Lawrence County Judge Dale Freeman, who oversaw the county through extensive flooding in 2011 and guided it toward a new jail last year, died Saturday because of complications from a recent vehicle crash. He was 75.
Freeman, who has served as county judge since 2010, had been at a Little Rock hospital since Aug. 10 when his car overturned near Cabot. Walnut Ridge Mayor Charles Snapp said that Freeman had been improving and signing county documents as recently as last week.
The Lawrence County Quorum Court on Sept. 12 elevated Freeman's part-time administrative assistant Ann Pulliam to full-time status to serve in Freeman's absence, although his signature was still required on official documents.
It's unclear how the county will move forward after Freeman's death, County Clerk Tina Stowers said Sunday.
"[Pulliam's appointment] will carry until the next Quorum Court meeting and until we get a definitive answer from the state with how to proceed," Stowers said.
Freeman, of Powhatan, spoke softly and warmly in private, but his voice boomed in public. He engaged in fierce verbal duels during meetings of the Lawrence County Quorum Court when he thought the county wasn't being properly served.
A Lawrence County native, Freeman deeply understood the people who elected him, Snapp said.
"I say this as a compliment: Dale was strong-willed and very aggressive," Snapp said. "He had a unique understanding of Lawrence County and the people who live here."
Freeman won the county's Democratic primary in March, meaning he would have been re-elected because no Republicans filed for the office.
Freeman, who served as Portia's mayor before running for county office, was an ardent supporter of a special countywide sales tax election last fall to fund the construction and maintenance of a new county jail. The item passed, and construction recently began on the new facility.
"His goal was to see that jail built," Snapp said. "I think that's why he ran for this next term. He won't get to see it, but he got to see pictures of it being built."
Metro on 09/19/2016