Another Death on Paradise Drive

Regular readers will remember our previous blogs on the dangerous problems connected to Paradise Drive in Waterloo. Today that stretch of road claimed another life. From Hank Thomas:

Today one of the leaders who has worked over 13 years to get the many safety defects corrected on Paradise Drive lost his life in one of the defect areas in a head-on collision. Dr. Gil Parrish who has fought so hard to protect the citizens who live and drive on Paradise Drive was killed. I had sent an email on January 14, 2019 to the commission Chairman reminding him that nothing had been done to improve the safety of Paradise road since the young man's death in May of 2012. 

The Chairman called me on Thursday January 17, 2019 and advised me he would come down to view the road in a week or two. I encouraged him to bring the road engineer and anyone else he wished to bring. Dr. Parrish and I had made plans to be available when the Chairman makes his visit. Today I sent an email advising the Chairman of Dr. Parrish's death on the road and assured him I still wanted to meet ASAP. Thought you would wish to know.


We realize that progress takes time and that many of the initial holdups on the Waterloo situation can be placed at the feet of former commission chair Dewey Mitchell. Let's not let Dr. Parrish's death be in vain. The economy is on an upturn, and revenues are available for this project. 

Thanks to Mr. Thomas for persevering with this unfortunate situation and our sympathies to the family of Dr. Gil Parrish.

"I've Been Robbed!"

QUICK, call the police, I’VE BEEN ROBBED!

I was simply going through my morning routine. Drinking my coffee, checking my email, bank statement and reading the online version of the Times Daily. I see a headline that at first I thought may have been a typo proclaiming Florence had raised their sales tax. I read the article, written in the usual “Where’s Waldo” style of information that the TD is famous for, and only gathered that a 1% sales tax had been passed by the Florence City council in the meeting the night before. It stated the tax raise was to supplement the salaries of firefighters and policemen in the city, that there was a standing ovation, a couple of folks “kind of” suggested that the vote be delayed due to one of the councilpersons not being there, but generally was passed with much praise and agreement.

One thing I found out, after Comcast “supposedly” dropped the broadcast of the city council meetings, is you can join the city FB group and get a live streaming version online. (This is not well publicized):

January 15th Meeting

So, I viewed the video to see if I had missed some kind of discussion or input from the public before this tax was passed. What I saw seemed like a hostage situation where it looked like the entire force of the police and firefighters in the city of Florence were crammed into a room demanding a pay raise. It was certainly a show of force.

There were a few folks; Dr. Barry Morris was one, who were somehow clairvoyant enough to know this tax was on the agenda and voiced their opposition and concern. Mainly, the concerns were the suddenness of this vote and lack of transparency. It WAS mentioned that one of the councilpersons was not there but that was a plea to table this vote until the next meeting. The city was not going to do it. They needed to vote and vote NOW!

Complaints from Florence police and firefighters about pay have been made since I can remember. I am 65 years old, but this vote COULD not wait! WHY???? No reasons given by the councilpersons attending, no explanation of how the money would be distributed. ONLY, that the raise in taxes would produce approximately 9 million dollars ANNUALLY for salaries and OTHER PURPOSES? WHAT OTHER PURPOSES? Aren’t there several being juggled right now?

I finished watching this meeting feeling like I had been the victim of a robbery. Actually, I WAS! BUT, who do I call???? The Florence police?

Sami Did What?/Two Views on Shooting

From a GoFundMe page: 

Sami and her family experienced a tragedy on Christmas Day. Due to the tragedy they are needing assistance with funding. They are a very lovely family and would give you the very shirt off their back. If you cannot give them (sic) please share any help is appreciated.

Sami experienced a what? Nice the way the GoFundMe page doesn't mention what the "tragedy" was. The page has now been up 14 days and has a $60,000.00 goal. So far, $10.00 has been pledged from one donor. Sounds like ten dollars too much to us.

(There was also a "Justice for Andrew" GoFundMe page, but someone had the good sense and taste to get it removed.)

