The Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors are one step closer to joining opioid litigation after its meeting last week.

Two attorneys, A.J. Elkins and Tony Gaylord, who are a part of a team filing litigation in federal court regarding the opioid crisis, provided a second presentation to supervisors pertaining to having the county join the litigation.

Supervisors were provided with a presentation from fellow attorneys at an earlier meeting, and both Elkins and Gaylord wanted to answer any follow-up questions they had.

"The goal of the litigation has been to assist public bodies in retrieving some of their costs associated with this huge national epidemic that we are faced with right now," Gaylord said.

Elkins said their group, along with five other law firms across the country, are representing 400 municipalities and counties. He said the judge presiding over the case entered a scheduling order and the litigation is slated for March 2019.

"The litigation is moving forward quickly," Elkins said.

In addition to representing a large number of counties and municipalities, Elkins said their group has several experts assisting with the litigation.

"With hiring our group, Oktibbeha County will get the benefit of those experts," Elkins said. "Not just a direct benefit of their expertise, but the cost associated with those would be spread among our clients."

Elkins said in Mississippi, about 15 or 20 municipalities and counties have joined the litigation. The city of Starkville recently approved to join the litigation.

District 4 Supervisor Bricklee Miller asked both Elkins and Gaylord what the difference will be between the opioid litigation versus the tobacco lawsuit. She said the attorneys involved in the tobacco litigation received large funds while those truly affected did not.

"How is this actually going to benefit those people who are actually affected by the drug,” Miller said. “Who is this going to be any different than the tobacco lawsuit?"

Gaylord said with the tobacco lawsuit, the state received a large portion of the recovery fund. In this particular manner, Gaylord said individual counties and cities will receive the funds associated with any settlement of the matter.

He said each county would make the decision as to how it would reimburse themselves. Gaylord said each entity would create a "damage model" as to how it would want to receive funds from the settlement.

"Some entities have decided they've wanted to spend money on patrol cars," Gaylord said. "Some entities have decided they want to build treatment centers, and they're building drug treatment centers to help those folks who are facing the epidemic."

Gaylord said the damage model is going to be up to the individual entity, but it'll focus on three categories: law enforcement, education and health care.

Supervisors questioned what the rates will be once the litigation is complete, and the response was if there is a recovery of funds from the lawsuit, 25 percent of the funds will go to the attorneys and 75 percent goes to the client after expenses.

"I do not think this is a bad idea," Board Attorney Rob Roberson said. "My theory on this is that if other counties are going to get a piece of this, I think that Oktibbeha County deserves their share of this."

Although in favor of the idea, Roberson said he would like to review the contracts before making a decision.

Gaylord said each entity would need to have a resolution to claim opioid abuse as a public nuisance and anticipates the litigation will reach a "sizable" settlement.

Supervisors agreed to let Roberson read over the contract and bring the contract to the board for potential approval at its next meeting.

The Starkville Rotary Club got to hear about the Mississippi Justice Institute and its mission, when its director, attorney Shad White, spoke Monday.

White has worked for the institute since 2017, and has also worked in private practice and as a special prosecutor in Rankin County. He also managed Gov. Phil Bryant’s successful 2015 reelection campaign, and worked for Bryant when he was lieutenant governor under Haley Barbour. He is an alumnus of the University of Mississippi and the Harvard Law School.

He described his journey from private practice to the institute.

“I was very fulfilled at law school fighting for things I believed in, but in private practice, I did not feel that same sort of drive and motivation,” White said.

He said he began seeing causes worth fighting for while still in private practice and began to gravitate away from wanting to practice as a private attorney.

“The more I read about our government and the economy, the more I was bothered by this notion that government in many ways, has tilted a lot of rules to hurt working people and help bigger businesses that typically are out-of-state,” White said. “I was bothered by these two things, so I quit my job, which was a hard thing to do, because I was what my grandfather would have called a ‘tall building lawyer.’ I had an office on the eleventh floor, and it was great, and I had a check coming in every month. I was on the partnership track, but I was just not fulfilled in the way I knew I could be doing something else.”

As the institute’s sole attorney, White has taken cases in instances where government and other entities threaten Mississippians, and has also sent letters to many other entities threatening legal action if they don’t change their direction. To handle the caseload, White works with pro bono attorneys on each case. So far, the institute, which was founded in 2016, has argued five cases in court, and sent out many more letters threatening action.

“We’re part of a non-profit, and we represent people in court when their constitutional rights have been taken away,” White said.

White gave two examples of cases the institute had been involved in, including one involving two men wishing to start a taxicab company in Jackson, but were blocked by regulations the city was later found to be ignoring with existing cab firms. He also discussed a case involving students of charter schools being threatened.

“We see things like that happening occasionally in little bitty pockets around Mississippi, and for folks like our cab drivers, without us they just sort of have to take it, and that’s the end of their business plan,” White said. “They can’t afford a lawyer. They don’t have any revenue coming in, because they haven’t started their company yet, but in a world where the Mississippi Justice Institute exists, we can jump in and represent them for free.”

White also said the institute was looking for potential cases, and pro bono attorneys. Those interested can email white@msjustice.org.

The Mississippi Justice Institute is a component of the Mississippi Institute for Public Policy, which works to promote and protect the concepts of free markets, limited government and strong traditional families.

Participants in the Mississippi State University Extension Equine Assisted Therapy Programs showed off their horse riding skills to friends and family at an Expo Monday night at the Mississippi Horse Park.

