Wafer toddler laid to rest
The Guardian-Journal photo/Michelle Bates
This blanket was displayed in the front
of the Forest Grove CME Church sanctuary during funeral services for little
Devion Wafer. It shows a picture in memory of little Devion, who was found
deceased in a creek near Lisbon Landing.
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
Little
Devion Emmanuel Wafer, 17 months old, was laid to rest on Wednesday morning,
March 30, at Forest Grove Cemetery.
With
heartfelt grief and tears abound, the funeral service was held at Forest Grove
CME Church under the direction of Memorial Funeral Home. Family and friends
gathered together to say good-bye to a little boy whose life was cut so short.
While
the life of a young child was remembered, it was clear that his mother, Ruby
Wafer, was still on everyone’s mind. As a slideshow of photos was displayed at
the funeral, many were of Ruby with family members and with little Devion.
Candles were also presented to close family members in remembrance, hope and
love for Devion. The Rev. Elmer T. Jones officiated the funeral.
At the
time of services, Ruby Wafer was still missing and considered a person of
interest in the death of her son. According to Claiborne Parish Sheriff Ken
Bailey, Ruby and Devion were last heard from on Monday, March 21. Devion’s
father called authorities Monday night, saying Ruby had sent him messages
indicating that she might hurt herself, the sheriff said.
Little
Devion’s body was found Wednesday, March 23, in a creek near Lisbon Landing.
And on Sunday, April 3, the remains of a female were found behind an abandoned
store at the intersection of Hwy. 2 and Hwy. 806. The next day, those remains
were identified as those of Ruby Wafer.
Body found identified as Ruby Wafer
The Guardian-Journal
Sadly,
the body found behind an abandoned store at Hwy. 2 and Hwy. 806 on Sunday has
been identified as the missing Ruby Wafer.
According
to Claiborne Parish Sheriff Ken Bailey, there were no marks on her body to
indicate any obvious cause of death.
“She
wasn’t stabbed, choked or shot -- nothing,” Bailey said. “There were no marks
on her to indicate any cause of death.”
Wafer
and her son, one-year-old Devion, were declaired missing on Monday, March 21.
According to the sheriff’s office, they received a call from Devion’s father
saying that they were missing and he was concerned because he’d received
messages that she was going to hurt herself. The search then began with search
and rescue officials finding Devion’s remains in a creek near Lisbon Landing
that Wednesday, March 23. He was buried Wednesday, March 30, at Forest Grove
Cemetery.
The
U.S. Marshal’s Service was asked to join the search for Ruby as extra help.
Bailey said when Wafer was discovered, she was fully clothed but no other items
were on her person or around her. There was no cell phone, purse or any other
item, he said.
Currently,
they are awaiting results from a toxicology test to determine cause of death.
The sheriff also said they are still interviewing and talking to people, but
would not say if they had a viable lead on what could have happened to this
girl and her precious son.
“We’re
still talking to people to figure out what happened,” he said. “And we need
those results on that toxicology report. That’s going to tell us a lot more
when we find out her cause of death.”
According
to published reports, Ruby was pregnant with her second child at the time she
went missing. She was just 19-years-old.
In
other news, on Friday, April 1, Claiborne Parish Deputies Roger Ellerbe and
J.T. Williams served warrants on Robert S. Foster, 29, of Haynesville.
Contact
was made with Foster and he was advised of the charges against him. A search of
Foster’s person pursuant to arrest revealed a clear plastic bag of marijuana in
his front left shorts pocket.
Foster
was placed under arrest and charged with criminal mischief warrant with a
$1,000 bond, cyberstalking warrant with $2,500 bond, simple criminal damage to
property warrant with $1,000 bond, battery warrant with $750 bond and
possession of marijuana with bond set at $750.
Two indicted in Bays murder
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
The two
young men accused of killing Summerfield’s Brian G. “Butch” Bays have been
indicted on charges of first degree murder.
Donte
Fielding and Hardy Taylor, both 19, were indicted by the Claiborne Parish Grand
Jury on Tuesday, March 29. The two are still incarcerated at the Claiborne
Parish Detention Center with no bond.
