By Linda Bolton linda@mckenziebanner.com

 

HUNTINGDON (August 3) - Incumbents and Democrats were the big winners in countywide general elections in Carroll County. Making history was the election of two African-American women - Natalie McCullough and Bertha Taylor - winning countywide office, both claiming victory in their first outing as candidates. All winners will take the oath of office September 1 except Bertha Taylor, who will be sworn in August 14 to fill the unexpired term of the late Paul Newmon.

Carroll County will have a new register of deeds, circuit court clerk, district attorney, circuit judge, and four new county commissioners. McKenzie School Board will have four new members following the Thursday election.

Carroll County voters cast their ballots on the new e-Slate electronic voting machines. Linda Radford, administrator of elections, said early voting went very well, however, election day presented a few problems. The judge booth controller at the Westport precinct malfunctioned at 5:30 p.m. requiring the remaining voters to cast their votes on paper ballots and McKenzie City Hall precinct was unable to get a required second paper printout of vote tallies. All early vote paper ballots had to be scanned in and any discrepancies had to be decided by election commissioners, which delayed the release of early vote totals, also creating a delay. Westport's 40 paper ballots were not counted until Friday morning. Final printouts of election results were not available until Friday noon.

A total of 7,034 persons voted in the election including 3,131 who voted early and by absentee.

Miss McCullough (D-Huntingdon), who is first deputy clerk in the Register of Deeds office, claimed an overwhelming victory over Joey Darnall (R-Huntingdon) to win the office of Register of Deeds. McCullough claimed 4,821 votes to Darnall's 1,677. As results from early voting and a few precincts were announced at the County Office Complex Thursday, a big cheer went up from her family and friends as McCullough's early lead was announced.

Mrs. Taylor (D-Trezevant), who is first deputy clerk in the Circuit Court Clerk's office, claimed victory with 3,201 votes compared to Jeff Barnett's (R-Huntingdon) 2827 and Charles Sullivan's (I-Huntingdon) 387. Taylor has been serving as circuit court clerk in the absence of Paul Newmon, who died recently.

McCullough said "It's commendable of the citizens" to elect candidates for their qualifications.

County Mayor Kenny McBride (D-McKenzie) won a third four-year term in two to one polling. McBride received 4,243 to challenger Amos Williams' (I-Huntingdon) 2,126. This was the third time the two have faced each other for the position. In 2002, McBride received 4,438 votes to Williams' 2,466 in a two-man race, and 2,017 to 1,121 in a six-man race in 1998 when McBride won his first term.

Sheriff Bendell Bartholomew (D-Huntingdon) easily won re-election with a vote of 3,890 to John "Diddle" Smith's (R-Cedar Grove) 2,156 and Homer Hicks' 629. In 2002, Bartholomew received 4,107 to Smith's 2,107, Hicks' (write-in) 76, and Walter Smothers, Jr's 859, compared to 1998 - Bartholomew 4,244, Smith 2,168, and James Russell Pearson 427.

In a hotly contested race, Hansel McCadams (D-Paris) won the office of District Attorney General over John Overton (I-Savannah) in the five-county district. McCadams polled 3,665 to Overton's 1,901 in Carroll, 3113 to 1237 in Benton, 3597 to 913 in Henry, 1740 to 1075 in Decatur, and 2721 to 2960 in Hardin, the lone county Overton outpolled McCadams. McCadams, a McKenzie native, has promised to keep the district office in Carroll County. McCadams said he knew the race was over when the early voting numbers came in from Carroll County. The DA-elect said Overton had made Carroll County the battleground county in the district and was concerned that the vote might be different in the county after Overton campaigned so heavily in Carroll County.

McCadams will fill the office held by Robert "Gus" Radford of Huntingdon, who is retiring after 24 years.

In other elections:

ASSESSOR OF PROPERTY - Johnny Radford (D-Huntingdon) received 5,225 complimentary votes to be re-elected to Assessor of Property
COUNTY TRUSTEE - Pat Rich (R-Huntingdon) received 5,251 complimentary votes in her re-election bid.
GENERAL SESSIONS JUDGE - Larry Logan (I-McKenzie) received 4,091 in his uncontested race for re-election.

CIRCUIT JUDGE PART 1 -Creed McGinley (D-Savannah) received 3,599 complimentary votes to win re-election.

CIRCUIT JUDGE PART 2 - Donald Parish (D-Huntingdon) received 4,703 votes in his first outing for the judgeship. He will replace Julian Guinn of Paris, who did not seek re-election.
CHANCELLOR - Ron Harmon received 3,292 complimentary votes to win re-election.

