(Editor’s Note: After this story published in the
December 18 edition of The Guardian-Journal, the case took a sharp turn. Don’t
forget to pick up your copy next week for details.)
Homer FBC broken into Monday
Suspect captured within hours
The Guardian-Journal
A
Canadian citizen is behind bars after Homer Police captured him within hours of
a burglary at First Baptist Church in Homer.
Christopher
A. Weinbender, 38, of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada, was arrested and charged
with simple burglary of a religious building. No bond was set.
At
approximately 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, Homer Police was dispatched to the church in
reference to the burglary. Officer Van McDaniel and Captain Donald Malray
responded to the call, where church officials showed them the site of the
burglary. A small safe had been removed from a desk and opened. It was also
noted the burglar had been through other rooms as well.
Later,
at approximately 7:30 a.m., the pastor of the church went to the police station
and reported that some cash had been taken. One of the church members told
police that she remembered a man who took a tour of the church the day before,
stating that he was looking for a church home. According to police, a
description of the man’s vehicle was given, which was described as a red truck.
Officer
Mike Rayburn took the description and searched the area for a red truck. He
soon discovered a red step-side Chrevrolet pickup at a local motel with Canadian
license plates. Those plates were run through the National Criminal Information
Center (NCIC) and it came back stolen.
Management
at the motel provided a room number, at which time, officers knocked on the
door and identified themselves. Chief Russell Mills, Rayburn, McDaniel and
Officer J.D. Faulkner entered the room and advised the man – identified as
Weinbender– as to why they were there.
“We
told Mr. Weinbender that he was a suspect in the burglary of Homer First Baptist Church,” Mills said, “at which time he admitted his involvement.”
When
asked why he would steal from a church, no viable reason was given. He also
never explained his reasons for being in Homer, police said.
During
the investigation, a backpack as well as other items were taken into evidence.
A backpack was found to contain items consistent with a burglary. Screwdrivers,
tools, a ski mask, gloves and other items were found in the backpack. A bee-bee
gun was also found. Items recovered from the motel room were an undetermined amount
of cash and checks, a laptop computer and a camcorder.
When
Mills contacted Canadian authorities, it was discovered that Weinbender, who
was on probation, had previously reported his own truck stolen because he was
leaving Canada illegally.
According
to Canadian authorities, Mills said, Weinbender does not have a lengthy
criminal record. In fact, he has no real criminal history, just a few traffic
violations.
If
convicted of this crime, Weinbender faces up to a $2,000 fine and can be
imprisoned with or without hard labor for not less than two years nor more than
12 years.
According to Revised Statute
14:62.6 of the criminal code, “At least two years of the sentence of
imprisonment shall be imposed without benefit of probation, parole or
suspension of sentence.”
He was
booked at the Homer Police Station and transported to the Claiborne Parish Detention Center where he remains incarcerated.
HYR sentencing postponed
JANA RYAN, Special to The
Guardian-Journal
Sentencing
for three men found guilty of negligent homicide and cruelty to a juvenile,
which contributed to the death of Hope Youth Ranch resident Alex Harris, has
been postponed until next year.
Former
Hope Youth Ranch employees Kelton Greenard of Minden, Arthur Henderson II of Cotton Valley and Anthony Combs of Homer waived their rights to a jury trial. On October
15, following three days of testimony, District Court Judge Parker Self found
all three guilty of the above charges.
On the
day the verdict was handed down, Self ordered a pre-sentence investigation,
with sentencing set for Monday. However, as the pre-sentence investigation is
not yet complete, Self granted a motion to postpone sentencing until January
26.
Throughout
the trial, testimony revealed that on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2005, Harris, a resident of the residential treatment facility for boys, was ordered to serve
in-school suspension — a form of punishment that involves performing outdoor
chores. During the morning hours, Harris was ordered to mow grass. Afterwards,
he was made to run a pipeline — an activity not authorized by the
facility.
