed CarverMontgomery, 12-1, in five innings Tuesday at Carver. Winners of nine of their last 11, the Lady Indians (22-15) attacked the base paths with six steals, turning four hits into 12 runs versus the Lady Wolverines. Junior pitcher Mary Beth Slater won her 12th start of the 2016 season, giving up one run on three hits and striking out four. Centerfielder Sydney McKissick bolstered the Tribe’s offense with a three-run single and scored another run, while junior
Katelyn Cole and senior Cherrell Thrasher notched three and two runs scored, respectively, in pinch-running duty. Senior leftfielder Riley Greene had a two-run double, one of two extra basehits for Wetumpka, and fellow senior Marissa Campbell added a two-run single and walked twice. Junior catcher Kelsie Cornelius picked up the other hit for the Lady Indians. Sophomore leadoff hitter Alexis Austin reached on errors twice and cashed in both for runs, while seniors Katelyn Carswell and Laken Watson both tallied a run each. Wetumpka travels to Auburn Wednesday.
Cory Diaz / The Herald
Wetumpka junior second baseman MiKayla Holt (36) applies the tag to a Carver-Montgomery base runner during Tuesday’s Class 6A, Area 5 matchup at Carver in Montgomery.
Wetumpka grad ‘excited’ for homecoming with Mississippi Braves By CORY DIAZ The Wetumpka Herald
Standing in front his hometown media contingency Tuesday awaiting the first question to be asked, Bradley Roney gazed across Riverwalk Stadium. Roney, a former Wetumpka High School star, had attended countless games at the ballpark growing up watching the Montgomery Biscuits and had played on the field several times during his prep career with the Indians. The righthanded reliever stepped onto the field for the first time in five years, wearing his No. 34 Mississippi Braves jersey, before his team started their series against his hometown Biscuits and was asked how it felt to be back home. “It feels really good,” Roney, a 2011 Wetumpka grad, said. “I’ve got a bunch of family and friends here. All of my family is excited. There’s a bunch of people coming to the games to watch and, you know, just growing up around this area and having a chance to play in this park, Games that I grew up watching, I’m really excited about playing here and it should be a really fun week.” Since last being at Riverwalk, Roney went on to set the career saves record with 30 at Southern Miss. After his junior season in 2014, he entered
the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft and was picked in the eighth round by the Atlanta Braves, the team he rooted for growing up. Roney opened 2015 in Danville, Virginia in rookie ball, moved up through rookie-A ball in Rome, Georgia before closing the year with with the Class A Carolina Mudcats. Coming off his first full season in the Braves organization where he finished with a 3-1 record, a 2.98 ERA, 70 strikeouts and 11 saves, six of those coming in Carolina, Roney said he went into spring training this offseason with the goal to get called up, and he did March 31. “I just came into spring with that mindset, tried to do as much as I could do, but those kind of things aren’t always in our hands. But I did the best I could this spring, gave it a good effort and I was very fortunate to be placed in Double-A,” he said. “I was really excited when I got the news and I’m just really thankful for them having faith in me to put me at this level to play. “Going from Single-A ball to Double-A, it’s that much higher of a level. I was very happy with that, very pleased with where they put me. I had no arguments at all.” Being called up to Mississippi meant the reliever’s first road trip of the 2016 season would bring him back home, wearing a jersey he always wanted to wear. Roney said he didn’t
Cory Diaz / The Herald
Former Wetumpka standout and Mississippi Braves reliever Bradley Roney (34) warms up in the bullpen during Thursday night’s game agaisnt the Montgomery Biscuits at Riverwalk Stadium.
expect his lifelong dream to pan out this way, but he’s glad he gets to hang out with family and friends during the journey. “Coming here playing for the Braves in front of family and friends – I wouldn’t say it was a dream of mine, but it happened this way. It’s something that I’ll try to get the most out of and enjoy as much as I can because not many people get this opportunity to come play in their hometown in front of a bunch of loved ones,” Roney said. “It’s exciting for me.”
Time will tell on the Alabama High School Athletic Association Legislative Council’s newly passed measure permitting homeschool, charter and virtual school students to play public school sports, local coaches said. On Tuesday, the AHSAA followed through on a promise made a year ago to develop a rule to allow non-traditional students to participate in AHSAA-sanctioned sports. The new measure, which goes into effect this summer, allows home-school and non-traditional students to enroll in public schools that serve the district where their parents reside. Prospective students would count toward AHSAA classification processes, and by rule, non-tradition student-athletes cannot have more practice time then public school students. “I think time will tell on what kind of effect it will have on our interscholastic athletic programs,” Wetumpka Athletic Director and head football coach Tim Perry said Friday. “Virtual schools and home-school has become a popular thing. I’m an advocate for not necessarily preventing kids from participating in athletics in a public school setting because there’s lot of life lessons to be learned. “Even thought we’re passionate about athletics, the number one thing is for the kids to be educated and they need to receive a quality education first to they can go one and join the work force. If we’re doing our job correctly, interscholastic sports teams only enhances their experience.” With charter and virtual schools on the way in the state of Alabama, Holtville Athletic Director and head football coach Hunter Adams said there’s a lot of uncertainty right now. “It’s opening Pandora’s Box,” Adams said. “I was hoping we’d have a few more years before we’d face this issue that way the virtual school networks would be in place, and we could understand home-school play in other states. I’m not sure there were very many coaches that anticipated this going through this year.”