Obama takes presidency
Stewart wins DA seat
The Guardian-Journal
Who won
the presidential election? Unfortunately, official national results will not be
available in this edition of The Guardian-Journal.
However,
it is projected that Sen. Barak Obama will be the nation’s first black
president.
Hard
results we can deliver are which presidential candidate (Sen. Barak Obama,
D-Illinois or Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona) took Claiborne Parish.
McCain
took Claiborne Parish by 55 percent of the vote.
Results
are as follows in each precinct for the presidential election.
Sen. John McCain
Gov. Sarah Palin
Absentee, 902; Precinct No. 01,
287; Precinct No. 03, 215; Precinct No. 05, 215; Precinct No. 07, 399; Precinct
No. 08, 74; Precinct No. 10, 9; Precinct No. 11, 64; Precinct No. 21, 41;
Precinct No. 22, 103; Precinct No. 31, 232; Precinct No. 34, 16; Precinct No.
35, 50; Precinct No. 36, 79; Precinct No. 37, 2; Precinct No. 41, 48; Precinct
No. 42, 161; Precinct No. 51, 74; Precinct No. 81, 75; Precinct No. 82, 40;
Precinct No. 84, 91; Precinct No. 85, 33; Precinct No. 87, 15; Precinct No. 88,
178; Precinct No. 91, 46; Precinct No. 92, 240; Precinct No. 93, 53; Precinct
No. 94, 10; Precinct No. 96, 31.
Sen. Barak Obama
Sen. Joe Biden
Absentee, 816; Precinct No. 01,
173; Precinct No. 03, 45; Precinct No. 05, 174; Precinct No. 07, 118; Precinct
No. 08, 145; Precinct No. 10, 103; Precinct No. 11, 74; Precinct No. 21, 2;
Precinct No. 22, 83; Precinct No. 31, 86; Precinct No. 34, 171; Precinct No.
35, 48; Precinct No. 36, 159; Precinct No. 37, 7; Precinct No. 41, 23; Precinct
No. 42, 35; Precinct No. 51, 30; Precinct No. 81, 27; Precinct No. 82, 67;
Precinct No. 84, 97; Precinct No. 85, 79; Precinct No. 87, 201; Precinct No.
88, 35; Precinct No. 91, 2; Precinct No. 92, 33; Precinct No. 93, 170; Precinct
No. 94, 1; Precinct No. 96, 21.
The
other candidates for president didn’t fare so well, many candidates receiving
less than 1 percent of the vote.
U.S.
Representative, 4th Congressional District, Democrat: Willie Banks received 49 percent of the vote while Paul
J. Carmouche received 51 percent.
On the
Republican side, John Fleming received 61 percent while “Chris” Gorman received
38 percent.
U.S.
Senator: Mary Landrieu carried Claiborne Parish by 53 percent compared to John
Kennedy’s 44 percent. Landrieu carried the state with just a little more than
50 percent, while Kennedy had 47 percent.
But
let’s not forget the most important race of all, the 2nd Judicial District’s
District Attorney’s race. Jonathan Stewart won Claiborne Parish by 54 percent,
while Avery only received 46 percent. In Bienville Parish, Stewart took the
lead with 68 percent of the vote while Avery came in at 32 percent.
In
Jackson Parish, Avery came away with nearly 68 percent of the vote, while
Stewart came in with nearly 33 percent.
Claiborne’s
votes were broken down into precincts as follows:
Jonathan Stewart
Absentee, 855; Precinct No. 01,
207; Precinct No. 03, 104; Precinct No. 05, 184; Precinct No. 07, 273; Precinct
No. 08, 109; Precinct No. 10, 52; Precinct No. 11, 62; Precinct No. 21, 15;
Precinct No. 22, 89; Precinct No. 31, 149; Precinct No. 34, 75; Precinct No.
35, 39; Precinct No. 36, 107; Precinct No. 37, 5; Precinct No. 41, 34; Precinct
No. 42, 99; Precinct No. 51, 51; Precinct No. 81, 45; Precinct No. 82, 55;
Precinct No. 84, 104; Precinct No. 85, 63; Precinct No. 87, 117; Precinct No.
