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Spent shells found near slain man, 33

Subscriber onlyLogan County sheriff ’s investigators found spent shell casings around a man found dead Tuesday outside his home just north of Paris, an investigator in the case said Thursday. Continue reading...

By -Dave Posted: May 17, 2013 at 2:40 a.m.

Order to medicate defendant is stayed

Subscriber onlyA 73-year-old Kentucky man has received a stay while he appeals to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and possibly to the U.S. Supreme Court an order that he be involuntarily medicated to make him mentally competent to stand trial. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 17, 2013 at 2:40 a.m.

Guard’s 15 deployed to Mideast for detail

Subscriber only About 15 members of the Arkansas Air National Guard’s 188th Fighter Wing are scheduled to leave today and Monday for the Middle East, where they will provide installation security and aircraft protection in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 12, 2013 at 2:14 a.m.

Sebastian County, cities pushing to keep 1% tax

Subscriber onlyHackett Mayor Darrell Newton has put up “Protect Your Penny” signs all over town in hopes residents will vote Tuesday to renew the county’s 20-year-old 1 percent sales tax. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 12, 2013 at 2:14 a.m.

7 hurt in church roof collapse

Subscriber onlyOfficials with the Jethro Pentecostal Church north of Ozark were trying to determine Thursday why the roof of an addition under construction suddenly collapsed Wednesday evening, injuring seven workers. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 10, 2013 at 2:35 a.m.

Shooting by officer leaves 1 wounded

Suspect treated, taken to lockup

Subscriber onlyA Sebastian County sheriff ’s deputy shot and wounded a man in the shoulder early Thursday when the man refused to drop a knife he was holding to his mother’s chest, according to the sheriff ’s office. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 10, 2013 at 2:34 a.m.

Jail time is set at 18 months in fraud case

Subscriber onlyA Logan County woman was sentenced in federal court to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud in the theft of more than $155,000 over seven years from the insurance company where she worked. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 3, 2013 at 2:39 a.m.

City takes over park closed by ‘96 storm

Subscriber onlyVAN BUREN — Van Buren is expanding its recreational assets by signing a lease to take over the closed Lee Creek Park and accepting a donation of 55 acres for a future park. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: May 1, 2013 at 4:18 a.m.

Financier kept apart after cash-move try

Wichtendahl defense draws $35,000

Subscriber onlyA Northwest Arkansas man charged in federal court with bilking investors out of more than $1 million has been ordered into isolation in jail to prevent him from attempting to hide money being donated to him by supporters for his criminal defense, according to court records. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 28, 2013 at 2:28 a.m.

Marshals museum allotted $1 million

Subscriber onlyThe U.S. Marshals Museum will receive about $1 million from the state this summer to help with operating costs as its national fundraising effort gets under way, museum President Jim Dunn said Friday. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 27, 2013 at 2:23 a.m.

Fort Smith pastor to return money

Subscriber onlyAn associate pastor of a Fort Smith church has agreed to refund $66,500 that the state securities department says he took from a church member, promising to invest it but instead spending it on himself, a department attorney said Thursday. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 26, 2013 at 2:21 a.m.

Cleanup-plan details filed by Whirlpool

But strategy for getting rid of chemical is still the same

Subscriber only A revised plan submitted by Whirlpool Corp. to the state environmental department Wednesday does not change the company’s intent to rely on natural decomposition to get rid of a hazardous chemical in groundwater under a neighborhood adjacent to the closed Fort Smith plant. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 26, 2013 at 2:21 a.m.

Fourth arrest made in 7 bomb threats

Prosecution promised for offenders

Subscriber only Four arrests have been made in connection to seven bomb threats made in the Van Buren School District over the last month, a Van Buren police spokesman said Thursday. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 12, 2013 at 2:28 a.m.

Fire damages Charleston plant

Blaze destroyed one building; mill, office, house saved

Subscriber onlyThe president of a Charleston pallet company damaged by fire Tuesday said the fire could have been worse as firefighters saved parts of the plant that will allow the company to continue operations. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 11, 2013 at 4:46 a.m.

Whirlpool presents plan to watch, not undo, toxic

Subscriber onlyWhirlpool Corp. will monitor the decomposition of the hazardous chemical that leaked from its plant rather than try to remove it from the groundwater beneath the next-door neighborhood in a plan designed by consultants that Whirlpool hired to study the contamination. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 10, 2013 at 2:41 a.m.

Heritage festival aided by weather

Event raises cash to feed children

Subscriber only Sunny skies, warm weather and the chance for a bit of excitement lured crowds to downtown Fort Smith on Saturday for the fifth annual Heritage Festival. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 7, 2013 at 1:53 a.m.

Defendant to get 2nd fit-for-trial evaluation

Subscriber only An 89-year-old murder defendant will be committed to the State Hospital to be evaluated on whether he’s too disabled to go to trial, a Sebastian County Circuit Court judge ruled Friday. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 6, 2013 at 2:42 a.m.

