Selma man faces murder charges

By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
Antonio “Meechie” Hardy, dressed in all black,and stared impassively into the distance, while prosecutors questioned witnesses who say he shot and killed Quincey Dudley in April 2004.
“Antonio Hardy slapped Quincy Dudley in the face, stepped back, drew a pistol, pointed it at him and shot,” Fourth Judicial Circuit prosecutor Tracy Roberts told the jury in his opening statement in Judge Thomas Jones’ court Tuesday.
Hardy, of Ickerman Alley, was arrested on Friday, April 23 for the murder of Dudley — also known as “Q” — after he and Dudley allegedly fought over Hardy’s girlfriend, Angie “Angie B” McDaniel, according to police reports.
Dudley was found dead between two houses at 310 and 314 Alabama Ave., between Laspley and Pelham Street.
He was shot once. According to autopsy reports, he was shot with a 9 mm in the left side. The bullet went through his chest, exited out the right side and penetrated his right arm.
Dudley, a known drug dealer, was lured to the home of Hardy’s father — Johnny Mac Hardy — on 304 Alabama with the promise of a sale, according to the prosecutor.
Hardy argued with his girlfriend earlier that night, Roberts said.
When Dudley arrived, a witness said Hardy slapped him and then shot him as Dudley ran for cover.
At yesterday’s trial, the state presented witnesses they say proves Hardy’s guilt.
The defense disagreed.
P. Vaughan Russell Sr., representing Hardy, said the prosecution didn’t have sufficient physical evidence to justify the charges.
Russell said the state couldn’t produce a weapon in the case and that the witnesses were unreliable at best.
“We expect there will be evidence in the case that is highly questionable,” Russell said in his opening statement. “This case is more like Sherlock Holmes in the 17th Century than CSI.”
Russell said the witnesses in the case were coerced by the police, investigators and prosecutors.
“(The) witnesses have an agenda,” he said. “We think that will be part of this case.”
The prosecution opened the case with testimony from Dudley’s girlfriend, Mary Lynn Johnson, who was living with him on Washtington Street at the time of the murder.
She testified that Dudley left their home in her 1995 white Nissan Maxima at around 10 p.m. the night of the murder.
“What did he say?” Roberts asked.
“‘Baby, I’ll be right back,’” she said.
Later, Johnson received a call from the Selma Police Department reporting that her car had been found abandoned.
After a brief cross, Roberts called Officer Carlos Jones to the stand.
Carlos discovered Dudley’s body at about 6 p.m. the day after the shooting.
Showing grisly crime scene photos, Jones explained in detail how the body was found and why police couldn’t find it quicker.
Roberts asked Jones if he knew who the body was.
“Yes,” Jones said.
“How?”
“We went to school together,” Jones told Roberts.
As Jones described the scene depicted in the photos, Dudley’s mother burst into tears and fled the room.
Russell asked Jones about Johnny Mac’s home.
Russell alleged that the home was a “shot house,” a home where alcohol was illegally sold and served.
“I can’t say,” Jones said.
Jones also said the body was found with $704 in cash and a bag of cocaine and a bag of marijuana, after questioning from Russell.
Brian Johnson took the stand for the prosecution next.
Johnson, who wore a Bama Budwieser uniform to court, testified that he was inside Johnny Mac’s when the shooting occurred.
Johnson told the court that Hardy was arguing with a woman when he arrived.
Later, Johnson said, a man he didn’t know arrived in a white Nissan.
Hardy went outside with two others.
“I was in the house when I heard some shots,” Johnson said. “I went outside.”
Johnson said Hardy told the group when he came outside that he’d slapped and believed he’d shot “Q.”
“He just said it,” he said.
Johnson testified that he turned off the radio in the Nissan, per Johnny Mac Hardy’s instructions.
Antonio Hardy told him to get in the car and move it, Johnson said.
Johnson then drove the car to Ickerman Alley.
Hardy again told him to move the vehicle.
“I didn’t move it anymore,” he said.
Johnson testified that the left with a friend after that.