Fielding
was arrested on December 17, 2010, by Louisiana State Police on unrelated
charges, but was later served a warrant on the murder charge. Taylor was
arrested on January 4, by the Claiborne Parish Sheriff’s Office on the murder
charge.
At the
time, authorities believed the motive to be robbery, saying that money had gone
missing. Although there were still money bags under the counter at the store,
nothing else had been disturbed, Claiborne Parish Sheriff Ken Bailey said in
earlier reports.
Bays
was shot and killed early Thursday morning, December 16, 2010, at his country
store in Summerfield. Bays, 72, at the time of his death, was considered an
icon of Summerfield. Dubbed the “unofficial mayor,” he was known for his
community spirit and helping others. He also represented District 1 as a juror
with the Claiborne Parish Police Jury. He served in that capacity for the
better part of 16 years. He and his brothers were also integral parts of
getting the new Summerfield Fire Station built and completed. The Bays brothers
donated the property in which it sits on.
He also
owned and operated Bays Country Store and Bait Shop, where he was killed.
Authorities found him lying between the wall and counter on the floor of the
store with gunshot wounds.
Retired
Summerfield High School Principal D’Arcy Stevens has taken the police jury seat
of District 1. When he qualified, he was the only one to do so, leaving him the
uncontested choice for District 1.
A trial
date for Fielding and Taylor has not yet been set.
Jindal presents LGAP grants to parish,
municipalities
The Guardian-Journal photo/Michelle Bates
Governor Bobby Jindal visited Homer on
Sunday afternoon following attendance at a church service at Emmanuel Baptist
Church in the Hurricane Community. He presented a check for a total of $139,000,
which will help with different projects and purchases for the Village of
Athens, the Town of Homer, the Town of Haynesville, and the Town of Junction
City and the Claiborne Parish Police Jury (for water improvements).
Alleged rapist indicted
The Guardian-Journal
A man
accused of the aggravated rape of an 11-year-old girl in 2009 was indicted by
the Claiborne Parish Grand Jury last week.
Bobby
Joe Henderson, 52, of Homer, was arrested in 2009 on the charge, however it
took two years for DNA results to come back from the North Louisiana Crime Lab.
On Tuesday, February 22, a warrant was signed by Judge Glen Fallin and issued a
bill of information.
The
first time Henderson was arrested, there was no bill of information.
“The
guy went to court in 2009 and was only charged with unauthorized entry of an
inhabited dwelling,” said Captain Donald Malray in earlier reports. “We just
got the results back on the case this month (February). However, they let him
out of jail back then because we didn’t have the results from the physical
evidence.”
This
time, however, once results came back, the second warrant was issued and served
to Henderson at Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center in Webster Parish where he
is currently being held on unrelated drug charges.
A hold
was placed on him by the Homer Police Department.
According
to police, Henderson allegedly raped the juvenile on Sims Street in April 2009.
DNA evidence was collected at the scene and sent to crime lab. According to
those results, there was sufficient evidence to obtain the warrant.
No
trial date has been set.
ATV fundraiser generates thousands for
Adam Graves
The Guardian-Journal photos/Michelle
Bates
Adam Graves receives a check for $15,000
from a fundraiser to help defray medical costs with the injuries he received
recently. Graves lost both of his hands in an accident, and he must have
several more surgeries as well as physical therapy. Graves works for Claiborne
Electric Coop, which held the fundraiser in his honor. Alton Lowery was the
lucky winner of the ATV that was raffled off. Claiborne Electric and Graves and
his family wish to say special thanks to all who donated and those who helped
make the fundraiser a complete success.
The Guardian-Journal
A
raffle fundraiser for Adam Graves, a Claiborne Electric employee injured last
year, raised thousands of dollars.
Graves
was injured in an accident in which he lost both hands in December 2010, when
he came into contact with an energized high-voltage line. Since then, the
family has been coping with the major changes in their lives as well as the
mounting medical costs related to his injury.
A 2011
Honda four-wheeler was the grand prize, and the winner was Alton Lowery of
Homer. Raising just a little more than $16,000, the fundraiser was considered
a huge success. The check was presented at Citizens Bank and Trust of Homer.
