More Charges in Dylan Milam Murder?

Dylan Milam

Sources close to the investigation into 13 year-old Dylan Wayne Milam's murder say more charges are possible. A family member of the 13 year-old shooter reportedly gave information on the youth's behalf that has been proved false. If Colbert County does charge the family member, it will likely be for hindering prosecution, but a former Colbert law enforcement official has stated the family member could also be charged as an accessory after the fact. The case will likely be presented to the next Colbert County grand jury.

The shooter reportedly lived with his mother and her boyfriend on the outskirts of Leighton. He was a student at Colbert County High School and would have entered the 8th grade next autumn. As reported earlier, this young man was no stranger to law enforcement in Colbert County. Do you remember what you were doing at the age of 13, gentle readers? We're going to guess it wasn't plotting or covering up a murder while being abetted by an adult.

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Shoals Ambulance is again in the news. The company is looking into bidding on the Lauderdale County contract, assuming it's put up for bids for the new fiscal year starting September 1st. Commissioners Rhea Fulmer and Fay Parker have publicly stated they see no need for a bid in the first year of a new three-year contract period for Lauderdale EMS, a subsidiary of Keller EMS. Really? How interesting...

We had been told an attorney general's opinion on Shoals Ambulance's initial foray into local service was possible by the start of this week; however, owner Bryan Gibson has yet to hear. We're betting on such an opinion being favorable to Gibson and the City of Muscle Shoals.



Shoalanda

Names of Youthful Offenders?/TotallyDecatur Strikes Again

We've discussed Youthful Offender status before, as in the cases of Matthew Fox and Autumn Wood, one 21 at the time of his crime and the other 17. Both cases involved the taking of an innocent life, and both individuals were denied such status. If it had been granted, it would have been for legal purposes only--surely the greatest need or want for each of them. In other words, their names had been published by all news outlets in the Shoals; there was no possibility of anonymity by then. What of Dylan Wayne Mylam's killer?

The killer of Dylan (pictured at right) is only 13, the same age as his victim. Legally there was no doubt as to his status at arrest and of his keeping such. We have to ask: Is this the purpose of the Youthful Offender status?

A young man is driving around with his cousin/older brother/friend when the companion decides to rob a gas station. Does this 15 year-old boy have the mental capacity and/or experience to know to try to escape? To know to make a pretense in order to leave the car? To immediately report the crime? He may well not...and this is the purpose of the Youthful Offender status.

The killer of Dylan Wayne Mylam already had a record of sorts. Yes, frightening isn't it? Does he deserve anonymity?

To be continued tomorrow...

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Did you like the article the online TimesDaily published on the Miss Alabama contest Saturday night? Perhaps you missed it since it was only a few lines? Those few lines listed the names of the local contestants.

Well, sort of. The article listed the names of those from Morgan and Limestone Counties. Miss UNA, Anne-Marie Hall (pictured at left) received nary a mention. Makes you proud to have a local newspaper doesn't it?

Thank you, Anne-Marie, for representing our local university, the Shoals, and your Franklin County home. We at Shoalanda Speaks are proud of you!

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Be sure to catch the weekly local sex offender report in The Connection. This week it's a twofer...

The McCarley Brothers

Shoalanda

A Sunday Treat - Yes, Really!

We didn't know such a film existed. What a treat to see Mr. Frank Potts at the end!

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Tennessee Valley Historical Society presents Helen Keller Festival Week Speakers: In recognition of Northwest Alabama history diversity and Helen Keller Festival Week activities, the Tennessee Valley Historical Society is sponsoring three guest speaker presentations to be held at Cold Water Bookstore, 101 West 6th Street, Tuscumbia, Alabama.

The presentation line up is as follows:

Thursday- June 21 - Time: 2 p.m. - “The American Star” Tom McKnight, TVHS President, will give a Power-Point presentation on ‘The American Star,’ the African-American, Muscle Shoals Missionary Baptist Association newspaper, edited and published by Professor George Washington Trenholm in Tuscumbia. Artifacts of recently discovered rare issues that were not known to exist covering the 1940s and 1950s will be on display.

