Former Palmer Home Property Being Renovated for Elderly Group Home
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
ESTABLISHED 1879 | COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI CDISPATCH.COM $1.25 NEWSSTAND | 40 ¢ HOME DELIVERY SUNDAY | JUne 14, 2020 Ball case files made public Camera footage, interviews dispel some rumors but leave other questions unanswered, including contradictory medical examiner reports BY YUE STELLA YU Boykin, who is white, shot and killed Ball, who [email protected] is black, after Ball ran from a traffic stop on Oct. 16, 2015. As of Saturday morning, most of the ev- Having fired nine rounds, Can- idence has been posted by local District Attorney yon Boykin reloaded his gun as he Scott Colom, who promised as much public ac- approached the corner of an aban- cess to the case file as possible, on his website. doned house. Certain evidence, such as autopsy photos, is The then-Columbus police offi- withheld from the public out of privacy concerns cer cursed out a dozen times as his for Ball’s family, Colom said. Body camera foot- flashlight scanned the front lawn, age, which may be graphic, is also not released, his voice shaky. He found a puddle Boykin he said, but the public can view it from his office of blood belonging to the man he upon request. just shot. ONLINE Colom’s decision came after Mississippi Attor- Boykin had yet to learn that two ■ CASE FILE: ney General Lynn Fitch dropped the manslaugh- bullets he fired struck Ricky Ball To view what DA Scott ter charge against Boykin and the case was dis- — who he chased across a field Colom has re- missed with prejudice May 28, meaning Boykin in dim light — in his right tricep leased publicly cannot be legally charged in the case again. A and hip. Ball would be found near- from the Ricky grand jury indicted Boykin, who argued he fired by, his right arm ripped open and Ball case file, visit msda16. in self-defense, in 2016, after Colom deferred the broken. He would die that night at org /. case to then-Attorney General Jim Hood’s office Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden ■ AG to investigate. Triangle. REPORT: Fitch’s office concluded in a report that all As more officers arrived on View a copy evidence supported Boykin’s self-defense claim of Attorney scene, Boykin told them Ball had General Lynn after an “exhaustive review.” The evidence in- pointed a gun at him, according Fitch’s report cluded body camera footage, statements and to his body camera footage from at cdispatch. depositions from officers on scene and investiga- right after the incident. But no one com. tors from the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation else saw it happen. Nor was the (MBI), medical examination reports and witness shooting recorded on camera. interviews. Boykin’s post-shooting body camera footage, “The evidence shows that self-defense was reviewed by The Dispatch, is part of the evidence the only conclusion consistent with the facts and file of the widely-known Ricky Ball case, when the evidence,” the AG’s report reads. However, the AG’s report made no mention of certain evidence in the case file that might con- tradict the state’s conclusions. District Attorney Scott Colom poses for a portrait While it concluded Boykin did not know he on Friday in his office in Columbus. Colom request- was shooting at Ball that night, several witnesses ed Ricky Ball’s case files from the attorney gener- detailed previous encounters, sometimes heat- al’s office with intentions to make them public so ed, between the two. that people could examine the evidence them- selves. — Photo by Claire Hassler/Dispatch Staff See COLOM, 6A Former Palmer Home property being renovated for elderly group home Community Housing Development Organization hopes to bring in 48 residents starting in fall BY GARRICK HODGE of the Columbus Housing Authority [email protected] (CHA). However, CCHDO is the pur- Tom Green knows chasing entity of The Palmer Home The Palmer Home’s because Columbus Housing Au- mission will continue. thority cannot own any properties Almost a year after that are not subsidized or deemed The Palmer Home for as low income public housing units. Children announced When the CHA was formed back in its children would the 1950s, there was a cap placed on relocate to the cam- Green the number of public housing units pus in Hernando, the established within the housing au- Columbus Community Housing De- thority’s jurisdiction, thus limiting velopment Organization (CCHDO) the number of public housing units purchased the approximately 110- the housing authority could have to acre property. The property official- 480. Claire Hassler/Dispatch Staff ly changed hands on March 16, and CHA is at the maximum number ABOVE: The Lindawood after being a home for