Hueytown Police Chief Chuck Hagler honors 19 officers

Police Chief Chuck Hagler honored 19 officers last week in a brief ceremony for going above and beyond the call of duty in 2008. This was the first time the department has held a ceremony like this. The honorees shift supervisors and Chief Hagler nominated them. Officer Todd Easterwood for the arrest of Clarence Lewis Stone. Easterwood found 65 packages of crack cocaine rocks and $2,000 in Stone's possession when arresting him in June, Hagler said. Dispatchers Joe Epperson and Diane Walton, along with officers Lou Phillips, Chris Taylor, Andy Rodriguez and Cpl. Stephanie Robertson were honored for their efforts in the Carver Avenue hostage standoff. Officers Brandon Jones and Hunter Hodges were honored for chasing a home invasion suspect through several municipalities in bad weather. The suspect had pulled a knife on an elderly couple. The two officers, along with officers from several other jurisdictions, chased the suspect into Midfield where Jones and Hodges took him into custody after a short foot pursuit.
Officers Travis Richards and Jarrod Campbell were also honored for their role in the pursuit and arrest. Officers Lindsey Bumpers and Chad Mitchell were honored for capturing a Hueytown City Jail inmate who had escaped while working as a trusty. The officers found George Brandon Rogers and his wife smoking marijuana at the Days Inn in Bessemer. Both were arrested.
Also receiving honors was Officer Greg Coram for catching a suspect breaking and entering a car. The arrest led to the clearance of several other auto burglaries. Detective Brent Rankin was honored for establishing the department's Honor Guard unit. Corporal Fred Shaw was honored for stopping a rape in progress. Officer Brent Akin stopped a stolen SUV with no tail lights and found a rolling meth lab inside. Three people were arrested and other stolen items were recovered as a result. Officer Alice Thompson also received a plaque for having the eighth highest number of DUI arrest among state municipal officers in 2008 with 76. It was the highest number of DUI arrest in Jefferson County, Hagler said. Detective Brad Richardson was honored for his work in instituting the corporals into the department's rank structure.

Hueytown Chamber of Commerce holds banquet

The Hueytown Chamber of Commerce had its annual banquet last week and honored, among others, the year's top teacher and humanitarian. John Duke, a dentist, was honored as Humanitarian of the Year. Ashley Turner, a second-grade teacher at North Highlands Elementary School, was named the Ellen Northcutt Teacher of the Year. People's Chapel Funeral Home was named Business of the Year. Doug O'Brien, pastor of North Highlands BaptistChurch, was named the Phylis Merritt Citizen of the Year. Brannon Clark was named the Firefighter of the Year while detective Michael Shupe was honored as Police Officer of the Year.
Dispatcher Diane Walton received the honor for Emergency Dispatcher of the Year

Pleasant Grove council meeting changed

The Pleasant Grove council meeting has been changed from May 5 to May 11 due to the Alabama League of Municipalities Convention in Montgomery from May 2-5 in which the council memebers will attend. The council will meet at its regularly scheduled session on May 18.

Bessemer lgrowth calls for more money

The Bessemer Public Library in the last year has grown therefore needing extra staff and funding. Oscar Smith, library director and Bessemer Library Board President LaBrenda Jones asked the City Council for more money. Smith said the library is still running on the same budget as it did when it was smaller. The city budgets $600,000 for the fiscal year for the library and Smit has requested $67,000 more. Smith's request wil be under review in June, said Mayor Ed May.