The programs benefit children of all ages with different disabilities and conditions, including but not limited to autism, cerebral palsy, down syndrome, learning disabilities, spina bifida, spinal cord injuries, visual and hearing impairments, cardiovascular accidents and strokes, brain injuries, amputations, multiple sclerosis and muscular dystrophy.

“Last night was a special night for the kids to be recognized for their hard work and determination,” MSU Extension Equine Assisted Therapy Programs Director Cassie Brunson said. “It’s always inspiring to me, and the Expo is a chance for everyone to witness what I see on a weekly basis.”

Laurie Hersey’s daughter Jenna was one of the riders during the Expo as a member of the Red Team.

Hersey said Jenna has some special learning needs but no physical disabilities, and the program helps her work on motor skills, motor planning and balance in a fun way.

“We thought with some of the difficulties that Jenna has it would help her with working toward some things and goals,” Hersey said. “She’s done occupational therapy, but work toward those things in a way that’s fun for her.”

Hersey said her daughter just completed her second semester in the first year of the program, and they plan to continue as long as they can because it helps her self esteem and gives her something to be proud of.

“We’re finding something for her to do that she feels successful at,” Hersey said. “Last night was great for her. She was excited about it, she was proud of how she’s been doing this year, and for her to have a sense of accomplishment doing that has been great for her.”

In terms of the actual tangible goals, Hersey said, it will take time as they go along in the program to see the fruits of their work, but the benefits of the program are there.

“Just as a parent with a child with special needs, and obviously there are those who have greater needs, but being around others who accept her and understand where she’s coming from are also great,” Hersey said. “That’s a lot of stress on a parent. Cassie and Lori who run the program are just great.”

Recently, the MSU Extension Equine Assisted Therapy program began serving veterans too.

During the Expo, veterans Pete Carr, Andrew DeArmond, Sharon Dollarhide, Cody Ellis, Leanne Hartung, Mo’ieshia Johnson, Tanya Chiboroski, Roberta Nicholson, Peyton Thrash, Sherry Webb and Ronnie Wilcox were honored with medals for completing the Veterans Horsemanship program.

Lance McElhenney, a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, said he has been a part of the program since it began.

McElhenney said he attended MSU prior to his service in the Marine Corps as a sergeant, and then enrolled again after returning home when he got involved in the program.

“I’m not above admitting I definitely do have PTSD, and that could help, in my mind, is a wonderful thing,” McElhenney said. “I do believe it helps a lot. It gives us something to look forward to doing, and it forces socialization a little bit.”

The leadership skills, communication skills and working with others during the program has been the biggest takeaway for McElhenney.

“One of the main things in the first good bit of the course was just doing grounds work, basic horsemanship skills — learning how to get the horse to respond to simple little commands,” McElhenney said.

He said bonding with the horses is another benefit of the program.

“Even if I’m not technically in one of the classes, I go anyway, and I go a lot on the days we’re not on the schedule to do be there,” McElhenney said. “I like to go to see the animals, and it also warms my heart to see the other results of it because it feels to me like we’re keeping the horses able to do everything and know the right things to do so that they don’t hurt anyone’s baby.”

McElhenney said he also hopes to stay involved with the program for as long as he can, not only to help himself but to help others.

“I stay impressed with what they do with the children, and I hope what we do is helping that a little bit,” he said. “Of course it is therapy for us, but helping them, to me is a wonderful thing. We live to help people, that’s what the military is comprised of.”

For more information or to donate, visit extension.msstate.edu/family/equine-assistedtherapy-programs

A fire hydrant failure that interrupted water service on Monday and put many in Starkville under a boil water notice has been repaired and customers can expect the advisory to be lifted on Thursday.

Starkville Utilities General Manager Terry Kemp told the Starkville Daily News on Tuesday that there were no more reports of brown water coming from taps in the affected area.

The boil water notice includes Starkville Utilities customers in the Valley Hills subdivision, in addition to Summertree Road, East Garrard Road and Old West Point Road north of Garrard Road.

City officials hope to soon have the results of the water sample tests so the advisory can be lifted.

The specific time for when the boil water notice will be lifted has not been determined.

The fire hydrant failure on East Garrard Road occurred sometime Monday afternoon, and crews had to replace the tap on the hydrant to repair it, which interrupted water service for several hours.

For the latest information regarding this situation, follow Starkville Utilities on social media or call 662-323-3133.

Three classes of fifth graders at Overstreet Elementary got to hear a “be your best self,” message when Mississippi Distinguished Young Women winner Abigail Musser gave a presentation.

Musser discussed with the students the Distinguished Young Women Scholarship message, giving examples and asking students questions on various subjects. Musser, a Starkville High School senior will travel to Mobile in June to compete for scholarships at the national level.

“I talked to them about being healthy, being involved, being responsible and being studious, and how all of those things kind of work together and (it’s) important that you do your best in every single one of those elements so that you’re the best you that you can be.”

Musser became part of the Distinguished Young Women program as a junior, and has won Distinguished Young Women of Starkville and of Mississippi before going to the national competition.

“It has really helped me to remember all of those things in my everyday life, whether that’s extracurricular activities, or in school, or running,” Musser said. “All of those things really motivate me and remind me that I should do the best that I can in every single activity.”

Musser said she hoped the fifth graders would pick up on the same message.