Public Defender Guy Wilkinson received 3,505 complimentary votes in his bid for re-election.
John Everett Williams, judge on the Court of Criminal Appeals Western Division was reconfirmed statewide as judge. Voters were asked to vote "to retain or not to retain." In Carroll County, Williams received more "to retain" votes than any other judge on the ballot. Locally, Williams received 3,931 to retain, and 625 "not to retain."

Four new commissioners will serve on the county commission after Billy J. Smith (District 1) was defeated and Virgil Coleman (District 1), Mike Creasy (District 9), and Roger Hollowell (District 6) did not seek re-election.

Commissioner District 1 (elect 2) - Wayne Kirk (incumbent) 454; Paul Lacy 88; R. Long 392; John Mark Robinson 491; and Billy J. Smith (incumbent) 361. Kirk, Long, and Robinson won.
District 2 Commission (elect 2) - Incumbents Bobby Argo 454 and Ronnie Murphy 392 won.
District 3 (elect 2) - Steve Parker (incumbent) - 270, Ricky Rogers 258; Larry Spencer (incumbent) 297; Spencer and Parker won.
District 4 (elect 2) - T. Richard Goodwin (incumbent)- 297, John Mann (incumbent) 338, and Tim Reeves 208. Goodwin and Mann won.
District 5 (elect 3)- Marsha Barger (incumbent) 660; Russell Holladay 469; Jimmy Kee 440; LaRenda Scarbrough (incumbent) 613; Jerry White (incumbent) 540. Barger, Scarbrough, and White won.
District 6 (elect 2) - Tommy Akin 59, George Avery 129, Charles Ballard 54, Johnny Blount (incumbent) 394, Wesley Collins 219, Jimmy McClure 291. Blount and McClure won.
District 7 (elect 2) Harold Baker (incumbent) 456, Walter Butler (incumbent) 479, and Troy Oatsvall 343. Butler and Baker won.
District 8 (elect 2)- Gaylon Sydnor (incumbent) 219, Harold Vinson (incumbent) 215, and Wayford Washburn, Sr. 150. Sydnor and Vinson won.
District 9 (elect 3)- Bill Kirk (incumbent) 618, Ben Surber (incumbent) 680, and Joel Washburn 654. All three won.

All four incumbent road supervisors were re-elected.

Road Supervisor 1 - Dennis E. Coleman 473 (D-McKenzie); Nolan Robinson (R-Atwood) 675. Robinson won re-election.
Road Supervisor 2 - Dennis Parker (D-McKenzie) received 1,628 complimentary votes in his re-election bid.
Road Supervisor 3 - Scotty Bailey (D-Huntingdon) 1,822; Tony Holladay (I-Huntingdon) 503. Bailey won re-election.
Road Supervisor 4 - Ricky Scott (R-Huntingdon) received 725 complimentary votes in his re-election bid.

In the Democratic primaries:
Governor Phil Bredesen received 2,608 votes, John Jay Hooker 284, Tim Sevier 64, and Walt Ward 29.
U.S. Senate - Gary G. Davis 340, Harold Ford, Jr. 1,847, John Jay Hooker 297, Charles E. Smith 224, and Al Strauss 25.

U.S. Representative - John Tanner 2,888.
Tennessee Senate 27th District - Lowe Finney 2,284.

House of Representatives - 76th District - Mark Maddox 2,033.
House of Representatives -79th District - Cheri Childress 438

REPUBLICAN PRIMARY

Governor - Mark Albertini 82, Wayne Thomas Bailey 97, Jim Bryson 638, David M. Farmer 515, Joe Kirkpatrick 180, Timothy Thomas 31, and Wayne Young 42.

U.S. Senate - Ed Bryant 1,276, Bob Corker 904, Tate Harrison 29, Van Hilleary 200. Bryant (R-Jackson) outpolled all candidates in Carroll County but lost the nomination to Corker in statewide polling.
U.S. House of Representatives - Rory B. Bricco 206 and John Farmer 1,388.

Tennessee Senate 27 District - Don McLeary 2,025.

Tenn. House of Representatives 76th District David Hawks 930.

Tenn. House of Representatives 79th District - Chris Crider 732.

McKenzie Special School District Board of Education will have four new faces to replace three retirees - Joe Fortner, Ruth Carroll, and Van Ramsey, and Mildred Sneed, who was unsuccessful in her re-election bid. Elected were Greg Barker, 983, Monte Cunningham 834, Jon Davis 769, and Karen McCaleb 962. Sneed received 610 votes.

C.C. School Board 1st Dist. Jimmy Simmons 1,333
C.C. School Board Dist. 2 - James Knolton 1,308
C.C. School District 2 (2-year term) Tonya Young 1,287

C.C. School District 3 - Toni Stokes 1,837
C.C. School District 3 (2-year) Gina Atkins 1,784
Hollow Rock-Bruceton School Board - 15th Dist. Joyce Noles - 47

H.R. - Bruceton 16th At Large - James Randy Kelley 424, Donna Robison 213. Kelley wins.
HR-Bruceton - Bruceton Member - Dan Young 294

Huntingdon Spec. School District Lee Carter 1,572 and Mark Dillahunty 1,463. Both incumbents won re-election.

