A Forrest City home was damaged in a fire police believe was deliberately set early Sunday morning.
The Forrest City Fire Department responded to a fire at the Kisha K. Carter residence, 633 Christian St., Forrest City, about 5:15 a.m., after a neighbor called 911 to report the fire to police.
According to the report at the Forrest City Police Department, the initial call reported there might be children inside the burning structure. However, after the fire was extinguished, officials found no one inside. Police reported all of the residents of the home had spent the night at a friend's home.
The neighbor told police he heard yelling outside his home and heard someone say, "I told you I was going to get you, now I got all of you." When he looked outside, the neighbor told police he saw someone run between his house and the house that was on fire.
According to a report at the fire department, a dollar estimate on the damage was not available, but water and smoke damage were reported throughout the structure.
The investigation is continuing.
The House and Senate Interim Subcommittees on Public Transportation will meet this week in Forrest City.
The meeting is set for Thursday, Jan. 24, at 3 p.m., at the Forrest City Civic Center.
Of local interest, Dan Flowers, director of the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department, is on the agenda to discuss highway issues and considerations in the Forrest City area.
Also on the agenda is consideration of a study on the feasibility of issuing special license plates for various civic groups to recognize their public service efforts. Rep. Johnnie Bolin, sponsor of the proposal, will be among the speakers. Also under discussion will be HB 1039, to provide a special license plate for Shriners.
The committees will also consider studying a proposal to allow the Department of Finance and Administration to issue identification cards to persons five years of age and older. Mike Munns, administrator for Driver Services, will be one of the speakers.
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court has been welcomed locally by law enforcement officials as another tool in fighting crime.
The case was U.S. v. Knights, and the decision was rendered Dec. 10. It states that a person on probation who has signed a statement waiving his or her Fourth Amendment (unreasonable search and seizure) rights can be searched without a warrant if there is a reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed.
Such searches had been limited only to the crime for which the person was on probation. For instance, if a person was on probation for drugs and had signed a Fourth Amendment waiver, that person could be subject to a warrantless search for drugs, but nothing else.
"It's an extra tool," said Glenn Ramsey, chief investigator for the St. Francis County Sheriff's Department. "We had intended to install this a year or two ago, and we knew the matter was under review by the U.S. Supreme Court. Chris Morledge (deputy prosecuting attorney) suggested that we wait. Now the Supreme Court has ruled and said it is perfectly legal."
Morledge said the subject has been an issue for a long time in Arkansas. He said it was always possible for a person to waive the rights in question, but any search without a warrant was limited to the crime for which the person was on probation.
"If someone had entered a guilty plea or been found guilty on drug charges, you could search them for drugs, but you were limited to searching them for drugs," even if a person had signed a waiver.
The U.S. v. Knights decision changed that. Morledge gave what he called a common example.
"Say that police officers execute a search warrant on a crack house or somewhere they know drugs are being made or sold," said Morledge. "Many, many times, somebody will drive up to a house to buy dope while the police are there executing a warrant. It's common. If the person who drives up is on probation and a written condition of probation is that he or she is waiving the right to search and seizure, the cops are not limited to searching that person just for drugs, but for whatever else might be there. It could be weapons. It could be anything."Morledge said the Supreme Court's ruling puts public safety ahead of the individual rights of a criminal.
"The first, major interest is keeping good, ordinary people free from being victims of crimes," he said, adding that because of that, scrutiny of convicted criminals can be heightened.
There still has to be a reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed.
Also, it all depends on whether the person affected is willing to sign a document waiving his or her Fourth Amendment rights.
If a person refuses to sign, in the case of a guilty plea, the plea is not accepted and a jury trial will be held, said Morledge.
"Ideally, you would hope that if someone knows they have done something wrong and they have admitted it, they will sign the condition," he said. "Ideally, you would hope they would not commit a crime in the future. If they choose to continue to engage in criminal activity, they are subject to being searched, and they are going to have to pay the penalty."
Union Pacific Railroad will be making improvements on several highway railroad crossings in St. Francis County this week and next week, according to Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department director Dan Flowers.
Weather permitting, the work will take place between Jan. 23 and 28 at the following locations.
*Wednesday, Jan. 23 -- Highway 50 at Widener. Both lanes will be closed form 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.
*Friday, Jan. 25 -- Highway 261 at Palestine. Both lanes will be closed for one to one and a half hours.
*Sunday, Jan. 27 -- Highway 1 at Forrest City. All lanes will be closed for one to one and a half hours.
*Monday, Jan. 28 -- Highway 1 at Forrest City. All lanes will be closed for asphalt work.
Temporary detours will be marked. Motorists are advised to use alternate routes or allow for extra travel time.
Two meetings are set for Tuesday in Forrest City.
The Forrest City Water Commission is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. at the water department.
The Forrest City Planning Commission is scheduled to meet at 4 p.m. at city hall.
Both meetings are open to the public.