Testimony
revealed that during the run, Harris began to experience symptoms of
environmental hyperthermia — heat stroke.
Harris’ symptoms worsened
throughout the day as no staff or those in supervisory positions offered the
boy any assistance.
On the
day of Harris’ death, Greenard and Combs were in charge of the afternoon work
detail. The third defendant, Henderson, visited the work site with Supervisor
Willis Doyle.
This story was reprinted with permission from the Minden Press-Herald.
DWCC inmates contribute to needy
children
The Guardian-Journal
Children
who receive little or nothing at Christmas were the focus of a program Thursday
afternoon, December 11, at David Wade Correction Center (DWCC). Collecting
donations from the offenders’ population and from six other DWCC self-help
organizations, the Lifers Association and Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics
Anonymous (AA/NA) came together to purchase toys for the Toys for Tots program.
DWCC employees also donated toys to the drive.
From
the proceeds of selling birdhouses to the public, the Lifers Association also
donated several hundred dollars to buy toys for Hope Youth Ranch and to buy
basketball goals for the Boys and Girls Club.
With
the support of DWCC administration, the Lifers and AA/NA also took on restoring
more than 100 used bicycles for the Boys and Girls Club in the parish. Bicycle
donations from DWCC staff, Grambling University, and the public allowed the
Lifers and AA/NA to restore and donate 15 bicycles to the Homer and Haynesville
Boys and Girls Club units.
Self-help
organizations at DWCC provide opportunities for inmates to make amends for past
actions in accordance with the mission of the Louisiana Department of
Corrections which includes the following “Opportunity for Making Amends”
statement: “Through the availability of opportunities for making restitution
and participating in community restorative initiatives, offenders will be
provided a mechanism to compensate individuals and communities harmed by
crime.”
With
that in mind, the Lifers and AA/NA donated hundreds of dollars in toys. Marine
Staff Sgt. Matthew Golden accepted toys for Toys for Tots.
Chris Haynes welcomed toys on
behalf of youngsters at Hope Youth Ranch.
Tom Hawkins, Linda Beene, and
Doris Lewis were delighted to receive bicycles and basketball goals for the
local Boys and Girls Club units.
Sylvia
McIntyre expressed gratitude for coat racks donated to the Philadelphia Center.
Concluding
the program, Deborah Cody, Lifers staff sponsor, and Bernardo Vasquez, Lifers
President, affirmed the determination of everyone involved in these programs to
continue to help children in need. They also conveyed their appreciation to the
inmate population, DWCC staff, and community residents for their support and
donations.
Election results certified, Fleming win
now official
The Guardian-Journal
The
results from Saturday’s election have now been certified, which means Webster
Parish native Dr. John Fleming’s victory over opponent Paul Carmouche is now
official.
After
Saturday’s election, Carmouche called for a recount because some of the paper
ballots had not been counted.
According
to a press release from Fleming’s campaign, the congressman-elect defeated
Carmouche with 44,501 votes to Carmouches 44,151 votes.
“This
has been a tough, hard fought campaign and I thank the people who have put
their trust in me. I will work hard everyday to continue to keep their
trust and earn the support of those who didn’t vote for me in this
election. I intend to be a Congressman for every citizen in the 4th
Congressional District,” said Fleming. “I also want to thank Mr.
Carmouche. He has been a public servant for 30 years and should be
thanked by the people of Caddo Parish for his service. I wish him well in
all of his future endeavors and look forward to working with him to better Northwest Louisiana.”
Carmouche
said if the results were still roughly the same as the unofficial results, he
would retire to a private law practice with his cousin, Don Carmouche.
“Of
more than 92,000 votes cast throughout the 13 parishes of this district, it
appears that our campaign has fallen slightly short,” Carmouche said in
published reports. “I will not ask for a recount of any of the paper ballots,
and I offer my warmest congratulations to Dr. Fleming.
