sheffield news – Shoals Insider

Council retires Risner’s badge and call number

Staff — Wed, 20 Oct 2021 11:18:20 +0000

SHEFFIELD– Monday night, the Sheffield City Council voted to officially retire K-9 Whiske. Whiske had a few years of service left, but the department and council agreed it was in the best interest to have Whiske with her family.

Chief Terry also honored Max Dotson with a Life Saving Award for his heroic actions that he took in stopping the gunman, Brian Martin, on that tragic day of October 1st, when Sgt. Risner was fatally shot. Risner also received the same award for making the ultimate sacrifice in his heroic actions on that terrible day. Brandy, Risner’s wife accepted the posthumous award on behalf of Sgt. Risner. This award will be renamed at a later date as The Sgt. Nick Risner Life Saving Award to honor his name.

The city council also approved a resolution retiring Risner’s badge number, 385, and call number, Sierra One. Also, the Florence Police Department presented Brandy Risner with a $7,500 award from the United States Police Canine Association.

Brian Martin is facing four counts of Capital Murder and is being housed at the Morgan County Jail in Decatur.

Elizabeth Ann Reeder – Staff Writer

Parole denied for Sheffield murderer

Staff — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 16:12:38 +0000

MONTGOMERY — A woman convicted of a 1988 Sheffield murder had parole denied this week, authorities said.
In a separate case, parole also was denied for a convicted sex offender from a Colbert County case who failed to comply with Alabama’s sex offender registration laws, officials said.

The Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles denied paroles for Rosalyn Saffold Williams and Billy Jerome Henderson, said Terry Abbott, director of communications for the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles.
Williams has served 31 years, 6 months of a life sentence in the death of Tommy Dorsey Howard, according to court records. She is accused of using a butcher knife to kill him at a Sheffield residence.
She was paroled in 2003 and 2016, but violated parole both times, Abbott said.
Henderson has served 1 year, 1 month of a 10-year sentence for his 2013 conviction in Colbert County for the violating the registration law, according to records.
He had been convicted in 1999 of sexual abuse and received a 5-year sentence, records state. He then was convicted twice in Walker County of violating the sexual offender registration law.
Two hearings for inmates in local cases are set for Thursday.
One is for Michael Eugene Black, who has served 9 years, 4 months of a 25-year sentence for his 2011 convictions of first-degree assault and leaving the scene of an accident with injury, records state.
Black was convicted of running over Tony Jones, manager of the Spring Valley Water Department while Jones was working on a water line on Dawson’s Store Road, near Tuscumbia, records state. Black lived near the site.
The other hearing is for Melvin Douglas Mason, who has served 16 years of a 25-year sentence on a 2005 attempted murder conviction, records state. He shooting his former girlfriend outside her house in 2004.

Arrest made in Sheffield Drive By Shooting

Staff — Mon, 16 Apr 2018 21:45:13 +0000

SHEFFIELD– Authorities have made an arrest in a Sunday afternoon drive by shooting. Interim Sheffield Police Chief Rick Terry says one person is in custody after shooting into a vehicle in the Manning Homes Housing Project.

The incident occurred Sunday around lunch time after two females reportedly got into a heated argument.

“Luckily, no one was injured,” said Terry. “We recovered some shell casings from the scene. The man in custody shot at the vehicle as he drove by in a black SUV,”

Captain Steve Butler is handling the investigation.

The suspect reportedly fled the scene and was caught on HWY 72 by Tuscumbia PD.

Investigators will release the name when the suspect is formally charged and transferred to the county jail.

ShoalsInsider.com – Keeping You Informed

Authorities release name of drowning victim

Staff — Thu, 08 Jun 2017 01:57:29 +0000

MUSCLE SHOALS–Authorities have identified the 12-year-old victim in today’s drowning incident at TVA’s Rockpile Park.

Emergency personnel say the child that drowned in the waterfall drain is 12-year-old Georgia Myrick.

Myrick was taken to Helen Keller Hospital around 3:30 pm and pronounced dead shortly thereafter.

The incident occurred around 2:30 pm as family members noticed the child was missing. Witnesses say the child was stuck in the drain around an hour.

Crews had to use the jaws of life to remove the child from the drainage pipe.

Jeffrey Roland

TRAFFIC ALERT: Parts of West Avalon Avenue set to close today

Staff — Thu, 13 Oct 2016 10:05:42 +0000

SHEFFIELD- Shoals area drivers need to be mindful of the closing off of parts of West Avalon Avenue on Thursday.

According to officials, the eastbound lane between King Avenue and Montgomery Avenue will be closed between 8:00 am and 5:00 pm. Southern Barbeque and Shoals Pharmacy are located on this stretch of road.

The eastbound lane between Cox Blvd. and King Avenue will close from noon to 5:00 pm. This is the stretch of road in front of the Dollar General.