Art on the Tracks

The Bessemer Hall of History celebrated 40 years of operation on Saturday with music, food and art. Art on the Tracks featured many local artists who paints a variety of scenes. These include landscapes, still-lifes, portraits, marine life and abstracts.Celina Rocha is a visual artist originally from Uruguay, but now lives in Birmingham. She was a teacher for 32 years and painted during the summer, but since her retirement she has dedicated her life to painting. “I like to paint marine life the best, but my favorite painting was a landscape of a ruin with a country side in the background,” she said. Rocha also used therapeutic painting to help children with autism. Her work can be found in the Jennifer Harwell Art Studio in Homewood and Birmingham as well as internationally. Donald Housler, from Birmingham, paints as well, but he said he dislikes painting landscapes. “I stick with portraits,” he said. “My favorite painting is of Einstein and I also like John Lennon’s.” Housler said he takes pictures of the person at different angles and. He then paints a portrait by combining all of the angles and making one picture. “I work with children and they don’t sit still,” he said. Housler makes art cards as well. These are post card sized paper with a portrait of your choice. His work can be found in Herz Gallery and Studio in Northport. Mayor Ed May cut the ribbon to the newly remodeled Bessemer Hall of History. It was temporarily closed for the renovation. This is not the first renovation it has received. Louise Ayer Tommie, Joan Shivers and Joyce Roe Ward and, with help from the Bessemer Junior Service League, started the first renovation nearly 40 years ago. The museum was originally in the basement of the library but these three women wanted to find it its own home. They said it took them 16 years for the museum to be placed in the depot terminal. “There were four phases in renovating the depot,” Tommie said. “The first one was acquiring the building, the second one was the roof and outer area, the third one was the bathrooms, plumbing and electric and finally the finishing touches such as painting.” The women said getting the building took eight years of negotiation. They said it was full of pigeons and the basement had been set fire. The renovation came to a total of $350,000, but grants from the city, county and state helped as well as donations from the Junior Service League and the community. “We are just glad we got to see it restored again before we get any older,” the women said. “We didn’t even grow up here, but we feel like wherever you live you should do as much as you can to help.” The museum houses antique cash registers, typewriters, phones, dresses and has pictures of the town from 70 years ago. It also contains memorabilia from Bessemer High School. The museum was placed in the National Register of Historic Places in West Jefferson County in 1973. The ribbon was not only cut for the depot but another one was also cut for the millionth boxcar from Pullman Standard. The Wrecking Crew, a model railroad club from Birmingham, displayed a 1940s replica of Bessemer. The club obtained old tax records, which had a description of each building and a picture, and used it to help them build the models. They also used the city directory for names and members of the community who remembered the town back then. While seeing the 1950’s model fire trucks, the art seers also heard music from Three on a String, a blue grass band. The band was inducted into the Alabama Blue Grass Hall of Fame on March 21. The Bessemer Hall of History is opened from Tuesday-Sunday from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. and closed from 12-1 p.m. for lunch. For more information call 205-426-1633.

Midfield applies for federal grant to hire police officers, Hueytown said NO

The city of Midfield will seek a federal grant to hire additional police officers, but Hueytown officials have decided to pass the money on because of concerns about funding the officers once the grant ends.The Midfield City Council voted unanimously last week for Mayor Gary Richardson to pursue $671,940 in grant money through its Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, or COPS from the U.S. Department of Justice. If Midfield receives the money, the city will use it to hire five police officers, said Richardson. The grant is for three years, but it stipulates that the city retain the officers an additional year after the grant ends.The city should know no later than Sept. 30 whether or not it will receive the money.Richardson said hiring the additional officers will show businesses and the community the city is striving for good public safety.However, the Hueytown City Council decided not to pursue the funds with a 3-2 vote under the same program.Hueytown would have used almost $500,000 in grant money to hire three additional officers and the city would have been required to keep the officers an additional three years at its own expense, said Police Chief Chuck Hagler.Hueytown council members expressed concern about projecting the city's finances four years into the future, especially with the country in the midst of an economic downtown. They also said they were concerned retaining the officers as required could potentially lead to layoffs in other departments if the economy does not improve.The council had split 2-2 in a previous vote on the issue.
Hagler said the department could have saved money by cutting overtime. Richardson said he was confident Midfield would be in a position financially to support the additional officers in the future. The city recently reached an agreement with Adamson Ford to lease space at the former Bill Byrd Kia site on the Bessemer Superhighway for two years with the option of extending the lease to five years.

Fairfield school receives inauguration flag

U.S. Rep. Artur Davis visited Fairfield High Preparatory School last week to present a flag that flew in Washington on Jan. 20, the inauguration day for President Barack Obama. The congressman, who represents Alabama's 7th District, gave the flag to school officials during a student assembly.

Fairfield woman sues Hueytown

The Birmingham News

A Fairfield woman sued the city of Hueytown claiming that Brooklane Community Center and Bud Newell Memorial Park do not comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
D'Wanna Williams filed the suit in U.S. District Court in March. Williams' attorney, Edward Zwilling, said his client is a paraplegic who shops in Hueytown for her medical supplies and has often stopped by the park with family. The facilities at the park are not accessible to Williams, who has lost both legs and requires a wheelchair for mobility, the lawsuit contends.
Williams just wants access, not any damages. City attorney Jon Terry said the city is still reviewing the lawsuit's claims. He said new facilities in Hueytown, such as the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center, are compliant. Terry said the city has strived to make sure its facilities are compliant. Zwilling has filed similar lawsuits alleging violations of the ADA against Bessemer, Graysville and Birmingham. Bessemer settled its lawsuit. The suit against Graysville is pending, while Zwilling said he is working with Birmingham officials. Zwilling said the lawsuits are done to address the problems, not punish the cities.