Campaign to renew sales tax kicks off

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — About 40 city and county officials in Sebastian County gathered Tuesday morning to kickoff the “Protect Your Penny” campaign to renew a 1 percent countywide sales tax on which residents will vote May 14. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 3, 2013 at 3:34 a.m.

Officer facing inquiry in Fort Smith shooting

Subscriber onlyA Fort Smith police officer has been suspended pending an investigation after he shot and wounded a man in the leg early Sunday during a struggle inside the man’s car during which the officer believed the man was reaching under his seat for a weapon, according to a Fort Smith police news release. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Apr 2, 2013 at 4:47 a.m.

Fort Smith pollution spurs Brockovich visit

Whirlpool seeks input, vows to act

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — It is up to the people of Fort Smith to push for a solution to the trichloroethylene contamination that has plagued the neighborhoods around the closed Whirlpool Corp. plant, environmental activist Erin Brockovich said Tuesday. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 27, 2013 at 12:53 a.m.

Whirlpool asks to withdraw proposed ban on drilling

Subscriber onlyWhirlpool Corp. has asked Fort Smith to withdraw an ordinance banning the drilling of water wells in a south Fort Smith neighborhood where the groundwater was contaminated with a hazardous chemical that leaked from the nearby Whirlpool plant. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 26, 2013 at 4:23 p.m.

Activists test for taint near Whirlpool plant

Working on cleanup, firm says in letter

Subscriber only An associate of environmental activist Erin Brockovich arrived in Fort Smith on Monday to begin testing groundwater of a neighborhood contaminated with a hazardous chemical that leaked from the nearby Whirlpool plant over decades but wasn’t disclosed to residents until January. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 26, 2013 at 2:21 a.m.

Brokovich associates to test soil and groundwater

Associates of environmental activist Erin Brockovich are scheduled to arrive in Fort Smith Monday afternoon to conduct soil and groundwater tests in advance of Brockovich's arrival for a neighborhood meeting Tuesday evening. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 25, 2013 at 11:22 a.m.

Hutchinson kin listed as Barber’s counsel

Ex-Fayetteville developer charged in fraud

Subscriber onlyFormer Fayetteville developer Brandon Barber will be represented by the Asa Hutchinson Law Group when he appears in federal court on white-collar criminal indictments. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 23, 2013 at 1:52 a.m.

Count Sees More Without Dwelling

Fort Smith Census Finds 228 Homeless

Subscriber onlyThere are slightly more homeless people in Fort Smith this year than last but some of the faces have changed, one official with a local homeless coalition said Monday. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 19, 2013 at 2:11 a.m.

Sebastian County JPs will vote on funding for death settlement

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — The Sebastian County Quorum Court will convene for a special meeting Tuesday to consider an ordinance appropriating $145,000 as part of a settlement in a federal court jail death lawsuit. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 9, 2013 at 2:36 a.m.

Fort Smith Directors Go On Record To Pay County

Aquatics-Center Pledge Now In Writing

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — The Fort Smith Board of Directors has passed a resolution confirming its commitment to pay for features previously dropped from plans for an aquatics center. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 7, 2013 at 1:20 a.m.

Whirlpool’s solvent in groundwater riles neighbors

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — People living just north of the former Whirlpool Corp. manufacturing plant are angry that a hazardous chemical that leaked from the plant years ago has seeped into the groundwater under their homes, raising fears of health risks and damage to property values. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 3, 2013 at 4:04 a.m.

Text messages lead to arrest of teacher

Subscriber onlyA 32-year-old Van Buren high school teacher was arrested Friday on a warrant charging him with two counts of harassment, accusing him of sending text messages of a sexual nature to two 15-year-old female students, according to Van Buren police. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Mar 2, 2013 at 2:32 a.m.

Police Seek Man On Battery Charge

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — Fort Smith police Wednesday were searching for a man charged with first-degree battery, accused of beating a woman after her ex-boyfriend left to buy marijuana for him and never returned. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 28, 2013 at 1:52 a.m.

Council In Van Buren OKs Land Buy For Park

Resolution Calls For Site To Honor Vets

Subscriber onlyThe Van Buren City Council’s purchase of land near the downtown business district is the latest step in the city’s effort to upgrade its park system. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 28, 2013 at 1:52 a.m.

Deputy accused of lying on stand

Subscriber onlyA Johnson County sheriff’s deputy was charged Friday with perjury, accused of lying under oath about making statements to circuit court jurors about the defendant in the murder trial they were hearing. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 23, 2013 at 2:35 a.m.

