Belly dancers raise money for YWCA security
CLARENDON SUN Motorists join motorcade to escort Vietnam Wall replica
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VOL. 118, NO. 187 WWW.THEITEM.COM
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TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2013
FOUNDED OCTOBER 15, 1894
SUMTER, SOUTH CAROLINA
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IN THE TUESDAY, MAY 28TH EDITION
Reader Court date set for dress code lawsuit roundup
FROM LAST WEEK • The federal government filed a motion Wednesday against Tuomey Healthcare System stating the hospital would pay $237,454,195 for violating Stark Law and the False Claims Act if Senior District Court Judge Margaret Seymour upholds the motion. Tuomey has 14 days to respond to the motion, and Seymour has seven days to reach a final decision. The local hospital also has two weeks left to file an appeal in the case. • Advanta Southeast, a reusable packaging manufacturer, announced Wednesday that it will bring with it at least 30 semi-skilled and skilled jobs and a $3.5 million investment to Clarendon County by opening in the former LBT Stainless building on Frontage Road in Ram Bay, less than a mile from the entrance to the Clarendon County Industrial Park. The company expects to begin operations next month and produces reusable packaging solutions for clients such as General Motors, Ford, BMW, Lear and Yamaha. • The Lee County School board has announced three finalists for the Lee County schools superintendent position. Dr. Wanda Andrews, assistant superintendent of personnel and student services in Spartanburg District 7; Terri Mozingo, assistant superintendent of research and accountability for Durham, N.C., public schools; and William T. Wright, assistant superintendent of Hartnett County schools in Lillington, N.C., were selected from 40 applicants. Board members hope to have a new superintendent in place by July 1. A schedule of meetings and activities for the finalists are being planned for today (today for print), Wednesday and Thursday.
GET INVOLVED • You can help feed hungry families across the state by participating in Riverbanks Zoo and Garden’s Toucan Tuesdays. Every Tuesday beginning June 4, two visitors will be admitted for the price of one with a donation of two non-perishable food items to the Harvest Hope Food Bank. Donation bins will be located at both the zoo and garden entrances. The promotion ends Aug. 27. For more information, visit www.riverbanks.org. • Lee Central High School Choir is putting on the 5th Annual Lee Central Rhythm and Blues concert in the school auditorium on Thursday at 7 p.m. as a fundraiser for choir operations, including a 2014 trip to New York. Tickets are $6 and will be available at the door. Choir Director Terry Slater said the concert playlist will include hit songs by Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Otis Redding, Jackson Five and Michael Jackson. • If you’re thinking of going gator hunting this year, you’ll need to file an application online to enter a statewide lottery by June 15 with a $10 processing fee. Twelve-hundred hunters will be chosen to hunt in one of the state’s four units. Successful applicants are notified in July after the drawing and must pay a $100 permit fee by noon Sept. 10. The season starts Sept. 14 and runs through Oct. 12. Check out www.dnr.sc.gov/wildlife/alligator for info, rules and laws about gator hunting, including a detailed FAQ section.
BY ROBERT J. BAKER bbaker@theitem.com
A federal court judge has set a date in 2014 to hear a Sumter man’s legal challenge against three Furman Middle School administrators for their handling of a mandated uniform dress code policy in late 2012. In his lawsuit, Charles
Smith alleges the code’s enforcement by Furman Middle School Principal Maria Newton-Ta’Bon, Eighth Grade Assistant Principal Jeffrey Barrineau and Assistant Principal and Site Administrator Gregory Jones has been “arbitrary and capricious, (resulting) in the removal of students ... from the learning environment, ... causing them to suf-
fer embarrassment, humiliation, stress and to fall behind in their studies.” U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Anderson Jr. set a date of March 4, 2014, to start hearing evidence from each side, a year and three days after Smith filed his suit in Sumter common pleas court. Anderson explicitly states in his order that the trial is not “sub-
ject to being called on or after,” meaning the proceeding will start promptly on March 4, unless the defendants or plaintiffs are able to modify the scheduling order with just cause. Earlier this month, both parties filed documents saying they intend to call both
SEE LAWSUIT, PAGE A8
Memorial Day at Swan Lake
RANDY BURNS / SPECIAL TO THE ITEM
Officials estimate more than 350 veterans, family members and friends were on hand for the 2013 Memoiral Day Breakfast held at the new Lee County Veterans Museum.
PHOTOS BY JADE ANDERSON / THE ITEM
The Crestwood High School Air Force JROTC cadets present the colors at Monday’s ceremony. All three public high schools — Sumter, Crestwood and Lakewood — participated in the service.
Wall, ceremony draw crowd for holiday tribute BY JADE ANDERSON janderson@theitem.com They gathered at Swan Lake Monday to honor grandfathers, sons, cousins, nephews, brother-inlaws, neighbors and classmates, mothers and daughters. “We appreciate you all being here today to remember,” said Marion
“Dave” Nesbitt with the Sumter chapter of The Military Order of the Purple Heart. “Like many veterans I see today, I knew some of these names on the wall from school in Sumter and some I met in the jungles of Vietnam. Some of our nation’s greatest never had a chance to fulfill their dreams. We honor them in death the way we would honor them if they were standing here today.” He served as the master of ceremonies for the event put
SEE MEMORIAL, PAGE A7
Zack Crews from Sumter High School plays Taps at the ceremony on Monday at Swan Lake as many paid tribute to the brave people who made the ultimate sacrifice while defending our country.
BY RANDY BURNS Special to The Item BISHOPVILLE — The Memorial Day Breakfast at the South Carolina Cotton Museum has become a tradition for many Lee County veterans. This year’s observance began a new tradition with the activities taking place in the new Lee County Veterans Museum. More than 350 veterans, family members and friends were on hand for the unveiling of the new museum for the 2013 Memorial Day Observance, sponsored this year by the adjoining S.C. Cotton Museum, American Legion Post 29, the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Bishopville Pilot Club. Bishopville’s Gilbert Baker, former commander of the Bishopville chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and a Korean Conflict veteran, said every Memorial Day is always a special occasion. “I am Korean war veteran,” Baker said. And I know we have many soldiers who have never been found. They ended up in ditches and mountainsides. This is a day to honor them and all who gave their lives for this country.” This year’s observance in Lee County is particularly special, Baker said. “This museum is unbelievable,” he said. “I am very impressed. I can’t believe the items that are on display. I think it is important for future generations to see what other people went through for the freedom we have.” Retired Gen. Eli Wisart, a resident of Columbia and a 32-year Army veteran, served as the featured speaker for the occasion. “It is so appropriate to open this SEE BREAKFAST, PAGE A8
20 N. Magnolia St. Sumter, SC 29150 (USPS 525-900)
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on by the Sumter County Veterans Association and the residents of Sumter. While all those who died for their country were honored, the focus was on those who served in Vietnam because of the presence of the Wall replica. “Ninety percent of those who served in Vietnam are extremely proud to have done so and have a right to be,” said Chaplain Charles T. Clanton, retired U.S. Army colonel and keynote speaker. “When I came back in 1968, I had to put on civilian clothes at the air-
Lee breakfast celebrates local veterans
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