Friday,
June 17, 2005
These
Little Brickettes Came
Home, Most Out On Their Own
Removal
Brought Storm Of Protest
What
goes up, must come down.
So it is with the bricks that once formed the sidewalk along
Jeffress Street in South Boston.
Removal of the brick pavers brought such a storm of protest
among both Jeffress Street residents and preservationists,
town officials agreed to put them back.
Missing, broken and uneven brick sidewalks have all but
completely been replaced throughout the town. Jeffress Street
was among the last to remain until last fall.
Historians claim the bricks, measuring a full 5” x
10”, were produced locally a century ago. Each of the
bricks was carefully removed, placed on pallets and stored
for later use.
Replacing the brick pavers along Jeffress Street is under
way but the finished work will hardly resemble the original.
Construction teams are raising the grade of original cut
stone curbing that will serve as a form for a 12” width
of cement. Along this edge, a single course of brick laid
side-by-side, will form what is called a “soldier’s
course” the complete length of the sidewalk.
Cement will form the remainder of the width for the pedestrian
walkway.
Work began at the corner of Jeffress and Fenton, just across
the street from the house were Virginia Governor William
Munford Tuck and his family once lived.
Town
Police Force Said Asset For Future Growth
BY
Beth Robertson
G-V STAFF WRITER
A tax increase, a police force, a town’s direction:
To be or not to be.
Challenging questions leveled at Halifax Town Council last
week by attorney and Halifax resident W.W. “Ted”
Bennett.
He urged Council to look at Rustburg, a county seat which
chose not to be a town, one that has “no administrative
or police force” costs.
With Halifax Town Police consuming 38 percent, or $259,025.50,
of the town’s proposed $1,462,569 budget, Bennett’s
question was not the first in the town’s history, according
to Sheriff Jeff Oakes.
“Several years go I was approached about taking over
the town’s department, but after meeting with Town
Council, it was not feasible to do it,” Oakes said
yesterday.
“The majority opinion was the cost was prohibitive
for me to do that for them,” he added.
At the time Oakes said the town wanted him to cover about
84 hours per week.
“It was a little over $100,000 to do that several years
ago,” recalled Oakes “And that was in addition
to them maintaining a two-man department of their own.”
There are several towns that have contractual agreements
with counties to provide law enforcement services, according
to the sheriff, with the closest in Appomattox.
“I provided Town Council copies of those agreements
at that time,” Oakes said. He said South Boston “asked
the same question” about its coverage years ago.
“In my opinion, the town (Halifax) should maintain
its police force, particularly because of the size of Halifax
County and the constraints that it puts on my department
in covering a county of this size.”
Patrol deputies, not including investigators and process
people, number 19 in the Sheriff’s Department, one
of whom is the school resource officer, according to the
sheriff.
Generally, the department has three or four people working
during the day and evening shifts.
“For example, you could have a break-in in a store
in the town and the officers that I have could be displaced
in Virgilina or Cody and response time (to Halifax) could
well be 30 to 45 minutes. Very easily that could happen,
and that compromises public safety here in town. And the
state police only have a couple of people working, so you
are really rolling the dice if you decide to shut down the
town’s police department.
Oakes also likes the back-up.
“Very often the Town of Halifax assists my department
in responding to emergencies within the jurisdictional boundaries
of the town. They have on many occasions backed up my deputies
on complaints just outside the town limits. And they are
always available to help us with problems at the courthouse
or jail,” he added.
Currently, there are nine state troopers assigned to Halifax
County, with one vacancy, according to Lt. Paul Kvasnicka,
Appomattox. He said Charlotte County has four troopers,
with one vacancy, and there are three supervisors, First
Sgt. Jeff Lane and two sergeants.
“We normally man three shifts with varying amounts
of coverage due to training, special assignments and leave,”
said the lieutenant. “We need more manpower, not just
in Halifax,” he added. “We have manpower shortages
throughout the state.”
In Halifax
Since January 2005, Halifax police have answered 1,079 calls
for service ranging from domestic violence to larceny, vandalism,
routine traffic stops and attempted suicide, Halifax Police
Chief Devin Snead said yesterday.
“In the month of May alone we used 600.75 man-hours,”
Snead said. “We have, through the graciousness of the
sheriff, deputies working part-time in the town to help
us out.”
Snead, who took over as chief May 1, also instituted a bicycle
patrol for the business and residential areas since his
appointment.
