20 FEB 06: HURTSBORO SO BAD
An elected official in Russell County made a bold statement Sunday, declaring Hurtsboro is "turning into a disaster area." Wow, when did THEIR Streetscape project start?
Russell County Constable Bob Schweiger made his comment to WRBL based on a horrifying weekend killing. He says authorities in Hurtsboro could have prevented a mentally unstable man from stabbing his 15-month-old niece over and over. I'm not sure how, short of registering kitchen knives....
Bob Schweiger says Hurtsboro is becoming a "disaster area" because the town lacks a real police department. Yet video of the weekend killing showed a Hurtsboto police car at the scene. Does it rotate among members of the volunteer fire department?
(With all due respect, this town IS named Hurtsboro. If you move there expecting no one ever will be hurt, it's your own fault.)
Constable Bob Schweiger says Hurtsboro relies for law enforcement on "imports," such as the Russell County Sheriff's Department. I'm not sure that's necessarily a bad thing. The Columbus Police Department tries to import new officers from wherever it can find them.
Constable Bob Schweiger says Hurtsboro needs regular police patrols, a police chief and a "regular routine." In a town of about 1,000 people, you'd think almost everything would be a regular routine....
Bob Schweiger says it's time the Hurtsboro City Council took law enforcement seriously. He plans to tell them so at Tuesday's meeting - unless this council does what Talbotton's council did when they heard news reporters were coming, and flee.
But I have a very different question: why does Russell County need a Constable? After checking a dictionary, I assume he serves arrest warrants like the Muscogee County Marshal's office. But a "constable" in Alabama doesn't sound right. This title belongs on a PBS crime drama from Britain.
I've seen Constables on the Russell County election ballots for years - but really now, how many of you can name one? Sunday marked the first time I'd even seen one on television. Maybe that means he's the only elected official who's neutral on moving Probate Judge Al Howard's office.
The accused child killer in Hurtsboro reportedly had a history of violent behavior - so does the Constable share any of the blame for him not being behind bars before Saturday? There must be a reason for the success of that Phenix City bounty hunter.
YOUR UTTERLY TREMENDOUS LOCAL BLOG WINTER OLYMPIC COVERAGE: No one from Columbus competed in the Winter Olympics Sunday. But the ice dancing competition showed me what a WRBL sportscaster meant years ago about being "back in a twizzle." I thought he was talking about candy....
(After watching reality shows over the last few weeks, an evening of ice dancing to Latin rhythms disappointed me - because I expected Stacey Kiebler and Bruce Jenner to come out.)
BURKARD'S BEST BETS: Gas for $2.05 a gallon at Dolly Madison on Victory Drive.... queen-size sheets for $4.99 at the WestPoint Stevens outlet store on Veterans Parkway.... and probably more President's Day sales than we've had U.S. Presidents....
(BLOGGER'S NOTE: Server problems over the weekend prevented us from posting the T-shirt entry we promised. We'll hold that for another day.)
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