“It’s about them doing the best that they can, and they don’t compare themselves to other people, and that if you are trying your hardest, and are working hard in everything that you do, then it doesn’t matter if someone’s better than you or worse than you, because it’s not about comparison, it’s about being your best self.”

In Mobile, Musser will compete in five elements: academics, talent, fitness, self-expression, talent and an essay. She will have the opportunity to receive several scholarships, through Distinguished Young Women. In total $1.5 billion in scholarships is available to Distinguished Young Women participants.

Musser plans to attend Mississippi State University majoring in environmental engineering.

The national event in Mobile grew out of Azelearama, an event hosted by the Jaycees of Mobile in the 1950s to promote Mobile and its azaleas.

“I think the importance is helping young women to become more self-confident by participating in the program,” said Distinguished Young Women Program Chairman Susan Keith.

Keith said the program’s elements all offered young women skills for life. She also lauded Musser’s progress.

“She certainly has all of the qualities of a distinguished young woman,” Keith said. “She is smart, she’s focused, she’s determined, she’s independent.”

Oktibbeha County emergency officials gave out several awards earlier this month to staffers for their service to the agency.

The awards came in honor of National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week, which was April 8-14.

Oktibbeha County EMA Director Kristen Campanella told the Starkville Daily News that within the last year, the agency has received 126,451 phone calls, 544,357 radio transmissions and completed 47,997 incident reports.

“The ones who answer these calls for assistance everyday are the backbone of emergency response services,” she said. “Their professionalism, commitment, and dedication are what we tried to acknowledge and honor that week."

Campanella also thanked the community on behalf of the staff for their support and kindness during the week.

“From the gifts cards from local businesses to the meals that were prepared for them, we all are extremely grateful to be a part of such a supportive community,” Campanella said.

Telecommunicator of the Year: Tyler Gray

Gray has been employed with the agency since 2015, beginning as a telecommunicator. He has since worked his way up and completed all training to become lead telecommunications officer.

Award of Excellence - Grant Tollison

Tollison has been employed with the agency since 2012. Emergency officials said Tollison was recognized for “his attentive, diligent efforts and his devotion of service to not only our agency, but to our community.”

Nancy Bragg Award – Candra Mobley

The agency each year gives an award for Supervisor of the Year, but decided this year to pay tribute to one of the agency’s first supervisors since it became a stand-alone agency in 2001.

Nancy Bragg served the county for 17 years in the field of public safety. The award bearing her name will acknowledge a communications supervisor as a model of professional conduct, superior knowledge, honesty, integrity, loyalty and dedication to those who serve in the field of public safety telecommunications. 

Mobley has been with the agency since 2007. She has completed multiple training classes from the Emergency Management Institute, in addition to the required certifications for Emergency Telecommunicator.

Officials said Mobley’s hard work and commitment earned her the position of communications supervisor and this year’s Supervisor of the Year.

A new website launched this week by the MacArthur Justice Center at the University of Mississippi highlights inmates in county jails who continue to await an indictment or trial.

The report shows more than one-third of those in county jails have been incarcerated for more than 90 days.

The website, MSjaildata.com, uses data provided by county sheriffs, and says 34 inmates had been in the Oktibbeha County Jail for 90 days or longer as of Oct. 9, 2017.

Also incorporating a map feature that shows the average stay in each county, the website seeks to provide comprehensive access to incarceration data as it relates to time spent locked up. For Oktibbeha County, the average stay for inmates during the recording period was reported to be 119.6 days.

The MacArthur Justice Center said in a release that the website provides the names of the more than 7,000 inmates in Mississippi’s local jails and includes the counties in which they are being held, the date of their arrest, the charges against them, and the total amount of time they have been in jail.

According to researchers, the vast majority of those identified in the database have not yet been convicted and are awaiting indictment, trial, or mental health services.

Defendants like Keyontay Raheem Young, who was arrested on various traffic and burglary charges, was held in the Oktibbeha County Jail for 146 days awaiting the next phase of his case.

In Oktibbeha County, four inmates had been held longer than a year awaiting trial, indictment or mental health services

By the end of the center’s time frame, Roosevelt Jones had been held for 581 days without a trial, after his March 2016 arrest on grand larceny and aggravated assault charges.

Like Jones, many of the defendants held for the longest time awaiting trial or indictment are suspected of being violent offenders.

Jerry Lee Talley, who is accused of rape, sexual battery, robbery, kidnapping and aggravated assault for an incident in Starkville’s Cotton District in 2016, had been held for 521 days without a trial. However, the trial for Talley’s case is scheduled for the current Circuit Court term.

Deangelo Dewayne Manning had been held for 445 days on rape, robbery, kidnapping, aggravated assault and sexual battery following his July 2016 arrest.

Jermaine Sanders had been held in the Oktibbeha County Jail for 381 days awaiting trial for a parole violation and false pretense after his September 2016 arrest in Tupelo for writing as many as 20 bad checks across the Golden Triangle.

Director of the MacArthur Justice Center Cliff Johnson estimates that his students and staff spent more than 500 hours obtaining copies of the jail rosters and creating the database.

“It should not be this hard to access information regarding who local counties have locked up, why they’re holding them, and how long they have been detained,” Johnson said. “There is no uniformity in the way sheriffs across Mississippi maintain and report this data. It took a Herculean effort by my students and our staff to make sure that people can, for the first time ever, go to a single source for this vitally important information.”

