Leighton Memories & Walnut Street Images

Leighton Councilwoman and Police Commissioner Teresa Lannaman is set to go to trial on harassment charges October 13th. A Federal investigation into the mayor's office is said to be ongoing. Is this really what the small Colbert County town is like? According to our friend Lecia Ford, there once was more to her hometown. Here's a beautiful take on the glory that was once Leighton.

Leighton Memories

As a former resident of the great town of Leighton, place of my childhood, teenage years and young adult romping grounds, I must defend it, to a point. As the result of a divorce, I moved, I moved from a place I called home. It never really seemed the same after my daddy died anyway.

I recall hearing my aunt talk of Leighton, the boom town, the cotton king, so many people on the streets, you couldn’t stir ‘em with a stick. A tale of her and my grandmother, on the streets one Saturday night, had to lay down in the floorboard of the car in order to keep from being hit by stray bullets.

Not a drive-by, mind you, but a gun fight, a real gun fight…between a crook and the Chief of Police, Mr. Henry J. Searcy, I think his name was. My aunt tells that there were bullets ricocheting off the bumper. The crowd dispersed at the sound of death, the Chief has been shot! The crook/murderer surrendered to townsfolk.

Later on, another crook, was being closed in on by Adrian Lowry (my aunt’s husband), Leighton Police Officer, on the infamous Sixth Street when they both wrecked. The wreck confined Adrian to a hospital bed with numerous broken bones. The crook surrendered. And my uncle earned the nickname Deputy Dog, although he didn’t like it one bit, but then he didn’t like the name Deacon either.

My daddy owned Leighton Cleaners for nearly 49 years. He was an honest man, who taught me integrity, to never lie, cheat or steal to get through life. He taught me in order to make in this ‘ol world you got have morals, character, or you have nothing...

I would like to add also that my daddy never carried the deposits home with him, he never kept guns around. The money from an honest day’s work, was walked across the street to Bank Independent and deposited. A bank owned and run by Ed Mauldin at that time, who offered my daddy a loan with a handshake, when the boiler needed to be replaced. And oh yes, he did own a gun, a Pearl handle 38, that he used to kill snakes…It was always hidden, out of reach of the kids, and never, never was there any cash just ‘laying’ around, especially $350,000 in cash.

And I guess I said all that to say this about Robert Ricks, Robert was an honest man, a good decent man and to be accused of getting kickbacks for automobile repairs? You have got to be kidding…It all came out though, through the system, the judicial system. Who do you believe? A fly by night repairman, or a citizen? A citizen that would have given his shirt off his back to anyone.

"I have given consideration and weight to Mr. Ricks history and characteristics. He has no prior criminal record," she said. "His conviction is certainly not consistent with his prior life of 60 years."

NOW that is what I am talking about…reputation, character…

Second chances? Sure everyone deserves a second chance, but it’s what you do with that second chance that makes the difference. And the third, fourth and so on and so on.

A second chance is about making a change from one behavior to another. A chance to have a better outcome of a situation. A chance to move forward and not go back, to old habits, old ways, old behaviors…

It makes me ashamed to say I am from Leighton. It makes it hard to go back there, and try to salvage anything desirable from the corruption that takes place in a town that is run by crooks…on every corner.

And how do the citizens of Leighton feel about this? Proud?

Apologies to Lecia for not getting this published earlier. We hope she will continue to contribute her vivid memories to both us and the new Shoals magazine The Connection.

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While everything changes, some things at least appear to be both unscathed and undiminished by the the hands of time. Here's a wonderful link to the homes located in the Walnut Street Historic District.

Walnut Historic District

Of course, even these houses do occasionally change...take a good look at 502 Walnut Street, labeled as a cottage. If you like it, be sure to save the photograph. Current owner, developer Jimmy Neese, has added a sizable addition to the original structure.

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Was Tuscumbia really America's first frontier railroad town? You can purchase this book on eBay and find out: Link

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Kill Your Wife & Do Five Years

Terry Ewell Hall's wife died on September 7, 2008. Exactly two years later, Hall agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter in exchange for a sentence of only 15 years. Manslaughter in Alabama may bring as much as 20 years, but as with any sentence of 15 years or under, Hall is now eligible for Correctional Incentive Time, aka Good Time. The evidence against Hall was circumstantial, and Charlene Hall's family agreed to the sentence--a bird in hand and quicker closure.

