Lincoln couple arrested in Etowah County home breakin

Etowah county authorities have charged A Lincoln couple in connection to stolen property, according to Sheriff Todd Entrekin.  33 year old Sean Patrick Boozer,  and 35 year old Jessica Rochelle Baker, have been charged with one felony count of third degree burglary and one felony count of second degree theft of property.  The two are accused in the July 27^th break in of a  coats bend circle home.  Deputies were alerted by a passerby who reported he believed the home was being broken into.  Deputies arrived within minutes finding Baker sitting inside a pickup truck in the  driveway of the home.  Baker claimed that the truck was broken down and her boyfriend, Boozer, had gone to buy a new battery.  When other deputies arrived they found the back door of the residence kicked in and found Boozer hiding in a bush with a concealed pistol on his ankle. Boozer has also been charged with one count of illegal carry of a concealed gun.. The two also had a bag, which had the home owner’s name and address printed on it and four antique canisters. Boozer and Baker are currently being detained in the Etowah County Detention Center. Boozer is being held on $6,000 bond and Baker has a $5,000 bond.  Baker also has an outstanding traffic warrant in Chilton County.

Arrests made in death of 5 year old anniston boy

India Kimble                               Vonta Montrell McClellan

Anniston police have charged the mother of a 5 year old Anniston boy who died Friday  and her boyfriend with capital murder in the child's  death.Captain Alan George said Tuesday afternoon that Gregory Caver’s death was ruled a homicide after a preliminary autopsy report was released from the Department of Forensic Sciences in Huntsville.   Caver’s mother, 28 year old India Kimble, was apprehended by U.S. Marshals tuesday afternoon in Mobile and will be brought back to Anniston to face the murder charges.  Kimble’s boyfriend, 26 year old Vonta Montrell McClellan, was already in custody after being  charged Monday with abusing his 7-year-old daughter at the same time Caver was abused. McClellan’s capital murder warrant was served Tuesday afternoon in the Anniston City Jail, where he’s being held on a $500,000 cash bond.    George said investigators interviewed Kimble and McClellan, but the two were released pending the results of Caver’s autopsy.  George said that Caver and the 7-year-old girl were beaten with a belt.  Capt George said Kimble and McClellan were charged with capital murder, because they caused the death of a child under the age of 14.  The boy’s father, Robert Fuller, who lives in Mobile, said Tuesday he felt justice was served when he learned Kimble was charged in the death of their son.

Etowah jury to hear case brought by murder victims family against Gadsden police chief

Chief John Crane

An Etowah county jury will hear the case of a Gadsden murder victims family brought against Gadsden Police Chief John Crane  next month.   The trial will be the first case on the Aug. 26 civil jury docket before Circuit Judge Allen Millican. The docket is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. Because of Gadsden Civil Service Board rules stating that any appeal to the circuit court of the board’s ruling must be heard on the next available docket, the case was given priority.  Joy Bates, the neice of murder victim Nita Denson  filed a complaint with the Gadsden Civil Service Board, and the board suspended Crane for 15 days, with 10 held in abeyance, on June 12.  The family’s attorney, Michael Rasmussen, asked the board to remove Crane, and the family appealed the suspension on June 18.  Millican said the trial will be a trial de novo, which means all previous proceedings, including those before the civil service board , about the family’s complaints are irrelevant.  The Civil Service Board found that Crane was in violation of its rules when he continued his ministerial relationship with Denson’s murderer and son, Justin Denson, after he became police chief. Denson pleaded guilty last November to murdering his mother and stealing her credit cards in December 2009

Gadsden council approves property purchase for new recycling center

The Gadsden city council voted tuesday to purchase property for a new recycling center.  The city’s recycling program currently consists of a number of utility trailers that local residents fill up with their recyclable garbage.  Mayor Sherman Guyton says that the trailers get filled up on a nearly daily basis, and city employees currently drive those trailers to Albertville or Anniston for recycling.  Once the new center is open, the mayor says the city will be able to process the materials itself.   The city will be purchasing the former C-D Short Wholesalers building on Henry Street for the project.  According to the resolution, the sale price is 175-thousand-dollars.  Councilman Robert Avery was the only council member to vote against the measure.

Anniston council begins selection of new City Manager

Anniston city council members are set to begin the process of narrowing down the list of candidates for city manager.  The council held a special called meeting tuesday where each member presented their top five list out of the 70 applicants. Mayor Vaughn Stewart says now the process is to narrow down the number to just five total to select the best person for the job.    chosen candidates by videoconference next week and then the top five will be interviewed in a public meeting along with a series of community meetings with question and answer sessions.  One of the top selections announced by the council Tuesday withdrew her name from consideration.   Stewart says they hope to have a new city manager by the end of August.

The council will interview the