The numbers Clay County, which did not provide inmate statistic to researchers, was pulled from the Clay County Jail roster posted on the sheriff’s department’s website.

For Clay County, 40 inmates had been held for more than 90 days, while 14 inmates had been held for longer than a year as of April 17.

Tommy Gandy has been held for the longest time among Clay County inmates following his August 2014 arrest on charges of aggravated assault, kidnapping and simple assault on a police officer. As of the list date on the database, Gandy had been held for 1,335 days.

Earlier this month, though, Gandy was ruled mentally competent to stand trial and his trial date was set for July 16.

The Daily Times Leader reported that it’s taken almost four years to get Gandy’s mental examination completed.

The average stay in Clay County was reported to be 253.6 days.

As of March 6 in Lowndes County, the center showed 67 inmates had been held for 90 days or longer awaiting a trial or indictment, while 19 had been held for longer than a year.

The average stay in Lowndes County during the recording period was 151.5 days.

Webster County, with a much lower population, had only one inmate held for longer than 90 days or a year - Thomas Medders.

Medders had been held for 631 days as of April 4. Medders was arrested in July 2016 on charges of DUI resulting in a death.

Oktibbeha County officials received contract bids for county road work Tuesday morning.

County Engineer Clyde Pritchard opened the bids for the work in the presence of County Administrator Emily Garrard and District 4 Supervisor Bricklee Miller.

The first bids opened were for John White Road, which resides in District 1. The companies who submitted bids for the work included Kimes & Stone Construction, Colom Construction Company Inc., Townes Construction & Ready Mix and Sitemasters Construction.

The lowest bid came from Sitemasters Construction at $468,129.58. The highest bid came from Colom Construction Company Inc. at $715,697.

Pritchard will take the lowest bid under advisement and will bring the paperwork forward to the Board of Supervisors at its next meeting for approval.

The second group of bids opened were for a large portion of roads residing in District 4. Out of the two bids for this project, the lowest bid came from Kimes & Stone Construction at $610,993 and the highest bid came from Sitemasters Construction at $781,649.05.

Miller said this group of supervisors have been particularly aggressive in terms of road maintenance and repair. She said this board will have 46 miles of road under contract.

Miller and District 1 Supervisor John Montgomery are still looking at options to get Longview Road paved despite federal funds not being released at the state level.

Miller said she is also working on getting quotes to redo Poor House Road along with several other roads in the county.

"The price of $610,000 to resurface, reclaim or pave 17 roads is a great price," Miller said. "Which will allow me to do additional projects in the future."

The next step is to bring the bids to the county for approval. After the board approves the bids, the contractor will have 120 days to complete the projects.

Below is a list of roads Kimes & Stone Construction would be responsible for:

Sturgis area
• Shaw Road
• Section of Sturgis West Point Road
• Tom Street
• Church Street
• North Montgomery Street
• North Park
• Williamson Street
• Edwards Street
• North McKinnon
• South McKinnon

Craig Springs area
• Silver Ridge Road

Starkville, South Montgomery area
• Atkinson Road
• Palace Drive
• Knight Arnold
• Colony Road
• London Way
• Stone Ridge

The OCH Regional Medical Center Board of Trustees set meeting dates for potential affiliation during its meeting Tuesday night.

After meeting in executive session, the trustees approved 47 questions to present to each entity. The entities OCH is looking to affiliate with are Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation, North Mississippi Medical Center and University of Mississippi Medical Center.

CEO and Administrator for OCH Regional Medical Center Richard Hilton said the board is hoping to have each entity come in to answer the questions on May 8, 9 and 10 for a special meeting.

Hilton said those dates are tentative in case there are any conflicts with the different entities.

The Jackson Police Department is actively investigating a homicide after finding a Starkville woman’s body in a creek earlier this month.

On April 16, JPD found 30-year-old Traci Nichole Clarke dead in Hanging Moss Creek in north Jackson. Hanging Moss is located off of Wood Way Drive near Manhattan Road.

Sgt. Roderick Holmes of JPD said shortly before 7 a.m. officers responded to a call after a person riding on their bike discovered her body in the creek as they crossed the bridge.

When officers arrived at the scene, Holmes said officers examined the body and noticed there was visible trauma on the victim’s head.

Although there appeared to be noticeable trauma, Holmes said at the scene officers were not able to fully determine what the cause of death was.

“We since learned from the coroner that blunt force trauma was actually the cause of death,” Holmes said.

Holmes said JPD is still unsure if Clarke was a Jackson resident, but at this point, he doesn’t believe she was a resident of Jackson, because when attempting to get a positive identification, there was no information in their system.

“We don’t know how long she had been here or where she was living at the time or anything like that,” Holmes said.

As for leads, there are a couple JPD detectives currently working the investigation. He said at this point he is unsure if there is only one suspect or multiple.

“Those are more or less contacts, people she may have been in contact with while she was here,” Holmes said. “We still do not have any concrete leads as far as an actual suspect or suspects in this particular case.”

Holmes said JPD utilizes their crimestoppers hotline to generate stronger leads for investigations. He said in his years of service, someone knows information about the crime, it’s just getting the person to talk to the police.

The crimestoppers hotline is 601-355-8477. Holmes said if any information leads to an arrest, the person is eligible to a cash reward up to $2,500.

Members of East Mississippi Community College’s DECA Club participated in the 2018 Collegiate DECA International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Arlington, Virginia from April 11-14.