88, 79; Precinct No. 91, 29; Precinct No. 92, 119; Precinct No. 93, 139;
Precinct No. 94, 5; Precinct No. 96, 24
Darrell Avery
Absentee, 758; Precinct No. 01,
176; Precinct No. 03, 111; Precinct No. 05, 119; Precinct No. 07, 205; Precinct
No. 08, 89; Precinct No. 10, 38; Precinct No. 11, 67; Precinct No. 21, 23;
Precinct No. 22, 76; Precinct No. 31, 145; Precinct No. 34, 88; Precinct No.
35, 46; Precinct No. 36, 85; Precinct No. 37, 5; Precinct No. 41, 27; Precinct
No. 42, 70; Precinct No. 51, 42; Precinct No. 81, 47; Precinct No. 82, 37;
Precinct No. 84, 64; Precinct No. 85, 39; Precinct No. 87, 74; Precinct No. 88,
132; Precinct No. 91, 7; Precinct No. 92, 135; Precinct No. 93, 65; Precinct
No. 94, 6; Precinct No. 96, 21.
Constitutional Amendments
(Results in Claiborne Parish)
Constitutional
Amendment No. 4, which would increase the severance tax cap from $850,000 to
$2.85 million in two years passed with a landslide victory in Claiborne Parish.
Sixty-nine (69) percent voted for the amendment and 31 percent voted against.
Statewide, with nearly all precincts reporting, Constitutional Amendment No. 4
failed to pass with 55 percent of the votes against and 45 percent for.
Constitutional Amendment No.
1: 75 percent voted for the amendment
and 25 percent voted against. Statewide, 70 percent voted for and 30 percent
against.
Constitutional Amendment No.
2: 67 percent voted for and 33 percent
voted against. Statewide, 60 percent voted for and 40 percent voted against.
Constitutional Amendment No.
3: 64 percent voted for and 35 percent
against. Statewide, 62 percent voted for and 38 percent against.
Constitutional Amendment No.
5: 51 percent voted for and 48 percent
against. Statewide, the vote tied at 50 percent.
Constitutional Amendment No.
6: 53 voted for and 47 percent against.
Statewide, 51 percent voted against and 49 percent voted for.
Constitutional Amendment No.
7: 47 percent voted for and 53 percent
against. Statewide, 56 percent voted against and 44 percent voted for.
Honoring our veterans
How Armistice Day became Veterans Day
Haynesville Elementary
Haynesville Elementary will be presenting
a short program Tuesday, Nov. 11, at 9:30 a.m. in the school gym. Each grade in
the school will present patriotic music in honor of Veterans Day. A short slide
show will also be presented in honor of our veterans. At Haynesville Elementary School, we honor all veterans and would like to take this opportunity to invite any
veteran who would like to attend the program.
Claiborne Academy
The Fellowship of Christian Athletes
huddle at Claiborne Academy will host a veterans day program, Tuesday, Nov. 11,
at 11 a.m. in the Claiborne Academy Gym. All veterans and their spouses are
invited to attend. Lunch will be served. Veterans are asked to call the school
at 927-2747 if they plan to attend.
The Guardian-Journal
From
1914-1918 World War I (WWI) was known as “The Great War.” Also referred to at
the time as “The War to End All Wars,”only later did it become known as WWI.
Whoever
names wars did not know from 1914-1918 that The War to End All Wars with its 40
million deaths would fail to end all wars. Barely a couple of decades later, it
would be renamed to distinguish it from a second world war. Even more
devastating than WWI, 70 million died in what became known as World War II
(WWII).
What
this country now celebrates as Veterans Day was first observed on November 11, 1919, as Armistice Day. According to the dictionary, “armistice” is a word
that means “an agreement by mutual consent to stop fighting.” Another
dictionary includes “temporary truce” in defining the term.
Not
until 1938 did Congress designate November 11 as a legal holiday, “a day to be
dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known
as ‘Armistice Day’.” Just over a year later, WWII was raging.
