Newspaper Page Text
Ed Mclntyre
planning trip
to Jerusalem
Page 1
Volume 13 Number 40
Sheriff candidates say Dykes
mishandled East Augusta shooting
The candidates for Sheriff of
Richmond County were inter
viewed Monday night at a forum at
the Wallace Branch Library spon
sored by the News-Review and the
County Courier.
The candidates were Johnny
Beard, Thad Calhoun, James
Florida and Elmer Singley. Charles
Webster was not present but an
swered the same questions the
Tuesday afternoon.
Below are excerpts of the
questions and the candidates’ an
swers.
The investigation into the
shooting of Willie Fludd in East
Augusta in December of 1982
resulted in reports that were
diametrically opposite. The sheriff
(J.B. Dykes) said that it was an ac
cident, a suspect hit a deputy’s gun
and it went off. Witnesses told the
Human Relations Commission and
the Sheriff’s Department’s former
Internal Affairs Investigator Sid
Hatfield, that the deputy aimed
and fired at Flood and that it was
no accident.
The sheriff cleared the deputies
the next day. If you had been
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SHERIFF CANDIDATES (from left) Thad Calhoun, Elmer Singley, Johnny Beard, and
James Florida photo by Olando Ham,et *
Beard questions Webster’s
qualifications, source of funds
Former Richmond
Sheriff’s Department In
vestigator Johnny Beard
said Monday night that
Richmond County voters
should look at who is get
ting all the money in Jan.
31 Sheriffs election,
where it is coming from
and for what reasons.
Augusta
sheriff, would you have handled
the situation differently, if so,
how?
SINGLEY: I would have im
mediately suspended the deputy
and would not have allowed him to
continue to perform law enfor
cement type duties.
If I’m elected, I will establish a
Sheriff’s Review Board. This
allows the citizens to assist in the
investigation. I feel that one can
not police his own self. Within the
Internal Affairs Office, the in
dividual could have covered up
some of the facts to protect the of
ficer within the Sheriff’s Depar
tment. I would have suspended the
officer with pay, pending the out
come of the investigation.
BEARD: The situation —from
start to the end—was handled in a
completely bad way . There was a
lot of cover-up. I know that and a
lot of the citizens of Richmond
County know there’s a cover-up.
The first thing I would have
did—on the spot—l would have
suspended the two deputies, with
pay, pending an investigation. I
know for a fact that on the after
noon that that happened, the two
When pressed as to
whom he referred, Beard,
candidate for Sheriff
himself, named Charles
Webster, a Georgia
Department of Revenue
inspector for 27 years.
Beard and the other
three candidates spoke at
a public forum at the
Beard questions
Webster’s funds,
qualifications
Page 1
deputies were back in the same
area that night arresting people
and patrolling in that same area.
The reason it happened was poor
training, poor supervision: to even
get involved from the start in the
situation the way it was started; to
begin with. I believe that Sheriff
Dykes used poor judgment in
closing the case so quickly and
then opening it back up again for
review. I would have suspended
the officers, appointed a commit
tee, some from the outside, and my
internal affairs officer—to in
vestigate the case, coming up with
some findings on it and work very,
very close with Mr. Frank Thomas
(Human Relations Commission
director) to find out the complete
details on it. No maitei what it
made the Sheriff’s Department
look like, if we were wrong, then
so be it. We would take the blame
instead of trying to cover it up. I
think there was a lot of cover up
there. And I totally disagree with
the way it was handled.
FLORIDA: I’m not fully
familiar with it except what I read
in the papers. But it a situation like
that where it is questionable and is
brought up again, rather than have
Wallace Branch Library
sponsored by the Augusta
News-Review and the
County Courier.
Prefacing his remarks,
Beard said, “The can
didate is not here, and 1
would say anything
behind his back that 1
would say to his face. I’m
January 28,1984
not going to do any mud
slinging... I made the
statement when I an
nounced that I wanted to
be elected Sheriff of
Richond County for what
I’m going to do for the
county. I don’t want to
be elected on someone
See Beard page 7
Cicely Tyson
sues Liz Taylor
for $626,000 , 5
P.4 1.