However, Hall will serve less than five years, assuming he behaves himself. The Cloverdale resident has requested to begin his sentence on September 14th. Assuming he's processed by the State immediately, he will be released at the end of June 2015. If the State Department of Corrections is running behind in their pickup and processing of new prisoners, Hall may not complete his sentence until the end of July 2015. That equals a total sentence of four and three-quarter years--that is if Terry Hall is not paroled.

Yes, Hall could be eligible for parole long before he ends his sentence. It's not unusual to see inmates serving a 15 year sentence leave prison in as little as 20 months. Most who are paroled have not been convicted of violent crimes, and we hope Hall will never see his name on parole papers. Charlene Hall doesn't deserve any less.

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Speaking of prison sentences, one reason for the crowding of Alabama prisons is the incarceration of those guilty of white collar crimes. For our purposes, a white collar crime involves no violence and can usually be said to fall under the umbrella of theft. Currently, between three and six other states demand the same, depending on the exact nature of the crime.

Not all white collar theft is equal, and we don't oppose the sentence fitting the crime. It's when the State of Alabama demands a stiff prison sentence for the white collar first offender and allows the Terry Halls of the world to serve less than five years for murder/manslaughter that we question both the intelligence and the morality of the system.

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It seems Whitesell Mfg. isn't the only company to face the wrath of OSHA inspectors recently. Pilgrim's Pride in Russellville has been charged with 29 safety and health violations. On a totally unrelated topic, Hispanic workers report an on-the-job injury rate that is almost double that of their co-workers.

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Can't get enough Whitesell? Buy a souvenir on eBay--it's only five dollars: Link

 Shoalanda



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Lexington? No Business/Cherokee? Monkey Business

Lexington, Your Lexington

A Guest Commentary By

Bailey Quarters

I've never been to Lexington, Alabama, and I don't feel I've missed that much. Do I think Lexington has no worthwhile citizens? No, I'm sure it does. I just think there's nothing in Lexington that would make it a veritable tourist mecca.

So why am I writing about Lexington? The town tries too hard and makes all the wrong decisions for all the wrong reasons.

Some time ago I worked with a woman from Lexington. She told me of a new "biker shop" in Lexington and how the people in that town would make short work of it, send it packing so to speak. When I asked her about it some months later, she replied that everyone in Lexington loved having it there because of all the tax dollars it generated.

Was the biker shop bad to begin with? Probably not. Was it less bad because it produced tax dollars? Definitely not. Money doesn't change something from bad to good, but it does seem to change the way some people in Lexington look at it.

That brings me to the new Internet service in Lexington. Is it a good thing? I've always thought competition was a great thing, so Francisco Guerra's new business is certainly not bad in itself. It's just that if all I knew was what Guerra's press release stated, I would think there was no real Internet in Lexington. There is. Will Guerra's Internet be better than anyone else's? We doubt it, but it will produce tax dollars for Lexington and that seems to be what matters most to them.

As for Francisco Guerra himself, he stated that he moved to his Lauderdale County location because so many people need jobs and they are willing to work hard. You could call that statement either good or bad, depending on how Guerra uses his workers.

Guerra seems to like to do things for himself. It would be good if both Guerra and Lexington could hire a professional to promote them. Then their attempts at making the news wouldn't look so shallow.

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From Lexington, we travel southwestward to Cherokee; here's C. R.'s report:

Opposites do not Attract

The Cherokee Town Hall is located in the old Cherokee Middle School. By the actions of the Town Council and Town Clerk the Town Hall should be moved to the Cherokee Elementary School. A few weeks ago the Town Council changed the locks of the Town Clerk’s Office and Mayor Chuck Lansdell later changed them back. The Mayor hired a part time secretary and the council refuses to pay her salary. The mayor fires the mother-in-law of Councilman Steve Glover because she turned in her resignation and was never hired back properly. The council illegally hires the mother-in-law back and at a later Town Council meeting the council had to fix their mistake. I could go on and on about the misdeeds of the council.

Refuses to Take Orders

On several occasions the mayor has given Town Clerk Melinda Malone items to put on the Town Council meetings agenda and she failed to include the items. The mayor has asked Melinda to work on the grant paperwork or make a copy of the town’s minutes and nothing is ever done in a timely manner.

Monday was a holiday so all agenda items had to be put on the agenda by the close of business Friday. The mayor sent an e-mail addressed to several people Friday. The e-mail addressed to the town clerk, town attorney, mayor’s secretary, mayor’s attorney, and the mayor himself instructed the Town Clerk to put several issues on the agenda. Everyone received the e-mail except the town clerk. Even the town’s attorney stated he received the e-mail.