“Speaking for myself and several other businesses,
we are in favor of the town police because we feel the sheriff’s
department and state troopers cover such a large area that
if we need them in case of an emergency, they aren’t
always here,” said Halifax Village Business Association
President Carol Throckmorton.
“If we were to have a break-in, we know town police
can be here in 10 minutes.
“The state troopers are covering two counties; they
are just so spread out. We just feel the town police are
a necessity. The businesses have a big investment in the
town and we need to be protected,” said Throckmorton,
who has been in business since 1990.
Garland Childrey, of Garland’s Jewelry, agrees.
“I would hope we can maintain the police force for
many reasons,” said Childrey. “In my particular
business, that would be the answer, but there are just many
daily situations and I think our people are all for it in
this day and time. Of course, we’ve always received
good attention from the sheriff and state police,”
he said. “I add that because on occasion, they have
been very helpful.”
“I think they are very much needed,” said Bill
Granger, a town resident and businessman. “Have you
ever stopped to consider that the reason we don’t have
break-ins is because we have coverage? For a small town,
I like having that police coverage. When you have to call
someone, they are there in a few minutes. That’s one
of the perks of a small town.”
Administrative View
“I think the merits are clear on why Halifax should
have a full complement of five officers,” said Town
Manager Carl Espy, “given our population and the 4.52
square miles of coverage. Particularly with state police
and sheriff’s deputies’ (coverage) stretched,”
he added.
“Generally, police protection is one of the primary
services a town offers,” he said, noting between 30-40
percent of the general fund budget used for that purpose
for smaller towns.
“Police protection is also important to prospective
businesses considering the town,” said Espy, who links
a declining business community and ambiguity about a police
department.
“What I have seen is that most county seats that are
incorporated towns – as Halifax is – are successful
towns, meaning they are growing or in the process of revitalizing
and providing economic opportunity and quality of life for
their residents. They are also, I think, towns county residents
can be proud of. Most have their own police departments,”
he added.
Of the 95 Virginia counties, Espy said 33 county seats are
located in unincorporated communities – like Rustburg
– with 49 county seats located in incorporated towns
and 13 county seats located in cities.
In anticipation of a new shopping center breaking ground
for construction in the fall, Espy emphasized the need for
police coverage.
He said the town also is set to begin construction in August
on its revitalization project, with 28 properties participating
for faÁade work. The project has received funding
in three separate stages, according to the town manager,
with a planning grant of approximately $50,000; a Community
Development Block Grant of $770,000; and a TEA-21 construction
grant for $287,000.
Espy closed quoting the Code of Virginia’s description
of the general powers of a municipal corporation’s
purpose for being: “to secure and promote the general
welfare of the inhabitants of the municipality and the safety,
health, peace, good order, comfort, convenience, morals,
trade, commerce and industry of the municipality and the
inhabitants thereof.”
Sentencing
Trial Begins For Morgan
Sentencing
for convicted murderer Xenia Uzella Morgan began Thursday
with testimony from a single defense witness, defense attornies
R. Clinton Clary Jr. and Jospeh Teefey calling Dr. Robert
P. Hart, a psychiatrist with Virginia Commonwealth University.
Remaining testimony will be heard July 19-20, but yesterday’s
hearing may have indicated what direction both the Commonwealth
and Morgan’s defense team will take. Morgan faces either
the death penalty or life in prison for the May 2003 capital
murder of Lillian Taylor.
Hart told the court that a battery of tests he conducted
with Morgan indicated what he termed “frontal lobe”
damage to the brain, which is characterized by problem solving
difficulties, and a lack of self awareness.
Individuals with frontal lobe damage have difficulty coming
up with suitable alternatives to problems, and are subject
to impulsive behavior, according to Hart’s testimony.
“They don’t appreciate their mistakes or the impact
they may have on other people,” said Hart, who added
details he has learned of Morgan’s lifestyle and background
reinforce his findings.
Morgan stands a good chance of adjusting to the more regimented
setting found inside a prison, according to Hart.
Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Michelle Gowdy questioned
Hart about the validity of the battery of tests Morgan took
over a day and a half.
Gowdy recited incidents of threatening behavior exhibited
by Morgan while incarcerated as proof of future dangerousness,
a key component in determining the application of the death
penalty in a capital case.
Gowdy reiterated before the hearing that the Commonwealth
is seeking the death penalty for Morgan.
Other Court Cases
ï Linda Malone Vaughan, 35, of Scottsburg, was convicted
Tuesday in Halifax County Circuit Court of embezzlement/grand
larceny, identity fraud and computer fraud, after reaching
a plea agreement with the Commonwealth.
