CLASS
The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office held the first half of a Citizen’s Firearms Class Thursday at the Sheriff’s Office. Almost 100 people were in attendance for the free gun class, which touched on topics of Alabama gun laws and important gun safety. A major point of the class was also the moral and legal aspects of potential victims using deadly force. Residents ranging from young people with little gun experience all the way to former law enforcement officers with decades of experience listened as Deputy Barry Williams answered questions for nearly an hour. (Williams 2) The second half of the Citizen’s Firearms Class will be held Saturday morning at the Calhoun County Deputy Sheriff’s Association’s firing range in Jacksonville and will only be open to residents who have attended at least one of the classroom events.
SOFTBALL
A charity softball tournament for a Heflin police officer wounded last month is scheduled for Saturday afternoon at the Oxford Softball Complex. Tournament organizer Christy Spears said by phone on Friday that 12 teams will compete with more than 100 men and women playing in the charity event to raise money for Heflin police officer Jackie Stovall. More than $2000 have already been raised from entry fees, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go directly to Stovall. Tee shirts and concessions will also be available at the event, with a portion of those proceeds going to the recovering officer. Officer Stovall was shot on December 15 after a two-county chase of a Cleburne County man suspected of shooting four people. According to the Prayers for Officer Jackie Stovall Facebook page, the wounded officer was hospitalized for about two weeks and is now undergoing physical therapy to recover from his leg injury.
SCALEBACK
A program designed to help Alabamians lose weight is kicking off its seventh year. An Associate Press report says the state Department of Public Health is encouraging four-member teams to start forming for Scale Back Alabama. The teams will weigh in the week of Jan. 19-25 and weigh out the week of April 6-12. The winners will be announced April 26. There is no charge to enter. Teams where each member sheds at least 10 pounds are eligible for a random drawing where the first prize is $4,000, the second prize $2,000 and the third prize $1,000. Nearly 30,000 people participated in Scale Back Alabama during 2012 and they lost nearly 149,000 pounds. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention figures that 32 percent of Alabama adults are obese.
DRUGS
Sheriff’s officials in north Alabama have seized more than 100 pounds of marijuana being transported from Mexico during a one-year period. The Etowah County Sheriff’s office has announced 22-year-old Hunter Epps Waters, of Trussville, and 36-year-old Hernandez Soto, of Birmingham have been charged with marijuana trafficking and are being held in the Etowah County Detention Center. Authorities tell the Associated Press that Waters was carrying 45 pounds of marijuana at the time of his arrest and Soto was carrying about 50 pounds of the drug. Police say a third unidentified suspect was carrying 15 pounds of marijuana and will be indicted by a grand jury. It is unclear when the men were arrested or if they have lawyers.
CRASH
Federal authorities say a student pilot wasn’t following regulations when he took off with two friends on a late-night flight that crashed in north Alabama and killed everyone aboard. The Federal Aviation Administration told the AP on Thursday that 17-year-old Jordan Ryan Smith of Jasper had a student pilot certificate. The FAA pointed to regulations that say a student pilot may not act as a pilot in command of an aircraft carrying a passenger. FAA regulations also require a pilot to have a multi-engine rating to fly a twin-engine plane like the Piper PA 30 that crashed about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday a mile south of the Walker County Airport. Also killed in the crash were 17-year-old Jordan Seth Montgomery and 19-year-old Brandon Tyler Ary, both of Arley.