24 DEC 08: OPEN AND SHUT CASES
"Are you an investigator?" a woman on the other side of the glass asked me Tuesday. Well, that depends on some things. Columbus residents probably would say no. But since I stood in east Alabama, I think the answer could be yes.
"No," I told the woman across the glass. "I'm a blogger."
"A b-l-ogger?!" I might as well have declared myself a Jayhawk -- although after Tuesday night's loss to Arizona, I might not even do that for awhile.
"I write a blog." By this time, I had the attention of a few people on the other side of the glass.
"What's a blog?" an older woman asked. Some people still don't know, after almost six years. I suspect these are the people who are going to inundate electronic stores in February, asking about converter boxes for TV sets.
These women apparently are too busy to read blogs, because they work in the Russell County Court Clerk's office. We went there because of a rather cryptic postal letter from the mysterious Hurtsboro tipster "Russell C. Ounti," which included this:
I wish I could have been in court today to watch Ken White squirm. He was on the hot seat. You should talk to that guy. He is a real loser.
This could mean several things. Phenix City attorney Kenneth White is the Hurtsboro Municipal Court judge. Or does this mean White has been arrested and was on trial -- joining seemingly one-third of Hurtsboro's residents?
The Russell County Courthouse used to have a computer terminal at the bottom of a stairwell, for looking up court cases. But I couldn't find it Tuesday. Maybe it was traded for that new security equipment at the 14th Street entrance.
But no - that computer terminal for public use was removed some time back. On top of that, the passwords you need to check the Alabama court system's online database have changed. So I needed help from the Russell County Court Clerk's office -- and east Alabama bloggers have been too busy hunting rabbits to blaze a trail for visitors like me.
The court clerks were willing to help me, if I knew what case I was seeking. But that was the problem. I didn't know. I was one block away from the river -- and fishing without any bait, much less a license.
"We can research the case," a woman on the other side of the glass told me. But older cases would take more time, and even a simple check of the files would cost me ten dollars. So I applied some simple logic from the poker table. If you have no cards to play, fold the hand and walk away.
The Muscogee County Court Clerk's office suddenly is much easier to use. You sit at a 1990-era terminal, look up a case by name and ask the staff for the folder on that case. In Russell County, I now have to trust the professionals - and pay a finder's fee to boot.
Armed with the right Russell County passwords, I could have looked up Kenneth White's name on my home computer. We've done that for several Hurtsboro items in recent months. But the court clerk's staff admits the passwords were changed because too many people were tapping into the online database. So which last name had more searches -- Saban or Tuberville?
The Alabama court system database allows bloggers like me to register at home - but at a price. "Background checking" allows ten searches per month for 100 dollars. And there's a 150-dollar "account setup" fee on top of that. These are supposed to be public records, but they seem to require a private investigator's income.
For a last resort, we called Kenneth White's law office Tuesday afternoon. But our message was not returned. For all we know, he could be out of town on winter break -- or in Montgomery filing some kind of class-action lawsuit.
So IF Kenneth White is on trial right now, we're stymied as to how to verify it. We have no case number. We have no specific charge. And we're not about to blow our entire 2008 income for this blog, to go hunting for an answer online. We're still leaving the Internet gambling to poker professionals.
Let's move on from speculation to things which really did happen Tuesday:
+ Which local activist was spotted in line at one downtown Columbus bank - while his famous-name wife works at a different bank across the street? Is this to avoid any conflict of interest? Or is it simply a clever of hiding a "Christmas Club" account?
+ The Russell County Commission voted to make Friday a holiday for employees. Take about short notice! Workers probably can't book a motel room in Orange Beach, so they'll have to settle for a day at Victoryland.
+ John Darr took the oath of office as Muscogee County Sheriff. WLTZ noted Harris County Sheriff Mike Jolley was in the audience. Hey, if Susan Andrews can move south....
+ Groome Transportation told WRBL it's doubled the number of daily shuttle trips to the Atlanta Airport. If this trend continues, before long A.S.A. in Columbus will be D.O.A. - dead on arrival.
+ An Auburn clothing store sold what's described as "Tommy Tuberville memorial T-shirts." Wow - I really believed he resigned as football coach. Now I'm starting to wonder if university officials chased him out of town at gunpoint.
+ The William Henry Shaw high school basketball tournament held its semifinal rounds. This year the early-round games are in high school gyms, with only the finals at Columbus State University. Either this is yet another sign of economic cutbacks, or all the teenage basketball fans are busy riding skateboards for free.
2008 IN REVIEW CON'D: OK, we're back - with the historic month of June. It was the month when Columbus gas prices topped four dollars a gallon. Local governments responded with ingenious energy-saving measures -- such as four-day work weeks, and once-a-month speeches before Columbus Council.
June was primary month in Alabama -- and a Russell County Commission race had some controversy. Ronnie Reed survived a review of absentee ballots by the District Attorney's office. And to his credit, we don't think he's been an absentee commissioner so far.
A strange turn occurred in the Columbus Police during June, as the "Is Our City Safe" activist of years gone by was fired from the force. Brent Rollins later told this blog the police chief was "ruining his life." Imagine how some of the murder suspects in Recorder's Court this week must feel.
School was out in June, but education made news in Columbus anyway. Ground was broken for the new Muscogee County "Educational Services Center." Critics wish those initials "ESC" worked like a computer keyboard - and we could escape spending so much money on it.
Columbus State University selected Dr. Timothy Mescon as its new president in June. He must be earning less than Frank Brown did - because otherwise that $13,000 statue of a cougar on campus would be drawing a lot more controversy.
While Columbus State celebrated, Beacon University announced plans in June to shut down. Of course, Beacon had a much happier announcement a couple of weeks ago. But that new Bible-based seminary needs to take a close look at that commandment on "bearing false witness."
Fort Benning did something unusual in June, by using Front Avenue downtown to test an upgraded Bradley Fighting Vehicle. You could tell this was an important test, because it couldn't wait for "God Bless Fort Benning Day" in November.
A Columbus woman won the "Miss Georgia" pageant in June. Chasity Hardman is the daughter of a church pastor - yet still has not received a half-hour special in Mom's Sunday morning TV time slot.
Columbus had a world premiere 12 June, for a horror film called "The 13th Alley." It was a forgettable low-budget movie. And it was such a closely-watched event that the Wikipedia entry for the movie claims the premiere actually occurred in Oregon one day later.
The Columbus Catfish confirmed in June they would move to Kentucky. But the Aflac Outdoor Games came to South Commons and proved popular - suggesting local sports fans would rather see people climb wooden poles then swing them.
Two noteworthy passages occurred in our area during June. Dee Armstrong left the TV news with a modest goodbye message. Yet a bulldog named UGA VI which stood on football sidelines received a larger memorial tribute than most police dogs.
The number of unique visitors to our blog is up 32 percent from last year. To advertise to them, offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.
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