One hundred percent of the money raised through raffle ticket sales and
donations went to the Adam Graves fund, as the ATV was donated for the raffle
by Claiborne Electric Cooperative’s employees and Claiborne Electric Co-op
itself.
Mark
Brown, CEO of Claiborne Electric, said it could not have been done without the
generous donations and ticket sales for this raffle.
“Our
employees paid for half the cost of the four-wheeler, and the Co-op donated the
other half,” Brown said. “We did not limit ticket sales. We wanted to get as
much money as possible to help Adam.”
The
money raised will go to help defray expenses incurred as Adam goes through the
process of being fitted for prosthetic hands.
“We
want to thank the people of this community for their tremendous support in
making this fundraiser such a success,” Brown said. “We want to thank McKinney
Honda for giving us a good price on the ATV and being very cooperative
throughout the whole process. We want to thank The Guardian-Journal and the
Haynesville News for helping get the word out about the fundraiser.
“We
want to thank Citizens Bank and Trust for hosting the Adam Graves fund,” he continued,
“and allowing us the use of their bank lobby for the drawing and check
presentation. And we want to thank everyone who bought tickets and made
donations to help us raise this money for Adam. This is a very giving community
that stands tall when there is a need, and we are proud to be a part of it.”
He said
employees at Claiborne Electric came up with the idea to do a raffle to help
raise substantially more to help the family.
Graves,
who has done so well in his recovery, expressed his thanks and gratitude for
all those who have supported him and his family.
“Thank
you guys,” he said to the small crowd gathered inside the lobby of Citizens
Bank & Trust. “Words can’t express what this means to my family. Thank you
is not enough. From the bottom of our hearts, we appreciate you.”
An
account was set up at Citizens Bank very soon after Graves’ injuries. People
wishing to help Adam may still do so by making a check to the “Adam Graves
Fund” and depositing it at Citizens Bank & Trust.
Because they’re worth it...
Blood Drive April 7
LifeShare
Blood Center will host a blood drive on Thursday, April 7 in Homer. The blood
drive will be held from noon until 5 p.m. at Homer Memorial Hospital in the
hospital conference room.
Relay for Life April 16, students to help raise funds
The
annual Claiborne Parish Relay for Life will be held from noon until midnight on
Saturday, April 16, at the Ronnie G. Beard Memorial Stadium at Homer High
School. In case of bad weather, the event will be held at the Homer High School
gymnasium. To get involved, or for more information, please contact Nancy Mason
at 318-927-2517 or Elbie Dickens at 318-927-2360. Also, for Relay for Life, on
Friday, April 15, Claiborne Parish students will be charged $1 if they wear
their blue jeans to school that day. All proceeds will go to the American
Cancer Society along with the other funds raised from the annual Relay for Life
to be held that Saturday at the Ronnie G. Beard Memorial Stadium at Homer High
School.
Team Cade Cystic Fibrosis Fundraiser April 30
A
fundraiser in honor of 17 month old Cade Liles will be held from 11 a.m. until
1 p.m. at the Courthouse Square in Homer. A poker run will begin at 9 a.m. with
registration beginning at 8 a.m. Chicken plates will be for sale for $5 each,
and a “boot” drive will also be going on. Also, a fish fryer and a 270 Savage
Rifle will be raffled off with tickets at $2 and $5, respectively. For more
information, please call Tommy Sanders at 318-927-6165 or Holly and Casey Liles
at 318-258-3073. For more information about the Poker Run, please call Rickey
Bearden at 318-927-9740 or 318-245-4726.
Voters: Tax renewals on April 30 ballot
The Guardian-Journal
The
deadline to register to vote for the April 30 election is Wednesday, March 30.
There
are several things on the ballot that voters should be aware of. One of those
includes the tax continuation for the Law Enforcement District of Claiborne
Parish. This tax renewal is 6.30 mills, 10 year tax continuation for providing
additional funds for the district. This item on the ballot is parish-wide.
