City of Florence & the Jimmy Neese Divorce

Most of us in the Shoals are familiar with Jimmy Neese. For any who may not be, here's a blurb taken directly from his website:

Jimmy was honored for his community involvement and revitalization of the downtown Florence area by being voted Shoals Area Citizen of the Year for 1999-2000. He received The Capital Award, in recognition of outstanding efforts in historic preservation by Heritage Preservation, Inc. He has a strong commitment to the restoration of older buildings and the revitalization of the downtown area.

Certainly few would have argued with this description in the year 2000, but what about in 2009? During the interim, James Martin Neese has defaulted on loans from the City of Florence in the amount of several million dollars. Why? Because he has no money?

We doubt it's ever been highly debated that Jimmy Neese has personal funds; however, since the loans were contracted in the name of one of Neese's businesses, namely Bliss Block Ltd, such loans have been virtually noncollectable.

In the not too distant past, Neese married widow Delana Darby Blake, a Florence businesswoman noted for her own profitable investments. Now it seems this relatively short-lived marriage is on the rocks and Jimmy Neese has filed for divorce. Will this divorce help the City of Florence regain some of its lost money?

In all probability, no. What it will do, assuming no case records are sealed, is make public just how vast, or perhaps paultry, a fortune Jimmy Neese has. We hope our friend Wayne Nix at the ShoalsInsider will be on the spot.


What's up with this: Recently, a friend/fan requested we write less about all the "evil people" in the area and write more about the good ones. We love writing about those who enrich this area, so if you know of one who fits this description, please contact us.

Shoalanda

"Soylent Green" Still Has Some Lessons for Us

No, this is not a blog about Sarah Palin's "death panels." The 1973 SciFi movie set in 2022 has more than one moral for us today. If you have never viewed Soylent Green, I urge you to rent or download a copy of what became Edward G. Robinson's last film.

In this futuristic masterpiece, women, or at least some women, are referred to as furniture. They are passed around and often come as standard features of certain luxury apartments. Interesting, you say, but surely no women are treated as furniture in the real 2009. Think again.

When a 15/16 year-old girl is passed around among three buddies who all live within a five mile radius of each other, it tells me that such a mentality was alive and well in 2006/2007 in Killen, Alabama. It's something all parents need to discuss with their children. Parents who fail to guide their children have to shoulder some of the responsibility for social diseases and unwanted pregnancy. Think about it...

*****

I have again been contacted by some member of Andrew Scott's family who are seeking custody of his biological child. Please remember, I have not contacted any of these people first, nor was I aware of this horrible situation until the Scott family approached me.

Upon investigation (and it's not hard, Mr. and Mrs. Scott), I have discovered much that has been published and forwarded to me concerning these adoptive parents has been false and just generally malicious. Further, one e-mail from the Scott family accuses me personally of being, as I took it, an employee of the Cramer Center who interviewed Mrs. Scott, and further accuses me of being a rape victim who has a axe of some nature to grind against those guilty of rape/statutory rape.

While I have worked in the legal world, I have never worked for the Cramer Center, nor have I met anyone from either family in this dispute. Further, I have never been raped, but I certainly support victims in their quest to punish rapists, be they either in the first or second degree. Apparently, if one looks at the facts in the case, and comes to a decision to support the adoptive parents, one is then "disturbed" to have made such a decision. These communications only reinforce my belief that Andrew Scott is being pushed by his parents into seeking custody.

My apologies to the adoptive parents for believing some of the negative remarks made online about you. Please let me know if I can help you in any way.


Thought for the day: "Just because you're a Christian, it doesn't mean you have to be anyone's doormat." Pat Starling

Shoalanda

Christie Scott Is Innocent--the Web Site

There's a new website devoted to the Christie Bray Scott murder case, but this one doesn't question either her quilt or future eternal resting place. Created by her husband Jeremy, the site fails to provide the public with much new information or reason to believe the Scott jury reached an incorrect decision.

Christie Scott Is Innocent maintains that the case against the Russellville insurance agent was an amalgam of politics and bad police work. While we doubt that politics were involved more here than in any other case, certainly the lost electrical boxes present a picture of Keystone Kops at their worst.

The basic surprises of the site are the revelation of juror misconduct and photographs of injuries Scott received from the two fire investigators who conducted an interview with the suspect two weeks after Mason's death. It seems alternate juror Sherye Price spoke openly of her opinion of Scott early in the trial, but Franklin County Circuit Judge Terry Dempsey failed to declare a mistrial due to relative certainly Price would not be among the final voting jurors in the case.

The injuries Scott received from Jay Edwards and Dalan Gasset are much more troubling. It's understandable the officers did not wish Scott to interrupt a similar concurrent interview with her husband when she demanded to leave; however, two men using strong physical force on a woman who had not yet been charged does not make for good PR for the State's case at best, and opens the county up to a serious lawsuit at worst.

Many "irregularities" in the Scott case that the site present are quite a stretch. Once section questions the validity of Terry Dempsey's election to office due to differences in notary signatures found on campaign finance disclosures. We're guessing a notary picked up the wrong seal and hurriedly decided the best way to handle the problem was to use a matching signature. Perhaps it wasn't the best thought out answer to the problem, but we doubt any such act would nullify Dempsey's claim to the judgeship.