Consequences

A few months ago the Mayor of Cherokee decided he would stand up to the misdeeds of the council and he would undo anything done improperly or illegally. The mayor hired a part time secretary to work on the town’s grants because the town’ clerk stated she is so busy and does not have the time to work on them. The secretary’s job would also include reviewing the town’s minutes and finding anything done improperly or illegally.

When Melinda Malone decided to not open the mayor’s e-mail the mayor decided to not play the council’s game anymore. At the beginning of the Town Council meeting the mayor decided not to call the meeting to order. The mayor informed the crowd that the town clerk failed to put his agenda items on the agenda and he was not going to call the meeting to order. Councilman Steve Glover asked the town’s attorney could he call the meeting to order. The mayor informed the town attorney to make sure he knew what he was going to speak about because he already done the research. Glover was informed by the town attorney that if the mayor is present he could not. When the council got up to leave the room the crowd clapped loudly.

Sources close to the situation state that the mayor’s attorney has given the mayor a green light to fire Melinda Malone. Melinda is failing to obey the orders of her boss and can be fired for it.

Work Session

Before each council meeting there is a work session. All agenda items are addressed and talked about. During the agenda item concerning the town’s bills the town’s attorney fees were addressed. The $240.00 bill paid by the town was just not for a 10 minute council meeting. It seems that the council has been calling the town's attorney concerning their ethics issues and other things. The mayor informed the council members that they would have to pay back the taxpayers of Cherokee because it is not their responsibility to pay for their attorney.

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Role Models

We don't usually touch on national politics or events; there are bloggers who do it so much better and have so much more influence. We're going to make an exception today and comment on role models. Why?

Yesterday we found the time to read last week's USA Weekend, the Sunday supplement supplied to TimesDaily readers because, we suppose, Shelton Publishing already had a contract with the mag when they purchased the TD. In this particular issue were two very telling articles.

First was an article written by Anderson Cooper, the CNN news presenter of wealthy parentage and uncertain sexuality. We'll inject here that we don't care what his sexual orientation is--we just get tired of Cooper straddling the fence on the issue in order not to alienate viewers. In his article on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Cooper mentions "an ugly reminder of the city's segregationist past," the name Francis T. Nicholls etched in a cornerstone.

We'll be the first to confess having only the foggiest idea who Nicholls was. A quick Google search proved him to be a Confederate Brigadier General and later in life a governor of Louisiana who, per Wiki:

...believed in having less government through lower taxes and fewer official functions. During his first term, he battled political corruption...

Nicholls chaired the Louisiana Constitutional Convention of 1879, and returned the state Capitol from New Orleans to Baton Rouge. He also accepted an appointment from President Grover Cleveland to the Board of Visitors for the U.S. Military Academy.

After his tenure as governor closed, Nicholls became Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court in 1892, a post which he held until 1911.

Well, his later years certainly sound uneventful and not worthy of emulation. We in 2010 need real role models who will encourage us to strive for the worthwhile things in life. Let's flip a few pages and find one--Heidi Klum.

Here we can find out how she "eats, shops and diets." Yep, role model central right here in print coming to us every week courtesy of the TimesDaily.


Shoalanda



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Helen Keller Hospital Afraid of Roaches?

We hear that staff at Helen Keller Hospital in Sheffield has been carrying roach spray around the halls of the hospital. Is the medical facility infested with the buggy buggars?

No. Apparently it's just the staff's way of warning new Coffee Health Group CEO Joe Roach to stay away. At a recent Rotary gathering, Roach was quoted as saying Keller's board members were short-sighted, fearful, and stupid.

Strong language, but it very well may be true. Just who are Keller's board members? Oddly, while the website for the hospital frequently mentions the board, the nine member panel isn't named. A recent article in the TimesDaily identified Larry Collum as the board president.

Another recent TD article commented on Keller's rejection of RegionalCare as a suitor--a move of which the Colbert County Commission approved. Among the three commissioners quoted was Rex Burleson. You may remember Mr. Burleson for his recent comments concerning the great success of the National Alabama rail car plant in Barton.

Do we think RegionalCare is the savior of health care in the Shoals? No, but neither do we think sending patients from the Shoals to Huntsville will improve the status quo. We have to wonder why Keller is so eager to align itself with a hospital out of the immediate area while it shuns any contact with a similar facility just across the river.

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Lexington lacks high-speed Internet? One would think so if he/she read Francisco Guerra's recent blurb for his new company Front Porch Communications. While Lexington does lack cable in many neighborhoods, high-speed Internet is readily available via BellSouth/ATT and the Dish Network.

Obvisously, not every home has a land line in this era of cell phone communication, but one would think obtaining a television cable service for Lexington would be the top priority for its elected officials.