A group of 23 students participated in the competition, winning several national awards. In total, 33 EMCC students qualified to compete in the competition, but not all could attend. Students qualified for the competition by placing in the top six in their competition categories at the state competition in February. More than 1,450 students from colleges and universities in the U.S., Canada and South America participated in the competition.

EMCC winners included Carley Hurst, who won third place in management institute, Jaycee Stennis, preliminary finalist management institute, awards of excellence DeRaly’n Smith, Brooke Bradford and Jaycee Stennis. In addition, Kyle Bluitt, Lillie Greenlaw, Tiakara Malone, Destiny Orr, Gissela Perdomo William Shoup and Clay Wade won honors awards. The chapter also received Passport Awards for charter leadership and community service for its work with the nonprofits Touch Ministries in Honduras and The Mission on the Hill in West Point. Passport Leadership Awards were also presented to Mississippi Collegiate DECA President Dalton Robinson and Mississippi DECA Vice President Clayton Forrester for serving as state-level DECA officers.

“We had the largest delegation from any Mississippi Chapter in the history of Mississippi DECA to attend ICDC this year,” said EMCC DECA sponsor Joshua Carroll. “I’m really proud of my students. For us to walk away with five awards, for us that’s 25 percent (of the group). Out of that 1,450 students, I was pretty happy with my students just to say the least.”

Bradford, who took third place in the event planning category, described her challenge, which centered on preparing for a major dog show with the time limit of one hour.

“The case study was that the event was coming to your town and you had to plan security, food, and the whole nine yards,” Bradford said. “Then you had to present it to the judges. It definitely provided me with real-life experience of being placed in that type situation. Before DECA, I would have been nervous doing something like that.”

The students also received a tour of several monuments and landmarks in nearby Washington D.C.

The students were also treated to breakfast by Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Mississippi and Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Mississippi, was also present, making the EMCC group the sole group at the competition to meet with both its U.S. senators.

The group also had the opportunity to visit with all four Mississippi congressmen, Republicans Trent Kelly, Steven Palazzo and Gregg Harper and Democrat Bennie Thompson.

“It was a phenomenal opportunity, because our students got to meet with people that they always see in the news,” Carroll said. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime for them to meet with people they may never get to see in person ever again.”

Carroll said meeting with the lawmakers also served as advocacy for DECA and for career-technical education in Mississippi.

“The more that they understand how important it is when they write that law into action,” Carroll said. “Anything with career-technical on the bill can now be funded through our senators and representatives as it comes across their desks.”

Carroll also thanked the organization’s sponsors for their support of EMCC DECA and its trip. DECA was founded in 1946, and helps prepare high school and college students for careers in the marketing, finance, hospitality and management fields.

Students at EMCC have competed in ICDC for more than 30 years.

Starkville and Oktibbeha County's unemployment rates continued to fall in March, according to preliminary data from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security.

Oktibbeha County's employment rate fell from 4 percent in February to 3.9 percent in March. The county’s unemployment tied with Tippah County for 15th lowest among Mississippi counties and was the lowest in the Golden Triangle region.

The county's labor force was reported to be 23,110 people, which includes everyone who is employed or seeking employment, with 22,200 reported to be employed and 910 reported to be unemployed.

Despite the improvements made, the county’s labor force did drop slightly from 23,290 in March 2017.

For the month of March over the last five years, Oktibbeha County has seen substantial gains as unemployment fell from a five-year high of 7.4 percent in March 2013.

The number of initial unemployment claims also fell for Oktibbeha County, from 61 in March 2017 to 47 in March 2018. Continued claims also fell from 421 to 359.

In terms of benefits paid by all programs for Oktibbeha County, the total fell from $61,367 in March 2017 to $59,190 in March 2018.

The city of Starkville also saw a drop in unemployment, falling from 3.5 percent in February to 3.3 percent in March. Starkville's labor force was reported at 12,590 for March, with 12,170 employed and 420 unemployed.

Despite the improvement in unemployment, Starkville’s labor force dipped slightly from 2017’s reported total of 12,700.

Like Oktibbeha County, Starkville’s unemployment rates for March have steadily improved over the last five years, up to 3.3 percent from the five-year high of 6.7 percent in March 2014.

The Golden Triangle's unemployment rate dropped from 5.1 percent in February to 4.6 percent in March. Out of the Golden Triangle's labor force of 74,540 people, 71,140 were reported to be employed and 3,400 reported to be unemployed.

Other Golden Triangle unemployment rates for March include: Chickasaw (4.2 percent), Choctaw (4.7 percent), Clay (5.4 percent), Lowndes (4.5 percent), Monroe (4.3 percent), Noxubee (5.9 percent), Webster (4.5 percent) and Winston (5.2 percent).

Mississippi's unemployment rate followed the trend, falling from 4.5 percent in February to 4.3 percent in March. The state's labor force was reported at 1,272,500, with 1,217,900 employed and 54,600 unemployed.

In the state, Rankin County reported the lowest unemployment rate with 3 percent in March, while Jefferson County reported the highest at 12.6 percent.

The country's unemployment rate dropped from 4.4 percent in February to 4.1 percent in March. Out of the country's work force of 161,548,000 people, 154,877,000 were reported to be employed and 6,671,000 were reported to be unemployed.

A boil water noticed issued for many in Starkville earlier this week has been lifted.

Starkville Utilities General Manager Terry Kemp told the Starkville Daily News the advisory was lifted on Thursday after water sample tests were returned from Jackson.

