Newspaper Page Text
Ralph Dorset!,
civic and
farming leader,
dies at 67
Houston
VOLUME 136, NUMBER 229
BELOW THE FOLD: Student arrested for bomb threat at .Warner Robins High School Burglary suspect also faces nine county charges
Weekend
December 2,2006
The Home Journal’s
FRONT
PORCH
IN SPORTS
We name our Houston Daily
Journal All-Houston County cross
country team. Also, in basketball,
the Bears and Lady Bears split
results at Westside, and we also
have previews of Warner Robins
and Northside. Plus, Westfield
hosted the Heart of Georgia
Cheerleading Competition.
- See 1B
IN BRIEF
Perry church to hold
blood drive
A blood drive will be held at
Crossroads Unitad Methodist
Church in Perry Monday from 2-7
p.m. For more information on the
drive, Eunice Galloway at 827-
1377.
Perry author to be at
book signing
Ellie Loudermilk, author of
A Ramble Through Olde
Perry, will be at Two Friends on
Carroll Street in downtown Perry
from 10-11 a.m., today.
She will autograph copies of
her book, which tells the history of
Perry in the 19th century.
BIRTHDAYS
Saturday/today
■ Fred Jackson
■ Rick Bishop
■ Joe Maguire
■ Nicole Tharpe
Sunday
■ Donna Vickery
■ Chris Postell
Monday
■ Sandy Plunkett
■ Luke De Mers
DEARLY DEPARTED
■ Ralph K. McVey, 76
■ Nathaniel Dalton
■ Grady Mobley
PERIODICAL 500
Pill
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Contest
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GEORGIA NEWSPAPER PROJECT
Main Library
UNIV OF GEORGIA
ATHENS GA 30602-0002
3-DIGIT 306
December 2, 2006
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By CHARLOTTE PERKINS
Journal Staff Writer
Editor’* note: For funeral ser
vice details and more, see Ralph
Dorsett’s obituary on Page 2A
The community felt a deep loss
on Thursday over the death of
Ralph Dorsett, who was a leader
in the community as well as in
agriculture.
Doreett , who died after a 16-
month battle with cancer, will be
LEGAL ORGAN FOR HOUSTON COUNTY,
city of Perry, city of Warner Robins and city of Centerville
In less than 12 hours ...
Response unit deals with 2 standoffs
By RAY LIGHTNER
Journal Staff Writer
It was a busy 12 hours
- and two standoffs - for the
Houston County Sheriffs
Special Response Team
Wednesday night and
Thursday morning.
“We had a busy day,” said
Capt. Alan Everidge, who
heads up the Sheriff s Office
SRT unit.
Both suspects in the stand
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Journal/Charlotte Perkins
Warner Robins Fire Chief Robert Singletary and Deputy Chief Jeff Onstead gave many hours this year to helping
the City of Perry with an evaluation of its fire department and recommendations for the future. From left, Onsted,
Singletary, Perry Deputy Fire Chief Joel Gray and Perry Public Safety Director George Potter, shaking hands with
Onsted.
WR team helps Perry FD plan for growth
By CHARLOTTE PERKINS
Journal Staff Writer
What’s in the future for Perry’s Fire
Department as the city grows?
If the recommendations of two pro
fessionals from the Warner Robins
Fire Department are followed, Perry
could be more than doubling its fire
fighting staff, and building new fire
stations to keep up with its land and
population growth.
The recommendations, which also
included suggestions for everything
from fire prevention to training to
equipment maintenance, were pre
sented on Thursday night at a special
meeting of the city council.
Perry’s Public Safety Director
explained to the council that he asked
"We entered into the house with pepper
spray. He began to cough.”
- Sheriffs Office Special Response Team Capt. Alan Everidge
offs barricaded themselves
in homes, threatening to kill
themselves. Both were taken
to Houston Medical center
for psychiatric evaluation.
Because of that Everidge
A 111 IIIIM. HAND
for help from Warner Robins Fire
Chief Robert Singletary and Deputy
Chief Jeff Onsted, because of their
reputation as one of the best fire
departments in the state.
Potter said that when he began
looking for an evaluation team for the
city’s fire department several months
ago, he was told by fire chiefs across
the state to get help from Warner
Robins if he could.
Warner Robins has Insurance
Services Office rating of 3, which
places it in the top 2 1/2 percent in the
nation.
The ISO ratings, on a scale of 1
to 10, with 10 being the worst score,
determine fire insurance rates for a
jurisdiction. Perry’s rate is currently
remembered as an outgoing and
capable man with many friends
who loved his community and
worked tirelessly on behalf of
the Perry airport and his fel
low-farmers, as well as serving
his nation in the U.S. Navy and
Navy Reserve.
He was 67, a retired command
er in the U.S. Navy Reserve who
served as an anti submarine war
fare plane commander with VP-4
while on active duty and contin-
www.hhjnews.com
said, he could not release the
names of the suspects.
On Wednesday at about 10
p.m., SRT was dispatched to
a home off Plateau Drive in
Centerville after “a young
ued to serve for 17 additional
years in the Reserves, retiring
in 1996.
Born in Byron, he lived most of
his life in Perry and was married
to Joan Roper Dorsett, a Perry
High classmate. The Dorsetts had
one son, “Rad”, who was killed in
an accident in his teens.
Dorsett was a devoted alum
nus of Perry High School, who
never forgot the teachers and the
See DORSETT, page 8A
man threatened to kill him
self,” Everidge said. “We
negotiated with him. He
made a request, but before
we could respond to it a shot
was fired inside the home.
The decision was made to
make entry.”
Everidge said, “several
weapons and spent shell
casings were found in his
room.”
The suspect was taken
5, which Singletary noted, is very
good.
He said that the majority of fire
departments have ratings of 7-9.
The evaluation which took many
hours of volunteer work for Singletary
and Onstead, was accomplished before
Perry’s new Deputy Fire Chief Joel
Gray came on board. In fact, the two
WRPD leaders took part the inter
views leading to Gray’s hiring.
Among the recommendations made
by the WR team are some that are
already being implemented and oth
ers that will require further decision
making by the City Council.
Highlights included:
• Building the staff, which now
See TEAM, page 8A
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Three sections • 22 pages
into custody without inci
dent and taken to the hospi
tal for evaluation.
In the second incident
about 6 a.m. Thursday, the
SRT unit responded to a
home on Hiwassee Drive in
Bonaire at 6 a.m. about a
possible suicidal person and
a possible shot being fired.
Everidge said they were
unable to make contact,
See STANDOFFS,page 8A
9 county
charges
levied at
suspect
By RAY LIGHTNER
Journal Staff Writer
James Jarrett Johnson,
the suspect in the Nov. 22.
burglary at T-N-T Auto Sales
on Watson
Boulevard,
also faces
charges
from the
Sheriff’s
Office for
some stolen
items found
in the car.
Johnson
admitted
to his involvement in the
Nov. 22 burglary according
to Det. Shane Mann with
the Warner Robins Police
Department Criminal
Investigations Division.
Johnson was identified as
the suspect during a Nov. 26-
traffic stop by the Sheriffs
Office. “Stolen items
See CHARGES, page SA
Student arrested
tor bomb threat at
Warner Robins HS
By RAYLIGHTNER
Journal Staff Writer
A 16-year-old Warner
Robins High School student
has been charged in the
Thursday morning bomb
threat that evacuated the
school.
At approximately 9:49
a.m., officers with the Warner
Robins Police Department
responded to Warner Robins
High School in reference to a
bomb threat that was called
in to the Houston County
911 Center.
The suspect called 911
See STUDENT, page SA
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