It
reads as follows:
“Shall
the Law Enforcement District of the Parish of Claiborne, State of Louisiana
(the “District”), continue to levy a tax of six and thirty hundredths (6.30)
mills tax on all the property subject to taxation in the District (an estimated
$755,000 reasonably expected at this time to be collected from the levy of the
tax for an entire year), for a period of ten (10) years, beginning with the
year 2011 and ending with the year 2020, for the purpose of providing
additional funds for the District?”
The
next item on the ballot is a 1 percent sales tax renewal for the Claiborne
Parish School Board. This item is also parishwide.
It
reads as follows:
“Summary:
10 year, 1% sales tax renewal to be used as follows: (i) 50% to provide a
source of funding for the payment of salaries and benefits for the employees of
the Parish School Board, and (ii) 50% for the general fund of the Parish School
Board.
“Shall
the Parish School Board of the Parish of Claiborne, State of Louisiana, under
the provisions of Article VI, Section 29 of the Constitution of the State of
Louisiana of 1974, and other constitutional and statutory authority, be
authorized to continue to levy and collect a tax of one percent (1%) (the “Tax”)
(an estimated $1,350,000 reasonably expected at this time to be collected from
the levy of the tax for an entire year) upon the sale at retail, the use, the
lease or rental, the consumption, and the storage for use or consumption, of
tangible personal property and on sales of services in the Parish of Claiborne,
all as defined by law, for an additional period of ten (10) years, commencing
January 1, 2012, with the proceeds of the Tax (after paying the reasonable and
necessary expenses of collecting and administering the Tax), to be dedicated
and used as follows: (i) 50% to provide a source of funding for the payment of
salaries and benefits for the employees of said Parish School Board, and (ii)
50% for the general fund of said Parish School Board?”
There
are also three tax renewals on the ballot for School Districts #13, #26 and #1.
They are as follows:
“CONSOLIDATED
SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 1 PROPOSITION (TAX RENEWAL)
“Summary:
10 year, 4.06 mills property tax renewal to support, operate, maintain, repair
and renovate public school buildings and facilities in Consolidated School
District No. 1.
“Shall
Consolidated School District No. 1, Claiborne Parish, Louisiana (the
“District”), continue to levy a special tax of four and six hundredths (4.06)
mills on all the property subject to taxation in said District (an estimated
$59,600 reasonably expected at this time to be collected from the levy of the
tax for an entire year), for a period of ten (10) years, beginning with the
year 2013 and ending with the year 2022, to support, operate, maintain, repair
and renovate public school buildings and the facilities in the District?”
The
next tax renewal proposition is for the Homer School District No. 13. It reads
as follows:
“HOMER
SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 13 PROPOSITION (TAX RENEWAL)
“Summary:
10 year, 11.96 mills property tax renewal for acquiring, constructing,
improving, maintaining, operating and supporting public school facilities in
Homer School District No. 13, including equipment therefor.
“Shall
Homer School District No. 13, Claiborne Parish, Louisiana (the “District”),
continue to levy an eleven and ninety-six hundredths (11.96) mills tax on all
the property subject to taxation in the District (an estimated $396,900
reasonably expected at this time to be collected from the levy of the tax for
an entire year), for a period of ten (10) years, beginning with the year 2013
and ending with the year 2022, for the purpose of acquiring, constructing,
improving, maintaining, operating and supporting public school facilities in the
District, including equipment therefor?”
This
tax renewal proposition is for School District No. 26, the Summerfield area. It
reads as follows:
“SCHOOL
DISTRICT NO. 26 PROPOSITION (TAX RENEWAL)
“Summary:
10 year, 9.25 mills property tax renewal of School District No. 26 for
supporting, acquiring, constructing, improving, maintaining and operating
public schools and school facilities.
“Shall
School District No. 26 of the Parish of Claiborne, State of Louisiana (the
“District”), continue to levy a special tax of nine and twenty-five hundredths
(9.25) mills on all property subject to taxation in the District (an estimated
$55,900 reasonably expected at this time to be collected from the levy of the
tax for an entire year), for a period of ten (10) years beginning with the year
2012 and ending with the year 2021, for the purpose of supporting, acquiring,
constructing, improving, maintaining and operating public schools and school
facilities?”
