Headlines – 1/17/2003

Published 12:00 am Friday, January 17, 2003

The Panolian Headlines : January 17, 2003

For complete stories, pick up the 1/17/03  issue of The Panolian


County Administrator Files for Clerk Position
BY JASON C. MATTOX
SENIOR STAFF WRITER

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County Administrator David Chandler is making a bid for elected office and has submitted his Statement of Intent to seek the Chancery Clerk’s post.

Chancery Clerk Sally Fisher is retiring and will not seek re-election.

Fisher said a Chancery Clerk can make up to $83,160 annually depending on the job they do.

Chandler presently makes approximately $90,000 total per year for serving as county administrator, a full-time position for which he draws nearly $6,000 per month, and road manager, a part-time position for which he is paid $1,500 per month.

"I never would have run against Sally," he said. "But with her retiring, the time was just right to do it."

Chandler said because the county administrator is an appointed position, he does not know if the Board of Supervisors will retain him in that position should he win the chancery clerk’s race.
 


Suspect Held in Sardis Holdup
BY JASON C. MATTOX
SENIOR STAFF WRITER

A man believed to be the perpetrator of the Texaco robbery in Sardis is in custody in the Senatobia Jail, Sardis Police Chief Sonny Stepp said.

"The suspect in custody is believed to have been involved in the robbery of a convenience store in Senatobia," Stepp said.

Stepp said because charges have not been filed against the suspect, the name cannot be released.

"We have a hold on the suspect for questioning when the Senatobia Police Department are done with him," he said.

According to Stepp, a man entered the Sardis Texaco Monday morning about 3:40 a.m. and displayed two handguns.

A total of $399.12 was taken from the Texaco, he said. A woman clerk was the only person working at the time of the robbery.

Stepp said he does not believe this robbery was a one-person job.

"The suspect needed someone else for this to work," he said. "I feel confident there is another person."
 


New Houses Create Concern in Neighborhood

BY KATE B. DICKSON
EDITOR

A group of new homes going up on Lakewood have caused concern and raised the curiosity level of some residents in nearby Cambridge Estates.

Meanwhile, the condition of brick ledges on the slabs of four of the homes has resulted in the city’s building official not passing them.

The homes are being constructed by Reeves-Williams Builders which is also building Keating Grove, a subdivision off Keating Road in Batesville, said Charlie Sanders, field superintendent for the Southaven Company.

A spokesman for the company said the second phase of Keating Grove will contain about 40 new homes. Site preparation is underway there now.

The developer of the newest Reeves-Williams project in Lakewood Villages is Henry Heafner, Sanders said.

Lakewood Villages, Sanders explained, is a large planned unit development (PUD) that extends along Lakewood from the outlet mall almost to Brewer Road. It’s an area designed to accommodate businesses, multi-family dwellings and single-family homes, he said.
 

   
Blind Woman Says Clinical Trial Acceptance "Only Hope"
Seeks Aid to Get Noticed by Specialists

Mary Towles holds out hope she’ll be able to see her grandchildren one day.

BY KATE B. DICKSON
EDITOR

Mary Towles isn’t completely blind but she will be without cutting edge technology.

And, even with that, there’s no guarantee she’ll see but it is her only hope.

She’s trying to get the attention of specialist Dr. Alan Chow in Illinois and thinks maybe she can if readers of The Panolian will help.

Towles, 56, suffers from macular degeneration, which takes away the central vision, and she also has retinitis pigmentosa which takes away the peripheral, or side vision.

Towles wants people to send letters and/or email to the specialist in hopes she can become part of a clinical trial.

Otherwise, she’ll be completely blind like her sisters Ruby Doubleday, 54, of Batesville, and Becky Ford, 50, of Collierville, Tenn., and several other family members who came before them.

Ford’s children also suffer from degenerating vision and Towles’ brother, Otis Tubbs, 48, of Batesville, has RP. Their father, the late O.T. Tubbs, had RP, too, and his twin brother was blind.

Doubleday thinks her sons have eye problems but said they haven’t agreed to testing.
 


Human Society in Need of Help
The Panola County Humane Society hopes to have a new facility/location by June.

In the meantime, locally rescued dogs, cats, birds, and other animals are in desperate need of:

– Kennels (especially large and X-large),
– Old towels and blankets,
– Pyramite or Happy Jack (At Co-op),
– Live traps (All Sizes),
– Amoxi and Clavamox drops (dry Vet office
  only)

* Dr. Newcomb’s office only – tell them who its for, cages of all types and sizes, disposable cameras, postage stamps, Clorox clean-up gel, triple antibiotic ointment, Little Noses (nose drops) and latex gloves.

Other needs include alcohol, peroxide, cotton balls, 409 cleaner, antibacterial dish and hand soap, big plastic tubs with lid, chain-link fences, collars, leashes, cash box, fund raising tables, vacant building and/or land, cash donations, foster pet keepers.

If you are interested in becoming a member and/or volunteer, please contact Dana at 578-0225 or Tabitha at 563-8816 for additional information.

Donors can drop off items at: Kelly Services, Northcrest Business Park, 196 Hwy 51, North, Batesville, MS 38606. It’s located between the Mississippi Highway Patrol office and the Batesville Public Library.

Individual membership is $10 a year.