children in of public housing units that are al- building of the Palmer need for more than 120 years, part lowed and can be subsidized with Home, as shown on of it will now become a residential Housing and Urban Development Thursday in Columbus. group home for elderly care. (HUD) funding. Palmer Home was “We want to continue the minis- Before new residents can settle established in 1895 try that The Palmer Home started,” into the former Palmer Home living and served as a home said Green, who worked for The quarters, renovations are needed. for children in need for Palmer Home for eight years before “There’s many things we’ll have more than 120 years. becoming the operations manager to do to make the property com- Tom Green, the opera- for CCHDO on April 1. “We’re just pletely handicap accessible,” CHA tions manager for the going to be doing it with the elder- Executive Director Debra Taylor Columbus Community Housing Development ly.” said. “We know we’re going to have Organization, said the CCHDO, a private nonprofit, to install handicap accessible toilets Claire Hassler/Dispatch Staff A pavilion, playground and basketball court are surrounded by home will continue the community-based service organiza- and rails. … These all are expensive resident cottages on Thursday at the Palmer Home in Columbus. same mission of loving tion that has the capacity to develop costs as well as time consuming.” Tom Green, the operations manager for the Columbus Community and helping others, but affordable housing and supportive The goal is for the property to be Housing Development Organization, said the playground will be now it will help the el- services, serves under the umbrella See PALMER HOME, 6A great for when grandchildren come to visit residents. derly instead of children. WEATHER FIVE QUESTIONS INSIDE TODAY PUBLIC 1 Which U.S. city’s downtown was destroyed in a MEETINGS great fire in 1871, which started in or around the June 15: barn of Cate and Patrick O’Leary? Lowndes 2 Which actor, who played Fredo in two “Godfa- County Board ther” films, was in five movies before his death, of Supervisors each an Oscar-nominee for best picture? meeting, 9 a.m., 3 Which U.S. government organization began as Lowndes County Elizabeth King the code-breaking Cipher Bureau in World War I? 4 Van Gogh’s ear was severed following a fight Courthouse Second grade, Heritage with which French post-Impressionist artist? June 16: 5 Which of the five senses is evaluated with the Columbus City High 91 Low 65 help of a Snellen chart? Council, Munic- ipal Complex, Mostly sunny Answers, 5B Full forecast on 5 p.m., stream page 3A. live at facebook. com/CityofCo- lumbusMS/ INSIDE June 18: Classifieds4B Lifestyles 1B Lowndes County Comics 7B Obituaries 5A Health & Wellness: Stories School Board, Crossword 4B Opinions 4A and resources for staying fit noon, Central 141ST YEAR, NO. 80 Dear Abby 6B Sports 7A and healthy during COVID-19. Office DISPATCH CUSTOMER SERVICE 328-2424 | NEWSROOM 328-2471 2A SUNDAY, JUNE 14, 2020 THE DISPATCH • www.cdispatch.com WE ARE WEST POINT RACIAL JUSTICE MARCH Claire Hassler/Dispatch Staff Protesters walk down Cromwell Street during the We Are West Point racial justice march on Saturday. Sherell Drake, one of the women who organized the march, said there is “a need for an open conversation” about racism and inequality both in West Point and across the country. More than 100 people attended the march. The group started at the West Point Police Department and walked one mile to The Mission on the Hill. Trump reschedules campaign rally after Juneteenth uproar THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday that he is re- scheduling his first cam- paign rally in months to a day later so it won’t conflict with the Juneteenth obser- vance of the end of slavery in the United States. Trump had scheduled the rally — his first since early March — for June 19 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Black leaders said it was offen- sive for Trump to pick that day and that place, a city that in 1921 was the site of a fiery and orchestrated white-on-black attack. Trump tweeted late Fri- day, “Many of my African American friends and sup- porters have reached out to suggest that we consid- er changing the date out of respect for this Holiday.” He said he is moving the rally to June 20 “to honor their requests.” Trump’s signature ral- lies often draw tens of thousands of people but have been on hiatus since March 2 because of the coronavirus pandemic, which has now killed more than 110,000 people in the U.S. Buckle up... and your child, too THE DISPATCH • www.cdispatch.com SUNDAY, JUNE 14, 2020 3A ASK RUFUS The Twist and Turns of History ne of To Flan- there to help the escap- and as such, it helps tells the ders, Portugal ing slaves to safety.