Art on the Tracks

The second annual Art on the Tracks is Saturday, April 25 from 9:30-4:00 p.m. There will be music, food and of course, art! Three on a String will play as well as Kasey Brown. A grad re-opening of the Bessemer Hall of History Museum will also take place. Come join in on the fun!!

Help the BPD!!

The Bessemer Police Department is looking for two men who are believed to be involved in an April 13 home invasion and robbery of an 42-year-old man. Police said the two abducted a man from his home at 19th Street and Berkley Avenue and drove him around for several hours and then used his credit card at an ATM before the man escaped at a service station.Police said on the day following the incident, they recovered the man's stolen vehicle, which had been burned so bad they could not recognize it. Bessemer police are asking anyone with information on the suspects call the department's tip line at 428-3541.

Bessemer woman dies after apartment fire

Angelica Mullins, 37, died Saturday at 11:40 a.m. at UAB hospital. She had suffered third degree burns on multiple areas of her body. She fought for two months. The fire started in her apartment 314 19th street south at Clarendon Manor on Feb. 8 said Deborah Chance, resident manager. Mullins couldn't escape the fire through her window. Two residents knocked in her door and she ran through the flames. Three other apartments were damaged by the fire and three units were damaged by water.

Fairfield City Cuncil Moves to Resolve Civic Center Authority

The Birmingham News

The Fairfield City Council voted Monday to have the city attorney request that the state Legislature move on resolving the city's Civic Center Authority. The 3-2 vote follows a 2007 resolution in which the council voted in favor of dissolving the authority, which oversees the Fairfield Civic Center. Legislative action is required to dissolve the authority.
Councilman Rev. F.D. Scott said the city is paying the cost of lawsuits filed against the Civic Center but has no control over the Civic Center Authority, of which he is a former member.
Joining Scott in voting "yes" were Vincent Smith and Ves Marable. Voting against the move were Council President Eldridge O. Turner and Councilman Jerry Yarbrough, both current members of the authority. Councilman Ronald Strothers abstained. The council voted April 6 to have the authority repay a $24,758 settlement against the city. Although he had voted for dissolution while a member of the council, Mayor Kenneth Coachman, now an authority member, said he opposed the council's action. Scott said other lawsuits are pending against the Civic Center.

Fairfield Works gets new President at Steelworkers Local

Robert Irwin, a third-generation steelworker, was elected to a three-year term as head of Local 2122. It has about 500 members at U.S. Steel's 1,600-worker plant in Fairfield.Irwin said about 350 Fairfield Works Steelworkers are laid off in any given week, because of the poor economy which is making a less of a demand for steel.

Homeless musicians find their way back home

Musicians who favor the songs and instruments of country music have been meeting regularly in a room provided by Food World in Bessemer for the past 10 years. As of last week, they began their morning jam sessions in a new location because of the supermarket's closing.Thanks to the generosity ofAnthony Underwood, the ownerof West Lake Mall, they have found a new home and didn't have to travel very far to move in.Mac Mitchell, site manager of the 90,000 square foot indoor flea market, welcomed the musicians with the hope that shoppers and vendors alike will enjoy the familiar sounds of guitars, fiddles, banjos, and harmonicas when West Lake Mall opens on April 17. SteveBaggett,now retired from theBirmingham News ,remembers the origins of this gathering of musicians. It was in John Knipher's Barber Shop in the early 60's. John would sometimes stop in the middle of middle of a haircut and pick up his guitar if certain friends happened by. All those old friends wish him well as able to attend. Baggett credits Tater Wallace, 92 and still active, with teaching him his "licks".Tater performed professionally with his own country band for 20 years. His wife Marjorie keeps a sharp eye on him and comes with him to the sessions.Newcomers like CharlesByars (88), Junior Franklin (80),Howard Ryan (78), Bill Greg(77), Thermon Jones (62) andJoe Kizziah (31) have only been showing up for about 10 years.Walt Johnson, 84, has memories of the group going back 40 years. He entered the Navy at 17 and served four years in North Africa, Sicily, and the South Pacific during WW II. Not manyof those vets are still kickin'.Walt definitely is.When this new space became available, Baggett expressed his relief. "Comin' together like this to play their instruments with old friends or just sit and listen is keepin' some of these guys alive." To find out just how alive,you'll have to hear the mall musicians for yourself. And if you have a favorite song or a guitar, come and join in.The mall musicians gather every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday morning from 8-10:30 am. Who knows?You might even find another"bargain" when the West Lake Mall Flea Market opens but you'll be hard pressed to beat this one.