Russell cross-examined Johnson.
Russell alleged that Johnson only testified after police and investigators coerced him. He said Johnson had changed his statement at least twice.
“You invented all this mess,” he said. “You made it up.”
“I didn’t make up anything,” Johnson said.
Next, Roberts called Jowana Chaney to the stand.
Chaney said she saw a white Nissan pass by her home followed by Hardy in his car.
She said she recognized Hardy’s car because of the cracked windshield.
She also told the court that two streetlights in front of her home allowed her to see Hardy driving.
“Those two cars went into Ickerman Alley,” she said.
Russell said her statement also changed.
He said she told police the other side of the windshield was cracked.
“When I made that statement I was nervous, upset, mad and pissed off,” she told Russell.
Russell entered into evidence an invoice or work order. He indicated it showed the windshield was fixed on March 30, 2004, about three weeks before the crime was committed.
He asked Chaney to tell the juror about the document, but an objection raised by Roberts was sustained.
Jones said Chaney couldn’t speak to exactly what the document signified.
Roberts then called Shawn Leashore, 31, of Selma to the stand.
Leashore testified that he was at Johnny Mac’s for much of the night and witnessed the crime.
He said he arrived at the home at about 9:45 p.m. He said that Hardy and McDaniel were arguing.
“They were arguing about Angie being at a room with Quincy,” he said. “The next thing I knew, he slapped her.”
After Angie left, he testified that he knew Hardy called Dudley. Hardy told people there when Dudley arrived they would fight, Leashore said.
He said about 15 minutes later Dudley arrived.
“All of us went (outside) at the same time,” he said.
“Why?” asked Roberts.
“‘Cause we was going to see a fight,” he said.
Dudley said Hardy wasted no time.
“(Hardy) just walked up to him and slapped him,” he said. “Then Quincy pulled his shirt up.”
“Did you see any weapons?” Roberts asked.
“I didn’t see none,” Leashore said. “I saw Antonio pull out a gun and shoot twice.”
“What kind?”
“A 9 mm.”
“What color?”
“All black.”
“You knew Antonio to carry a gun?”
“Yeah.”
“What was Quincy doing when he got shot?”
“He was trying to get away,” Leashore said.
Later, Leashore testified that Hardy sent him between the two houses where Dudley ran.
“Antonio asked you to look between 310 and 314 (Alabama Avenue). Did you go far?” Roberts asked.
“No.”
“Why?”
“I was scared.”
Leashore told Hardy he didn’t see Dudley.
Hardy went looking for himself, Leashore said.
“He had a cell phone with him,” Leashore said.
Robert asked where it came from.
“Out his pocket.”
“Who’s pocket?”
“Quincy’s.”
Roberts said that Leashore’s statement changed during the investigation.
He asked Leashore what he told police first.
“I told them I didn’t do nothing or see nothing or know anything at all,” he said. “I didn’t want to get involved. I was scared.”
Russell questioned Leashore’s credibility.
“We know you lied, the only question is if you lied then or now,” he said.
“I lied then,” Leashore said.
He again asked about the purpose of Johnny Mac’s home.
“This 304 is a shot house?”
“Yes,” Leashore said.
He also asked Leashore why he didn’t call authorities.
“You think a shot man might need an ambulance?” he asked.
“Yes,” Leashore said.
Russell also questioned Leashore’s ability to see and hear everything that occurred.
“You must be leaping across that yard,” Russell said.
Russell also questioned his sobriety that night.
“How much reefer had you smoked and how much alcohol had you drunk?”
“I can’t recall,” Leashore said.
Then Russell asked Leashore about his statements and why they changed.
“They told you you were a suspect didn’t they?”
“They said I can go down too,” Leashore said.
He was the last witness called in the trial.
Shortly after Leashore left the stand, Jones called for an overnight recess.
Russell said he was pleased with the progression of the trial so far.
“A lot of things don’t make sense,” he said. “This case doesn’t make sense and won’t make sense.”
Neither Roberts nor district attorney Michael Jackson wanted to comment on the case. The trial will resume today at 9 a.m.

