1/8/16 news

1-8-16

Ethics investigation

According to a high-ranking government official, State Sen. Phil Williams (R-Rainbow City) is under investigation by law enforcement for possible ethics violations and other related activities.  On Williams’ latest ethics Statement of Economic Interests, he lists 43 professional or consulting clients. When elected in 2010 he listed no such clients.  Phil Williams’ Senate Republican Caucus spokesperson said, the 43 clients listed were reoccurring litigation clients. A search of court records on ALACOURT shows only three reoccurring clients and these are related to debt collection.  The clients are Butler Electrical Contractors, which is owned by State Rep. Mack Butler (R-Gadsden), Servpro, and Advanced Imaging of Gadsden.  Jon Jones, who Williams appointed to the Community Development Board for District 29, 30, and handles around $700,000 in State development funds, owns Servpro of Etowah in Williams’ District.  Williams’ large client list has raised questions among his Senate colleagues, and now, law enforcement has entered into the fray.  Williams, who campaigned on ethics reform to defeat Sen. Larry Means (who was charged but acquitted in the bingo trials), now appears to find himself a person of interest.

1-8-16

Lottery bill

State Sen. Jim McClendon, R-Springville, said today he would sponsor a lottery bill during the legislative session that begins Feb. 2. McClendon said details of the proposal would be announced at a press conference on Tuesday. He estimated it would raise about $300 million a year.McClendon said this morning that the legislation is still being finalized.  For Alabama to have a lottery, three-fifths of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives would have to approve a bill proposing an amendment to the state Constitution, which prohibits lotteries. The proposal would then go to voters in a statewide referendum.

1-8-16

Murder suspect pleads not guilty

A man accused of killing the brother of NFL star Kwon Alexander pleaded not guilty this week, according to court documents.  24 year oldJerald Aubrey Bailey was charged with the murder of 17 year old Broderick Lashawn Taylor II,  on Oct. 30. Authorities said at the time that Taylor was shot in the chest following an argument on West 16th Street.  Bailey surrendered to authorities the following day.  That Sunday Alexander played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and spoke of losing Taylor after playing the Atlanta Falcons, finishing the game with 11 tackles and an interception.  In court documents, Bailey also waived his right to an arraignment.

1-8-16

Childersburg tax vote

On Jan. 26, the residents of Childersburg will vote on a proposed mill tax increase for the city.The current property tax rate for Childersburg is three mills, and if the proposed increase passes, that rate would rise by 2 percent to five mills. Building a new football stadium at Childersburg High School, improving the baseball and softball fields, renovating the gym at Childersburg Elementary and also renovating the cafeteria at Watwood Elementary have been discussed as proposed projects that could be funded by the tax revenue. If the mill tax is passed, plans call for the the proposed stadium to be complete in time for the 2017 season and include upgrades such as a track around the field. The proposed improvements to the city’s baseball and softball fields would be projected to be complete by March 2016. The five-mill tax would cost homeowners living in a $50,000 home $10 a year, which is roughly three cents per day.

Those exempt from the tax include non-homeowners, churches or other exempt nonprofit organizations; residents who live in federal housing; homeowners over the age of 65 who have an annual income of less than $7,500; homeowners totally disabled with less than a $7,500 annual income; and homeowners over the age of 65 who bring in less than $12,000 (single) or less than $24,000 (jointly) each year.

1-8-16

Dekalb shooting

A Kilpatrick man reported that two men forced their way into his home Tuesday night and shot him in the leg, according to Sheriff Jimmy Harris.  DeKalb deputies, Geraldine and Crossville police and Alabama State Troopers responded to the scene about 8 p.m. Tuesday. The victim had been shot in the upper left thigh area. He told deputies two Hispanic males, wearing hoodies, with black and white bandanas over their faces, knocked on his door. When he went to answer the door, the men tried to push it open, scaring the victim’s wife. She went to the bedroom to try to find a weapon.  The two men shoved the door open, came into the house and shot the victim. He was transported to Marshall Medical Center South by DeKalb Ambulance Service, then airlifted to UAB.  According to Harris, deputies, police officers and drug task force agents were out all night looking for the suspects. In a statement, he said his office has contacted the FBI and the DEA to ask for their confidential informants’ help with the investigation. The sheriff’s office has a $1,000 reward for the information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects. Anyone with information is asked to call 256-845-3801.

1-8-16

Gargus parole

A Gadsden man is slated for a parole hearing Jan. 13 to ask for release more than four years before the end of the 20-year sentence he received for reckless manslaughter in the death of his young bride.  19 year old Kandice Johnson Gargus,  was shot and killed by her husband on Thanksgiving Day in 1996 in what police said was a game of Russian roulette.  Doyce Wade Gargus was denied parole in 2011. His scheduled release date is Feb. 28, 2020.  Kandice Gargus’ mother, Beverly Burns, said she and other family members will be there to oppose his bid for parole, just as they have been at previous hearings.  Burns said the hearing will be difficult as for the first time, her granddaughter — Kandice’s daughter — will have to speak to the parole board.  She’s now 20 and Burns said the parole board will want to hear from her.  Gargus was convicted of shooting his wife after he had put the barrel of his .44-caliber revolver in his own mouth and pulled the trigger “two or three times,” according to a witness in his trial.  Gargus cocked the hammer again, aimed it at his wife 3 feet away and pulled the trigger. When police went to the hospital to investigate, she was dead. Gargus had been drinking and had been slapping his wife around, ordering her to slap him, which she did once, a witness said.  The shooting occurred Nov. 28, 1996, while Gargus and a cousin were playing pool in a utility building behind the Gargus’ Tidmore Bend residence.

1-8-16

Talladega man killed in Montgomery crash

A Talladega man died on Wednesday as the result of injuries he suffered in a Saturday night traffic crash on Eastern Boulevard in Montgomery.  69 year old Michael Spurlin,  suffered what was first believed to be non-life threatening injuries in a two-vehicle crash on Eastern Boulevard around 9:45 p.m. on Saturday, according to Montgomery police.  The crash involved a 1999 Lincoln Continental, driven by Spurlin, and a 2011 Dodge Nitro. Spurlin's condition was downgraded on Wednesday, and he died at a Montgomery hospital. The driver of the Dodge Nitro also suffered non-life threatening injuries.  accident investigators are working to determine the cause of the crash.

1-8-16

Rogers wager

Congressman Mike Rogers and Congressman Kevin Cramer (R-ND) made a friendly wager today over Saturday's FCS Championship game in Frisco, Texas between Jacksonville State University and North Dakota State University.  The loser will provide lunch for the winners congressional staff.