Page 6 123!
News-Auteui
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CANDIDATES INTERVIEWED by (from left) Cal Thornton Jr., WCKJ, Herbert
Thomas, County Courier,* Mallory K. Millender, News-Review; and Barbara A. Gordon,
County Courier. Theresa Minor, News-Review, served as moderator. Photo by Olando Hamlett
the Sheriff’s Department in
vestigate, I would call in the GBI
or the FBI. Something of that
nature should not be relied upon
when you come up with a con
troversy on it. The officer should
have been suspended with pay until
the investigation was over. Any
time people make accusations,
those investigations should be
aired properly and investigated
properly. You can’t investigate
something and come up with an
answer here today and over here
tomorrow, and let the same people
investigate the same situation.
That’s the only way I know how to
look at it.
CALHOUN: I think the proper
thing would have been to suspend
the officers involved and call in an
outside agency to handle this
situation instead of trying to police
their own backyard so to speak.
Mr. (Frank) Thomas’ agency
should have been involved with
another group of investigators but
I think an outside agency like the
GBI should have been called in and
Mclntyre planning to attend
mayors 9 conference in Israel
Mayor Edward M. Mclntyre
said this week that he has ten
tatively accepted an invitation to
go to Jerusalem to attend the Fifth
Jerusalem Conference of Mayors
April 1 to April 7.
He was invited by the American
Jewish Congress.
Mayors from all over the world
will participate, according to a let
ter from the Consulate General of
Israel. The purpose os the con-
Less than 75 percent Advertising
an investigation should have been
made by somebody else. And if it
turned out that they (deputies)
were wrong in what they did then
they should be punished. It’s that
simple. If you violate the law, then
you have to pay.
WEBSTER: I, don’t know the
circumstances of the case. I would
have had it investigated and if I
wasn’t satisfied, I’d do the in
vestigating myself. I’m against
police brutality and if I was
sheriff, there would be none. But
I’d rather not comment on that,
because I don’t know the circum
stances.
What is your understanding of
affirmative action, and what is
your position on the hiring and
promotions of minorities?
BEARD: Affirmative action
programs I believe in 100-percent.
I think it’s high time promotion
and hiring are done only on the
basis of qualifications and not for
political reasons. In the past some
one has contributed $5,000, SI,OOO
ference will be to “share and
examine the similar problems and
diverse experiences of the visiting
mayors, and to compare notes with
the experience which has been
gained in Jerusalem.
Mclntyre said that he had turned
down an all-expense paid, trip for
him and his wife to go to China
next month. That trip was spon
sored by the government of
Taiwan, the mayor said.
‘Oliver,’
‘Hello Dolly,’
nerformed
to somebody’s campaign and then
the man owes a lot of favors. But
my promotions within the Sheriff’s
Department will be made on the
basis of seniority, education in law
enforcement, time on the depar
tment, tests, and not political
reasons or because I owe someone
a favor. The same thing for hiring
procedures. The man that’s
qualified to do the job would be
hired.
FLORIDA: The Sheriff’s
Department as long as I’ve been
here has never had an affirmative
action officer. If I’m elected I will
appoint an affirmative action of
ficer.
The need is directly there.
People have been used for various
political reasons. I was one of the
first people to work with a female
officer. I was also one of the first
whites to work with a Black par
tner. I was born in another state,
and I didn’t know the reason for
an affirmative action officer until I
See Affirmative Action page 2
Mclntyre was indicted Jan. 18
on five counts of bribery and ex
tortion. He was arrested Dec. 21
along with City Councilman
Joseph C. Jones and real estate
broker Mary Holmes in connection
with an alleged kick-back scheme
involving two land development
projects on the Savannah River.
The trio is to be arraigned in
Federal Court Jan. 27.