Howard pleads guilty to manslaughter

By Steven Jones
the Selma times-journal
After an hour and a half of arguing among the defendant’s lawyers and state prosecutors, a jury was seated in a 2004 murder case.
Some members were barely comfortable when Johnny Lee Howard Jr. pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the case.
Presiding Circuit Judge Marvin Wiggins referred jurors to district attorney Michael Jackson about any questions and thanked them for their time.
One juror looked up at Jackson immediately.
“What happened?” he asked.
Jackson smiled.
“He pled guilty to manslaughter,” he said.
Howard — originally charged with murder in the case — pleaded guilty in exchange for a lesser charge.
Because no plea agreement had been arranged beforehand, Howard “pleaded blind” in the case, which means the judge must determine the sentence.
Howard, 41, shot and killed his common law wife of three years, Lynelle Wynn, in their home at 1905 First Avenue on Nov. 13, 2004, while her four children — Howard had no children with Wynn — were in an nearby room.
Police reports show that Howard called the police after the shooting.
He said they’d been arguing over who she was hanging around with when they both grabbed for the double-barreled, 12-gauge shotgun on their headboard, according to court records.
During the scuffle over the weapon, Howard told police the gun went off, shooting Wynn in her left breast.
Wynn was killed instantly.
“(The) autopsy showed that the shotgun wound was fatal and shredded her heart,” Jimmy Thomas, prosecutor in the trial, said.
The state filed a motion with Wiggins yesterday, to revoke Howard’s bond. Wiggins denied the motion.
Because Howard is still on bond, he won’t go to jail until sentencing, in January.
Manslaugher carries a minimum sentence of two years in prison and a maximum of 20.
The district attorney’s office said they were pleased with the outcome of the case.
“This case shows how serious domestic violence can be,” Jackson said. “He’s going to have a lot of time in prison to learn how to restrain himself.”
Thomas agreed.
“It’s often been said there’s a fine line between love and hate,” he said. “This case is a classic example of how serious domestic violence is a serious problem in this county and this nation.”
Billy Faile, Howard’s representative, said both he and his client were content with the plea.
“We’re pleased that we were able to resolve it like we did,” he said. “I’m satisfied and my client’s satisfied.”

Water board keep rates

Water board keeps rates


By Steven Jones
Tuesday, October 11, 2005 11:32 PM CDT

By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
Despite assurances from members at Monday's public forum, the Dallas County Water and Sewer Authority didn't lower rates at Tuesday's regular meeting.
Chairperson Evelyn Huff said the board hasn't had a chance to discuss the rate changes, but will do so as soon as possible.
Huff, along with the rest of the board, was criticized by more than 300 residents at a public meeting Monday at Tipton Middle School.
Along with County Commissioner Connell Towns, board members said they would review the rate increase, which was at least 66 percent, and try to lower it.
”I'm going to meet with the water board,“ he said Monday. ”We're going to come up with a solution to lower your water rate.“
Huff agreed.
”I'm ready to go back to the drawing board,“ she said.
Still, Huff, along with the rest of the board and representatives from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and the Alabama Rural Water Association defended the increase at Tuesday's meeting, which was also packed to capacity at the authority's office on Old Montgomery Highway.
”This board is trying to work with this community the best it can,“ she said.
Catherine Phillips, of the ARWA, helped put together the rate increase.
She said it was reasonable.
”$17.15 is below the state average,“ she said, referring to the amount paid by customers under the new rate for the first 2,000 gallons of water.
Huff and the board allowed members of the community to chose a representative to speak for them.
”We will allow one of you to speak,“ she said.
Bill Minor, member of the Dallas County School Board, took the lead.
”Try to reduce your rates,“ he said. ”Bring them down.“
Minor offered to help find grant writers to work on getting funding for upgrades to the water system.
”We're just here to try and find a common solution without jumping up and down,“ he said.
Board members said Monday the increase would be used to pay for major repairs, which hadn't been done in more than 30 years.
Huff said she appreciated Minor's demeanor Tuesday, but felt the community at larged should have approached the issues similarly at Monday's meeting.
”I wish this community would have come to us last night like they did tonight,“ she said.
Huff said members of the community wouldn't let the board state their case at Monday's meeting.
”The board tried to address this thing,“ she said. ”For some reason or another people did not want to listen (at Monday's meeting).“
Huff also defended the board about being flexible with customers, an issue she brought up at Monday's meeting.
Huff said the board made payment arrangements with many of the people who spoke out at Monday's meeting against the increase.
”When we make payment arrangements we make a list,“ she said Tuesday. ”We're not going to get into that.“
The board also mentioned late and unpaid bills at the Tuesday meeting.
The board has about $8,000 in arrears from September according to financial reports presented at last night's meeting.
Loren Crawford, ADEM representative, said the arrears showed a lot about the community.
”What that tells me is the community is not working with the water system,“ he said. ”The community is not paying their bills.“
Later, after hearing from Minor and other members of the audience, the board went into executive session to discuss good name and character issues, Huff said.

