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Daily Corinthian
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Vol. 118, No. 14
• Corinth, Mississippi • 16 pages • 1 section
Grand jury clears police officer BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
A Corinth Police Department officer was cleared of any wrongdoing by the Alcorn County Grand Jury on Tuesday. Officer Bradley Bishop was vindicated in the shooting in which Christopher Lee Burrell,
28, who was shot after pointing a gun at the officer on Jan. 9. “We conducted a thorough investigation of the facts and circumstances of this incident and determined from a totality of the circumstances that Corinth Police Officer, Bradley Bishop, was fully justified in
discharging his service weapon and the other actions he took in responding to this incident,” the Grand Jury said in its report. Bishop had been on routine administrative leave pending the completion of the findings of the Mississippi Bureau of In-
vestigation. Last Thursday, officers went to the Clay Drive residence of Burrell to make a felony arrest involving a home invasion case which occurred on Allen Street. “Officers knocked and announced then told the suspect to come out,” said Corinth Po-
lice Chief David Lancaster. “He told them to come in and the officers said no you come out.” According the the report, Burrell then came to the door and pointed a small caliber pistol at Bishop around 10:15 p.m. Please see OFFICER | 2
Deputy justified in recent shooting he took in responding to this incident.” Names of the two individuals involved in the case were not released by the Alcorn County Sheriff’s Department following the Dec 23 shooting which happened around 8:06 p.m. at 3984 CR 100. According to investigator Tommy Hopkins, after deputies arrived, “shots were fired and a woman was struck in the neck.” “There were shots from both directions,” said Hopkins on Dec. 24. “It’s unclear at this time what happened.” The victim was transferred to the Regional Medical Center (MED) in Memphis following the shooting.
BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
Staff photo by Zack Steen
Corinth Elementary School third grader Emma Kate McGee looks over the contents of the package she received from President Barack Obama with her parents, Kelley and Tim, and little sister Gracie.
Corinth Elementary 3rd grader receives letter from president BY ZACK STEEN zsteen@dailycorinthian.com
Surrounded by her parents, Tim and Kelley, and her little sister Gracie, Emma Kate McGee showed off the letter she had recently received from the White House. She read the aloud the letter with clear pronunciation, looking at her mom for help when she approached a word she couldn’t quite sound out. “Dear student, thank you for writing,” said the nine-year-old. “Our environment and wildlife are among our most precious treasures ...” In November, the third grader at Corinth Elementary School wrote President Barack Obama. Less than two months later, a large manila envelope returned from The White House. The “dear student” letter was personally signed by the president. The letter detailed the coun-
try’s current environmental situation. It stated recycling and reusing paper, plastic, glass and aluminum, as well as turning off lights and unplugging appliances as things that could be done to help the environment. A glossy 8x10 photo signed by the president was included. “The signature was cool, because you could actually tell he signed it,” Tim said, pointing to a smudged mark on the end of Obama’s signature. “It’s definitely not a stamp.” Information and a postcard about the first dog, Bo, was included, as well as a map of the rooms of the White House and a brochure about artwork hanging in the White House. “I think we’re gonna have to go on vacation to D.C. now,” said Tim. “The girls want to see where the president lives.” Early in the school year, Emma Kate’s teacher, Mrs.
Hinton, asked each student to write a fake letter to the president about something they were concerned with. Even though Emma Kate was concerned about pollution and the environment, she had recently studied about “overfishing” in U.S. waters. When asked, what is “overfishing”, Emma Kate quickly answered. “When fisherman catch too much of one fish and it causes other fish to deplete in population,” the clever third grader said. “I’m most concerned about dolphins. If their population gets to low, it would mess up the entire ecosystem.” Dolphins should have the same right to freedom as people, she said. Soon Emma Kate decided to actually mail the letter to WashPlease see MCGEE | 2
Alcorn County Sheriff’s Deputy Scott Dalton has been cleared in a December shooting on Kendrick Road. The Alcorn County Grand Jury determined the deputy was not at fault in a disturbance which left a woman injured and her husband behind bars. On Tuesday, the grand jury said “we conducted a thorough investigation of the facts and circumstances of this incident and determined from a totality of the circumstances that Deputy Sheriff, Scott Dalton, was fully justified in discharging his service weapon and the other actions
Ruby Tuesday stays open in Corinth “It is a great hang out spot. They are always changing the menu and offering new food items. We would miss all of that,” said frequent diner Beatriz Garcia. Diners can rest assured that their local RT will remain open for now and is not set to be terminated or effected by the recent closures. Business has not slowed down at the casual dining restaurant and it shows no signs of halting its operations any time soon.
BY KIMBERLY SHELTON kshelton@dailycorinthian.com
The city of Corinth has been buzzing with rumors and speculation since news broke Tuesday about the closing of Ruby Tuesday in Jackson, Tenn. The company recently announced plans to close around 30 of its roughly 800 locations with 15 stores scheduled to be closed once their property leases expire. This decision has led many in the Crossroads to wonder if their location could be the next to go.
Please see RESTAURANT | 2
Air Force instructor reunites with son of movie star BY KIMBERLY SHELTON kshelton@dailycorinthian.com
U.S. Air Force Airman First Class Bob Mays encountered a lot of interesting individuals during his 41⁄2 years in the military. As a basic training instructor in 1961 at Lackland AFB, Texas, he groomed airmen from various backgrounds and walks of life. Some of his trainees included the son of the governor of Pennsylvania, a professional trumpet player and one with a doctorate in music. Among the 3710th squadron was Dennis Devine, son of Western movie legend Andy Devine. Andy Devine is best
known for his role as “Jingles,” Guy Madison’s sidekick in “The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok.” Like many at the time, Dennis had joined the Air Force to avoid getting drafted into the Army. Mays took a special interest in the younger Devine because he had been a big fan of his father since childhood. He kept an official Air Force trainee photo of Dennis as a memento or bragging piece. Last year, while going through a box of old photographs, Mays stumbled upon the photo of Dennis. Mays is now 76, resides in Corinth and retired after a ca-
reer as director of human resources at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after he got out of the Air Force. He has been married to wife Sue for 52 years and they have two adopted children, Amy and Katrina. Over the years, he had wondered what had become of his trainee and decided to look him up. After an extensive Google search, he found Dennis to be alive and well. The younger Devine had married a Southern belle from Nashville and was splitting his time between there and L.A. as an urban builder of apartment complexes and high rises for 30
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years. During the time he was searching for Dennis, he was also searching for a crochet book for his wife on Amazon. Much to his amazement, as he combed through the book titles, he spotted a book written about the late Andy Devine. Closer inspection revealed it to be written by none other than Dennis Devine. Mays immediately ordered the paperback for around $7.99 and was ecstatic when it arrived in the mail a few days later. After devouring the book, he was suprised to find that the author had devoted two pages Please see MAYS | 2
Bob Mays today
On this day in history 150 years ago Gen. Johnston asks the War Department to assign Maj. Gen. Mansfield Lovell to his army. Lovell had recently been cleared of charges arising from his poor performance at the Battle of Corinth. However, Lovell is never given another assignment.
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