News Briefs From Across The State
By Monica Land
One victim was a volunteer fireman
Two 21-year-old Tupelo men died late Friday night when the pickup truck in which they were riding collided with a tree, WCBI reported.
According to Lee County Coroner Carolyn Green, the accident happened around midnight Friday on Bissell Road.
When authorities arrived, Jeremy New and Robert Sullins were dead at the scene due to injuries sustained in the crash.
Sullins was reportedly a volunteer firefighter for the Sherman and the Longview communities.
Authorities said it was unclear how the truck left the road, but it appears the driver lost control of the vehicle. Neither man was wearing a seatbelt.
The accident remains under investigation
Two children hit by a car in Leland
Leland Police said a driver who hit two children, ages 8 and 9, on July 6, was traveling westbound on Sixth Street, when he said the children pulled out in front of him on a bicycle.
Reportedly, the driver said he did not have enough time to hit his brakes when the children came off Tedar Street in front of him, WABG said.
They were transported to Delta Regional Medical Center and their medical condition has not been released.
The driver has not been charged.
Long Beach woman sentenced in oil spill fraud case
A judge has ordered a Long Beach woman to repay $35,300 she wasn’t eligible to receive from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Trust Fund.
The Sun Herald reports that U.S. District Judge Walter J. Gex III also put Billie Jean Buza on probation for three years.
Buza pleaded guilty to wire fraud in April. She faced up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Prosecutors say Buza received the money after filing a claim for wages lost as a result of the oil spill. She worked at a fashion accessories outlet in Gulfport when the oil spill occurred in April 2010.
Prosecutors said they were prepared to show her hours on the job were reduced but it was not because of the oil spill.
Coordinator hired for student literacy council
The Corinth-Alcorn Literacy Council has hired Denise DeBoer as its new student-tutor coordinator.
The Daily Corinthian reports DeBoer is a Grand Rapids, Mich., native who was tutor-certified in January.
She moved to Corinth in 2011 after retiring from a position with General Motors.
Moss Point man charged with felony fleeing
A 31-year-old Moss Point man has been charged with felony fleeing and shoplifting after a brief pursuit with Pascagoula police in late May. Authorities said they were called to the scene at Liquors Unlimited in the 3000 block of Market Street on a robbery call.
Travis Deyound Roberson failed to stop when asked to do so by police and led them on a low speed pursuit into Moss Point. Police said Roberson crashed his vehicle into a utility pole and was taken into custody.
During the investigation, Lt. James DeShannon Massey said they determined Roberson had not robbed the business, but instead had shoplifted.
He was charged with 3rd offense felony shoplifting and felony evading a police officer.
State gets $929k grant for unemployment insurance benefits
Congressman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said the United States Department of Labor has awarded a $929,466 grant to the State of Mississippi to implement or continue the Reemployment and Eligibility Assessment (REA) initiative for Unemployment Insurance beneficiaries.
The grant will be used to conduct in-person assessments in One-Stop Career Centers. Each REA must include the development of a reemployment plan for the claimant, labor market information that is appropriate to the claimant’s location and employment prospects, a complete review of the claimant’s eligibility for Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits, and a referral to reemployment services and/or training which are outside of the UI program and delivered by the One-Stop Career Centers.
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