Trial ordered for 1 in killing; 2nd evaluated

Brothers charged in Oklahoma

Subscriber onlyPOTEAU, Okla. — One of two brothers charged in the 2010 murder of a Fort Smith woman was ordered Thursday to stand trial in LeFlore County District Court on first-degree murder and sodomy charges. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 22, 2013 at 1:54 a.m.

Sebastian County vote set on continuing 1% sales tax

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — The Sebastian County Quorum Court scheduled a special election May 14 for renewal of a 1 percent countywide sales tax, the revenue from which benefits large segments of the county. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 21, 2013 at 1:25 a.m.

JPs: No To More Aquatics Funding

Diving Pool Still Out Of The Picture

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — Sebastian County Quorum Court members rejected a plan to put more money into a proposed aquatics center that would have restored some features removed from the design because of cost. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 21, 2013 at 12:04 a.m.

Murder nets man life term 2nd time

Sentencing redone after bailiff remark

Subscriber onlyFor the second time in less than a year, Tommy Bowden was sentenced in Johnson County Circuit Court to life in prison for beating his 71-year-old mother to death with a shovel last year. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 16, 2013 at 2:38 a.m.

Billboard Sellers: Rules Too Exacting

Proposed Limits Called Hurtful

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — Representatives of outdoor advertising companies complained Monday that a proposed ordinance regulating billboards in Fort Smith would unfairly hurt their business if the signs must be kept 500 feet from residential zones. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 12, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Pro Fisherman To Help Missing Kids

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — The Morgan Nick Foundation and professional bass fisherman Casey Scanlon are teaming up to highlight the plight of missing children. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 12, 2013 at 3:22 a.m.

Project to honor war hero Darby

Group to raise money for statue

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — A group of Fort Smith residents announced a fundraising effort Friday to establish a monument honoring William Orlando Darby, a Fort Smith native and World War II hero. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 9, 2013 at 4:33 a.m.

Doctor has case dropped

Drugs theirs, his housemates say

Subscriber onlyDrug charges in Crawford County Circuit Court against Fort Smith physician Jimmy Acklin have been dismissed after his co-defendants took responsibility for the drugs found in the home they shared with Acklin. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 9, 2013 at 2:28 a.m.

Man Gets 35-Year Term In Murder Of Girlfriend

Subscriber onlyA 44-year-old Van Buren man has been sentenced to 35 years in prison after pleading guilty in Crawford County Circuit Court to first-degree murder in the February 2012 shooting death of his girlfriend. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 8, 2013 at 5 a.m.

19 Enter Guilty Pleas In Trafficking Probe

Officials: Meth Smuggled From Mexico

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — A total of 19 defendants indicted in the investigation of drug trafficking out of the Scott County town of Waldron entered guilty pleas in federal court this week. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 2, 2013 at 5 a.m.

Georgian convicted for defrauding cousin

Subscriber onlyA U.S. District Court jury in Fayetteville convicted a Georgia man Friday of bilking a cousin out of $300,000 by promising to invest the money but instead spending it on himself. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 2, 2013 at 2:27 a.m.

Police: Fort Smith woman strangled

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — A 50-year-old woman found dead in her home last week was strangled, according to a news release Friday from the Fort Smith Police Department. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 2, 2013 at 2:27 a.m.

Fort Smith man faces trafficking charges

Subscriber onlyTulsa police arrested a Fort Smith man and woman who are suspected of taking women from Arkansas and forcing them into prostitution. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Feb 1, 2013 at 2:25 a.m.

Innocent, Say 4 Charged In Alma Attack

Subscriber onlyFour of five men entered innocent pleas Wednesday in Crawford County Circuit Court to charges of attempted first-degree murder in the Jan. 19 stabbing of a rural Alma man. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Jan 31, 2013 at 2:12 a.m.

Police Suspect Foul Play In Death

Woman, 50, Died After Casino Visit

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — Fort Smith police detectives Friday continued the homicide investigation of a 50-yearold Fort Smith woman who was found dead in her home Thursday afternoon. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Jan 26, 2013 at 3:32 a.m.

21 ask judge to bar Barling from case

Subscriber onlyA group of south Sebastian County residents seeking to invalidate Barling’s liquor vote in November have asked a Sebastian County circuit judge to reject the city of Barling’s request to intervene in the case. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Jan 19, 2013 at 1:44 a.m.

Prostitution case leads to 2 arrests

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — Season’s Inn general manager John Lee Rohlin, 42, and hotel employee Jonathan Richard Bean, 28, have been arrested on warrants charging them with third-degree promoting prostitution, according to Fort Smith police. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Jan 18, 2013 at 1:25 a.m.

King birthday events set in Fort Smith, Fayetteville

Subscriber onlyFORT SMITH — A parade in downtown Fort Smith on Saturday was the first of a series of events in Fort Smith and Fayetteville celebrating the birthday of civil-rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Continue reading...

By Dave Hughes Posted: Jan 13, 2013 at 1:43 a.m.

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