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Locust Hill: Looking for a copy of Mary Wallace Kirk's book? Here's at least 95 of them--Link


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Should Our News Be Censored?

All the news that fits? Well, the TimesDaily isn't the Rolling Stone, and we're glad it isn't. We prefer to read the local news sans strings of profanity. Yet, just what should be censored?

Perhaps no two reporters or editors will find the same facts important, but we do wonder at much of what is omitted from the TimesDaily. Here's a few recent examples:

Teresa Lannahan arrest: While the TD did eventually report the arrest of the Leighton Town Council member, it failed to mention that Lannahan is the police commissioner of that Colbert County town.

Whitesell Mfg.: The TD did hit the highlights of the OSHA investigation into cost-cutting measures at Whitesell's two local facilities, but failed to report one of the most salient points. From WAFF...

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration called the inspection of Whitesell Corporation in Colbert County the worst inspection they have done on an Alabama organization in a decade.

Cherokee: Okay, we'll give them a pass on this one. If they printed all the shenanigans in that unfair city, it would cause a world shortage of ink.

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Have you read Osborne Ink's most recent blog? If not, be sure to check it out. Matt tells it like it is concerning UNA's proposed move to Division I athletics: Link

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The Lauderdale District Court Race: So far, both Carole Coil Medley and James Hall have run super clean campaigns. We've heard Florence Deputy Chief Tim Shaddix has placed signs supporting Medley at many of his rental properties, while much of the Florence Police Department is supporting Hall. We call it neck and neck at this point.

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Planning on getting connected? You can start by becoming a fan of The Connection here: Link

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It's Labor Day; let's go to Tuscumbia: Link




Shoalanda



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"I Stole Your Password"

We're still receiving e-mails concerning our posting some unflattering, sexually suggestive photos of a local councilwoman. While most felt we were wrong to remove the photographs, at least one reader felt we were hypocritical to have posted the shots in the first place, "back peddle," then publish a guest commentary criticizing another local blog for posting libelous material.

Were we wrong or back peddling when we removed the photographs? First, actual photos aren't rumors, so the shots could hardly be considered libelous. Second, when we originally posted the suggestive shots, they had previously been posted at three other sites--two of them belonging to the subject herself and password protected. We had no reason at that time to think the councilwoman had not posted these images.

After she contacted us, saying the two social networking sites had been hacked, we removed the photos. This isn't back peddling, it's common courtesy. That doesn't mean we totally bought in to the sites being compromised. After all, it's almost impossible to hack a password protected site, isn't it?

Well...no. Many individuals use only one e-mail account. If you have their e-mail address, you're well on your way to hacking their personal accounts. Facebook, as well as many other sites, uses one's e-mail address as the initial sign on info. While the password is, or should be, much harder to obtain, it's far from impossible.

We're speculating the councilwoman gave a friend or co-worker her password to some innocuous site--the same password she used for each of her other accounts. Even if she used a distinct password for each account, all it takes to hack these other sites is access to the subject's e-mail to retrieve any and all other passwords.

There's also the possibility that a co-worker or employer used keystroke recording software to obtain the password(s). Such software can be purchased for around $60.00, and more and more companies are using it.

C. R. will be at the Cherokee Town Council meeting Tuesday night. Perhaps the name of the hacker will be revealed...but we're not holding our breath.

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Interested in joining the Tea Party Patriots of North Alabama. You can call 256-412-1710 or visit their website here: Link

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UNA to play in Division I? There's certainly enough talk, but we haven't heard the word stadium mentioned. There have been numerous improvements in the past 18 months, but Braly is still a far cry from most Division I home fields.

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Travel back to Russellville in 1909: Link




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BroadwayJoe.TV

Whether you pledge allegiance to Alabama or Auburn or just UNA, you know who Joe Namath is. If you just can't enough Joe, here's a link to his personal site: Link

We understand one of our favorite bloggers will be glued to a certain Pay-per-View game today, so until Iron Bowl Day, we'll say "Roll Tide."

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According to a press release from the Mo Brooks campaign, Alabama's 5th Congressional District has just been classified as "Safe Republican." There's still two months until the election, but the Republican's Nancy Pelosi bashing (and who can resist?) seems to be doing the job.

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Ghost hunts coming soon to Sweetwater? According to Joshua Murphy of the Huntsville group Rocket City Paranormal, he's negotiating with Susan Leigh Smithson concerning ghost hunts to be held on the grounds of the ante bellum plantation. We'll have more on this before Halloween.

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Tuscumbia architecture circa 1922: Link



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