Fairfield Wants Civic Center to Pay Lawsuit Settlement

The Fairfield City Council wants the city's Civic Center Authority to repay the cost of a lawsuit settlement. The city settled a lawsuit with Evans Meats, Inc. of Birmingham in December for $24,758, said Mayor Kenneth Coachman. The city and former clerk Ryan Rancher were named as defendants in the lawsuit, which was filed in Jefferson County District Court in July 2008.
The lawsuit claimed a breach of contract. Evans Meats claimed the city, under Rancher, guaranteed payment for goods and meat products. However, the council voted 4-2 to have the Civic Center Authority repay settlement money, which council members said is coming from the city's general fund.

UPDATE ON BESSEMER BANK ROBBERY

A man and a woman suspected in Monday's robbery of the RBC bank are in custody, authorities said today. Andre Wallace, 32, and Jawana Jackson, 23, were arrested by Birmingham police Tuesday evening, said FBI spokesman Paul Daymond. They are also being held in the Bessemer City Jail on state charges for the unrelated robbery of Bob's Storage in March, Daymond said. They haven't been formally charged in Monday's holdup. A man armed with a handgun and wearing sunglasses and a wig robbed the bank just before noon, leaving with an undisclosed amount of money. Daymond said he would release more information as it becomes available.

Lakendall Sims Gets Life Sentence

A Bessemer jury in January convicted Sims of killing Catherine Williams, 19, in May 2007 and recommended the 20-year-old spend the rest of his life in prison. Circuit Judge Mac Parsons on Friday decided to follow the jury's recommendation and sentenced Sims to two terms of life in prison to be served consecutively and will not be eligible for parole. According to testimony, Sims and three other men stole $11 from Williams before they locked her in the trunk of her car and drove her to an abandoned storage facility. The men made her strip, and then Sims sexually assaulted her. She was then shot in the head and face. Assistant District Attorney LeAnna Huddleston had urged Parsons to override the jury's recommendation and sentence Sims to death, arguing that the crime was "heinous, atrocious and cruel" and that Sims had not shown remorse for Williams' death. Sims' attorney Jonathan Tindle argued that without Sims' cooperation, police may have never found Williams' body. Parsons twice asked Sims if he had anything to say before sentencing. The first time he declined. The second time he shook his head and said, "All I can say is, I didn't do it." Three other men - Tarquinne McCain, Travis Burns and James Pratt - have entered guilty pleas in Williams' death. Police said the same four men, who became known as the "Lipscomb Four," also are responsible for robbing and killing 21-year-old Gabriel Alaniz the night before Williams' death and were behind a home invasion and beating of an elderly couple the same month. Sims is scheduled to stand trial for Alaniz's death June 8. Sims' attorney, David Hobdy, said his client maintains he did not fire the shots that killed either victims. Sims already is serving a 20-year sentence at Donaldson Correctional Facility for second-degree rape. Last September, Sims escaped from the Bessemer courthouse by overpowering a bailiff. He was on the run for more than a day before being caught by Birmingham police.

UAB Medical West suspends contributions and reduces sick leave for employees

Medical West is suspending contributions to employees' retirement plans and reducing sick leave time to save money. The hospital also is hiring outside consultants to improve flagging finances, employees were told in a letter mailed Thursday. Rising numbers of uninsured patients and patients delaying care because of their tight budgets have put a strain on hospitals nationwide, Tim Thornton, chief executive officer of the hospital said he could not provide the financial results for 2008 because the audit isn't completed, but the year will likely end with bigger losses than the $2.2 million lost on operations in 2007. Medical West laid off 17 workers last summer and closed 35 open positions. Since then, Physicians Medical Center Carraway has closed and many other Birmingham-area hospitals have laid off employees. Medical West's most recent actions will take effect May 1. The hospital employs 1,350 full- and part-time workers. The hospital will suspend its contributions to employees' retirement plans through the remainder of this year. Employees may continue to contribute. Also, the number of sick days a worker may accrue in a given year is being capped at 10 days, down from 12. Even so, workers may still take however many sick days they have banked, Thornton said.