Judge Leslie M. Osborn convicted Vaughan of the embezzlement/grand
larceny of property belonging to Inez Yeatts Vaughan and
Edd Vaughan, identity fraud (Edd Vaughan) and computer fraud.
The embezzlement/grand larceny offense occurred between
September 1, 2002 and August 31, 2004, the identity fraud
occurred between November 1 and November 30, 2003, and the
computer fraud occurred between January 1 and August 31,
2004, according to court records.
Vaughan is free on bond pending sentencing in the July court
term.
• Thomas Eugene Anderson, 25, of Halifax, entered an
Alford plea Tuesday to the petty theft of property from
Torrence Dunkley.
Under terms of an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit
guilt, but realizes prosecution evidence would make a guilty
finding at trial almost a certainty.
Judge Osborn sentenced Anderson to one year in jail, with
all time suspended, conditioned on Anderson’s good
behavior for two years.
• Teresa Brown Bailey, 35, of South Boston, was convicted
Tuesday of one count of forging and uttering and one count
of driving after declared an habitual offender, both convictions
coming after Bailey entered into a plea agreement with the
Commonwealth.
The court remanded Bailey to custody to await sentencing
in the July court term.
• Danny Mitchell Lawson, 19, of South Boston, was convicted
Tuesday of possessing cocaine.
The Commonwealth nol prossed an additional indictment against
Lawson during the trial, one charging him with misdemeanor
shoplifting.
Lawson is free on bond pending sentencing in the July court
term.
• Michael Darnell Owens, 58, of South Boston, was convicted
Thursday of a subsequent offense of DUI.
Owens is free on bond pending sentencing in the July court
term.
Obituaries
Virginia
Keith Williams Penick
Virginia
Keith Williams Penick, 86, of 1314 Barbour Street, South
Boston died June 16, at Lynchburg General Hospital.
Mrs. Penick was born in Halifax County on March 10, 1919,
the daughter of William Lindsey Williams Sr. and Lillian
Ratcliffe Williams, and was married to the late Charles
Anderson Penick. She was a member of First Presbyterian
Church in South Boston.
Survivors include two daughters, Barbara Penick Jiminez
of Madrid, Spaid and Rebecca Lindsey Penick of Alexandria;
three grandchildren, Luis, Francisco and Virginia Jimenez,
all of Madrid; two sisters, Lillian Williams Grymes of Richmond
and Martha Williams Fugate of Salter Path, N.C.; and one
brother, William Lindsey Williams Jr. of West Chester, Pa.
Funeral services for Mrs. Penick will be held June 20, at
11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Dr. Russell
Lee officiating. Burial will follow in Oak Ridge Cemetery.
The family will receive friends Sunday evening from 7:00
until 8:30, at Powell Funeral Home, and other times at the
home.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider South
Boston-Halifax County Museum of Fine Arts and History, P.O.
Box 383, South Boston, or the Community Arts Foundation
(The Prizery), P.O. Box 601, South Boston, VA 24592.
Late
Rally Lifts Big Island To One-Run Win Over Post 8
South
Boston Post 8 Stranded 13 Runners On The Sacks In Falling
To Big Island 4-3 Wednesday Night
BY Joe Chandler
G-V STAFF WRITER
For the second time in as many outings, the South Boston
American Legion Post 8 baseball team has come painfully
close to a win without tasting victory.
Post 8 saw Wednesday’s road district opener against
Big Island Post 217 slip out of its grasp when Big Island
rallied to plate two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning
and score a come-from behind 4-3 win.
Wednesday’s loss was the second straight setback for
Post 8, which opened its season here this past Sunday with
a one-run loss at the hands of Roxboro, N.C. Post 138.
“It’s a tough loss,” said Post coach Jason
Jones, whose team fell to 0-2 overall and 0-1 in district
play.
“But, at least we’re getting experience in tight
situations.”
Post 8 had itsshare ofopportunities to score but stranded
13 runners on the sacks.
Three times in the game Post 8 was retired with the bases
loaded. South Boston left the bases loaded in both the sixth
inning and seventh inning when it failed to score and did
so again in the eighth inning in which it scored one run.
Post 8 stranded two runners on the sacks in the first inning,
another inning in which it failed to score.
“To be in a game that close and leave 13 runners on
base, is tough,” said Jones.
“We needed some clutch hits and just didn’t get
any breaks.”
While the loss was a tough one to take, Jones was able to
find some solace.
“If we keep getting guys on base like that, when we
get the timely hits, we’re going to score some runs,”
Jones said.
