Treadway pleads guilty to theft
The Guardian-Journal
The
former employee of a Claiborne Parish business pled guilty to theft Friday and
was sentenced to probation and pay full restitution.
Melody
Kelley Treadway, 42, of Quitman, pled guilty to two misdemeanor counts of theft
and was ordered to pay a fine of $500 plus court costs no later than December
6, or serve 60 days in jail. She was also ordered by Second Judicial District
Judge Jenifer Clason to serve six months in jail, consecutive, which was
suspended with Treadway placed on unsupervised probation for 18 months. She
must also pay restitution.
In
2009, Treadway was arrested by Louisiana State Police for felony theft over
$500, after her employer discovered she’d embezzled several thousands of
dollars from the company before resigning. Bond at the time of her arrest was
set at $10,000.
According
to records, investigators went back at least three years where they found
several discrepancies in the accounting books of the company. Records indicate
that she’d been employed with them since 1998.
“We’d
prepared to take this to trial in September,” Prosecutor Jim Hatch said. “Her
attorney offered for her to pay restitution immediately. She was offered a felony
where her record could be cleansed, but instead, she pled to the two
misdemeanors which would not be cleansed.”
After
consulting with the victim and the district attorney, they all agreed it would
be best to accept her plea deal in order to resolve the matter without the
additional time and expenses required for trial preparation.
“We had
a sound case, but it would have required a good bit of time to present,” Hatch
said.
Homer man arrested in stabbing
The Guardian-Journal
A Homer
man has been arrested for second degree aggravated battery after he reportedly
stabbed his girlfriend.
According
to Homer Police, Captain Donald Malray and Officer Frank Evans were dispatched
to 500 block of Armory Drive in reference to a stabbing. When officers arrived,
the victim informed them that Carros Burns, 44, of Homer, had stabbed her in
the back.
According
to reports, police had been dispatched to that same location earlier involving
Burns and the victim. Police say the victim told them that Burns wanted to
speak with her but she refused. He then reportedly left the scene and came back
with an object in his hand which was apparently used to cause the victim’s
injuries.
Pafford
Ambulance Service was called to the scene, but the victim refused to be
transported to a hospital. While Officer Evans continued to work the scene,
Burns drove up, at which time he was placed under arrest.
He was
charged with second degree aggravated battery with bond set at $2,000. He was
transported to the Homer Police Station for booking and then transported to the
Claiborne Parish Detention Center.
FBC Haynesville to host 9/11 program
The Guardian-Journal
Ten
years ago, the U.S. was hit at its core. On September 11, 2001, one of the
nation’s greatest tragedies showed the compassion and true grit of the American
people.
The
World Trade Center’s twin towers fell after two planes were hijacked and
crashed into the New York City skyscrapers. Another plane hit the Pentagon in
Washington D.C., killing more than 100 people. However, the last flight,
possibly meant for the White House or the U.S. Capitol, was overtaken by its
passengers, who averted another attack on American soil, crashing United Flight
93 into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
And it
is on Sunday, September 11, 2011, that First Baptist Church in Haynesville will
host a commemorative service to remember those lost that tragic day and to
honor those who rushed in head first while everyone else was rushing out.
Honoring local law enforcement, firefighters, emergency personnel and others,
the program will be set to commemorate our public servants.
Dr.
Sterling Claypoole, formerly of Haynesville, will be the guest speaker for the
event, which begins at 2:30 p.m.
Claypoole
is a native of El Dorado, Arkansas, and a graduate of El Dorado High School. He
graduated from South Ark Community College and Southern Arkansas University
with a degree in psychology. He continued his education in Texas, where he
graduated from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary with two master’s
degrees in religious education and counseling.
Recently,
Sterling completed a doctorate of educational ministry at Southwestern Baptist
Theological Seminary with an educational leadership concentration. In his
counseling training, Sterling is a certified trauma service specialist (CTSS),
a certified trauma responder (CTR) with the Association of Traumatic Stress
Specialists, a trained trainer for the International Critical Incident Stress
Foundation as well as a professional trauma counselor in the State of Arkansas.