“Over
the past 10 months, I enjoyed getting out every day and listening to and
talking to the people of this area,” he continued. “It has been the highest
honor to serve as the Caddo Parish district attorney for the past three
decades. And I look forward to exploring ways in which I may be of continued
service to this great community.”
Fleming
will be sworn into Congress on January 6.
CPSB postpones NAACP concerns
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
The
Claiborne Parish School Board and the NAACP locked horns at Thursday night’s
regular meeting, but it wasn’t about the concerns they had.
The
issue came down to school board policy and open meetings laws. The NAACP
gathered in force to address the school board about some concerns they had, but
due to some miscommunication or bad advice, those concerns were never
addressed.
Billy
Kirk, president of the local chapter of the NAACP, and the Rev. Willie Young
approached the podium to speak, but before they could, School Board President
William Maddox stopped them. He explained that before they could address the
board, Superintendent Wayne King was supposed to have something in writing
stating what their concerns were.
Young
countered that the group was on the agenda, saying they should be able to
speak.
He said
that once the agenda has been posted, by law, the board must carry through with
the agenda, and he claims they did not do this. The only way not to discuss it
is if the board votes to take the item off the agenda, which they did not do.
According
to law, open meetings laws supercedes school board policy. On the other side of
that, the school board did stay within its legal rights by postponing the item
until January’s meeting.
Maddox
referred back to the policy, saying the board did not know the subject matter.
A copy of the school board’s policy was obtained by The Guardian-Journal, and
in reference to how to be placed on the agenda, it reads in its entirety as
follows.
“All
delegations or individuals who wish to appear before the School Board and place
an item on the agenda shall submit their written requests to the Superintendent
at least five (5) working days prior to the meeting date, stating what matters
they wish to take up with the Board and the approximate time such matters
should consume at the meeting. Such items will normally be included on the
agenda of the meeting at which the delegation or individual wishes to appear
before the board. If not submitted on time to be placed on the agenda, the item
will be held over for the next scheduled meeting of the Board. Each delegation
appearing before the Board shall select in advance one (1) person as its
spokesperson and statements shall be presented in a concise manner.”
Young
stated they’d requested several times to meet with King, and a certified letter
containing that request was sent. The letter asked him to meet with a committee
of four people from the NAACP. Young said King refused to meet with them, at
which time, he and others contacted their school board member.
King
agreed to meet with Kirk, and he did say he met with him to discuss some
“issues.”
“I was
really concerned at this time, because I wanted to work it out behind closed
doors,” he said. “Once it was determined that he would not meet with us, then I
asked my school board member, who is Terry Willis, to put us on the agenda.”
King
disagreed with Young about the number of requests made.
“You
came to me and I did what I was supposed to do,” King said to Young in the
meeting. “I opened the door, and that door is still open for you to come talk
to me at any time.”
Kirk
stepped in to say that he did meet with the superintendent, but he was not made
aware of the policy.
“I
talked to my school board member, and I was going to write that statement
within five days and turn it in, and he told me not to do it,” Kirk said. “I
had this typed up – I have it here – and I showed this to Mr. Willis and he
told me that I did not have to do that.”
Tara
Jackson, a concerned parent who has children in the Claiborne Parish School
system, spoke up asking why Kirk and Young were not allowed to speak and why
Willis didn’t know the procedure for being placed on the agenda.
“If he
is a member of the school board and that policy is in place, and someone has
contacted him, he should know what his duties are,” Jackson said. “He should be
aware of the policy. We should not make it all the way here tonight and not be
able to speak when we’re on the agenda.”
The
problem is not just whether Willis did or did not follow procedure. Some of the
school board members even admitted they weren’t aware of this procedure.
The
school board had the option of amending the agenda, with a unanimous vote, to
reflect the concerns of the NAACP, but no motion was made to that effect. There
were other options as well, but the board – well within their legal rights –
chose to postpone the matter until January’s regularly scheduled monthly
meeting. This way, the board would be fully aware of what the concerns are and
are better prepared to answer any of their questions.