The boil water notice was issued for Starkville Utilities customers in the Valley Hills subdivision, in addition to Summertree Road, East Garrard Road and Old West Point Road north of Garrard Road.

The broken hydrant was located on East Garrard Road. Once crews began to address the break Monday afternoon, water service was interrupted for many in the area.

Kemp said the failed fire hydrant that sparked the advisory resulted from a broken saddle, which impacted the tap on the hydrant.

"We did find out the tap had been put in in 2005 based on markings, but that's what failed," Kemp said. "We removed that one and replaced that with new parts."

Kemp said Starkville Utilities officials have been flushing the lines since the break on Monday.

"We think most of the brown water issues should be resolved and we apologize for the inconvenience," Kemp said.

The city of Starkville saved over $300,000 by refunding outstanding debt after refinancing issued bonds.

Ward 2 Alderman and City Budget Chairman Sandra Sistrunk said the total money saved from refinancing the bonds equaled out to $302,416.33.

Sistrunk said there were two sets of debt she refinanced, which came from the Parks and Recreation Department’s bond issued in 2007 and a bond issued for the city. The two projects the bonds were used for were the Sportsplex and the construction of the new City Hall.

Sistrunk said the money paying for the bonds come from two different sets of funds. The money for the Parks and Recreation bond comes out of the two percent food and beverage tax, while City Hall is paid for out of the general fund.

Sistrunk said both bonds had coupon rates at a particular level, which allowed the city to take advantage of the current interest rates.

“We roll those together as far as an issuance in order to save on some of the issuance cost and make it a large enough issuance to have some interest there,” Sistrunk said.

Sistrunk said the bonds are broken down into components and are only refunded the bonds where it made sense financially. She said the reason the city would refinance the bonds is to create savings on what they’re paying out on interest.

“Municipalities everywhere and businesses everywhere do it,” Sistrunk said. “You just kind of monitor debt, make sure there is not a better deal out there as far as funding goes.”

Sistrunk said when there is a better deal, the city must go through the process to follow and reissue new debt to replace the old debt. The city has refinanced bonds in the past and it is not an uncommon practice, but it is market driven.

“For the last several years, we’ve been in an environment where interest rates. were low and so there wasn’t much advantage to refinancing,” Sistrunk said.

Sistrunk said the longer term portions of the bonds had a high enough interest rate and were callable, which means the city could actually retire them and it made sense for the city to financially refund them.

For current bonds with the industrial park and Starkville Police Department’s new headquarters, Sistrunk said in the future if the interest rates make sense, they will look to refinance those bonds.

“When you issue the bonds, they will typically have a call date and the new tax bill has eliminated the possibility of advanced refunding, so now we have to wait for the call date on a bond,” Sistrunk said. “It’s possible there may not be anything mechanically we could refinance until six, or eight years in the future.”

According to the gross debt service comparison, for this year the old debt service for the bonds was at $137,000 while the new debt service is now $22,000. For 2019, there will be a total saving of $148,225.00 with the old debt service being at $549,325 and the new debt service at $401,100.

“From there it just starts to be a few thousand dollars each year on through the end of the bonds,” Sistrunk said.

Sistrunk said the city has “front-loaded” its savings because if it were to take the $302,000 and spread it over the 15-year period, it would have very little impact at the city budget level.

“At the city budget level, $15,000 or so doesn’t really allow you to do anything particularly large,” Sistrunk said. “It almost gets lost in the shuffle.”

She said by front-loading the savings, the city will be able to focus on larger projects and see the benefits of refunding, rather than just spreading it evenly. She said there is not a particular project the board is looking at doing at the time.

To provide perspective on the funds which have been freed up, Sistrunk said the Parks and Recreation Department recently installed playground equipment at J,L. King Memorial Park, which came with a price tag of $43,000. She said if a portion of the $300,000, at $125,000 were related to the parks, it could go towards new equipment, shade structures or even a new basketball court. She said it would not be enough money to construct an indoor facility.

Sistrunk said she is appreciative of Mayor Lynn Spruill announcing the savings publicly, because refinancing bonds is something residents don’t see or talk about, but it is a necessary procedure to make sure the city is making the most out of the money it is spending and receiving.

“I think it’s a recognition of our responsibility to be good stewards of the taxers dollars,” Sistrunk said.

A Starkville man who was indicted by a Oktibbeha County Grand Jury in January was served a bench warrant after not appearing in court on Wednesday.

Zyterrious Gandy, 19, of Starkville was indicted for one count of malicious mischief and grand larceny. Gandy is accused of damaging the front porch of private property and stealing a 2014 Acura on or about June 2, 2017.

Gandy, who was out on bond, was scheduled to be at the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court on Wednesday, April 25, but did not show up.

Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s deputies served a bench warrant for Gandy’s arrest on the same day and is now in the Oktibbeha County Jail until his scheduled court date in July.

The Starkville Police Department also issued felony warrants for Gandy back in August of 2017 for three counts of aggravated assault and one count of felony failure to stop a motor vehicle when signaled by officers.

The warrants stem from a June incident when SPD officers responded to an early morning shoplifting call at the Sprint Mart located at the intersection of Highway 12 and South Montgomery Street.

Officers attempted to make a traffic stop, but the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation told the SDN in June that Gandy then led SPD officers on a high speed chase that ultimately ended off of South Wedgewood Road after Gandy backed into two SPD patrol cars and caused property damage to the porch of a private residence.