We suggest Jeremy Scott would better utilize his time by finding a good counselor for his son whom he says is so traumatized by having a mother in prison. Noah Riley deserves to have a father who is there for him, not one who is obsessed with proving the innocence of his wife at all costs.


Correction: Our apologies to Todd Putman, whom we incorrectly identified as Tom in a previous column. Todd is a member of the Grown Folks Band--check them out!

Shoalanda

Statutory Rape?

We recently commented on a Killen custody case involving the adoptive parents of a young boy and the child's biological father. Even though both families have ostensibly asked that comments on the Court House and TimesDaily Forums remain civil, both web sites are currently peppered with posts that can hardly be called such.

One novice poster on the TD forum remarked we had not read the son's comments on his father's Facebook creation. No, we had not read the almost 150 comments, and after having done so, we feel that perhaps neither side is mentally, emotionally, or spiritually suited to retain custody of the child.

The biological father had indeed written six of these comments; the August 16 post in which he misspelled the child's name was particularly endearing. One comment concerning the situation was disturbing and alarming.

According to this post, the biological mother had engaged in sex while under the age of 16 with at least one of the three putative fathers who at the time was over the age of 17. This in Alabama, whether you agree with the law or not, is second degree rape. The accusation in this public post was that the adopting family had agreed to drop statutory rape charges against the young man (should he be the father) if the child resulting from the relationship was handed over to them.

Whether the blackmail charges are true or false, the charge of second degree rape should have been handled by the Alabama DHR. If any or all of these three men are guilty of this crime, they should be prosecuted, even now. Such charges should not be greeted with a wink and a nod, but deserve to be adjudicated and the guilty party branded as the sex offender he or she is.


A word on condom usage: Properly worn prophylactics do not break. Anyone who is incapable of donning a condom properly is in all probability incapable of acting as a responsible parent.

Shoalanda

Florence, Big Ed's, & the "Entertainment District"

Ed Sandlin (pictured) is a businessman. While we hope he enjoys what he does, we're certain that, like the rest of us, he needs to make some money while doing it. The problem with Sandlin's business is two-fold: It involves the highly regulated sale of alcoholic beverages and it involves those who consume these beverages on his premises.

According to a 2008 interview with Sandlin, officials of Florence have often targeted his business on what he calls a "witch hunt," seeking documentation of his compliance with the 51/49 law concerning the ratio of food sales to that of alcohol. Last Friday night, the City of Florence prevented Big Ed's from hosting a concert by the Grown Folks Band, citing fire laws and other concerns. His restaurant and lounge has been the scene of previous minor altercations between black fraternity members from UNA and Florence Police.

Yet, only one year earlier in August 2007, Sandlin offered his appreciation and thanks to the city for easing the usual off-street parking requirement for restaurants and lounges. Apparently as Sandlin's sales decreased, so did his thankfulness for the city's regulations controlling his business.

Florence Planning Director Melissa Bailey has stated the Entertainment District will not blossom overnight. Considering that most buildings in the Sweetwater area are neither larger than Big Ed's nor provide more entrances and exits, it may be that such an area will never blossom.

Photograph by Daniel Giles


What's up with this: The City of Florence is prepared to take a giant step in the battle against second-hand smoke. Kudos to them and props to Truly Cigars for providing smokers with a haven of their own.

Shoalanda

City of Florence Doesn't Want "Urban Crowd"

Last night the Grown Folks Band was scheduled to play a "UNA Back to School Bash" concert at Big Ed's Club on Huntsville Road in East Florence. It's been reported that sometime during the day Friday, the Florence Fire Department along with other city inspectors shut the club down long before any patrons arrived for the nine o'clock show.

The GFB (pictured) is composed of Tom Putman, Nate Slaughter, Colin Krout, Kinsman McKay, and Issac Simon. They describe their music as a mix of rock, jam, hip-hop, rap, and reggae; their audience is anyone from old hippies to students to an older crowd. In short they are eclectic.

Having released their first album, two.five.sicks, six weeks ago, the band was expecting a large local turnout for their concert, a concert with the extremely reasonable admission fee of just five dollars. According to one member of the band: The Grown Folks Band show at Big Ed's tonight has been cancelled due to the Florence City Council not wanting an "urban crowd" at our show.... It's 2009, people.

An urban crowd? This brings us to Big Ed's itself, a small club located in what is designated as a semi-entertainment district. The small shopping district in East Florence was built in the 1920s and 1930s and, until Big Ed's entered the mix, the closest connection to music in the area was the House of Vacuums founded by the brother of Florence native Buddy Killen, a Nashville record producer. In order to survive during the recession, Big Ed's has taken to opening only on weekends and frequently catering to parties given by black fraternities at the University of North Alabama.

According to owner Ed Sandlin, after his initial opening months in 2005, his business began to wane. He openly blamed the city for not supporting the newly designated entertainment district, known in the earlier part of the last century as Sweetwater. He has also suggested his criticism of the Florence City Council has made them an enemy, but the city has a different story.