Friday - June 22 - Time: 5:30 p.m. “Rediscovering the Poarch Creek Band of Creek Indians” Robert Thrower, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Poarch Creek Indians, will discuss “The Forgotten Creeks of Alabama: Rediscovering the Poarch Band of Creek Indians”. The presentation will explore the origin, struggles and accomplishments of the Poarch Band. A number of Creek cultural items will be on display for both discussion and demonstration.

Saturday – June 23 – Time: 12 Noon - “General Joe Wheeler Museum” Scheduled speakers will be Melissa Beasley, Site Director of the General Joe Wheeler Museum, Pond Spring, Hillsboro, Alabama and Kara Long, Museum Curator. Power-point presentation will cover the restoration effort that restored the Wheeler Home Museum, the family’s furnishings and artifacts that now occupy the historic site and historic insights of General Wheeler who served his home and country as a Confederate General, Congressman and West Point graduate. Miss Annie Wheeler’s service in the American Red Cross during three wars and her devotion to helping others will also be discussed.

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Tomorrow we'll have some newly released info on the alleged murderer of Dylan Mylam. It's a sad commentary on the state of some families as well as our legal system.



Shoalanda

Autumn Marie Wood Claims Self-Defense

Brooklyn Ann Hollins

Brooklyn Ann Hollins was two weeks short of her 15th birthday when she was stabbed to death at an unsupervised teen party last March. Now Autumn Marie Wood has claimed self-defense in the death, stating she was attacked by the girl nicknamed "Boogie." According to initial reports, Hollins had stepped into an argument turned physical in order to help defend a friend. Reports from yesterday's initial hearing for Wood state that the 17 year-old defendant had done the same.

We have to ask: Self-defense? How does one claim self-defense if one stops a pummeling long enough to open a kitchen drawer and retrieve a knife? Or is someone now saying a third party handed Wood the knife? Judge Carole Coil Medley has ruled the evidence is sketchy enough to warrant a grand jury hearing. This was a very necessary ruling to prevent any grounds for appeal in the case. The truly sad part is Brooklyn's family having to sit through such testimony.

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We've seen the girl who gave the party praised for staying at the side of Brooklyn Ann Hollins while others, including Autumn Wood, fled. It was, after all, her home. Her parents had forbade any guests while they were away, but this young woman persisted in giving a party that reportedly included young males and alcohol. Obviously only her parents can mete out punishment for the young woman, but grounded for life sounds pretty good to us.

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There's also new evidence in the alleged murder of 13 year-old Dylan Wayne Milam of Leighton. Look for it on Monday...



Shoalanda

Dylan Wayne Milam: Why?

It was 40 years ago, but it seems like only last month to the two families involved. The 16 year-old boys had been hunting that Saturday. The early evening knock at the door wasn't unusual; if the parents heard the voice of their son's best friend, they would have found it reassuring, not an indicator of a tragedy that within seconds would change their lives forever.

Yet their son's hunting companion arrived on a mission, holding his weapon in his hand. He asked his long-time best friend if he was indeed now dating a certain girl. When the boy honestly replied in the affirmative, his friend shot him. The young victim died hours later after surgery at ECM Hospital, the wound in his stomach too large to contain.

When the news of the murder reached the public, the reaction was almost universal. Sixteen? How can one as young as 16 contemplate murdering his best friend? Here we are in 2012, and we're asking the same question, but now the age of the accused and his victim is only 13.

Last Sunday, Dylan Wayne Mylam was shot a few minutes before 9:00 p.m. at this residence in Leighton, an act his friend who lives in the home has confessed to. The young man originally told authorities the shooting was accidental, but investigators believe the shooting was deliberate. Now their friends and classmates are left to speculate on the motive.

All juvenile proceedings are closed, but the shooter could be incarcerated until he's 21--in other words between six and seven years. No football games, homecoming parades, harvest festivals, Christmas parties, proms, or graduations in this boy's future. No college either, at least until he's released at the age of 21. He may not technically have a felony conviction to report to school registrars, but they will know he has no regular high school diploma. This is not something that can't be overcome. The guilt is another matter.



Shoalanda