Wednesday Feb. 4,
2015
50 cents
Taste
Home & Garden
Rethink muffaletta as a thin-crust pizza for Mardi Gras.
Use hardy nandina for winter colors.
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Page 12A
Daily Corinthian
Cloudy Today
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Vol. 119, No. 30
• Corinth, Mississippi • 18 pages • Two sections
Church helps catch accused killer BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
A church’s good deed helped put an accused killer behind bars. Thomas Jesse Lee was arrested around 5 p.m. Monday by the Lee County Sheriff’s Department at a Greyhound bus station in Tupelo. Lee, accused of killing his wife, three of her relatives and a family friend in LaGrange, Ga. on Satur-
day, was scheduled to be transported back to Georgia to face murder charges on Tuesday. Lee, 26, of Troup County, Ga., was in Corinth over the weekend seeking help from the Church of the Crossroads. “He came to the church Sunday needing help,” said Alcorn County Sheriff’s Department investigator Reggie Anderson. “The story he
gave was his vehicle broke down after hitting a deer.” “He didn’t have any suspicion of being a bad guy,” added church pastor Bro. Nelson Hight. “He seemed like a normal guy we tried to help.” Hight said the church was advised to not make any other statement about Lee until the investigation was complete. Lee told the church he needed to
get to Opelika, Alabama. Not knowing he was a wanted man, someone with the church took Lee to the bus station in Tupelo. After he was dropped off, a person with the church discovered he was wanted and notified local law enforcement, according to Anderson. “I was called by the church and Please see LEE | 2A
Lee
Phone scams target citizens BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
Photo compliments of Taylor Coombs
The oldest drug store in Mississippi calls downtown Corinth home. Borroum’s is located on Waldron Street across from court square and provides one of the tastiest treats in one of America’s Best Downtown’s.
Website names Corinth best downtown BY ZACK STEEN zsteen@dailycorinthian.com
From the hustle and bustle of Fillmore Street to the tasty handdipped milkshakes at Borroum’s, the charm and uniqueness of downtown Corinth has been recognized once again as one of the best in America. After recently finishing among the top 16 of Parade Magazine’s Best Main Streets in the United States, downtown Corinth has now been included on the 50 Best Small Downtowns in America list compiled by the popular blog website,
BestChoiceReviews.org. The website said Corinth’s busy Fillmore Street “offers both visitors and locals an eclectic combination of the old and the new ... there are historic buildings mixed with modern boutiques and galleries.” Main Street Corinth Director Taylor Coombs is quite proud to have Corinth featured on yet another best list. “This is what sets us apart from others, we have the pride of knowing we have a great town, and in my opinion the best,” said Coombs. “The people make it what it is. We
are lucky to have what I consider the best downtown in the world.” Coombs said the charm felt when walking the sidewalks in downtown Corinth is like no other. “I think the private investment is one element of charm that adds to our wonderful downtown area and sets us apart from other small towns,” she said. Corinth is the only Mississippi city on the list which lists Montpelier, Vt., as the number one best downtown in America. Please see DOWNTOWN | 2A
Emergency officials offer fire safety tips BY KIMBERLY SHELTON kshelton@dailycorinthian.com
Contrary to popular belief, fire isn’t bright ... it’s pitch black. What begins as a flicker illuminated with a life of its own, quickly produces black smoke and complete darkness. Those awakened during a fire may find themselves blinded, disoriented and unable to navigate the confines of their own home. According to U.S. Fire Administration, one tiny spark can turn into a major house fire in less than 30 seconds.
As temperatures plummet during the frosty nights of February, residents are forced to crank up the heat, use more hot water and turn on electric blankets and heating pads. It’s that time of the year where everyone should be especially mindful of space heaters and other electrical devices,” said Emergency Services Coordinator Ricky Gibens. “We generally see a lot of dryer fires in the winter months, so it is always wise to keep your lint filter emptied out.” Gibens also recommends resi-
Index Stocks......8A Classified......3B Comics......2B State......5A
RENTAL
Weather...... 7A Obituaries......6A Opinion......4A Sports....10A
dents pull their dryer out and clean the piping behind it and on the outside of the home, once a year. Thus far in 2015, Alcorn County has seen only one major residential fire which gutted a family home, resulting in a total loss shortly after the New Year. With the groundhog seeing his shadow and six more weeks of cold winter weather ahead, the threat of house fires remains imminent. “Mississippi used to be the leading state in fire deaths,” said Gibens. Please see FIRES | 2A
A helpful customer service representative calling to correct a duplicate charge on a credit or debit card is among the latest phone scams preying on local residents. IRS phone scams are also being reported. Alcorn County resident Hal Dilworth said he got a call on Saturday from someone who alleged to represent Walmart and wanted to correct a double charge that went onto Dilworth’s credit card. If he didn’t want to come into the store, the caller said, it could be taken care of over the phone. When the caller asked what kind of card it is, “My alarm bells went off,” said Dilworth, a retired attorney. The caller asked for the full credit card number, and Dilworth replied that he would not give that information over the telephone. He speculated the caller may have gotten his name and address from the telephone book. Although he realized it was a scam, “It was very cleverly done,” said Dilworth. Police Chief Ralph Dance said his agency has received several reports of this scam, and the callers have used the name of a number of different businesses. “They don’t need your card number if they have already charged it twice,” he said. Another scam being reported is from a caller posing as a representative of the IRS. The recipient of the call is threatened with action if he or she doesn’t pay up. Variations on these and other schemes are being reported frequently. “They are doing it because it’s easy,” said Dance. “They are just sitting by the phone, and if you can get eight or ten people to do it, you have made money.”
Cast announced for latest show BY KIMBERLY SHELTON kshelton@dailycorinthian.com
Corinth Theatre-Arts is pleased to announce the cast list for their upcoming production of David Lindsay-Abaire’s “Rabbit Hole”. The five-member cast includes, Tresa Condra (Becca); Leland F. Hendrix (Howie); Liz Inman (Izzy); Cindi Bullard (Nat) and Charlie Curtis (Jason). Channing Palmer will serve as the understudy for the role of Izzy. “I would like to say thank you to everyone who came out to audition. We had some really great readings and I hope all of you will stay involved with the theatre,” said CT-A Guest Director Casey Duke. “If you noted an interest in tech positions on your form, you will likely be getting a phone call about it soon.”
On this day in history 150 years ago Petersburg, Va. — Gen. Grant directs the Army of the Potomac to extend its line further to the west in hope of stretching Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia to the breaking point.
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