Saturday Nov. 17,
2012
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Daily Corinthian Vol. 116, No. 277
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• Corinth, Mississippi • 16 pages • One section
Narcotics unit arrests 10 on felony charges BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com
The Alcorn County Narcotics Unit is cracking down on drug dealers to combat the rise in drug-related thefts and burglaries. Ten Alcorn County residents are facing felony charges related to the sale of controlled substances, according to a statement from the Narcotics Unit. Narcotics officers have been working in the county and city over the past several months
following up on complaints from citizens. “There will be several more arrests due to some of the people moving around and some moving out of state,” said Narcotics Officer Darrell Hopkins. Hopkins said that people who call the Sheriff’s Department and are unable to reach the narcotics officers should leave a message as officers spend much of the time following up on complaints and working on the street.
“Alcorn County Sheriff Rinehart takes selling drugs very seriously, and due to the holidays expects thefts and burglaries to be on the rise — and drugs usually go hand in hand with other crimes,” said Hopkins. Rinehart asks the public to report anything that looks suspicious to them, for neighbors to keep an extra eye on neighbors and to not hesitate to call. It will be kept confidential. The arrested include: ■ Dominick Thompson, 29, of
Penn Street, Corinth; one count of sale of controlled substance. ■ Ryan Massengill, 37, of Miller Road, Corinth; two counts of sale of controlled substance. ■ Nora Glidewell, 58, of County Road 669, Corinth; two counts of sale of controlled substance. ■ Lonnie Switcher, 60, of County Road 669, Corinth; two counts of sale of controlled substance. ■ Russell Campbell, 54, of Meigg Street, Corinth; two counts of
Supervisors move meeting space to old county jail
Mock disaster drill
BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
Staff photo by Steve Beavers
Alcorn Career and Technology Center student Tyler Burgess is treated by Magnolia Regional Health Center’s Chris Woodruff during a drill on Friday afternoon.
Fire erupts on roof tower, patients evacuated BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
Safety matters at Magnolia Regional Health Center. The hospital looked at better ways to insure the wellbeing of
its patients and staff should a disaster hit the facility with a mock drill Friday afternoon. “We have to learn how this facility can handle this type of drill,” said MRHC CEO Rick
sale of controlled substance. ■ Jackie Vanderford III, 29, of Linden Street, Corinth; two counts of sale of controlled substance. ■ Gomer Nyleen Wilbanks, 67, of Linden Street, Corinth; one count of sale of controlled substance. ■ Lagene Connor, 26, of Allen Street, Corinth; two counts of sale of controlled substance. ■ Sammy Jones, 60, of County Road 512, Corinth; one count of sale of controlled substance.
Napper. The drill involved a fire on the roof tower and was the first Please see DRILL | 2
Alcorn County supervisors are getting ready to move. In a 3-2 vote Friday morning, the Board of Supervisors passed a motion to move the board meeting room and financial offices from the Alcorn Chancery Building downtown to the old sheriff’s department and jail building on South Fulton Drive. “It’s more accessible to the handicapped for ADA compliance, less crowded than the chancery building and has more available parking,” said Board President Lowell Hinton. “We have FEMA funds that must be spent on this building totaling approximately $80,000 from the 2010 flood that will go toward the remodeling costs.” The “no” votes were cast by District 4 Supervisor Gary Ross and District 5 Supervisor Jimmy Tate Waldon. “I’m for moving the board meetings down there, but I’m not for moving the financial people there because it’s a flood zone,” said Ross. “It will flood again and I’m sure there won’t be a way for us to keep the receipts and documents for the board from being damaged in a flood.” Vacant for more than a year since the sheriff’s department moved, the building suffered water damage in the May 2010 flood. Hinton acknowledged some people may question renovating a building in a floodprone area, but he said he is confident in the city’s cleanup of the drainage channels. Workers have already gut-
ted most of the front section of the building with District 2 Supervisor Dal Nelms overseeing the work. Plans are to stain the bare floor so that tile doesn’t have to be replaced if water gets inside again. About 2,500 square feet will be renovated initially, leaving 2,000 square feet of additional space that may be used for other purposes in the future. Nelms believes it is a good move for the county. “At the end of the day, you have a completely renovated building that will serve the citizens of Alcorn County for years to come,” he said. The board has purchased flood insurance for the building at a cost of $780 per year — a requirement of the FEMA reimbursement. The current board room and staff are located upstairs at the chancery building with no elevator access. In other business: ■ The board concurred with the Board of Aldermen’s appointments of Luke Doehner and Phil Little to the tourism board. Little replaces Melissa Carson. ■ The board received quotes for the proposed vegetable shed at the farmers market and took them under advisement. ■ Supervisors heard comments from several residents of the County Road 273 and 274 area regarding road access. ■ Sheriff Charles Rinehart recognized Heath Thomas for Please see BOARD | 2
Boxes spread hope, excitement to kids around the world BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
The Good News is going out in a shoe box. Operation Christmas Child, an international mission project of Samaritan's Purse, is sharing the love of Jesus with children around the world. Hundreds of boxes put together by area churches have been collected and will be dropped off as part of National Collection Week that runs through Monday. “This is a ministry we absolutely love,” said First Baptist Minister to Children Jennifer Jefcoat. “We want to make sure all of our boxes are filled with prayer and love.” Farmington Baptist Church is serving as a drop-off center. Boxes can be delivered to the church today and Sunday from 2-4 p.m.
Operation Christmas Child sends hope and excitement to children living in desperate situations around the world. Through the gift-filled show boxes, the true meaning of Christmas — Jesus Christ — is shown to victims of poverty, disease, famine and war. “It's about educating our kids how blessed they are and showing them they can change a life by packing a shoe box,” said Jefcoat. Ar First Baptist, youngsters age three through sixth grade are given the opportunity to make a box. Each box contains school supplies, toys, necessity items and notes of encouragement is hand delivered to children in more than 100 countries. Operation Christmas Child is expected to collect nine million shoeboxes this year and deliver its 100
millionth shoebox gift over the years. Since 1993 more than 63 million boys and girls from over 130 countries have received these boxes, and millions have come to faith in Jesus Christ. That's the message the program was built on, bringing hope and breaking down barriers to share the Good News of the Savior with all people. Samaritan's Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan's Purse has helped meet needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God's love through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Index Stocks........7 Classified......14 Comics...... 13 Wisdom...... 12
Weather........5 Obituaries........ 3 Opinion........4 Sports...... 10
Staff photo by Steve Beavers
First Baptist preschoolers Lillee Cummings (left) and Gigi Curtis get a Christmas Shoe Box ready for collection. (see additional photo, page 2)
On this day in history 150 years ago The Richmond Times Dispatch reports on the resignation of Confederate Secretary of War George W. Randolph two days ago. Secretary Randolph quit his post in protest of President Jefferson Davis’s virtually taking over his department. Davis quickly accepts his resignation.