Another
reason this issue was postponed was because Willis was not present to defend
his actions.
Kirk
confirmed that this issue will be placed on the agenda, as policy states, for
the January meeting.
CPPJ, pipeline company reach agreement
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
The
Claiborne Parish Police Jury and Mineral Ventures Inc. have reached an
agreement to fix a problem that also raised internal control issues within the
office of the police jury.
In
November’s police jury meeting, Scott Davidson, of District 6, brought to the
table an issue regarding the Fomby Road right-of-way. The company ran a gas
pipeline in the center of the ditch in that area, but they’d been instructed to
run it parallel to the right-of-way on the back slope of the ditch.
Representatives
from Mineral Ventures met with Davidson and Police Jury Secretary/Treasurer
Dwayne Woodard recently to come up with a solution everyone would be happy
with.
“We had
a good discussion, and we came to a resolution,” Davidson said, “that they
would have the line moved by September 1, 2009. Our concern was not immediate
problems with the line; our concern was problems down the road.”
The
police jury voted to have a resolution drawn up stating an agreement of the
terms discussed, and Woodard is expected to get in touch with them to that
effect.
Signs
are also going up every 25 feet where the line is until the line can be moved,
said Road Superintendent Tommy Durrett. In fact, the company is going to go all
the way back to the well to ensure the line was properly laid and laid where it
was supposed to be in the first place.
Durrett
noted the company has been very cooperative and very willing to work with them
to get the issue resolved.
Currently,
the police jury does bear some responsibility with the line in the jury’s maintenance
right-of-way.
The
internal control issue regarded the authorization of signing permits. Parish
ordinance says that the road superintendent or his designee has that authority.
According to Woodard, the “designee” is the north or south foreman. After much
discussion within the personnel committee, it was recommended to redesign the
permits issued by the road superintendent to bring it in line with the other
permits issued by the parish.
“We
discovered that there was no place for the applicant to sign on the
application,” Woodard said. “There’s just a place for the road superintendent
or his employee. Technically, we could be binding them to something they never
signed off on.”
The
redesigned permit will be brought before the police jury in January’s regular
monthly meeting for its approval. Also, a list of those authorized to sign
permits will be presented as well. In other words, a list of all permits that
are issued by the police jury will be presented with a list of people who are
authorized to sign what permits, without exception.
In
other news, an error which would have cut some funding to the Christmas
Festival Committee has been corrected. In last month’s meeting, the jury voted
down a request from the committee for annual funding. To correct this error,
the jury voted in December’s meeting to give the Christmas Festival Committee
$1,000, which was the amount given in 2007.
“I made
an error last month and evidently when I pulled up what we gave last year, I
had it on year to date instead of fiscal year, and it was paid after that
date,” Woodard said. “We did donate $1,000 to that cause. I apologize for any
inconvenience – that was solely my fault.”
Doug
Efferson, who is a member of that committee, came before the police jury to
explain what the funding is used for and to give an update on what they have
done so far.
“The
lights on the roof of the courthouse have been there for many, many years, and
they are dry-rotted,” Efferson said. “We used some of the money you (police
jury) gave us last year to hire someone with insurance to climb on that high
roof to replace some of those bulbs.”
This
year, he continued, two strands of lights had to be replaced, and the idea is
to eventually replace much of the lighting with commercial lights. In years
past, cheaper alternatives have been used and it’s just not holding up.
“We
still have three other sides and three other strands that need to be replaced,”
he said. “This wiring is over 10 years old, and you can imagine what kind of
shape it’s in.”
With
this year’s funding, the committee plans to continue to use that money to
replace those wires with commercial bulbs.
Davidson
did comment on the donation, saying that he had no qualms with donating the
money to see the project through, but he did say that the police jury needed to
start reserving its funds and cut funding for nongovernmental entities in the
parish.