“If we keep playing the way we’re playing, we’ll
start winning some games.”
Post 8 had nine hits in the contest, two more than Big Island.
Blake Waller and Ryan Roller led Post 8 with two hits each.
Robert Carter, Brent Long, David Lacks and Ryan Gieselman
each had one hit.
Tyler Clarke, who is headed to Pfeiffer University this
fall, gave Post 8 a good outing on the mound, fanning 10
batters while allowing four hits and three walks through
his stint that lasted through the first three Big Island
batters in the eighth inning.
“I thought Tyler did a good job,” said Jones.
“I probably could have left him in the game but Tyler
got way up in his pitch count. He’s got his pitching
career ahead of him at Pfeiffer and I don’t want to
put any unnecessary strain on his arm.”
Lacks, the designated hitter for Clarke in the lineup, went
to the mound to relieve Clarke. He gave up two walks and
was tagged by two hits.
Big Island took the early lead, taking advantage of a one-out
single to score in the bottom of the third inning to take
a 1-0 lead.
Post 8 countered with two runs in the fourth inning, taking
advantage of three hits to grab a 2-1 lead.
Long led off with a double and scored on a single from Roller.
A base hit by Waller later in the inning scored Roller to
put Post 8 up 2-1.
Post 8 extended its lead to 3-1 in the top of the eighth
inning when Travis Powell reached base on a fielder’s
choice with two out and scored on a double by Carter.
Big Island drummed up a run in the bottom of the eighth
inning with the help of a Post 8 error and three walks to
make it a one-run game. In the bottom of the ninth inning,
Big Island took advantage of two hits and a Post 8 error
to score twice and pull off the win.
Clay,
Mele Eye Defense Of GFGC Member-Guest Tourney Crown
Woody
Clay and Kris Mele Will Be Going After A Second Straight
Crown In This Weekend’s Green’s Folly Member-Guest
Golf Tournament
BY Joe Chandler
G-V STAFF WRITER
Woody Clay and Kris Mele will set out Saturday to begin
their defense of last year’s Green’s Folly Golf
Course Member-Guest Tournament crown.
The road back to the championship will, however, not be
an easy one.
Eighty-six teams will take to the Green’s Folly layout
this weekend and a good number of solid teams are expected
to be in the hunt for the championship when players tee
off at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Saturday to begin the first round
of the two-day tournament.
The team that has had the hot hand more often than not through
the past decade has been the tandem of Jimmy Clay and Phil
Rinker.
Entering last year’s event, Clay and Rinker had won
eight of the past 10 Green’s Folly Member-Guest titles.
That streak came very close to continuing last year but
W. Clay and Mele made a dazzling second-day charge to overtake
the field and snare a narrow one-stroke win over J. Clay
and Rinker.
J. Clay and Rinker led Billy Payne and Charlie Baskervill
by two strokes and led W. Clay and Mele by three shots after
Saturday’s opening round.
However, W. Clay and Mele turned in a big performance on
Sunday and that, coupled with some misfortune on the part
of J. Clay and Rinker, allowed W. Clay and Mele to take
home the big prize.
J. Clay and Rinker will be back this weekend to attempt
to regain their lost title of last year. Also returning
this year is the tandem of Brad Mele and W.J. Long, the
team that finished third in last year’s tournament.
Billy Payne and Baskervill, who slipped to a fourth-place
finish last year, will also be in the field and looking
to get themselves back to the top.
Also in the field again this year is the tandem of Ronnie
Moore and Greg Meeks who won the First Flight last year.
Last year’s First Flight runner-up, the team of Mike
Gregory and Gary Gupton, also returns to the field.