Tomorrow: Florence, Big Ed's, and the "Entertainment District"


What's up with this: UNA and Florence Police are targeting the University District for the next two weeks in an attempt to slow traffic around the campus. So, all you Nascar drivers need to slow down on Pine Street and Wood Avenue.

Shoalanda

He Said, She Said, Judge Jimmy Sandlin Said - Part II

A second account from Judge Jimmy Sandlin's Family Court for which we make no claims as to validity:

I live in an area, Florence Al., that practices "politics and who you know LAW". I have witnessed first hand, such practice, on more than one occasion. My most recent involvement with Lauderdale Co. family court and judge JIMMY SANDLIN began in mid April, following Spring Break of this yr. My 11 yr old son, let be known to my niece, of same age, "My Daddy raped me..." with heart wrenching detail's. My ex-sis-in-law revealed to me, on April 19th, the matter, as her daughter had told. My son, himself, told me, too, "My Daddy raped me...", in graphic details, the following Friday April 24th. I was heart broken and in disbelief.

My son would not let me out of his sight, and made it clear, and in tears, "I don't want to see or talk to my Dad." He, my son, refused to go to school, fearing his Dad could get him from school. I contacted my attorney, on Monday April 27th, she was out of town until the following Monday. On that Monday I met with her for counsel and direction, thinking I had done the right thing and my son would be protected. Two day's later, I tried to file a Protection Order for my and self, (the Dad has a long history of prior abuse) with the court per judge JIMMY SANDLIN,< person literally attacked and threatened me, saying I had coerced my son, and what a terrible mother I was for doing so, and if DHR and the Cramer Center discover such, quote "You will never see your kid again." and "I'll give you one chance to back out of these allegations" and "This order is a Custody Order not a Protection Order." I said, "I can't not do that, my son needs you." My atty responded, "She has nothing to gain in doing this, thing's are going well, between the mother and her son." I was terrified as "THAT person gave me one of the most evil, peircing glares, I have ever seen." And, the protection order did not include my son, just myself, with a clause, no visitation pending investigation per DHR and the Cramer Center and so-called GAL.

The following week, the Cramer Center (Monica Haddock) with DHR (Laura Johnson) did a Forensic Interview, that did not include, (but should have, according to Bud Cramer guidelines) a detective or investigator from the Florence PD. This is referred to as interagency cooperation, therefore children are not subjected to more interviews and trauma. It also came out in THEIR so-called interview that my son had tried to kill himself 2x, by cutting his wrist, and there is scarring from past cutting on his forearm (my son had told me he had gotten in briars) and a small cut on his wrist, that had been recent. He had to sign a paper, that he would not try and kill himself before they would allow him to leave, both myself and 25 yr old daughter were witness
to.

Approximately 1 wk later, my son was taken from me and placed in foster care per DHR and Cramer Center, whom told the judge, I had coerced him, "the child parrots the mother and I was uninsightful to my mental instability" thus mentally abusing my son. DHR, Laura Johnson, FAILED to tell the judge, I had been informed of the molestation/rape by my ex-sis-in-law, whom Laura Johnson had spoke to, as well as her sister, whom had heard my niece tell her. Had this not been omitted, I strongly feel my son would not have been put in foster care.

On July 9th, a hearing was held, with full intent to give full custody to the dad, as well as let him move ny son out of state, and note this, MY atty was out of town, that day, and I given a "fill in" atty whom knew nothing of the case. My daughter is in law enforcement and referenced the "Law" related to rights to counsel, so the case became Pendalite, the father was given temporary custody and allowed to move him out of state and a final hearing to be "sometime in Sept." Only of recent have found out the court date to be Sept. 10th. Also, I was given supervised visitation, which as of today still has not been "worked out" per the GAL. I have not seen my son since July 8th, have spoke with him only 3x, the dad told me, he doesn't want to see or talk to me. My atty say's, he's just at that rebellious stage. So this is where I am at...Lost, in desparate need of advice, I have limited funds, and I fear, to be truthful, that thing's could get much worse...I still have faith that, the GOOD LORD, is watching over my child...and, Oh, how I pray and pray and pray...

There is much more to my story, but, for now, I will leave y'all with the short story...and, I ask for your prayers, too.

I do need this question answered, has anyone out there been ordered to pay for any service's by the Cramer Childrens Advocacy Center, in Florence AL., I was ordered Forensic Evaluation at the expense of the mother, ordered by GAL, DHR and signed by judge JIMMY SANDLIN? I have recently found out that the Cramer Center is a non-profit organization, with 501(c)3 status/IRS...

Also, the dad, has been convicted of domestic assault on me, and has other documented history of abuse to me in police reports, hospital reports, nothing physical recent. The GAL has squashed using his past history of abuse and I don't understand.?

And, Yes, WE>any and all of us whom have been victimized by the system(s), must fight with our hearts, beings and souls to protect our children and God given right to be parent's....

Thank You, for your time and any advice and prayers....

Robin

Note: The above account originally appeared in The Alabama Family Rights Association website. It has been edited only for spelling and truncation into more easily readable paragraphs.


Shoalanda