How,
though, did Armistice Day become Veterans Day? Various reference works note
that shoe store owner Al King in 1953 had the idea to honor all veterans, not
just WWI veterans as Armistice Day did. King initiated an effort to make his
idea a reality. Enlisting the help of such entities as his local Chamber of
Commerce and his congressman, Ed Rees, King’s efforts resulted in legislative
approval of a bill signed into law on May 26, 1954, by President Eisenhower. As a result, Armistice Day then officially became Veterans Day.
— o —
“I hate war as only a soldier
who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, and
its stupidity.”—Dwight D. Eisenhower (former president and retired four-star
general)
Taste of Homer on November 8
The Taste of Homer will be held at Homer City Hall from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Tickets are $10. More than 100 dishes prepared by the best
cooks in Claiborne Parish are available for you to try. You can’t beat the
price of $10 for all you can eat. Talk about the food you can choose from:
gumbo, hot water cornbread, pork loin, cassaroles galore, crawfish pie, turnip
greens and much, much more. For all you sweet lovers, you will never see so
many different desserts. All the merchants in Homer and Haynesville will be
open for Christmas shopping.
Drive-by shooting raises crime rate
concerns
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
Some
issues regarding Homer’s Pearl Street came before the Homer Town Council at
Monday night’s regular meeting.
Icyphene
Conwright, a resident of Pearl Street, came before the council addressing the
high crime rate in her neighborhood, particularly a drive-by shooting on
Sunday, November 2.
“I’m
sure you all know about the drive-by shooting that happened last evening,” she
said, “and I want to know what you all are doing about stuff like this. There’s
too much of this stuff going on down there, and the people that come in there
don’t live there.
“We got
crime over there, and ya’ll know about it, but you don’t do anything,” she
continued. “I don’t understand what’s going on. It’s a shame that street in
this little town is being done and nobody is doing anything about it.”
The
incident occurred Sunday evening when Homer Police were dispatched to Pearl Street in reference to gunshots. Upon officers’ arrival, several witnesses were
questioned and the names of those responsible for the crime were obtained.
Kendrick
Jones was arrested and charged with accessory after the fact. Jones was later
released. Jimmy Taylor, 18, of Homer, was also arrested and charged with
accessory after the fact and simple possession of Schedule I Controlled
Dangerous Substance (CDS). Bond for Taylor was set $500 on each charge.
Rickey
Noles was named as a suspect and is currently being sought by police in
connection with this crime. He is being charged with discharging dangerous
instrumentalities. A warrant for his arrest has been issued, and police are
urging anyone with any information as to his whereabouts to call the department
at 927-4000.
Officers Van McDaniel and Roger
Smith responded to the scene and are currently heading up the investigation.
Police
Chief Russell Mills answered her questions, saying that numerous arrests have
been made on Pearl Street and that officers are in that area a great deal.
“Eighty-five
(85) percent of the crime on Pearl Street is by juveniles,” he said. “When we
get over there to a call of shots fired – which is almost every weekend – we
come in the back way. When we get there, there’s no shooting and nobody knows
anything. I understand your concern.”
Recently,
there have been two shootings in the Pearl Street area, Mills said. One was
arrested and he bonded out, while the other suspect is nowhere to be found.
In a
short interview after the meeting, Mills said he understands Conwright’s
concern, that she is worried about the safety and well-being of those that do
live in that area. The problem is, there is never enough information given to
give police to go on, and it’s going to take community involvement to
drastically reduce the crime rate.
“It’s
going to take community involvement to deter crime on Pearl Street, and it’s up
to them (the residents) as to how much they want to get involved,” Mills said.
“A little information on the suspects would go a long way. I respect that they
want to keep their anonymity, but the community has got to get more involved.”
Conwright also addressed the
lack of a center line on Martin Luther King Street, saying that it’s a busy
street.
“People
drive down the center of the street all the time, and this has been going on
for some time,” she said. “I have mentioned it to several people and they’ve
done nothing. What’s going on with this street, and why can’t they get it
right?”
