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SATURDAY-SUNDAY • DECEMBER 19-20, 2015

THEWETUMPKAHERALD.COM

VOL. 10, NO. 51

Harrison’s name ordered off GOP ballot Current superintendent poised to continue candidacy as an Independent

By KEVIN TAYLOR Copy Editor

Harrison

It was a simple mistake of not having all the appropriate paperwork necessary turned into the Elmore County Probate Judge’s office which led to a judge’s ruling Wednesday afternoon to have current Elmore County Schools Superintendent Dr. Andre Harrison’s name removed from the

Republican Primary ballot. So as of now the only name on the March 1 GOP ballot for Superintendent of Education will be Richard Dennis. “It’s disappointing that a Chilton County judge (Reynolds) gave an Autauga County resident (Dennis) a free pass in the Elmore County Republican Primary. It’s a slap in the face to voters,” said Harrison in a statement Wednesday afternoon.

Harrison said he will not “waste taxpayer resources and appeal.” “I will now run as a conservative Independent and submit the required signatures by March 1 to be on the ballot in the November general election,” he said. An argument was made Wednesday morning by attorney Keith Howard that Harrison should not be allowed on the ballot since he admitted to not filing the certifi-

Commission denies probate judge claims

Commission moves forward with Redland, Firetower intersection Commission approves, signs off on funding agreement for roundabout By JOHN W. PEELER Managing Editor

STAFF REPORT Wetumpka Herald

Following Monday’s Elmore County Commission meeting Probate Judge John Enslen responded to the commission passing a resolution assigning the responsibility of the booking responsibilities of the $1 per copy fee the probate office collects for public documents. In his remarks, Enslen alleged the account in question was depleted. Currently, Enslen and the county are involved in a lawsuit regarding the funds. The commission responded to Enslen’s claim Thursday in a released statement without further comment. “Earlier this year, the Probate Judge of Elmore County sued the county asking to be paid $880,000 from the County General Fund. The judge’s lawsuit asks that this $880,000 — money collected during a 14-year period before the Judge was elected, a portion of which time the Judge served as the County Attorney — be taken from the County’s limited reserves and be given to the Judge for him to spend as he wishes. “The potential loss of $880,000 from the County General Fund would result in the layoff of critical county personnel, including deputies. The General Fund simply See COMMISSION • Page 2

USPS 681-260

cate of administration and supervision, which had to be signed by the state superintendent, by the Nov. 6 deadline. “We would be in this situation whether Richard Dennis was in the election or not,” Howard said. “Unfortunately he did not file all the papers he had to file, and (Elmore County Probate) Judge (John) Enslen had to bring this See BALLOT • Page 2

The next step in seeing a roundabout at the intersection of Redland Road and Firetower Road was taken Monday as the Elmore County Commission passed a resolution and funding agreement with the Alabama Department of Transportation for the preliminary engineering, utilities, right-of-way and construction phases of the project. With the signing of the agreement, the county can now move forward with the first step of the project — finding qualified consultants for the design phase. “We are gong to begin the design phase, so we will be getting the plans ready and laying out all the work that has to be done,” said Richie Beyer, county engineer. “Now that we have that done (signing the agreement), we will actually be asking DOT to allow us to use a consultant off their preapproved list, and that’s our next step.” Beyer said ALDOT has a preapproved list of consultants that have been vetted and audited if a consultant is going to be used for design. “For this level of design, we’ll get someone who will help us with the survey … it’s not something we have the capabilities in house to do everyday” he said. The project will be in three phases; the design See ROUNDABOUT • Page 2 Special / The Herald

Elmore County Sheriff’s Investigator Chris Kearley trains with fellow divers earlier this year in the Coosa River. (Special to the Herald)

A DRIVE TO DIVE Sheriff’s Department, WFD team to create county dive team By KEVIN TAYLOR Copy Editor

Response time means everything when it comes to emergencies. That is certainly the case when it comes to incidents on the waters of Elmore County, whether it be a boating accident or a possible drowning. Precious minutes could determine life from death as far as members of the Elmore County Sheriff’s Department and the Wetumpka Fire Department are concerned. Given the different waters from the Coosa River to Lake Jordan, WFD and the sheriff’s department have joined efforts to create a county dive team. “This is not meant to replace or compete with anyone who currently assists in water rescues, but we feel with the personnel we have with the fire department and the sheriff’s department we would have a much quicker response time,” WFD Chief Greg Willis said.

Elmore County has approximately 1,000 square miles of water, so Elmore County Sheriff Bill Franklin said the decision to join forces with the Wetumpka Fire Department and the Homeland Security’s Search and Recovery Dive Team was easy. “Of the 12 counties the team is responsible for, nearly 75 percent of the documented water-related incidences occur in bodies of water inside Elmore County,” Franklin said. The 12 counties which make up the region are Elmore, Autauga, Coosa, Montgomery, Lowndes, Chambers, Lee, Chilton, Macon, Bullock, Russell and Tallapoosa counties. The purpose of the team will not only be to ensure a quicker response, but to assist in retrieving crime-related evidence, retrieving accident-related property such as vehicles as well as swift-water rescue on the Coosa River. Wetumpka currently has a See DIVE • Page 2

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Judge sends home-invasion robbery case to grand jury By KEVIN TAYLOR Copy Editor

Eyewitness reports of what the suspect was wearing, a surveillance video and testimony from a co-defendant was all that District Court Judge Glenn Goggans needed. Dexter McDuffie, 27, of Montgomery was arrested and charged with first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and first-degree assault following the home-invasion robbery and shooting of an Eclectic woman on Pleasant Hill Road last month. Jeff Duffey, who represented McDuffie during Thursday’s preliminary hearing, asked the case McDuffie be dismissed given the lack of evidence to positively identify his client as the shooter or even being in the Pleasant Hill Road home. Elmore County Sheriff’s Investigator Stan Hinson said an eyewitness described a slender black male wearing a white t-shirt and khaki pants leaving the Eclectic home. Another person said a man of the description entered Bush’s Grocery See ROBBERY • Page 2