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THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
WITT
From page 1A
drove to the Schliepsieks’
home, probably to get ciga
rettes, King said.
As they entered the house,
King was on his cell phone
with a friend of his who lived
in Virginia. Jamie asked to
talk to him, and King gave her
the phone. She walked into the
bedroom, and King followed
because she had his phone, he
said.
They then heard conversa
tion from the living room,
King said. He remembered
Andy saying something like,
“What are you doing in my
house?”
Then Witt came to the bed
room door. He was dressed in
full military BDUs - camou
flaged from boots to hat.
King said Witt looked into
the bedroom and said, “Oh,
good. You’re here, too.” He
then went back into the living
room with Andy.
King ended the call to his
friend and followed the two
into the room. They were
struggling when he entered,
and Witt “seemed to be getting
the better of Andy,” King said.
King approached and put
Witt into a headlock and tried
to talk to him.
“I said, ‘Dude, why don’t
you just leave? Get out,”’ King
said.
As he did so, he said, Witt
hit him in the stomach.
He thought it was a punch,
but as he moved away he said
it felt as though “something
was weird.”
He remembered Jamie
yelling, “My god! You’re bleed
ing!”
King left the home through
the kitchen door, with the
intent of getting help. He was
struck several times in the
back as he did so.
He made his way down the
street and stopped at the only
house with a light on, the 10th
Street home of Tech Sgt.
Jimmy Free.
Free called 911, and King
was taken to the hospital.
He had a puncture wound
just below his heart, three
other stab wounds in his back
and a laceration on one arm.
During his testimony,
Jamie’s father Jim Bielenberg
pointed out that, as verified by
women nabbed lor
drug possession
By RAY UGHTNER
HHJ Staff Writer
A traffic stop last week led
to charges of possession
with intent to distribute
both marijuana and ecstasy.
On June 9, passenger
Tamikyo Danelle Bell, 24,
East Point, and driver
Renieka Shanay Payne, 26,
Apopka, Fla., were arrested
for possession with intent to
distribute both marijuana
and ecstasy on Interstate 75
at mile marker 129. Payne
was also charged with
obscured tag, which led to
the stop.
According to the incident
report, while Bell was look
ing for an insurance card, a
deputy reportedly noticed
stems and seeds on the pas
senger-side floorboard of the
car. He then asked Payne to
be truthful about any addi
tional marijuana in the car,
since he was going to con
duct a probable-cause
search. She reportedly
admitted to smoking a blunt
earlier and there being a
small bag of weed in the
glove box.
When the deputy asked
Bell to hand him the weed,
she reportedly said there
was none, but when told
Fire causes minor
damage at Walker's farm
Houston County firefight
ers quickly knocked down a
fire in a barn at Larry
Walker’s SoHo Farm near
Elko. Flames were shooting
out the wall of the barn
when the first firefighter
arrived on scene about 10:38
a.m.
“It could have been a lot
worse,” the firefighter said.
“There were big gas tanks in
there.”
gate security tapes, Witt
entered Robins Air Force Base
two hours before the murders.
He had plenty of time to think
things over, Bielenberg
argued. He had other chances
to stop, such as when Andy
and Jason told him to leave
the house, Bielenberg said.
The father pointed out that in
his own statement, Witt said
he went back into the house
after following King outside
and thinking him dead, “to
eliminate witnesses.”
He could have stopped at
that point, Bielenberg said. He
could have stopped at the
locked bedroom door Jamie
hid behind. He could have
stopped, but he didn’t.
Witt, an avionics technician,
has been in the Air Force since
Nov. 27, 2001. He had been
assigned to 116th Air Control
Wing since Aug. 26, 2002.
Senior Airman Schliepsiek
was assigned to the 54th
Combat Communications
Squadron, a unit of the sth
Combat Communications
Group. He was a ground radar
maintenance technician.
King is assigned to the 53rd
Combat Communications
Squadron in the sth CCG.
Witt’s defense team consists
of Frank Spinner, civilian
counsel, Colorado Springs,
Colo., and Capt. Darren
Johnson, Area Defense
Counsel, Robins AFB, and
Capt. Doug Rawald, circuit
defense counsel, U.S. Air Force
Eastern Judicial Circuit,
Bolling AFB.