Dallas County Water and Sewer hikes rates

Above: Dolly Jackson’s bill increased from $33.73 to $74.92.
By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
A water board public meeting Monday got so heated a police officer and a deputy found it necessary to step between a customer and Evelyn Huff, the Dallas County Water Authority chairman.
The meeting, held at Tipton Middle School to discuss a 66 percent increase in rates, was attended by more than 300 customers.
The meeting was so crowded that it had to be postponed while the board moved it from the school cafeteria to the gym, where the benches were filled and customers stood in the doorway to hear the speaker used as a sound system.
Although the meeting was held to give customers a chance to ask questions about the increase, most of the attendees gave statements about what they thought of the increase.
"This is really taxation without representation," said Bill Minor, County School Board member and principal of Phoenix School. "I'm calling for a boycott. They can't cut all our water off."
Napoleon Brazier, a retired citizen of Selmont, said his bill tripled, going from $21 to $66 in a month.
"People living on a fixed income can't afford that," he said.
Debra Hornbuckle, of 209 Buckner, said she had a rental apartment that was empty. After the rate increase, she said the water bill to the property went to more than $40.
"It's not pouring out," she said.
Billy Hooker accused the board of using Selmont residents to pay for the new water system in Craig Industrial Park.
"I guarantee that's what it is," he said. "Let them (industrial park tenants) pay."
Board members defended the action.
They said the increase was necessary for the authority to pay for renovations to the water system, which hasn't had major repairs in more than 30 years.
Paul Jackson of the engineering firm Goodwyn, Mills and Kawood said the repairs to the system would cost at least $4 million.
He said his firm was responsible for cost estimates on the job and engineering.
Board members said the rate increase would pay for the new system and allow the authority to meet water quality standards in the future.
The board hired a consulting firm to help set the new rates.
"We had to start somewhere," William Hasberry, authority vice chairman, said. "Give us some time to look at what we're doing."
Sandra Dildy, a former water authority member and current customer, suggested that those customers able to should switch to a well and a septic tank.
"My well is still in my laundry room," she said. "My septic tank is in my backyard."
April Albright, authority attorney, said the board was working hard for its customers.
"They are trying to do what they feel best," she said.
Minor demanded the authority reduce the rate increase.
"Reconvene. Reduce this ridiculous water rate," he said.
Chairperson Evelyn Huff made a statement on behalf of the board after about an hour of criticism from customers.
"I would hope all of us would want what's best for the community," she said.
Huff said she didn't believe customers were being fair with the board.
"Over the last (few) years, when your bill was late did you all pay late fees?" she asked.
Almost 300 people said "yes!" simultaneously.
Huff, like Albright, defended the actions of the board, and said the authority was willing to be flexible.
"I'm ready to go back to the drawing board," she said.
During her statement many members of the audience walked out, shaking their heads.
After Huff's statement, Dildy confronted her. Dildy said the board should take a pay cut, citing her $50 per month salary when she was a member. Board members currently make $200 per month. The board chairman makes $250.
Dildy and Huff exchanged words. The audience drowned out most of the shouting match, and law enforcement on the scene moved between them.
After the exchange, Commissioner Connell Towns, who said at Monday's commission meeting that he supported the increase, told the audience that he was ready to lower the rate.
"I'm going to meet with the water board," he said. "We're going to come up with a solution to lower your water rate."
Still, several audience members wanted to know what would happen to their current bills.
"Give everybody back their bills they're used to until you can come up with an increase we're used to," Teresa Williams demanded.
The authority will meet today at 5 p.m. at the Water Authority on Old Montgomery Highway.
Huff said the authority could not make any decisions until today's meeting, but rate changes would be a consideration.
"We are definitely going to have a discussion on the rate increase," she said.
Still, she defended the increase, saying the authority gave a lot of notice about the change long before last night's meeting. She also said it was in line with the rest of the state.
"We're probably one of the lowest," she said.
While the rate increase was only for about 66 percent, Huff said there could be a lot of reasons for bills that doubled and tripled.
"It possibly could be a combination of things," she said. "It could be a meter misread; it could be a leak. It could be keyed in wrong. It might be 12 people living in the house."
As far as her confrontation with Dildy, Huff said Dildy and other past water board members were part of the problem.
"Ms. Dildy was a previous board member," she said. "There were no repairs done."
Huff said that same board was also responsible for a contract that cost the board about $50,000 a month to manage the system.
"We were locked into that contract," she said. "This board bought out that contract for almost $1 million."

