Romans 8:37 says

“Nay, in all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”

To conquer means to be victorious over an adversary, to be more than a conquer means to be super naturally victorious.

The good news is…by the blood of Jesus Christ, we already have the victory! We have been saved and justified by faith. 

The Apostle Paul reassures believers that despite extreme suffering, they can achieve absolute and overwhelming victory. This triumph is not won through personal strength but entirely through the enduring, unfailing love of Jesus Christ.

As Christians, we face unexpected storms, trials, tribulations, and persecution…ect, but God promises never to leave us, nor forsake us!

That’s good news!!!

How can we allow God’s unchanging love to shift our focus from our circumstances to His faithfulness?

Through faith, we must believe and trust God, no matter what it looks like. We walk by faith and not by sight. We should focus on the promises of God and not the problems. We have to be faithfully rooted and grounded in the word of God with love in our hearts.

Hebrews 11:1 says,

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 

Paul is encouraging us to stand firm in our faith when different attacks come our way, reminding us that not only will we win in the end, but Jesus enables us to win now!! The enemy lacks the power to steal our eternal destiny, and he can not separate us from the love of God right now. 

Romans 8:38-39

38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

These verses are emphasizing unconditional love and eternal security, declaring that absolutely nothing in all of creation—including death, life, angels, or unseen power, neither present fears, future worries, nor anything else can separate us from God’s love revealed through Jesus Christ. 

~We are more than conquerors~

Ephesians 3:17 says,

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

Paul prayed for the peoples spiritual (inner) strength and for the understanding of Christ LOVE. 

God’s love is total. It reaches every corner of our experience!

God’s love is wide….it covers the breadth of our own experiences, and it reaches out to the whole world!

God’s love is  long…..it continues the length of our lives!

God’s love is high….it rises to the height of every elevation!

God’s love is deep….it reaches to the depths of discouragement, despair, and even death.

When you feel shut out or isolated, remember you can never be lost to God’s love!!!

God loved us so, even when we were in darkness and didn’t love him. God sacrificed and gave his only begotten son JESUS, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

So, in that, we don’t have to feel defeated by the enemy because the enemy is a defeated foe. We have the victory through Jesus Christ. 

We Are More Than Conquerors!!!

Though we might sometimes feel pressed, oppressed, and in distress from the  storms of life, we can be encouraged knowing we are not defeated!!!!!  The joy of the Lord is our strength. 

James 1: 2 & 3

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

 (In that, we can’t really know the depth of our character until we see how we react under pressure.  It’s easy to trust God when everything is going good,  but can we still trust God when life throws us some unexpected challenges. 

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

See, God works in  “all things” for our good. Evil is present in this fallen world, but God is able to turn  every circumstance around for our good. God is not working just to make us happy but to fulfill his purpose in our lives.  We all have a purpose!

~We are more than conquerors~

 We have to guard our minds from distractions. The enemy paints pictures to distract us from God’s promises.  We should pray for spiritual wisdom and desernment. 

The enemy wants us to give up and throw in the towel.  He wants us to live a life of defeat and confusion!

But we must remember that God is not the author of confusion but of love and peace.  We have the victory through Jesus! He is our only true HOPE!!

Be Encouraged!

We are more than conquerors through Jesus.

Prayer: Father we thank you for your grace and mercy. Help us to keep our faith and trust in you.  Lord forgive us for our sins knowing and unknowing.  We humbly ask in Jesus’s name. Amen

(LaTina DeLoach, is a devoted wife and mother who shares these words in hopes of uplifting those who read what God writes through her.)

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The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) has released its 2026-27 hunting regulation pamphlet online at the LDWF website. For the complete regulations, go to the seasons and regulations LDWF webpage.

 The pamphlet contains hunting rules, regulations, season dates and major changes for the 2026-27 season, including hunting information on LDWF’s Wildlife Management Areas and Louisiana’s federal lands.
 


Printed copies of the pamphlets will be available in August at LDWF offices throughout the state and at vendors where hunting and fishing licenses are sold.

For more information, contact Dr. Jeffrey Duguay at jduguay@wlf.la.gov.

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The following persons are scheduled to appear in 26th Judicial District Court Monday, July 20:

BAUGH, JEREMY SHANE
100222 Aggravated Assault With a Firearm – Domestic Violence

BAXTER, AMANDA SUE DODDS
96860 Insurance Fraud

BAXTER, AMANDA SUE DODDS
96804 Gross Littering

BAXTER, AMANDA SUE DODDS
99497 Gross Littering

BAXTER, AMANDA SUE DODDS
97707 Gross Littering

BAXTER, AMANDA SUE DODDS
97755 Gross Littering

BAXTER, AMANDA SUE DODDS
100480-CT.1 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)
100480-CT.2 Possession of a Schedule IV CDS

BECK, JR, CHARLES THOMAS
99043 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

BECK, JR, CHARLES THOMAS
99373 CT. 1 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – First Offense
99373 CT. 2 Possession of Marijuana or Synthetic Cannabinoids

BROWN, JENNIFER L.
100472 Theft of a Motor Vehicle – $1,000 or more, but less than $5,000