West Carroll - Old County Dist. Lester Scott 565

West Carroll - Old Atwood Dist - Jimmy Halford (incumbent) 224, and Nancy Johnson 155. Halford won.
West Carroll - Old Trezevant Dist - Jim Pirtle (incumbent) 367.
South Carroll School 6th, 7th, 12th District - Steve Roberts 39, Andrew Stokes 87. Stokes won.
South Carroll School 13th District - Tony Hunley - 217.
Clarksburg City Mayor - Jeff Reed wins re-election with 99 votes in his uncontested race.
Clarksburg City Aldermen - Jerry McDaniel 103, Lee Woods 113. Both won.

 
August 17 is Deadline

CARROLL COUNTY - Deadlines are quickly approaching to qualify for candidacy in elections in six municipalities. August 17 is the deadline to seek office in Bruceton, Hollow Rock, Huntingdon, McKenzie, McLemoresville, and Trezevant.

McKenzie will elect a mayor and three aldermen. Mayor Walter Winchester is completing his first four-year term in that position. Elections will be held for council seats held by Willie Huffman, Gene Hale, and Jerry Arthur. In McKenzie, councilmen represent geographic wards and the candidate must reside within that ward.

As of Friday, August 4, Mayor Walter Winchester had picked up a qualifying petition to seek re-election. In Ward 2, incumbent Jerry Arthur and Steve Watson have picked up petitions, while Charles Ramey has already submitted his petition and qualified to seek office. In Ward 3, incumbent Willie Huffman and David L. Smith, Trezevant police chief, have qualified to seek office. In Ward 5, incumbent Gene Hale has filed to seek re-election.

Bruceton will elect a mayor and two aldermen at large. Terms expiring include Mayor Robert Keeton, III, and aldermen Bob Clark and Dan Young.

Keeton has picked up a petition to seek re-election as mayor. In the aldermen's race, incumbent Bob Clark has filed his petition and Robert Cole has picked up a petition.

Hollow Rock will elect a mayor and two aldermen at large. Terms expiring include Mayor Greg Hillard and aldermen Tim Runions and Ronnie Webb.

RaSha Mathis has picked up a petition to seek one aldermen position. No one else has picked up a petition.

Huntingdon will elect three aldermen. The terms of Melissa Powell, John Sanders, and Jeff Bailey are expiring.

Incumbent Jeff Bailey, Melissa Powell and John Sanders have picked up petitions, while Brian McDowell has filed his qualifying petition.

McLemoresville will elect a mayor and five aldermen. The terms of Mayor Phil Williams and aldermen Harold Blow, Angie Martin, Sue Newsome, Don T. Reed, and Barbara Younger are expiring.

Incumbent Harold Blow has filed his qualifying petition, while Larry Elliott, Angie Martin, Sue Newsome, Don T. Reed, and Barbara Younger have picked up petitions to seek the position of aldermen. Phil Williams has picked up a petition to seek re-election as mayor.

Trezevant will elect three aldermen. The terms of Joe Butler, James E. Moore, Jr., and Bobby Blaylock are expiring.

Incumbent Bobby Blaylock filed his qualifying petition.

For qualifying information, contact the Carroll County Election Commission at 986-1968.

During its regular meeting Tuesday, August 1 the McKenzie Special School District Board of Education approved the sale of approximately 2.25 acres of property on the McKenzie High School campus.

Superintendent Jim Ward said there were two main reasons for the sale: the property, which is essentially a thicket, is "useless" to the high school, and the property would "better serve the district if it was developed and put on the county's tax roll."

The land area for sale is about 220 by 450 square feet and is located on the southeast corner of the campus, near the band practice field. "We've had interest from at least two individuals to purchase the property," Ward said.

He added that the interested persons both owned adjoining property to the area for sale and expressed the intention of developing the property in either a commercial or residential format. There is no direct road access to the property.

With the board's approval, the district is now seeking sealed bids for the plus or minus 2.25 acres of property. Maps and information concerning this property can be obtained from the board office at 114 Bell Avenue in McKenzie.

Bids will be accepted at the board office until noon on Wednesday, August 16, at which time bid opening will occur. The board reserves the right to refuse any and all bids for this property.

Three board members were also recognized during the meeting for their many years of service to the board. Ward thanked members Ruth Carroll (17 years), Van Ramsey (eight years), and Joe Fortner (six years), who are retiring from the board next month.