Fast fact:
The Dallas County Water and Sewer Authority increased its rates about 66 percent. Now customers pay $17.15 for their first 2,000 gallons of water, up from $10.50 for the first 3,000 gallons. They pay $3 per gallon for the next 1,000 gallons sold, up from $2 per gallon for 2,000 gallons. Sewage rates have increased as well, now at $15.50 for the first 2,000 gallons, up from $10.50 for the first 3,000. The next 1,000 gallons costs $2.50, up from $1.50 for 2,000 gallons.

Selma residents to pay $28.66 more per month for natural gas

By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
The average Selma resident will be paying $28.66 more per month on their gas bill, after rate increases from Alagasco take effect this winter, according to company officials.
Alabama Gas Corporation (Alagasco) said its rates had to increase, citing problems with natural gas supplies as the result of Katrina and Rita.
“Coupled with already short supplies, we had to increase our charge,” Mixon Russ, head of the Selma office of Alagasco, said.
Gas company officials said the supply lines to Alabama have been damaged by the spate of hurricanes sweeping the Gulf Coast recently.
While prices may dip a little in the coming months, as supply lines are repaired, Russ said the increase is here to stay.
“We’re not looking for it to go down appreciably any time in the near future,” he said.
Rates will increase a total of about 37 percent for the entire year including utility taxes, or about $344, Russ said.
The increase is significant, Russ said, but he was pleased that Alagasco was able to keep rates lower than the national increase in energy prices.
“I would like to stress there is a national problem,” Russ said. “We were fortunate this year to have our rates not go as high as (other) natural gas utilities.”
Russ said the company managed to keep prices low because Alagasco bought natural gas futures before the shortage occurred.
“That’s due to some price hedging we’ve done,” he said. “The public service commission gave Alabama Gas the ability to go out and buy gas in the future. So we went out and bought futures.”
Russ said buying natural gas futures can be risky, but the strategy definitely paid off.
Customers can help keep prices down, Russ said, by conserving energy as much as possible in the winter months.
“Keep the demand down,” he said.
Among Alagasco tips for reducing energy costs, customers can keep their thermostats set lower and - if possible - buy some of the newer models of gas powered appliances on the market now.
“Some of the new equipment is more efficient than the older equipment,” he said.

For more information on energy saving tips, go online to www.alagasco.com\

Shooting suspect wants new bond

By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
The 17-year-old suspect in a March 15 Miller Funeral Home shooting filed for youthful offender status Monday.
Greg Tolar, the defendant's lawyer in the case, also filed for a reinstatement of his bond and a reduction in the bond.
The suspect in the case had his bond revoked in an earlier hearing, after he was charged in connection with other crimes.
His original bond was $250,000.
Tolar, according to prosecutors, didn't specify the amount he was asking for.
Judge Thomas Jones, Fourth Judicial Circuit Judge, said he would take the case under advisement.
Tolar said he had no comment about the case.
"Not at this time," he said.
The defendant was arrested in March in relation to a shooting outside of Miller Funeral Home on St. Phillips Street.
The defendant was allegedly in a shootout with another youth, a 16-year-old, outside the funeral home, when Carlandra Johnson, a Birmingham resident, walked out of the funeral home and was shot in the left arm.
The 29 year old victim was in town making funeral arrangements for her mother, Dorothy Johnson.
Police said she wasn't a target in the shooting.
"She was just a bystander that was shot," Selma Police Chief Jimmy Martin said shortly after the shooting.
The suspect in the case is being charged with at least one count of first-degree assault in the case.
The 17-year-old was out on bond for the Broad Street shooting when the funeral home shooting occurred, resulting in his bond revocation.
He is being charged as an adult in the Broad Street case, prosecutors said.
Michael Jackson, district attorney, said his office opposes all of the requests from the defense.
"I believe the citizens of Selma and Dallas County feel a lot safer knowing this gunslinger is locked up," he said. "We will continue to be opposed to any kind of bond for this defendant."