District
2 Councilman Michael Wade addressed the issue, saying that before he took
office as a councilman, MLK Drive had been an issue. The street was overlaid,
basically just blacktopped.
“We
have a plan to get this straight,” Wade said.
Wade
said when he asked about the issue, he was told the former mayor had told them
to just blacktop it.
“They
blacktopped it, covering the manholes and everything,” Wade said. “We are going
to get it re-striped. We talked to a company out of Monroe.”
Homer
Mayor David Newell said there were also other issues with the street as well.
The road was never properly overlaid and the asphalt is unevenly distributed.
“I’m
looking into what we can do to fix the road,” Newell said. “If you stripe it
right now before we fix the road, we’re going to be re-striping it again when
we fix it.”
According
to Conwright, it has been three years since the issue was brought to light, and
she feels that nothing is being done on that side of town.
In a
separate issue, Tara Cooper, of Homer, addressed the council in regards a car
show. Cooper, who plans car shows and other events, said she followed the chain
of command regarding the rules and regulations of the town and police when a
car show was held in Mayfield Park a few years ago. But, there was a problem
with the music that was played at the show, with complaints of lewd lyrics and
excessive volume.
“Whatever
the chief said do, I did,” she said. “The lyrics were clean, and we were
keeping it to a minimum. I did what he said do.”
She
said when she approached the right avenues, she was told twice that she could
not hold the car show again, so, she came before the town and filled out an
application for a permit to hold the show. She got the permit, but when she
approached Mills in regards to security, he told her no.
A
petition on Hill Street was circulated to get them to allow her to hold the
show, she said.
“They
didn’t have a problem with it,” she said.
Mills
said he’d gotten several calls in reference to the show that was held.
Complaints he received included residents were not able to sleep and calls that
the music was too loud.
“The
city didn’t shut it down until the sheriff’s department came and shut it down,”
the chief said. “The music was vulgar, and I told them when they first got
there not to park inside the park, but there were so many cars there, they had
to park in there. When the event was over, it was bottle-necked in there.”
No one
could get in or out, he said. Fights broke out between juveniles. One of his
officers was also hit in the incident.
“It was
total chaos and mass confusion after the event was over,” Mills said. “Once the
event was over, the park was riddled with beer cans and whiskey bottles. Sacks
that appeared to contain marijuana were there. You could smell it in the air.”
Cooper
interrupted, saying she paid the police department in order to provide
security. She paid them to police the area and prevent the activities that took
place.
Bennie
Holyfield, who attended the meeting, spoke up and suggested that an ordinance
be written to address loud music. The Town of Homer does have the ordinance,
Ordinance 802. In “Article V. Excessive Noise From Vehicles, Section (a)” it
plainly states that “no person may operate or occupy a motor vehicle on a
street, highway, alley, parking lot or driveway when the sound emanating from
the sound system of the vehicle is plainly audible at a distance of twenty-five
(25) feet or more from the vehicle.”
However,
Section (b) says that it does not apply to noise devices, bands or other
musical devices used in public parade or procession which has been authorized
by the Town of Homer or the Parish of Claiborne, or to vehicles owned and
operated by the Town of Homer or the Parish of Claiborne for public safety
purposes.”
Penalties
include a fine of up to $500 and/or jail time for a term of up to 30 days for
each offense.
Mills,
Cooper and Newell were expected to meet later to resolve the issue.
In other council news:
- Council passed motion to sell 1971
Mack Fire truck, owned by the Homer Fire Department, for $3,500. The truck
was sold to Yancey Volunteer Fire Department. Because the truck was sold
to a fellow governmental entity, it did not have to go out for public bid.
- Homer Mayor David Newell recommended
the town hire a full time or part time employee to help alleviate the
workload for the property tax and occupational license period. Newell said
that because it is tax time, the additional help was needed. Toney Johnson
made a motion to put the issue on the floor to discuss it. No second was
given so the issue died on the floor. Newell’s intention is to hire a
part-time employee to help during tax time, saying that if the council did
not do anything, he would because that’s what has to be done.