"The past five years that I've been here, your support and direction have made me better, and what you've done has made the school system better," Ward said. "I'm sad to see you go, but excited to meet the new candidates." All three received plaques of appreciation from Ward.

Ramsey noted the pleasant atmosphere of the board. "We are all good friends and work together well," he said. Carroll credited Ward with the positive direction the board has taken in recent years. "It has been a pleasure to serve under him," she said. Fortner added, "I have enjoyed all the meetings. Ward has made the system better, and I hope the public knows that."

In other business, the board approved school breakfast and lunch prices and elementary student instructional fees for the 2006-2007 academic year. Prices will be as follows:

Pre-K to fourth grade: breakfast - $0.50, $0.30 (reduced); lunch - $1.25, $0.40 (reduced). Fifth grade to twelfth grade: breakfast - $0.75, $0.30 (reduced); lunch - $1.50, $0.40 (reduced). Elementary student instructional fees: Kindergarten, second grade, and fourth grade - $14.50; first grade - $10; third grade - $16.50.

Ward explained that the standard fee is only $10 per grade, and the additional money covers field trip expenses. By approving both fees together, the board allowed for field trips to be considered a fee waiver activity for students receiving reduced price meals. "This is the same process as last year," Ward said.

The board also:
* Approved on first reading four new policies for the MSSD Board of Education Policy Manual, two of which are new policies and two have language changes.

The first policy, regarding registered sex offenders, is a more restrictive version of an earlier policy. The new policy states that a registered sex offender is ineligible for employment within the school district and details specific rules for allowing them on school property.

The second policy qualified regulations for bids and quotations, while the third policy offered guidelines for requesting waivers of state statutes, rules, and regulations.

The final policy approved revised the procedure for granting tenure, including a clause requiring teachers previously employed in the district who attained tenure, resigned, and returned to serve a one-year probationary period upon reemployment with the district.

"I think all of these policies are well-written and reasonable," Ward said.

* Heard from Ward regarding staff changes. New employees include: Dale Burian, middle school teacher; Lindsey Holt, elementary pre-K teacher's assistant, to replace Lydia Mansfield; Susan Dyer, high school marketing teacher (previously employed at Carroll County VoTech School in Huntingdon), to replace Scott Jewell, who has taken a position at Gibson County High School; and Tonya Collins, elementary custodial staff. The board also granted a medical leave of absence for food service employee Teresa Mealer and a military leave of absence for middle school teacher William Hardy, effective August 2006 to December 2007.

* Approved the Extended Contract Program Proposal for Providing Extended Learning Time Through Extended Learning Programs for 2006-2007. This proposal involves compensating staff for pre- and post-school overtime work as well as summer work.

Also included are high school credit recovery classes and ACT prompting courses, which Ward said are "desperately needed," and elementary and middle school programs for students who had not reached mastery level on state exams in reading and language arts.

Ward said that $55,000 was provided annually by the state, and that staff participation in overtime activities has increased since last year. Staff are currently compensated at $18 per hour for their services, and "no factors have been considered for inflation" in several years, Ward said.

* Approved the Tennessee School Boards Risk Management Trust Intergovernmental Cooperative Agreement, which Ward referred to as an annual "housekeeping" matter. He said the agreement involves around 50 school boards and local governments.

 

MCKENZIE - A McKenzie woman faces reckless homicide charges in the accidental shooting death of a McKenzie man killed April 5.

Jennifer Marie White, 21, of 11 Morris Lane, McKenzie was charged June 22 by McKenzie Police Department Lieutenant Tim Nanney. The charges were filed July 12 in Carroll County General Sessions Court, according to a court clerk.

According to the arrest warrant filed by Nanney, White recklessly took the life of Keith Glynn Sawyers, 37, at his residence at 776 Magnolia Street. She allegedly pointed a semi-automatic .45-caliber handgun at him and pulled the trigger.

White received the lesser charge of reckless homicide because she was apparently unaware the gun was loaded. Reckless homicide, a Class D felony, carries 2 to 12 years in prison, as opposed to a Class E felony charge for criminally negligent homicide charge that was also being considered by authorities. A Class E felony carries a penalty of 1 - 6 years.

The reckless homicide charge pertains specifically to reckless behavior ending in a death.

Nanney said White, who was friends with Sawyers, gave a statement concerning the night's event. He believes White made the 911 call around 1:15 a.m. that led officers to respond to the scene of the shooting.

Nanney stated it was not known at the time of the shooting that White had allegedly shot Sawyers. Following several months of investigation, Nanney said he presented the case to the district attorney to decide which charge to go with.

White's bond was initially set at $50,000, but later lowered to $5,000 before she was eventually released on her own recognizance.

She waived a preliminary hearing and will go before the Grand Jury on September 5.