The government is repre
sented by Maj. Vance Spath,
chief circuit trial counsel, U.S.
Air Force Eastern Judicial
Circuit, Bolling AFB, and
Capt. Scott Williams, 78th Air
Base Wing Office of the Staff
Judge Advocate, Robins AFB.
In December, Maj. Gen.
Mike Collings, Warner Robins
Air Logistics Center com
mander, referred the case of
U.S. vs. Witt to a general
court-martial as a capital case,
which carries the maximum
penalty of death. The trial is
scheduled for Sept. 13.
what the driver said, handed
the deputy a partially
smoked blunt from her shoe
and a bag of weed from the
glove box.
The bag reportedly con
tained several more empty
bags. Both women were
then placed into investiga
tive custody and told to sit
along the guardrail with
their dog.
A search of the car report
edly found a blue Crown
Royal bag containing anoth
er bag of weed on passen
ger’s side, and an Aleve bot
tle on the driver’s-side door
pocket containing several
blue and white pills. The
blue pills reportedly had a
Nike symbol and there was
#1 on white pills.
One of the pills found bro
ken in half reportedly field
tested positive for ecstasy.
The women were then
advised of their charges of
possession with intent to
distribute both schedule I-II
ecstasy and marijuana.
They were taken to jail,
their dog picked up by ani
mal control and their car
towed to the county
impound lot for seizure. The
suspected marijuana also
field-tested positive.
The fire apparently start
ed when sparks from torch
es caught some of the lum
ber on fire. The fire was
called in by a Fed Ex driver
who was passing by and saw
the smoke and flames.
“They were in the back
and didn’t realize what had
happened initially,” the fire
fighter said.
- Ray Lightner
Ground broken for New Southern Bank
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The Warner Robins Area Chamber of Commerce held a ground-breaking ceremony this week for the New
Southern Bank located at 464 S. Houston Lake Road. Members of the Chamber, friends and family joined Mark
Steven (president), Tom McMichael (chairman, Warner Robins Community Board of Directors - New Southern
Bank), Ray Durham (branch manager), Larry Thomson, Glynn Greenway, Don Spillers, Neal Talton, Pat Bartness
and Roy McNeal as they broke the ground for the new building. Also present for the event was Georgia Rep. Larry
O’Neal and County Commission Chairman Ned Sanders. The new building is expected to open in six months.
BREAKFAST
From page 1A
spirit of cooperation and friend
liness with orange juice and Air
Force coffee.
Centerville Mayor Ronnie
Brand opened the festivities
with a joke.
“My job is very challeng
ing,” he said. “First we have
to pray to God, then we pray
to Ned Sanders for what we
need, and after that we pray
to Warner Robins to leave us
alone.”
Brand said Centerville is
growing.
“When I took office as a
councilman in 1989 we had
2,900 people, and now we
have more than 7,500. We
have to grow. We will add
between 5,000 and 6,000 new
homes in the next five years,”
said Brand.
“Slowly but surely we are
adding to our tax base. We
have been assured that con
struction will start soon on
widening North Houston
Lake Road, and that will be a
big help. Development will
happen in Centerville, and if
we do not control it, it will
happen anyway, so we are try
ing to make sure that it looks
nice.
“We are heading in the
right direction but it takes
Grant funds help Tolleson Lumber Co.
By MIKE GEORGE
HHJ Staff Writer
Gov. Sonny Perdue
announced Wednesday that
Perry-based Tolleson
Lumber Company, is
expanding its mill in
Webster County east of
Preston, thanks to a
$487,671 state grant.
The equity grant was
secured by Webster County
through the One Georgia
PERDUE
From page 1A
County Development
Authority (HCDA).
“They started out with
1,100 jobs, and now they’re
at 1,850,” Law said.
Thursday’s news comes
on the heels of an
announcement from Gov.
Sonny Perdue that the
HCDA secured a $3 million
grant from the One Georgia
Authority, a state agency
that uses tobacco settle
ment money to help spur
economic development in
small communities. The
Perdue Farms grant was
one of $13.6 million in
grants and loans handed
out by the agency.