Suspect arrested on 5 counts of battery
The Guardian-Journal
A Homer
man was arrested after racking up several battery charges.
O’Brian
Shelmon, 20, was charged with two counts of domestic abuse battery, with bond
set at $5,000 each; two counts of battery of a police officer, with bond set at
$5,000 each; resisting an officer, with bond set at $1,000; aggravated battery,
with bond set at $20,000; and disturbing the peace, with bond set at $1,000.
According
to reports, Homer Police received a call to Fannin Street requesting police
officers, saying that her nephew and husband were fighting. Officers J.D.
Faulkner and Mike Rayburn responded to the scene, and upon arrival, the
complainant was holding her side and said Shelmon had hit her.
At the
time of officers’ arrival, Shelmon reportedly locked himself in his room.
Officers forced the door open and advised him of his arrest. The suspect became
combative to the point where officers were required to deploy chemical agents.
Shelmon continued to resist when the chemical agent did not work. At that time,
officers had no choice but to tase him. Once they got Shelmon into the patrol
car, he was transported to the Claiborne Parish Detention Center, where he
continued to resist officers, causing him to be tased again. Reports say there
were no injuries to the suspect.
In
another case, Officer John Bailey found himself in a high-speed chase after he
observed a vehicle run a stop sign in the area of West 4th and South Main
Streets on Saturday, November 1.
The
driver, identified as Walter Earl Banks, 50, of Homer, was charged with
improper lane usage, no MVI, disobey stop/yield signs, aggravated flight from
an officer, resisting an officer and simple possession of marijuana. Bond is
yet to be set on each of those charges.
Banks
was clocked going 50 miles per hour in a 20 mile per hour speed zone. The chase
continued, and the suspect finally stopped the vehicle at Hudd Drive, at which
time, he fled on foot. Banks was eventually apprehended by Officer Van
McDaniel.
Upon
his apprehension, it was discovered that Banks had a small bag of what appeared
to be marijuana in his possession. The suspect was taken into custody, booked
at the Homer Police Department and later transported to the Claiborne Parish Detention Center.
In a separate
incident, Ricky D. Stevenson, 35, of Homer, was arrested and charged with
theft. Bond was set at $500.
On
Saturday, November 1, Homer police received a complaint in reference to a
wallet being stolen. The complainant filed a report with police, saying that
Stevenson had stolen his wallet and would not return it.
Officer
Keith Ferguson investigated the matter, going to the store where the wallet was
stolen. He spoke to store personnel and viewed security video of the store.
According to reports, a male can be clearly seen taking the wallet after the
complainant had dropped it.
McDaniel
also viewed the video and recognized the suspect as Stevenson, and the driver
of the car as Demetric Davis. While attempting to locate the two, Davis contacted police and reportedly told them that he did not steal anything but
Stevenson did have a wallet and disposed of it.
Davis was transported to the police department to file a
statement, and Stevenson was later located and transported to the station where
he allegedly admitted to McDaniel during an interview that he was involved with
the incident and returned the wallet.
‘Hills of Homer Christmas Run’ set for
November 29
Local
runners, walkers, athletes and anyone who would like to get up and move a
little, take note: 8 a.m., November 29, at the parking lot behind the police
jury building. That’s the time and place for “The Hills of Homer Christmas
Run.”
Wayne
Hatfield recently announced that various events will be a part of this year’s
run. There will be a 5K and 10K run as well as a “1-Mile Fun Run.”
The 5K
route will proceed from the police jury building parking lot up South Main to West 6th Street. Runners will then head south (left off of South Main) to Dutchtown Road and follow the curve to the right up to Torbet Drive. They will continue
north (go to the right off of Dutchtown Road) on Torbet on up to North Main. This will put them just west of the high school. They continue east on North
Main a piece, then back north onto Edgewood Drive and continue down to Beverly
Drive where they will follow its loop back to Edgewood. Back on Edgewood, participants will go to East College Street and in front of Homer Memorial Hospital back to North Main. They will follow North Main back to the 5K finish at the
original parking lot while 10K runners will continue and complete the same
course again.