Sterling
holds current memberships in the International Conference of Police Chaplains
and Federation of Fire Chaplains. He has worked as a professional firefighter
and police officer in both Louisiana and Arkansas. Some of the deployments as a
chaplain include Baton Rouge/New Orleans (Hurricanes Katrina and Rita), Gulf
Shores (Hurricane Ivan), Stuttgart, Ark. (tornado), Dumas, Ark. (tornado),
Enterprise, Ala. (tornado), Bossier City/Benton (tornado), Oklahoma City/Norman
(tornado) and several other departmental deployments across the southern
region.
He has
been married to Jennifer Carter Claypoole for 18 years and they have two little
men, Brennan, age 13, and Bradley, age 8.
Sterling
is a faculty member at South Arkansas Community College as the psychology instructor
and serves as the team leader for Project SOUTH (military-veterans service
program), the Senior Crisis Chaplain for the City of El Dorado Fire and Police
Departments, Union County Sheriff’s Office, ProMed Ambulance Service of El
Dorado and is senior chaplain for the United States Marshal Service for the
State of Arkansas.
Look to
next week’s of The Guardian-Journal for more details on the events of
the program. The commemorative program will be held at 2:30 p.m., Sunday,
September 11, at First Baptist Church in Haynesville. For more information,
please call the church at 318-624-0214.
FBC Homer to host 9/11 program September
8
The Guardian-Journal
First
Baptist Church in Homer will host a fish fry and remembrance service for all
firefighters, law enforcement and emergency personnel on Thursday, September 8.
In
remembrance of the tragic loss of life on that fateful day, September 11, 2001,
and in honor of those who died trying to save lives, the church will host a
program to remember the 10th anniversary of loss, love and hope.
The
featured speaker will be J. Durell Tuberville, who has been involved in trauma
recovery since 1989 and currently serves as a chaplain for the Caddo Parish
Sheriff’s Office.
Durell
also serves as the staff counselor for Shreveport Community Church, mental
health director of Castaway Ministries and Eagle Creek Recovery Center,
president of Personal Solutions, Inc., a not for profit human services
organization dedicated to family recovery, trauma recovery, crisis intervention,
grief counseling and employee assistance.
Tuberville
holds a Ph.D. in human services counseling, has a master’s degree in general
counseling, is a licensed professional counselor, licensed marriage and family
therapist and is certified as a board certified clinical psychotherapist. He is
also a certified trauma specialist, board certified expert in traumatic stress
and clinically certified forensic counselor and clinically certified sex
offender treatment specialist.
Durell
is president of Trinity Mediation Associates, LLC and is a Louisiana qualified
Mediator on the Basic and Advanced Level. He has served as the keynote speaker
for many organizations nationally and locally over the past 20 years.
He is
married to Susan, a retired educator. Susan and Durell have been married since
May 21, 1977, and have two sons, Josh and his wife Claleigh with their two sons
Cash and Creed, and Dustin and his wife Lindsey with their sons Jackson,
Tristan and Eli.
There
is no cost for the event, and the public is invited. The event will be held at
6:30 p.m. at the church’s family life center.
A look at a full October ballot
The Guardian-Journal
As
Voter Education Week winds down, the October 22 election is approaching fast.
With
qualifying beginning in September, several items will be on the ballot,
including five proposed amendments. They are as follows and listed on the
Louisiana Secretary of State’s website:
Proposed
Amendment No. 1
Act No.
423 -- Senate Bill No. 53, Regular Session, 2011
To
dedicate funds for the TOPS program relative to the portion of the monies
deposited in and credited to the Millennium Trust each year from the Tobacco
Master Settlement, to provide that once the balance in the Millennium Trust
reaches a total of one billion three hundred eighty million dollars, one
hundred percent of the annual Settlement Proceeds shall be allocated to the
TOPS Fund to support state programs of financial assistance for students
attending Louisiana postsecondary education institutions; to provide relative
to the rate of tax on certain tobacco products and beginning July 1, 2012, to
dedicate such tobacco revenues to the Health Excellence Fund to be used for the
purposes of appropriate health care and providing health care initiatives
through innovation in advanced health care sciences; to provide for the
deposit, transfer or credit of certain monies in the Millennium Trust to the
Health Excellence Fund, the Education Excellence Fund, and the TOPS Fund.
(Amends Article VII, Section 10.8(A)(1)(c), (A)(2), (3), and (4) and (C)(1) and
adds Article VII, Section 4.1)
Proposed
Amendment No. 2
Act No.