Officials say the westbound lane will be open all day.

The closings are necessary to make road improvements to Avalon Avenue.

Shoals Insider

Oneal Bridge to close late Wednesday night

Staff — Tue, 11 Oct 2016 14:12:55 +0000

FLORENCE-Crews working on Oneal Bridge will re-route traffic to Singing River Bridge starting at 11:30 pm Wednesday.

According to the Alabama Department of Transportation, the Southbound lane will be closed for around two hours beginning at 11:30. After that work is completed, the Northbound lane will be closed for approximately three hours.

The closings will allow workers to repair the center concrete median.

Troopers or Florence police will be present to help with any traffic control issues.

Motorists are asked to use the Singing River Bridge as an alternative route because Wilson Dam is also closed til the end of the month.

Shoals Insider

Creative Grape supports local artists and wine sippers too!

Staff — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 00:35:30 +0000

The Creative Grape held their ribbon cutting event recently in Downtown Sheffield.

The Creative Grape, owned by Michelle and Joey Cantrell, is a wine and arts market located in beautiful downtown Sheffield. They are a “one-stop-shop” for all your wine needs. Come enjoy sparkling or craft beer at their 40-foot wine bar and lounge area, while you snack on a artisan cheese plate, fresh baked pastries and more. Or pick up a bottle from their large selection of boutique vineyards to enjoy at home or for your special occasion.

The Creative Grape slogan is “Supporting local artists…and wine sippers too!” Their focus is to promote artisans of all types (aspiring and/or professional) with art consignment, “Artist Spotlight” events and workshops. Unplug and come in for a two-hour, instructor-led “paint and sip” class! (Consider them for a private group class as well). They guarantee smiles, and the ability to check out from the stresses of the day. Art washes from the soul, the dust of every day life!

Michelle and Joey celebrated their ribbon cutting with a fantastic sushi selection from Ichiban Japanese Restaurant, wine and beer pairings, and tasty desserts from The Red Clay Epicurean and pastries straight from France.

Local students to hold “Kick Butts Day” in Sheffield

Staff — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 18:41:21 +0000

SHEFFIELD-Students from local middle school and high schools are holding a cigarette butt cleanup in Sheffield for “Kick Butts Day” on Wednesday. They will compete to see who can collect the most cigarette butts strewn around the community. The activities are led by the Partnership for a Tobacco-Free Shoals and Smoke-Free Shoals. Students and adult sponsors will interview smokers as they purchase cigarettes about how or why they would quit smoking. The youth will display anti-tobacco messages at schools by placing cups in fences and creating bulletin boards with facts and information.

Kick Butts Day, an annual day of youth activism and leadership against tobacco use, is sponsored and led by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. Thousands of events are taking place across the country to stand up to big tobacco, which targets youth as “replacement smokers” as their current customers die or quit.

Time: 8 AM. Location: 101 Mable Avenue, Sheffield.

This year, Kick Butts Day is focusing attention on the outrageous marketing tactics tobacco companies still use to target youth. These tactics include:
· Splashy ads in magazines with large youth readership, such as Sports Illustrated, Glamour and Rolling Stone.
· Widespread advertising and price discounts in stores, which make tobacco products appealing and affordable to kids.
· Sweet-flavored tobacco products such as electronic cigarettes and small cigars that come in flavors like gummy bear, cotton candy, watermelon and fruit punch. While youth cigarette smoking has fallen to record lows, the most recent government survey shows that e-cigarette use among high school students tripled from 2013 to 2014 (from 4.5 percent to 13.4 percent).

Nationwide, tobacco companies spend $9.6 billion a year – over one million dollars every hour – to market tobacco products. In Alabama, tobacco companies spend $216.1 million annually on marketing efforts.

Stamp prices set to drop for first time in almost 100 years

Staff — Wed, 02 Mar 2016 13:43:52 +0000

On Sunday, April 10, the price of a stamp is scheduled to drop from 49 cents to 47 cents.

The Postal Regulatory Committee (PRC) asserts that by April 10, the Postal Service will have collected the necessary $4.6 billion in surcharges that they were allowed to collect under the temporary price increase.

However, the Postal Service claims it is in dire financial straits. They say this reduction will increase their net losses to approximately $2 billion per year.

“The exigent surcharge granted to the Postal Service last year only partially alleviated our extreme multi-year revenue declines resulting from the Great Recession, which exceeded $7 billion in 2009 alone,” said Postmaster General and CEO Megan J. Brennan. “Removing the surcharge and reducing our prices is an irrational outcome considering the Postal Service’s precarious financial condition.”

At this point, only Congressional or court action can extend or make permanent the 49 cent rate that is scheduled to end.

The last price drop was almost 100 years ago. The drop happened in 1919 and stamp price fell from 3 cents to 2 cents.

Staff Reports