“These awards support
the creation of nearly 4,500
new and retained jobs for
Georgians in a variety of
industry sectors including
manufacturing, food pro
cessing, distribution cen
ters and tourism,” Perdue
said. “Stimulating new job
growth and private invest
ment is one of the top prior
LOCAL
time,” said Brand.
Warner Robins Councilman
Terry Horton stood in for
Mayor Donald Walker, who
was having foot problems.
Horton opened with a
friendly jab at Brand.
“You know that you have to
be nice to us, or we will cut off
your sewer service,” said
Horton.
“Our governments in
Houston County work togeth
er better than they ever
have,” said Horton. “Things
are going very well. We
address issues and work
together to solve them. If we
have an issue that affects two
or more of our governments,
we sit down and work it out
the way we should.
“One of the biggest prob
lems we have is handling
storm water,” Horton said.
“This is a problem that will
have to be addressed county
wide.”
Horton characterized the
city as being “very business
friendly.”
“If you have a problem just
come to us and we will work it
out,” Horton said.
Horton also announced
that he will stand for re-elec
tion in November.
Brand and Horton
Authority, a state agency
that uses tobacco settle
ment money to help spur
economic development in
small communities.
The grant will help the
company with road
improvements near the
plant and give it the money
it needs to build a railroad
spur used for shipping. The
grant also helped Tolleson
expand its operations in
Preston with a second shift.
ities of my administration.”
Law said that the grant
helped lure the company to
Georgia.
“We were facing competi
tion from other states,”
Law said. “Perdue Farms
was looking at plants across
the country. The project
was interstate-competitive,
so that allowed us to com
pete for EDGE funds.”
Law said the EDGE pro
gram is used in major busi
ness deals in the state.
According to a press release
from the governor’s office,
Georgia was competing
with plants in Kentucky
and North Carolina for
Perdue Farms.
Forsthoffer said the com
pany used the grant in the
initial renovation of the
plant. The Perry plant
processes up to 350,0000
birds per week for Chick-fil-
A restaurants, and an addi
tional 450,000 birds per
week for tray-pack products
sold at Wal-Mart and Sam’s
Club.
Forsthoffer did not reveal
■
M
TERRY HORTON
answered questions from the
audience, and the first was
whether the two cities might
consolidate in the near future
and end duplication of
resources.
“Centerville and Warner
Robins are two unique gov
ernments and I do not see it
happening in my lifetime,”
said Warner Robins
Councilman Dean Cowart.
Brand answered: “I think
that if the time ever comes
where Centerville cannot
offer city services as cheaply
as other communities than it
might happen. But I also
think that will not be in my
lifetime.”
Cowart said that he hoped
“We had about 115
employees on our single
shift operation,” said Don
Williams, the company’s
chief financial officer. “Now
we have 200-plus working
there.”
Williams said the grant
would not affect the Perry
mill, but will help the com
pany as a whole.
“Creating 85 new jobs is a
major event for Webster
County,” Williams said.
specific details on the new
cooking plant, but said that
the company will be ready
with a formal announce
MINI-WAREHOUSE
A new storage facility opening soon!
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FRIDAY, JUNE 17, 2005 ♦
r
ITI^
MAYOR RONNIE BRAND
to see work begin soon on a
$4.2 million recreation com
plex behind the new
Huntington Middle School.
The complex will boast seven
softball fields and other
amenities.
Horton said that the city
will do “whatever it takes” to
see that Houston Medical
Center continues to be a fix
ture of downtown Warner
Robins.
And Warner Robins City
Councilman Grady Clemonts
said: “We made a pledge that
the Richard Russell Parkway
extension will not look like
Watson Boulevard and we will
honor that pledge.”
“They are one of the poor
est counties in the state,
something like fifth from
the bottom. We were happy
to help them.”
One Georgia equity grants
are designed to help small
communities and regions
build infrastructure to spur
economic development.
Awards are often handed
out to economically
depressed areas of the
state.
ment in the next few weeks.
He said the new cooking
operation could be ready by
early next year.
Sunshine /
987-7166
3A