Donaldson Prison Under Inspection

A civil rights group has asked a federal magistrate to allow an expert to do a one-day inspection of a maximum security prison in Bessemer. Capt. Lloyd Wallace of the Limestone County Correctional Facility in Capshaw, referenced overcrowding at the Limestone prison in his statement to the court. Sarah Geraghty, an attorney for the Atlanta-based Southern Center for Human Rights, said Wednesday conditions at the Donaldson Correctional Facility in Bessemer have continued to deteriorate since a lawsuit was filed Feb. 26 against the state. U.S. Magistrate Judge Wallace Capel Jr. of Montgomery has given the state Department of Corrections until April 16 to respond to the request. The statement by Wallace, president of the 500-member Alabama Correctional Organization, said according to the Department of Corrections' February 2009 report, state prisons are holding "nearly double the number of people they were built to hold." "Donaldson has an occupancy rate of 176.5 percent," said Wallace, who referred to the Bessemer prison as a "ticking time bomb." "Limestone has an occupancy rate of 166.7 percent. In addition, more than 1,400 people who have been sentenced and are currently in county jails are awaiting transfer to the state prison system." The center has asked Capel for permission to have Steve J. Martin, an Austin, Texas, attorney and corrections consultant, to inspect the prison one business day the week of April 20 or May 11. Prison Commissioner Richard Allen said Wednesday he did not believe the inspection is warranted. "We don't think there's any emergency that requires any expedited procedure," he said. "Donaldson, like all (prisons) are crowded, we are short on personnel, but it's not due to deliberate indifference. We've got people working hard but resources only go so far." Geraghty said her group wants an expedited order to inspect Donaldson because inmates and corrections officers are at a growing risk. Since the complaint was filed, the motion said, violence has escalated, with two stabbings in March, an assault on another inmate the same month, a suicide in February and a serious assault on an inmate in January. In addition, the motion said the Department of Corrections is in the process of "making structural changes to the prison, including the removal of three-man cells."
However, Allen said he had already ordered those changes at Donaldson before the complaint was filed in February.

Graduation among black students at Miles are good

The Birmingham News

Officials at Miles College have disputed an Associated Press report in Sunday's Birmingham News about the graduation rate of black students, and they are supported by an independent association of private colleges.
The six-year graduation rate for first-time, full-time students who enrolled at the Fairfield college in 2001 was 52 percent, said Paul Hankins, president of the Alabama Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. The AP report, which said the graduation rate was 11 percent, relied on erroneous data in a U.S. Department of Education database, Miles officials said. The AP report found that many historically black colleges graduate black students at a rate lower than colleges in general.
Previous published reports and independent analyses consistently have placed Miles' graduation rate at more than 50 percent. Ricky Lee, Miles' director of college relations, said the methodology behind some analyses varies widely. Some include part-time and non-traditional students, and others do not, for example.
The most recent report by The Education Trust, a nonprofit, placed Miles' 2006 rate at 50 percent, highest among historically black colleges in Alabama and third-highest among all schools in the state for black students.
In 2007, Miles remained among the highest-ranked for percentage of first-time, full-time students graduating within six years, Hankins said.
"Miles is probably the best," he said.

Fairfield City Council rejects Coachman's veto, tables another

The Fairfield City Council overruled one mayoral veto and tabled another one for future discussion in back-to-back called meetings on Monday night.The council rejected a veto by Mayor Kenneth Coachman on a financial ordinance approved a few weeks ago. The ordinance prohibited the paying of any city bills before they are reviewed and approved by the council. A letter from Tracy Lane Roberts, assistant general counsel with the Alabama League of Municipalities, read in part: "The municipal budget is not an ordinance of permanent operation, and thus is not subject to the mayor's veto." The council approved on a 4-3 vote the acceptance of Roberts' letter, leaving the ordinance intact. Scott, Smith, Ves Marable and William Murray voted yes and voting no was Jerry Yarbrough, Ronald Strothers and Council President Eldridge Turner. The second called meeting, moments later, was over the salary being paid to Coachman's executive assistant, Lucy Nash. A few weeks ago the council set her salary and that of the City Council administrator at $34,000. Nash had been hired at a salary of about $46,000, the same amount her predecessor had received. Coachman vetoed the reduction.
Marable argued that the previous executive assistant had earned that salary over 17 years of service to the city. At this point, Tyrone Townsend, an attorney for Nash, attempted to speak, but was told that he could not speak because he was not on the agenda. Townsend laid a document on the podium, saying it was a copy of a lawsuit he has filed in federal court on behalf of his client. Council members called a closed session and left the room for about 20 minutes. When they returned, there was a unanimous vote to table the salary issue.