The 86-team field will be flighted after Saturday’s
opening-round. Tee times for Sunday’s round will be
8 a.m. and 1 p.m.Member-Guest
Saturday Hole Assignments
8:00 am
1a Wade-Thompson/Murray-Murray
1b Haskins-Mele/Cole-Puryear
2 Brear-Brown/Buchanon-Thompson
3 Solomon-Whitlow/Prevett-Cole
4 Burchette-Ferguson/Williams-Murphy
5 Hardy-Colbert/Henderson
6 Mitchell-Conner/K. Gravitt-Lumsden
7 Snead-Snead/Harman-Snead
8a Bales-Shumate/Daniel-Long
8b White-Holt/Carter-Carter
9 Robertson-Fisher/Pate-Hite
10 Hoppe-Evans/Brian Hoppe-T. Early
10b Br. Hoppe-S. Earls/Evans-Evans
11 McCready-Roberts/Dawson-Murray
12 Franklin-Franklin/Watts-Watts
13 Lowery-Lowery/Wheeler-Cage
14 Oakes-Bobler/Ellington-Henderson
15 Wentz-Medley/Harrell-Harrell
17 Turner-Smith/Moser-Tollerson
18 Saunders-Long/Long-Spaulding
1:00 PM
1a Clay-Mele/Mele-Long
1b Payne-Baskervill/Payne-Peace
2 Adams-Adams/Carter-Walker
3 Payne-Thompson/Young-Thompson
4a Spencer-Tysinger/Clay-Rinker
4b Jones-Jones/Pate-Jones
5 Allen-Pruett/Crittenden-Crittenden
6 Hanks-Hammond/Brown-Kinnamon
7 Weatherford-Meeks/Francis-Dyer
8 Crews-Crofts/Seamster-Mason
9 Thompson-Perkins/Lacks-lacks
10a Ashwell-Tinsley/Martin-Martin
1Ob Thomasson-Duncan/Puckett-Stinespring
11 Tyler-Facchina/Dockrill-Jessome
12 Smith-Butler/Strickland-Lloyd
13a Williams-Williams/Speer-Speer
13b Dockrill-Startzell/Dockrill-Thompson
14 Moore-Meeks/Gregory-Gupton
15 Dickerson-Bowman/Do. Gravitt-K. Evans
16 Cole-Bosiger/Shotwell-Crenshaw
17 Hughes-Thompson/Hughes-Evans
18a Glass-Lancaster/Womack-Stewart
18b Fincher-Reneau/Bomar-Speer
Peter
Krause Has Done It All At VIR
BY
Doug Ford
G-V STAFF WRITER
Peter Krause paused for a moment Saturday during practice
for the 2005 Gold Cup Historic Races at Virginia International
Raceway (VIR), but it was only a moment before a fellow
driver approached, asking if he knew where to get a certain
part.
Although Krause didn’t have the part he needed, the
driver knew the right person to ask, because perhaps nobody
knows as much about the VIR course and what it takes to
compete there.
Krause, an avid race driver and experienced mechanic for
vintage and exotic automobiles, was asked by Siegel in 1998
to assist him in the redevelopment of VIR, which had been
dormant since 1974.
Krause, who has raced road courses throughout Europe and
the United States and who also serves as a chief instructor
for several racing groups, was up to the challenge, and
has become one of the most successful race drivers on the
3.27-mile natural terrain road racing circuit.
He has over 100 class and overall wins over the last 18
years in at least seven racing divisions, including the
Sports Car Club of America.
With that racing expertise in mind, his contributions to
the sport of racing include “chalk talks” and
track walks designed to introduce enthusiasts to the art
and science of high performance driving on behalf of several
racing sanctioning organizations.
Krause currently organizes and manages on-track events for
VIR Club, the VIR Gold Cup Historic Races and the Virginia
Sports Car Club of America.
“I had heard about VIR for about 20 years before I
drove it for the first time,” said Krause, estimates
he has won about three-fourths of the races in which he’s
competed since the track reopened.
That should come as no surprise, as Krause has analyzed
in detail every road course he’s ever driven as an
instructor, including VIR.
“VIR is the most spectacular track I’ve ever driven,
one of the most difficult but one of the most satisfying,”
said Krause, noting the 17 turns and 130 feet of elevation
change.
Drivers race the VIR course at faster speeds than most other
courses, and their average speed is also very high, according
to Krause, whose success at VIR and knowledge of the track
has other drivers approach him for advice.
“A lot of drivers ask me about the best way to get
around this track, and I can tell you that talking about
it and actually doing it are two different things,”
noted Krause, who has set at least one track record in one
of the racing classifications at VIR.
“But, I have yet to run the perfect lap, and that’s
the challenge that keeps me coming back here.”
One of Krause’s duties last weekend, as it is for other
VIR events, was to assemble the grids based on car and driver
combinations, rather than engine displacement or year of
manufacture to ensure competitive racing.
That makes for good racing throughout the field, and like
most VIR events, captures the true spirit of vintage racing,
where camaraderie and the pure enjoyment of racing reign
supreme.
VIR “stacks up” well when compared to other road
courses , Krause emphasized. “It’s even better
now than before I drove it, and it’s even more of a
legend since it reopened.
“Very few people have had the commitment, wherewithal
and vision to do what Harvey Siegel has done. Homecoming
is a celebration of the history of the cars and people who
have raced here.”