Gandy took the car off of the road in the neighborhood and drove through a heavily wooded area before hitting a tree. MBI spokesman Warren Strain said officers exited their patrol vehicle before the suspect attempted to run them over. Once Gandy tried to hit the officers with his vehicle, the officers shot Gandy.

Faculty, staff and students from Mississippi State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and Mississippi Agricultural Experiment Station (MAFES) were honored at an awards ceremony.

At the ceremony, nearly 24 people with the department were honored for their contributions through hard work, research and teaching. MAFES staff were also recognized for their work throughout the year, operating the university’s various experiment stations located throughout the state.

MSU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Dean and MAFES Director George Hopper lauded all those who received awards.

“We have been awarding our outstanding educators and researchers for many years,” Hopper said. “We have the best faculty in the nation, and they are committed to student success. Their creativity to improve student learning in the classroom, laboratory and field; whether it is a lecture or a research project; is evident and deserving of recognition.”

Honorees for 2018 include:

Assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering LaShan Simpson received the CALS Teacher of the Year and Excellence in Teaching Award, upper division. The lower division excellence in teaching award went to associate professor of agricultural and biological engineering Joel O. Paz. The college’s graduate level excellence in teaching award went to Lori Elmore-Staton, an assistant professor from the school of human sciences.

The New Faculty Award went to assistant professor of plant and soil sciences Te Ming Paul Tseng, who began teaching at MSU following a postdoctoral associate position at Purdue University.

The Excellence in Research Faculty Award went to MAFES research professor of plant and soil sciences Raja Reddy. The Mississippi Land Bank sponsors this award.

Plant pathology professor Sead Sabanadzovic took home the MAFES Outstanding Publication Award for collaboration on a study titled “Virus Taxonomy in the Age of Metagenomics,” which was published in the journal “Nature Reviews Microbiology.”

The MAFES Most Impactful Publication Award went to Eric Stafne, an associate extension research professor of plant and soil sciences stationed at the Costal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi. Stafne was part of a team publishing the first peer-reviewed publication addressing druplet disorders in blackberries.

Plant and soil sciences doctoral student Chathurika Wijewardana and senior agronomy major Hunt Walne won the graduate and undergraduate MAFES Excellence in Research
Awards, respectively.

The MAFES Outstanding Research Staff Award went to research associate Thomas Horgan, stationed at the North Mississippi Research and Extension Center in Verona.

The Outstanding Faculty Service Award went to plant and soil sciences professor Richard Harkness, for his service on several committees within the university, college, department and community.

Food science, nutrition and health promotion assistant professor Terezie Mosby and agricultural science doctoral student Christien Russell= received the CALS/MAFES Diversity Faculty and Student awards, respectively.

Assistant research professor Carrie Vance received the MAFES Grantsmanship Award, which goes to the scientist receiving the largest amount of extramural grant funds.

Finally, assistant dairy plant manager James “Jay” McClelland and administrative assistant to the Division of Forestry, Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine Ericka Bazzil received the CALS/MAFES Outstanding and Professional staff and Outstanding Support Staff awards.

Oktibbeha County Sheriff's deputies arrested a private caregiver for abuse of a vulnerable adult due to a "bone injury" on Friday.

Investigator Lt. Brett Watson said 36-year-old Alecia Haney, of Bruce, was arrested in the 4000 block of Silver Ridge Road after security footage showed her pushing and shoving the victim, which led to the victim's leg injury.

Watson said he has not received the medical records back from OCH Regional Medical Center, but the indications show the victim more than likely suffered a broken leg.

Watson said Haney was hired only as a private caregiver and is not aware of any other employment.

The arrest was made after a complaint was filed by the victim's family after watching the surveillance camera footage. 

Haney was arrested with the assistance of the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department, where they served the warrant for her arrest in Bruce and transported her to Oktibbeha County.

The victim was treated at OCH following the incident and has since been released.

Haney had her initial appearance in Oktibbeha County Justice Court on Friday, where her bond was set at $50,000

Ten East Mississippi Community College students placed in the statewide SkillsUSA competition held earlier this month.

Of the 10, five automotive services technology students will continue on to the national competition in Louisville, Kentucky. Students from both the automotive technology and welding technology programs competed in the event, which ran April 10-11 at multiple locations in Jackson and the surrounding area.

The motorcycle repair component was hosted by Harley Davidson and the marine engine competition was hosted by Bass Pro Shops. The diesel competition was hosted by Hinds Diesel Academy.

All 10 of the EMCC students competing took home medals. Automotive students competing included: Kyle Bluitt, first place job skill demonstration (oil change), Cameron Hitt, first place automotive service technology, Andrew McKay, third place diesel equipment technology, Dillon Miles, first place marine service technology, Matt Walsh, first place job skill demonstration (disc brakes) and Gray Watson, first place motorcycle service technology.

Welding students competing included Keegan Bearden, Douglas Fisher and Matthew Talbot, second place welding team fabrication, Emerson Shinn, third place welding sculpture and Luke Crowley, second place CNC milling.

“We have great instructors at EMCC and I felt like I was prepared going into the competition,” Hitt said. “I was a little nervous during the interview portion but I really wasn’t surprised at the results.”

Automotive technology instructor Dale Henry said the students practiced constantly leading up to the competition.