“Everyone
is looking forward to another great time,” said Hatfield. “Sign up early. There
are several advantages. Those who pre-register will have their t-shirt for the
race instead of the shirt being mailed later. Early registrants also save money
because it’s only $15 if you pre-register but $20 if you wait until the day of
the run.”
Hatfield
added that people can go to the calendar at the following
website, http://sportspectrumusa.com/ to pre-register online.
Boys and Girls Clubs of Claiborne makes
request
of Mayfield Alumni Association due to
funding losses
JENNI WILLIAMS, The Guardian-Journal
Arthur
Stegall, Executive Director of the Claiborne Boys and Girls Clubs, requested
$21,000 from the Mayfield Alumni Association at a recent special called meeting
of the executive committee of the club.
This
request is following the recent loss of funding that the Boys and Girls Club
usually receives from the state.
In the
2008 year, this funding cut has really crippled the efforts to serve the
parish’s youth. These monies requested would cover the critical operating needs
of the organization for the month of November.
The
Boys and Girls Club of Claiborne typically gets the second most funding of all
of the clubs in the state, said Chet Nichols, regional service director of the
Boys and Girls Club of America.
“The
beautiful thing of it is that we have the support from the national and
regional organization. I see a typical Boys and Girls Club that needs a little
TLC. There are some great people on this board, but we need about 20 more of
them,” said Stegall.
Stegall
is a very important part of the support system for the Claiborne clubs. He has
31 years of experience with the Boys and Girls Clubs.
He
eventually became executive director in Dallas, where he lived for 28 years
after which he relocated to the Homer area, where is wife is originally from.
“The
children in Louisiana should be getting the quality programs they deserve,”
Stegall continued. “I think the community needs to embrace and really take
ownership of it. It is truly a value that the Town of Homer has in its Boys and
Girls Club.”
Nichols said, “We consider the
Claiborne Boys and Girls Club a true partner because they do so much for the
kids here. The true work is done by them here. It’s so important that the
community understand how vital the Boys and Girls Club is.”
Nichols looks forward to
continuing to work with the organization as it strives to be a leader in Youth
Development in the Homer, Haynesville and Minden communities. He believes it is
critical that this organization concentrate on bringing local dollars to the
budget.
A
considerable portion of any club’s resources depends on charitable
contributions from individuals, corporations, foundations and other sources, as
well as special event proceeds.
One of
the board’s responsibilities is to ensure that the clubs has the resources
needed to address its mission. These responsibilities are encompassed under
three broad headings.
Resource
acquisition - to influence and access resources in the community on behalf of
the Boys and Girls Club, making a personal annual gift and/or encouraging
others to do so and actively participating in organized fundraising campaigns
and events;
Fundraising
planning - to work with the resource development committee (or other
fundraising committee) to plan, approve, support, critique, and participate in
the creation and implementation of the Club’s resource development plan; and
Hiring
chief professional officer - employing someone with the prospensity and/or
skills to: plan, involve, conduct, manage and evaluate resource development
activities and to hire other professional staff with appropriate fundraising
skills.
To make
a donation, please call the Homer unit at 927-2718.
Flu vaccine available at health unit
The flu
vaccine is now available at the Claiborne Parish Health Unit.
Groups
eligible to receive influenza vaccines through the health unit are as follows:
• All
children from 6 months up to 18 years of age
•
Pregnant women
•
Anyone 50 years of age or older
•
Anyone with long-term health problems with heart disease, lung disease, asthma,
kidney disease, diabetes, anemia and other blood disorders, muscle or nerve
disorders, weakened immune system.
Flu
shots will be offered on a daily basis from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Claiborne Parish Health Unit, located at 624 West Main Street in Homer.
People
are asked to bring their Medicaid/Medicare cards for billing purposes. For
those who are not covered by these programs, there is a $10 administrative fee.
For more information, please call the local health unit at 927-6127.