SABRA readies violence program

By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
Thanks to SABRA Sanctuary Inc., dozens of nurses, teachers, counselors, social workers and survivors will be better armed to fight domestic and sexual violence after their annual Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Symposium.
"The only way were ever going to stop violence against women and children is education," Sabrah Agee, SABRA's educator and event coordinator, said.
Every year SABRA puts together public workers and educators to teach them the signs of domestic violence and child abuse.
The event is open to anyone who wishes to attend.
"We want people who work with the public to understand it so that when they're dealing with a survivor of rape or domestic violence they'll know how to handle it," Agee said.
The symposium, beginning on Oct. 20 and ending on Oct. 21, will feature speakers on topics like "The Reality of Sexual Assault in Alabama" and "What Alabama CACs Do and the Teamwork Needed to Reach Our Collective Goals."
"You have to know something to really defeat it," Agee said.
SABRA is a non-profit battered woman's shelter serving Dallas, Perry and Wilcox Counties.
The event has a $50 registration fee.
For more information on the event, call Agee at 877-4384.
Registration officially ends on Oct. 15.
"We said the 15th," Agee said. "But honey, we'll take them all the way up to the very end."

Detectives keep busy in Blevins case

By Steven Jones
The Selma Times-Journal
Investigators are unsure where Eric Dewayne Blevins was last seen when he was reported missing on July 23.
“(We) don’t know exactly the last place he was in,” Dallas County Sheriff’s Det. Burt Allison said. Allison is one of the investigators in the case.
Eric went missing on or around July 23, according to police reports.
Since then, his family has been unsure of his whereabouts and his father, Sheriff’s Department Lt. Dwight Woods, is afraid the Orrville man is dead.
Little is known about what Eric did that Friday and Saturday morning, but investigators say they are still working hard on the case.
Eric was staying with his cousin Dorothy Blevins at her Lamar Avenue home, according to Woods.
Although the 23-year-old’s permanent residence was his mother’s home, Blevins was known to stay with his cousin on the weekends to meet friends and go out.
“He was young,” his aunt, Willa Mitchell of Orrville said. “You know how young men are, they party.”
At some point, officials still aren’t sure about the exact time he left his cousin’s house.
The Times-Journal was unable to contact Dorothy Blevins as of presstime.
Allison said investigators believe he may have visited his cousin John Dale Blevins at the Traveler’s Inn on Highland Avenue after leaving Dorothy Blevins’ home.
Allison said he left there to visit friends at Merrimac Apartments, traveling on foot.
Allison said he was wearing a blue jersey, black pants and brown house shoes.
“Someone saw him in the area of Merrimac,” Allison said. “They saw him headed that way.”
Woods said his son had at least two friends in Merrimac, a “friend-girl” and a friend.
Woods doesn’t know either of them.
“I don’t know these people,” Woods said.
Allison didn’t name either of Eric’s friends or the witness who saw him in Merrimac.
If the witness did see Eric, he may be the last person to see him before he disappeared.
Allison said one of the problems in the investigation is establishing a timeline in Eric’s disappearance.
Because neither John Dale nor Dorothy Blevins are sure about the times they saw Eric, Allison said he isn’t sure which one was the last to have contact with him.
“John Dale Blevins and Dorothy Blevins are going to be the last two that saw him alive,” Wood said. “Well, I won’t say alive because he could still be alive.”
Allison agreed.
“We can assume he may not be alive but then again you could say he’s somewhere and don’t want to be found,” Allison said.
None of his family members, however, believe Eric had any reason to hide out.
“He’s never done it before,” Mitchell said.
She said Eric was well liked by almost everyone who met him.
“He didn’t have anybody that didn’t like him,” she said.
She also said she couldn’t imagine anyone being upset with him.
“Eric wasn’t the kind of person that would do anything to hurt anybody,” she said.
Woods has said it’s getting hard to stay hopeful about the case.
In his 23 years with the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department he only knew of a few missing persons cases where victims were missing for more than two months, Woods said in an earlier interview. In all of those cases, Woods said the victim was almost always dead.
Still, he’d like to know.
“If he’s murdered - we pray to God it’s not true but - if we could find his body we could give him a decent burial,” Woods said.
While Allison said his office is waiting for information, he said investigators are working the case aggressively.
“We’re still questioning people,” Allison said. “We’re not just sitting back waiting on tips, we’re going out.”
Allison asks that anyone who has seen the young man call the Secret Witness Line at 874-2190 or they can call Woods at home at 334-996-8787. Eric Dewayne Blevins is a black male, 5’8”, 140 lbs., brown eyes, black hair and a medium complexion. He was wearing a blue jersey, black pants and brown house shoes when he disappeared.
A reward of $6,000 is offered for information leading to an arrest or conviction in the case.