“I
don’t think we ought to be funding this stuff,” he said. “I realize that
there’s some benefit to the parish, but I think this stuff should be done through
private donations. I would be perfectly willing to become a donor to the
Christmas Festival and help them with it. I think it’s a good thing, but I just
don’t think it’s something that the jury should be involved in.”
In
personnel matters, the police jury passed a motion to enact a uniform policy
where all parish employees will have to wear a uniform. For instance, office
personnel will wear khaki pants and a polo or button-up shirt in which the
parish logo will be embroidered.
In
other police jury news:
• The
regular meeting date for the police jury has been moved back from January 7 to January 14, 2009 in order to give the police jury more time to study their packets and be
better informed. The holiday schedule was cited for moving the date.
• A
resolution was passed approving the completed compliance questionnaire for the
2008 audit.
• Jimmy
Marsalis and District 3 Police Juror Bob McDaniel have been reappointed to the
Trail Blazer Area Council for 2009.
• Also
two board members – Trudy Walker Clark and Janis Daniels – were reappointed to
the Claiborne Parish Public Library Board of Control. Their appointments are
for a five-year period.
• The
Claiborne Parish Watershed District requested larger office space from the
police jury. It was approved, and their office will be moved from the vault
room, behind the big meeting room, to the office where the Vista worker’s
office space was. The idea is to give the Watershed District enough room to
store all the paperwork associated with it and access to a telephone and
internet, which they did not have in the smaller office.
• Tommy
Durrett also got a raise. According to District 2 Police Juror Mark Furlow,
Durrett had not had a raise in three years. His raise will go into effect with
the 2009 budget.
Homer’s 2009 budget does not pass
Budget to be discussed in December 29
meeting
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
The
Homer Town Council met in a special called meeting Monday to discuss and adopt
its 2009 budget – but it didn’t get passed.
District
3 Councilman Toney Johnson moved to adopt the budget, but there was no second.
Before any discussion could take place though, the council had to make a motion
of some sort to put it on the floor, so a motion was made to discuss it, and it
was seconded.
The
council seemed to have several questions about certain aspects, including
increases in particular areas. For example, retirement benefit expenses have
increased for 2009, which in turn shows an increase on the proposed budget.
According to town attorney Jim Colvin, even though the town may not be able to
afford to pay the increase, they are obligated to do so.
James
Colvin Sr., the town’s financial guru, said the major reason for many of the
increases is simply this – the town has to pay certain things, and the costs of
those have gone up.
Another
reason cited for the change in the budget from previous years is simply the
economy – locally and nationally.
Even
though several things in the budget were explained, District 4 Councilwoman
Carlette Sanford still held reservations about passing it as is.
“I just
want to know that we are being good stewards of the town’s money,” she said.
So,
because of those questions, the council voted to hold another meeting on
Monday, December 29, at 6 p.m. This way, council members will get a chance to
meet with Colvin Sr. individually to discuss any concerns they might have. When
they hold the public hearing, the council will be able to come together and
bring their suggestions to the public and later adopt the budget.
The
town attorney also made it very clear the council must pass the proposed 2009
budget before January 1.
In
other news, the town did vote to renew beer licenses for various businesses in
Homer.
Also on
the agenda was a proposal to increase ticket fines to reflect the cost of state
mandated fees. The state has increased the amount municipalities send in to the
state, which means the Town of Homer will send more of its total traffic fines
received to them. The proposed increase on the agenda is just to reflect the
increase the amount of the fines in order to make up for what would be lost
through the state increase.
Colvin
explained it like this as an example. If Homer collects $300 per year from
traffic fines and the state takes $150, that leaves $150 for the town. If the
state now requires $200 per year, that means the town is losing $50. The
increase in traffic fines would just make up the difference of the increase.
That means if the town increased its traffic fines from $300 to $350 per year,
the town would still get the same amount after the state has taken its share.
This
issue was tabled until the December 29 meeting in order to study it more
closely before making a final decision.