On
election day (Saturday, April 30), polls will open at 6 a.m. and close at 8
p.m. For more information, please contact the Claiborne Parish Registrar of
Voters Office at 318-927-3332.
Homer council deals with many issues
MICHELLE BATES, Editor
The
Homer Town Council had a lot to deal with as they covered a lengthy agenda
Monday night at their regular monthly meeting.
From
water meter issues, thievery and countless others, the meeting lasted roughly
two and half hours -- and that’s before they met in executive session.
Michelle
Green, executive director of the Homer Housing Authority, approached the
council concerning an increase in the authority’s water bills. She said that
the bills for seven meters has increased from $2,000 to $6,500 roughly, and she
feels it’s because the meters aren’t being read correctly.
“We’ve
gone out and read these meters ourselves, and they’re not changing,” she
explained to the council. “We were trying to match up the meters with our
bills, and there’s only four out of seven meters that we can read.”
Maintenance
Supervisor Lee Wells said the meters could be read and are being read each
month. Some of the those meters are not new, he said, but they can still be
read if they are wet down first.
Green
disagreed, saying there’s no way anybody’s reading those meters. She brought
her bills and photos of the meters as well to show the council.
Mayor
Alecia Smith said she would set up a time with Wells and Green to look at the
meters to figure out what’s going on.
In
other news, during the public comments portion of the meeting, Ron Kleinman,
owner of several rental properties in Homer, came to the council asking for
help. He explained to them that someone or some people were steeling wiring,
plumbing, tubing, water heaters and other items from several of his rental
properties. He listed off several addresses where one or several of these items
had gone missing. In fact, at 4301 West Main Street, the central air
conditioner, copper wiring and natural gas tubing was stolen, which caused a
huge gas leak.
“If
someone had lit a cigarette or struck a spark, it could have been very
dangerous,” Kleinman said, calling the “culture” of Homer one of “thievery and
scavenging.”
He even
suggested that much of these materials were being sold to Top Dollar Scrap and
Recovery in south Homer.
Homer
Police Chief Russell Mills said that it was difficult to catch these kinds of
people because it’s virtually impossible to trace wiring and other metals
without serial numbers.
“There
is no way that we can go to Top Dollar and go through their bins and found out
if this stuff comes from these rent houses,” Mills said. “I hate that the
community is dealing with this type of thievery, but we can’t get the community
to cooperate with us.”
In an
update from last month on Top Dollar, Town Attorney Jim Colvin said the company
is not interested in taking stolen goods, but they are willing to do what is
necessary to help police stop the stealing. Currently, they make copies of
picture identification of each individual selling semi-precious metals such as
aluminum and copper. They also get a thumbprint from each person, and they have
video cameras installed.
Colvin
said he would approach the owners of Top Dollar and see if they would be
willing to integrate into their system a way to find out where the goods are
coming from, such as being able to trace an address.
Also,
the company, according to Colvin, has agreed to erect a fence and gravel the
front area of the property to cut down on the amount of dirt being tracked onto
the highway.
In
police news, District 3 Councilman Don McCalman asked the council to give Mills
a raise of his police chief’s salary. Currently, the position of police chief
is salaried at $32,000 per year, and McCalman put it before the council to
raise that salary by $4,500 per year, roughly $375 per month. The motion was seconded
by District 4 Councilwoman Carlette Sanford, but it failed by a vote of 3-2,
with Sanford and McCalman being the votes in favor of the raise.
“I knew
what the job paid when I took it,” Mills said. “He wasn’t asking the council to
double my raise. I’m still going to do my job. I was surprised that it was
being asked for, but I wasn’t surprised that I didn’t receive it. Nor was I
surprised that there was more discussion on a $12,000 diving board for Mayfield
pool than there was a $375 per month raise.”
Late
last year, the council voted to add $40 per ticket to fines of those convicted
in municipal court. With that, a set amount of $400 per month was approved by
the council to be in compliance with the town’s special legislative charter.