422 -- House Bill No. 384, Regular Session, 2011
To
require in Fiscal Years 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 that five percent of money
designated in the official forecast as nonrecurring be applied toward the
balance of the unfunded accrued liability which existed as of June 30, 1988,
for the Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System and the Teachers
Retirement System of Louisiana. To further require that in Fiscal Year
2015-2016 and every fiscal year thereafter that ten percent of such
nonrecurring revenue be applied to such purposes. (Amends Article VII, Section
10(D)(2)(b))
Proposed
Amendment No. 3
Act No.
421 -- House Bill No. 341, Regular Session, 2011
To
authorize the legislature to establish a private custodial fund, designated as
the Patient’s Compensation Fund, for the use, benefit, and protection of
medical malpractice claimants and private health care provider members; to
provide that assets of the fund shall not be state property. (Adds Article XII,
Section 16)
Proposed
Amendment No. 4
Act No.
424 -- Senate Bill No. 147, Regular Session 2011
To
provide that if at any time mineral revenues exceed the base provided by law
and monies are withdrawn from the Budget Stabilization Fund, no deposit of
mineral revenues shall be made to the appropriated or incorporated into the
official forecast, except by specific legislative appropriation, and thereafter
deposits of mineral revenues into the fund shall resume except in an annual
amount not to exceed one-third of the most recent amount appropriated or
incorporated into the official forecast. (Adds Article VII, Section 10.3
(C)(5))
Proposed
Amendment No. 5
Act No.
43 -- House Bill No. 30, First Extraordinary Session, 2011
To
amend provisions relative to tax sales in order to maintain an existing
exemption from the minimum bid requirements for tax sales in the city of New
Orleans due to changes in populations according to the 2010 census. (Amends
Article VII, Section 25(A)(2))
Also on
the ballot in October, are several state and parish positions. They include:
Governor (Incumbent Bobby Jindal), Lieutenant Governor (Incumbent Jay
Dardenne), Secretary of State (appointed Tom Schedler), Attorney General
(Incumbent Buddy Caldwell), Treasurer (Incumbent John Kennedy), Commissioner of
Agriculture (Incumbent Mike Strain), Commissioner of Insurance (Incumbent Jim
Donelon), Board of Elementary and Secondary Education District 4 (Incumbent
Walter Lee of Mansfield), State Senator District 33 (Incumbent Mike Walsworth),
State Senator District 36 (Incumbent Robert Adley), State Representative
District 11 (Incumbent Rick Gallot, outgoing), Sheriff (Incumbent Ken Bailey),
Clerk of Court (Incumbent Patrick Gladney), Assessor (Incumbent Bob Robinson),
Coroner (Incumbent Dr. D.K. Haynes), and all 10 police jury districts.
Incumbents
for the police jury include: District 1 D’Arcy Stevens, District 2 Mark Furlow,
District 3 Bob McDaniel, District 4 Joe Sturges, District 5 Lavelle Penix,
District 6 Scott Davidson, District 7 Roy Lewis, District 8 Roy Mardis,
District 9 Jerry Adkins and District 10 Willie Young.
Also on
the ballot will be a special election for Claiborne Parish School Board
District 5, of which Yolanda Coleman was appointed in the wake of Stanley
Edwards’ retirement.
The
ballot will also include the Claiborne Parish Library’s renewal of the 6.10
property mill tax renewal for constructing, maintaining and operating public
libraries in Claiborne Parish. But, instead of asking for the normal 10-year
renewal, Librarian Pam Suggs is asking for the renewal to be 20 years, which,
if passed, would guarantee a bank loan could be repaid. Suggs said they are
looking into obtaining a low interest bank loan for expansions to the library,
and while they have some money put back, it simply isn’t enough.
The
proposition reads as follows:
PROPOSITION
(TAX
RENEWAL)
Summary:
20 year 6.10 mills property tax renewal for constructing, maintaining and
operating public libraries in Claiborne Parish.
Shall
the Parish of Claiborne, State of Louisiana (the “Parish”), continue to levy a
tax of six and ten hundredths (6.10) mills on all the property subject to
taxation in the Parish (an estimated $1,037,000 reasonably expected at this
time to be collected from the levy of the tax for an entire year), for a period
of twenty (20) years, beginning with the year 2016 and ending with the year
2035, for the purpose of constructing, maintaining and operating public
libraries in the Parish?