Lisbon Landing improvements coming soon
JENNI WILLIAMS, The Guardian-Journal
The
Claiborne Parish Watershed District held its regular, quarterly meeting at the
Police Jury building on December 11.
Following
much discussion of the use of parish water by the pipeline companies, a
decision was made to appoint a committee of watershed members to look into the matter
of regulating the taking or use of water from streams or lakes in Claiborne
Parish.
The
committee has discovered the lack of state permits needed for companies to come
in and make use of parish water and is in the process of learning how to help
local government regulate water usage. Dr. Robert Haynes, Wayne Kilpatrick and
Alice Stewart were appointed to this committee to look into this matter and
draft a policy.
“It’s
phenomenal that anyone can put down and draw water out from under you and draw
away your water and there is nothing to prevent that in this state,” said
Stewart. “We are really behind in water laws in this state. It’s coming but
it’s not here yet.”
The
committee is also currently working to complete preparations for the permanent
installation of the channel markers on Lake Claiborne. Once complete, the
project could be initiated immediately after receiving the necessary paperwork
from the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. The committee hopes for bids by
the first quarter of 2009.
When
the channel marker project begins, a brigade will be appointed to patrol the
shore line for loose buoys and collect any washed ashore in residents’ yards.
A $910
payment was approved for the survey conducted of Lisbon Landing by Benji Wynn
for the Lisbon Landing project. The board was required to adopt a resolution
before the project can get underway.
The
project proposes the addition of an observation deck, fishing deck, boat pier,
boat rinsing station, restrooms with a septic system, picnic tables and benches
and an asphalt parking area.
Fifty
percent of the funds will be available to be reimbursed if satisfactorily
completed at a cost of $300,000, with half of the expenses covered by the
Claiborne Parish Police Jury and half to federal funding.
The Claiborne
Parish Watershed District does agree to obligate the funds and services
required to make eligible for the Land and Water Conservation fund. Sufficient
funds are currently on hand, and the committee is authorized to apply to the
Louisiana Office of State Parks to seek federal financial assistance and can
take necessary action to complete project.
The
resolution was adopted to obligate the funding from the Land and Water
Conservation Fund Project by a unanimous vote.
The
Below-the-dam project proposal of a larger parking area was discussed and a
further meeting was planned for the month of January with DOTD staff, Scott
Greeson, coordinator of the Lisbon Landing project and LSU AgCenter agent Robin
Bridges to discuss possibilities and available funding from the Land and Water
Conservation Grant funds.
In end
of the year business, the committee approved the 2008 Amended Budget, approved
the Proposed 2009 Budget and set a meeting date of January 22, 2009 at 1 p.m. to consider adopting the 2009 Budget.
An
amendment was approved to eliminate term limits for watershed district
officers. Officers were elected for the 2009 year with Stewart serving as
secretary, Haynes elected vice-chairman and Dr. Philip “Butch” Fincher as
chairman.
In new
business, the Commission has received two requests to use and then discharge a
large volume of water from a tributary of Lake Claiborne to test the integrity
of a pipeline. Each will draw from a single location and then discharge at
several sites.
The
companies have received permission from private property owners. A
representative of the Gulf Crossing Pipeline Company project responded to the
commission’s request for written information with maps and a detailed letter
describing the withdrawal and dewatering operations and the volume of water to
be withdrawn. Twenty-one million gallons of water total were needed, which if
no other water flowed into Lake Claiborne, would lower the lake less than 3/16
of an inch.
The
commission was also contacted by phone by a representative of Mid-Continent
Express Pipeline Company to request a withdrawal of about 7.2 million gallons
of water. Commissioners agreed to approve the application if the information
was similar to the Gulf Crossing information.
The
approval was signed by Fincher and the matter was further discussed and a Water
Use and Discharge Committee was formed to develop a draft policy to cover such
requests in the future.
As
there were no public comments or questions the meeting was adjourned until
January.