“I thought that we were very fortunate to come out with the results that we did with the people that were there,” Henry said.

Henry said the success of his students in the competition would help boost the reputation of EMCC’s programs and could potentially lead to employment opportunities.

“The students are supplied with resources that they need to study and look over to get ready for the contest, and then once they’ve done their due diligence and put their due diligence and put their time in, we meet with them either before class or after class, sometimes on Saturdays,” Henry said. “I mean, we’ve met on Sunday afternoons before.”

EMCC automotive and welding students have both been successful in the SkillsUSA competition and others since the beginning.

“It’s kind of twofold,” Henry said. “First of all, it gets your name out there in out-ofdistrict territories, because when we meet in Jackson, every district is represented at this contest. First of all, it’s exposure and second of all sometimes you have guys and you’re not sure what kind of work ethic they have, or how dedicated they are, and sometimes it exposes an instructor to a student that needs a job, or and is employable.”

EMCC has been successful at the national competition, including a second place award in marine engines in 2017 and a first place award in automotive technology from the year prior, leading to the department receiving a 2015 Cadillac ATS.

Members of the Oktibbeha County NAACP gathered at the Starkville Sportsplex on Friday for the organization’s 49th annual Freedom Awards Banquet.

State Rep. Cheikh Taylor, a Starkville Democrat, served as the keynote speaker, focusing on issues facing the African-American community and speaking about his first legislative session in Jackson.

Taylor quoted Martin Luther King, Jr., saying “When America tells the negro to lift himself by his own bootstraps, they don’t look over the legacy of slavery and segregation, now I believe we should do all we can to lift ourselves up by our own bootstraps, but it’s a cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself up by his own bootstraps.”

Taylor then said those last words were spoken by the civil rights pioneer 11 months before his assassination in 1967.

“And here, 50 years after his assasination, I pose this question to you,” Taylor said. “Is the mountaintop any closer?”

The theme of King’s words would carry Taylor through the rest of his speech, as he discussed thinly-veiled legislation he believes to be aimed at holding the African-American community down.

The question then became: “How do we legislate racism?”

Taylor mentioned one bill during his first session that he believes unfairly targeted African-American gangs, while omitting white supremacist organizations and other hate groups.

“Two or more dressed in similar apparel .. it could be Mississippi State apparel, if it’s two or more of us together committing a felony, we get a five-year enhancement,” Taylor said. “Why do you need a five-year enhancement? Well, as far as I know, you have loose evidence, you pile on the years to get a plea.”

Taylor then said of all the gangs mentioned in the bill, leadership did not include the Ku Klux Klan, Ayrian Nation or the other 12 hate groups in Mississippi.

“That’s how we legislate racism,” Taylor said.

While the subject matter of Taylor’s speech centered on what he is doing in Jackson to give the African-American community a voice amid trying times, the organization followed his discussion by presenting awards to various members for their service and dedication.

HONOREES INCLUDED:

• Gov. William K. Winter Award: Cheikh Taylor

• Fannie Lou Hamer Award: Delores Bradford and LeAnn Williamson.

• Medgar Wiley Evers Award: Orlando Trainer.

• Sports Character Builder Award: Michael and Yulanda Haddix.

• Douglas L. Conner Award: Eileen Carr-Tabb

• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award: Rev. Dr. Willie Earl Thomas, Sr.

• Mother of the Year: Annie Dell Kennard (1st place), Dorothy Lainer (2nd place), Yulanda Haddix (3rd place).

• 25+ Years of Dedicated Service: Annie Dancer.

Following the awards ceremony, NAACP members also heard from several candidates who will appear on the ballot in November.

Candidates in attendance, along with the office they seek, included:

• Paula Drungole-Ellis and Roy A’. Perkins, both candidates for 14th Chancery Court Judge Sub-District 14-3.

• Rodney Faver, candidate for 14th Chancery Court Judge Sub-District 14-1.

• Michael Evans, Democratic candidate for Mississippi’s Third Congressional District.

A Starkville man is in jail facing murder charges after the shooting death of an Ackerman man on Highway 12 near the Longview community on Saturday.

Mississippi Department of Public Safety spokesman Warren Strain told the Starkville Daily News that 31-year-old James Dustin Nixon had an initial court appearance on Sunday, where bond was set at $100,000.

Oktibbeha County Deputy Coroner Billy Miller identified the deceased man as 26-year-old Shawn Stricklin.

It is unclear at this time what prompted the incident as the investigation continues and authorities as of Sunday morning have not said if Nixon will face additional charges or if more arrests are possible.

"MBI will compile a composite case file and submit that to the district attorney," Strain said. "Typically, the district attorney will present to a grand jury for additional charges."

Nixon is currently in the Oktibbeha County Jail and his next court appearance has not been set.

Stricklin was found dead around noon on Saturday in a vehicle located on Highway 12, near the Longview community in Oktibbeha County.

Nixon was taken into custody sometime after the shooting.

Strain said Mississippi Highway Patrol was initially called to the scene due to what was reported as a car wreck. He said once one of the troopers arrived at the scene, Stricklin's body was found.

He was pronounced dead by Miller around noon.

Mississippi Highway Patrol then turned over the homicide investigation to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.

Strain would not reveal more information about Nixon and any potential charges, since the death is still under active investigation.

MBI was called in with the crime scene unit to investigate and process the vehicle.

Stricklin's body has been sent to the state crime lab in Jackson for an autopsy.