Qualifying
for all these positions begins September 6-8 from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. and
September 8 from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Early voting for the October 22 election
will be the week of October 8-15 from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., except for Sunday.
For
more information, please call the Claiborne Parish Registrar of Voters office
at 318-927-3332.
Senior Expo slated for September 17
The Guardian-Journal
The
Senior Expo, hosted by the TRIAD Seniors and Law Enforcement working Together
(SALT), will be held Saturday, September 17, at City Hall in Homer, from 8 a.m.
until noon.
Jean
Reynolds, treasurer for the SALT Council, spoke to the Homer Lions Club about
the upcoming seniors’ event. This year’s event consists of several speakers and
vendors that will be participating. Claiborne Parish Sheriff Ken Bailey will
speak to seniors regarding scams. Scott Freeling with Willis Knighton Wellness
Center will have an exercise program and Christian Artist Chris Sherrill will
provide the morning’s entertainment. Also, local attorney Jim Hatch will speak
to seniors about estate planning.
Vendors
participating this year include home health agencies, area nursing homes, Homer
Senior Care, the Registrar of Voters Office, the Social Security
Administration, Pafford EMS, David Raines Community Health Center, Council on
Aging, Hospice and the Department of Health and Hospitals/Medicaid.
“Some
of the vendors provide free health screening checks for the participants,”
Reynolds said. “There is a drawing for door prizes and the day [will be] ended
with a hamburger lunch for everyone.”
SALT
mainly operates on generous donations and area businesses give donations to
help with the senior expo. Some donate prizes and Piggly Wiggly donates all the
trimmings for the hamburgers as well as chips and cookies. Coca-Cola donates
the drinks, Synco Motors donates the coffee and the Claiborne Parish Sheriff’s
Office provides the hamburger patties.
“We
deeply appreciate everyone that helps us with the expo,” Reynolds said. “It is
a fun time for the SALT Council and gives seniors a place to go, to be
informed, entertained and fed.”
TRIAD
is a three-way commitment among the chiefs of police in a parish, the parish
sheriff, senior citizens and community leaders who agree to work together to
improve the quality of life and reduce criminal abuse to the elderly.
Beginning
in 1988, the first local TRIAD was established in St. Martin Parish.
Thereafter, Louisiana’s chiefs of police, sheriffs and the American Association
of Retired Persons signed the first statewide agreement to make the TRIAD
concept a priority. Louisiana was one of the first 14 states to sign an
agreement for TRIAD.
The
SALT Council, a part of TRIAD, is an advisory council of law enforcement
leaders and older persons and/or community leaders who serve as a sounding
board and information channel to reduce crimes against the elderly.
Crime
can involve any age, but there are a few categories that almost always involve
the elderly. Some of those crimes include fraud and scams, purse snatching,
pick pocketing, theft of checks from the mail and crimes in long-term care
settings.
“One
category, elderly abuse, finds all of its victims in the older population,”
Reynolds said. “There are violent crimes, although statistics show that violent
crimes against the elderly are rare; physical harm is feared by many older people.
There are property crimes (theft and vandalism affect individuals of all ages),
but they can be especially distressing for older people.”
She
said that some elderly don’t report crimes or suspicious activities because of
fear of retaliation. Fraud and scams -- loss of money can be critical for
anyone with limited resources, and for some of the elderly, it can be
devastating.
“Unfortunately,
some elderly are taken in by scams,” she said.
And
then there’s elderly abuse. It is generally recognized that much of the elderly
abuse that takes place is vastly unreported. According to some authorities,
Reynolds said, there could be as many as 2.5 million incidents of abuse of
older persons in any given year.
Abuse
can also take the form of self-neglect, which is often the result of diminished
mental or physical ability or social isolation. Cases in this category are
often difficult to identify. Some of those elderly persons, dependent upon
others, are mistreated. They usually indicate feeling unwanted, sad, lonely and
helpless.
“They
often have no one in whom to confide and trust,” she said. “More than
two-thirds of those who mistreat the elderly are members of the victim’s own
family, another pain to be borne by the abused.”