That money is not a budgeted item, but rather is generated by the court fines
paid in municipal court.
District
5 Councilwoman Patricia Jenkins, one of the three who voted against the raise,
had no comment on the issue when she was contacted by The Guardian-Journal.
In other
police news, a police hiring committee was formed last year under the term of
former Mayor David Newell, however, there is no record of this committee. So,
in order to make it right on paper, each councilman was asked to nominate a
person to be on this committee. They are: Linda Mozeke representing District 1,
Michael Allen representing District 2, Don McCalman representing District 3,
Tommy Sanders representing District 4 and Michael Dunn Sr. representing
District 5. To be clear, these listed names are those representing the
committee.
In
other news, Ordinance 904 was introduced at Monday night’s meeting, which deals
with blighted property. Colvin told council members that amending this
ordinance is more about cleaning up a few issues in the original ordinance
rather than adopting a whole new ordinance. There were issues dealing with
fines that are allowed to be charged. For instance, the town had their fine up
to $500, however, the state’s fine is maxed at $200. So reducing the town’s
fine to $200 would keep it in compliance with the state. There were a few other
issues as well, mainly wording that needed to be changed in order to still be
in compliance.
A
public hearing on it will be held before the regular council meeting on May 2,
and then it will be voted on during the regular meeting.
In
another issue, the town council voted to approve a resolution that begins the
process of applying for a loan from the Louisiana Department of Environmental
Quality (LDEQ). For several projects that need to be done around town, Colvin
said that these projects totaled roughly $1.7 million, and the cap was set at
$2 million. The loan would be a 20-year very low-interest loan set at 1 percent
interest. This loan would go towards wastewater plants and other projects around
town.
Also,
the town agreed by resolution to enter into a contract for the Homer Municipal
Airport for the obstruction and removal of trees and debris that is required by
the airport’s height zoning ordinance recently passed.
On a
lighter note, the town council chose the lowest bid to begin making repairs to
Mayfield Pool. Blue Haven will begin work this week on making several repairs
at the long-neglected pool. The total cost of the project was bid at $27,690,
which includes $12,000 for a new commercial diving board to be installed. Other
repairs include cement work, which will take at least 35 days to completely
cure, installation of a new filter and pressure gauge, depth markers, drain
covers, and light repairs to be brought up to code, chlorinator repair,
backwash line repair, coping repair, lap lane patching, water line tile
patching, and other repairs that need to be made. They are hoping to have the
project completed in enough time to open the pool for the kids this summer.
Fred
Young, recreational director, listed several upcoming events that will begin
this summer to help keep the kids off the streets. There are some programs for
adults and even the senior citizens as well. Please see upcoming editions for
those activities.
The
council also met in executive session on the matter of a demand letter from
Continental Drilling, however, another item that was to be discussed was pulled
out of executive session at the request of Mills.
The
issue had to do with a complaint filed by Mary Mitchell regarding officers at
the Homer Police Department. Officers were dispatched to a residence in regards
to a disturbance and when they arrived, there was a large crowd gathered. In
attempts to deescalate the situation, Officers Willie Fred Knowles and Van
McDaniel asked the crowd to disburse and go home. While trying to figure out
what was going on, Mitchell was asked to go home, but she refused. She was
asked again and when she did not comply, she was cuffed and taken to a patrol
unit.
The
story is sketchy as to who cuffed her, though. Officer Knowles told the council
that he cuffed her and took her to the patrol unit. Mitchell says it was
Officer McDaniel who cuffed her and cuffed her hands behind her back. She said
she asked him to cuff her arms around the front if he had to because she’d hurt
her left arm in a car accident. The discussion continued as to who did what,
but the council was confused about what she wanted them to do about the
situation.
“I want
justice,” she said. “I feel like I was done wrong, and I want justice.”
After
being asked several times what she wanted them to do, she still never gave a
clear answer, so they decided at that time to take no action.
In the
end, no one was arrested.
The
next meeting of the Homer Town Council will be held at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 2.
However, be sure to go to City Hall as council chambers have been moved from
the Homer Police Station. For more information, please call City Hall at
318-927-3555.