Now, some thoughts from our D. Claytor on the recent shooting in Hamilton, Alabama:

From the facts presented in the article the only thing wrong it appears Andy did was fire warning shots. That is not legal. If he didn't start the fight and felt his life in danger (a reasonable assumption based on the article) then it sounds like justifiable homicide. Whenever there is a shooting and the deceased didn't have a firearm there is a lot of malarkey about the dead being "unarmed". More people are killed by "unarmed" people than are killed by rifles in the U.S. It only takes one good punch to kill or permanently cripple someone. The only thing I can see that he did illegal was to fire warning shots. That's the kind of TV show nonsense that gets people into trouble.


And some very different thoughts from our Bailey Quarters:

So Sami was afraid of her ex-boyfriend? But she didn't mind arguing with him over a child's coat? Wait, she knew her current squeeze had a gun. Wasn't that a convenient way to get rid of two unwanted men in her life? If Andy does get out of this a free man, he needs to run in the opposite direction from Sami!



Our take? The one point that we found riveting was the comment on warning shots. Aren't they good things? Apparently not.

It seems that if you fire a warning shot, you don't really believe your life is in danger. That may be the Marion County district attorney's rationale to charge Andrew Cochran with Capital Murder. So if a grand jury goes by the letter of the law, Andy has lost his girl, his gat, and his gig and is in for a very long stay in his new accommodations.

Max Sanders Sr.: A Real Piece of Work

We've always advocated clean election campaigns and we similarly advocate clean transitions when an incumbent is defeated. Apparently the new Lawrence County sheriff Max Sanders Sr. doesn't want to play that way. We do realize that an incoming sheriff isn't obligated to retain any of the previous office holder's staff, but terminating ten employees in a department the size of Lawrence County's seems a bit much:

New Management

Let us stress that we don't know former sheriff Gene Mitchell or new sheriff Sanders. Therefore, we have no axe to grind and haven't had an opinion on the new sheriff until today when he made it a point to insult Mr. Mitchell when he could have just said nothing or uttered some fluff about new ideas and that he would be keeping the public updated. Apparently Sanders isn't that classy.

Basically the same article featuring Sanders' claims and Mitchell's answer to the accusations has appeared in three local publications, so you won't be at a loss to find it. One of the main things that stood out about Sanders' remarks was that he made a point to blame Mr. Mitchell for any situation he didn't like without bothering to check on any facts. 

Yep. Sounds like Sanders is going to make a great investigator.

You can look forward to a new blog by the Midnight Rider and some very pithy comments by Sheffield Shelly. A new writer, the Avenger, has a profound piece on the increase in Florence sales tax, and two of our regulars have some quite dissimilar comments on the Hamilton shooting. The following few days should prove very interesting.

Let's Play Northwest Alabama "Clue"

The following is a murder mystery of sorts. Look at the characters and facts below and determine the best charge to convict this man on...if any. The facts presented here come mainly from law enforcement, but some more minor details come from friends and witnesses; therefore, much of this is subjective, but here on Blogspot, it's only a game. Feel free to solve the mystery and tell us why you came to the conclusion you did.

The characters:

Jose' - A 48 year-old man who immigrated here from the Philippines. He's a devout Catholic, but has a violent temper. Police have been called to protect others from Jose' many times. Jose' isn't rich, but he likes women and has had several relationships. One with a much younger woman produced two children and a very bitter ex whom he never bothered to marry.

Sami - A young woman in her 20s. After her relationship with Jose' ended, she began to date a local man her own age. She posts plenty of pics on Facebook, but doesn't describe their relationship. Sami tells her new boyfriend just how brutal and controlling Jose' can be. 

Andy - A 29 year-old man who manages an auto parts store. On paper, Andy is something of an enigma. He sports a military haircut, but has at least one body mod. Guns are Andy's passion, and he hangs out with guys from a local motorcycle dealership. He calls Sami his fiance' and dotes on her two children despite her history with Jose'. In fact, Andy feels it's his job to protect Sami and her two children; he carries a Glock .45.

The location: Many people in the small town where our trio live use the police station as a hand off point for online sales or custody transfers. It's Christmas Day, and few officers are at the station - they're all inside wishing they were home. Closed circuit television monitors the parking lot, but it's only a precaution. Nothing ever happens in the small town, much less at the police station.