TRIAD
began in Claiborne Parish in 1994; it’s also when the first expo was held at
the Claiborne Parish Fair Complex. At that time, it was called a health fair
instead of the senior expo.
Reynolds
indicated that she became a member in July 1998, and was elected
secretary/treasurer. The local SALT Council in Claiborne Parish offers a
variety of services including a calling system which automatically calls senior
citizens every morning at a specific time. If there is no answer, a form is
printed out which contains the name, address and emergency contact of the
senior citizen. The sheriff’s office will then call the emergency contact, and
if told the senior citizen should be at home, a sheriff’s deputy is sent to the
home to check on him or her.
Also,
free smoke alarms are available to seniors. For those who need one, they can
call the sheriff’s office and one will be delivered to them.
Don’t
forget the Senior Expo on Saturday, September 17, from 8 a.m. until noon at
Homer City Hall.
Traffic stop nets drug arrest
The Guardian-Journal
A Homer
man ended up in handcuffs after a traffic stop yielded the seizure of drugs.
Joshua
J. Knowles, 22, of Homer, was arrested by the Claiborne Parish Sheriff’s Office
and charged with no license plate light with bond set at $500 and simple
possession of marijuana with bond set at $500, for a total bond of $1,000.
According
to a news release from the sheriff’s office, on Saturday, August 27, Deputy
Aaron Christian was on patrol in the Athens area when he observed a blue
Cadillac northbound on La. Hwy. 9. Christian observed an equipment violation on
this vehicle and initiated a traffic stop.
Upon
contact with the driver, identified as Knowles, Christian detected the odor of
marijuana emitting from the interior of the vehicle. Knowles was then asked to
exit the vehicle and if he had any weapons or illegal narcotics on his person.
A frisk
of Knowles’ person was then conducted for officer safety. Christian then
utilized his K-9 partner, Rico, and conducted an exterior search of the
vehicle. During the search, Rico gave a positive alert for the presence of
narcotic odor on the driver’s side door.
This
alert led to a search of the vehicle and the seizure of suspected marijuana
from the center console.
Knowles
was placed under arrest and transported to the Claiborne Parish Detention
Center where he was booked on the above charges.
Sheriff: ‘Be safe and buckle up’
The Guardian-Journal
Summer’s
wrapping up and this weekend is Labor Day weekend.
Claiborne
Parish Sheriff Ken Bailey is asking everyone to be safe as they make their last
vacation trips or spend their last “summer” weekend on the water.
“This
is unofficially the last weekend of summer,” Bailey said, “and we’re going to
be out in force. Be safe and buckle up. We want everybody to be safe and get to
where they’re going.”
The
sheriff’s office as well as Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Law Enforcement
Agents will also be out on the water this weekend at Lake Claiborne.
“We
want everyone to be aware that the same rules that apply to the road apply to
the water,” Bailey said.
They
will be out in force watching for drunk drivers and making sure everyone has a
safe weekend.
According
to the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission, two people were killed in crashes
over the Labor Day holiday in 2010, the lowest number for that holiday period
in Louisiana in many years. In 2009, 11 people were killed in Louisiana, and
four were killed in 2008. In 2007, 20 people were killed in Louisiana over the
Labor Day weekend.
Louisiana
is participating in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s new
“Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign designed to reduce deaths and
injuries caused by impaired drivers.
Last
year, the state’s highway safety efforts included the largest-ever “no refusal”
crackdown, a program that greatly reduces the number of DWI suspects who refuse
to take a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) test.
Louisiana
State Police Superintendent Mike Edmonson said his troopers will be highly
active throughout the holiday enforcement effort.
“Law
enforcement visibility will highlight our enforcement efforts for the upcoming
Labor Day weekend, especially during the high risk evening hours when impaired
drivers are most likely to be on the road,” Edmonson said. “This year’s slogan
sums it up -- Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over. Through proactive enforcement,
education and partnerships, we are committed to ensuring a safe holiday weekend
for the citizens of Louisiana.”
Impaired
driving is a year-round problem in Louisiana and across the nation. Last year,
42 percent of the people killed in Louisiana crashes were involved in
alcohol-related incidents. Nationwide, one person is killed every 48 minutes in
an alcohol-related crash.