The scenario: Sami and Andy arrive first at the police station; they have to wait. Finally Jose' shows up with the two children. Inside his vehicle is a woman who may be one of his current girlfriends - she's Sami's aunt. Tension is high, but Sami gets the younger child, a boy, fastened in the back seat where he can't move. Next comes the girl wearing a new coat that Jose' demands she remove before she gets in Sami's vehicle. Sami counter demands the older child keep the new coat for use at home. What starts as bickering soon escalates to shouting.

Enter Andy who naturally wants to protect his beloved. According to Andy and Sami, Jose' is 15 feet from Andy and begins to charge. Jose' doesn't appear armed, but officers later find a penknife in his pocket. Andy fires two warning shots; when Jose' doesn't stop, Andy shoots Jose' twice in the head. (Remember the four shots allegedly occurred in the short time it would take Jose' to charge 15 feet.) Before police can exit the building, a woman arrives to make a custody exchange. She says Andy and Sami are now squabbling and both children are running free on the parking lot around their father's body. 

Police arrest Andy and charge him with Felony Murder. After the district attorney looks at the video footage, he tells police to up the charge to Capital murder since either one or both of Jose's children saw their father shot. A judge agrees with the district attorney and binds Andy over to the grand jury.

Now Clue game players, you're on the grand jury. Do you indict Andy for Capital Murder? Or do you say to heck with Phillip Pettus' new law and indict Andy for Felony Murder? Or do you feel Andy was merely guilty of manslaughter, not meaning to actually shoot Jose' in the head twice? Or was he protecting himself and his new almost family and so you no bill the case?

So ready, set, let's play...

FreightCar America - What's Next?

Today FreightCar America in Barton (mailing address Cherokee) in Colbert County announced 145 layoffs. The company cited a slight downturn in the economy related to rail cars and promised to rehire those permanent employees who were affected as soon as possible. 

Many immediately emailed us asking if OSHA violations or similar problems at the plant had contributed to this decision. That we don't have an answer to, but we can enumerate some interesting fine statistics from the plant's record. There have been at least nine government fines levied against the company since 2004. Four of these have been at the Barton plant since 2015 and are enumerated below.

OSHA  February 24, 2015 Safety Violation  $7,000.00

OSHA  September 29, 2015  Safety Violation  $5,000.00

National Labor Relations Board  November 4, 2015  Unfair Practice  $60,000.00

OSHA  March 3, 2018  Safety Violation $12,934.00

A fatal incident from last November and at least one other incident is still being investigated and does not appear in the above list. Will FreightCar America return a stronger and wiser economic force in the Shoals area? Sadly, no one knows the answer to that.

The Gas Tax Is Coming, the Gas Tax Is Coming!

Gov. Kay Ivey has stated she wants an increased gasoline tax in order to fund much needed road repairs in the state. We predict that the tax, in some form, will be passed during the current legislative session. (If we're wrong, it wouldn't be the first time.)

Tax is as old as government itself. How often have you seen taxes lowered? Perhaps more to the point, how else can the state expect to pay for our roads? There is one way, but it's something most of us have not seen in this area in our lifetime. The operative word is TOLL. 

Tell us what you think. If you don't travel a certain road, should you have to pay for it? If you don't want increased gasoline taxes, are you willing to support the alternative of toll roads?

Now from the pothole capital of the Shoals, here's Sheffield Shelly: 

Per your piece on term limits in Sheffield-Believe me, much of the apathy among citizens is due to the fact that they feel ignored. I know several people who have volunteered for vacancies on various boards within the city, but they have been ignored by their city council representatives. There’s a tiny group of people in Sheffield that controls everything. They continue to name and re-name their friends and people whom they feel they can control to these boards so they can be assured of having things run to their liking.

We're often asked about our writers, especially those who write in Colbert County in general and Sheffield in particular. J. Redmon (male) and Sheffield Shelly (female) do live in Sheffield as we've said. The Midnight Rider has commented on Sheffield a great deal, but as far as we know does live, as he says, in the wilds of eastern Colbert County. Leslie M. Shoals resides in Muscle Shoals. 

All other contributors with the exception of one live in Lauderdale County. If you would like to be a regular blogger, send us your columns. Just no vulgarities or libelous statements, please. We also solicit (read: beg for) blogs on local eateries for Quad-Cities Cuisine.