CANTU, STEVEN
98814 Home Improvement Fraud
Restitution per report- $4,125, plus $618.75 fee = $4,743.75 total
Last and only payment made was 10-21-25 for $100

CATO, RUSSELL LEE
100198 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS

COOPER, LAKENDRIUS TAREL
T035526 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

COOPER, LAKENDRIUS TAREL
T027626 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

EASON, RANDALL DEAN
100481-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
100481-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS

FISH, AMANDA MORSE
INCOMING Distribution of a Schedule IV CDS
INCOMING Distribution of a Schedule IV CDS
INCOMING Possession of a CDS I Marijuana (Fourteen Grams or Less)
INCOMING Possession of Drug Paraphernalia – First Offense

FLOURNOY, DAMETRICK
99478-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99478-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99478-CT.3 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS

FLOURNOY, DAMETRICK
99478-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99478-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99478-CT.3 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS

FLOURNOY, DAMETRICK
100199-CT.1 Possession of a CDS I Marijuana (Fourteen Grams or Less)
100199-CT.2 Operating a Vehicle Without a Driver’s License

FOSTER, TYLAN
INCOMING Illegal Possession Of Stolen Firearms

GIPSON, CURTIS
INCOMING Domestic Abuse Battery with a Dangerous Weapon – Serious Bodily Injury
INCOMING Disturbing The Peace

GIPSON, VICTOR
100403 Illegal Use/Possession/Control of Weapons – Crime of Violence or
Controlled Dangerous Substance

GREEN, JR, BERNARD
100107 CT. 1 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – First Offense
100107 CT. 2 Careless Operation of a Motor Vehicle
100107 CT. 3 Failure to Use Safety Belt

HAMMONTREE, CHRISTOPHER
99809 Simple Criminal Damage To Property Under $1,000

HAWK, CHARLES GILBERT
100396 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

HOOD, GRACE LOUISE
INCOMING Simple Escape
INCOMING Resisting An Officer

HOOD, GRACE LOUISE
98843 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Two Grams or More But Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)

HOOD, GRACE LOUISE
99835 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

HOUSTON, TREYLON
99901-CT.1 Possession With Intent to Distribute a Schedule I CDS
99901-CT.2 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

JOHNSON HILL, COURTLAND JEREL
100468-CT. 1 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – First Offense
100468-CT. 2 Failure to Stop at a Stop Sign

JONES, GEORGE EDWARD
100356 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

LEWIS, MATTHEW D.
100482 Domestic Abuse Battery – 1st Offense

MOORE, DEANDRE LEE
98330-CT.1 Resisting An Officer With Force Or Violence
98330-CT.2 Domestic Abuse Child Endangerment
98330-CT.3 Aggravated Battery

MORRIS, JAVONTE J
INCOMING Aggravated Assault With a Firearm

PARKER, LINDSEY
100473 Aggravated Flight From An Officer Where Human Life Is Endangered

PARKS, PEYTON JACK
100464 Theft of $1,000 or More but Less than $5000

POWELL, SHERRI LYNN
100253 Simple Burglary
Restitution owed- $20,850, plus $3,127 fee = $23,977.50 total

POWELL, TYLER
INCOMING Felony Carnal Knowledge Of A Juvenile

PRUETT, GEORGE EDWARD
100085 Theft of $1,000 or More but Less than $5000

PRUETT, GEORGE EDWARD
100085 Theft of $1,000 or More but Less than $5000

RASCO, LADADREN
99633A-CT.1 Illegal Discharge Of A Firearm – Crime Of Violence / Uniform Cds Law
99633A-CT.2 Intimidating a Witness
99633A-CT.3 Manufacture/Transfer/Possess Machine
Guns

REESE, DER’EON D’JAICEON CHRISTOPHER
99633 Manslaughter

REESE, DER’EON D’JAICEON CHRISTOPHER
99633 Manslaughter

RUCKS, ISAIAH L.
INCOMING Conspiracy Conspiracy Theft of a Motor Vehicle – $5,000 or more, but less than $25,000

SEAMSTER, LATAVION K
99480 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Two Grams or More But Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)
99480A Domestic Abuse Child Endangerment

SIKES, BRENT D
INCOMING Possession of Schedule II CDS
INCOMING Failure To Secure Registration
INCOMING Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

SIMPSON, RODNEY
100252 Possession With Intent to Distribute a Schedule I CDS

SNEED, III, ROBERT LEE
99734 Aggravated Assault With a Firearm

SOSA-MEJIA, DANIEL WILSON
T034226 Careless Operation of a Motor Vehicle
T034226A Operating a Vehicle Without a Driver’s License

SPURLIN, LARRY
99989 Possession With Intent to Distribute a Schedule II CDS

STEWART, ANTAEUS A.
100487 Indecent Behavior with Juveniles

STEWART, KENNETH MICHAEL
100466 Simple Criminal Damage To Property Under $1,000

STUART, ZACHARY
100349-CT.1 Resisting An Officer With Force Or Violence
100349-CT.2 Illegal Use/Possession/Control of Weapons – Crime of Violence or Controlled Dangerous Substance

TATOM, DILLON B
INCOMING Possession of Schedule II CDS
INCOMING Illegal Use/Possession/Control of Weapons – Crime of Violence or Controlled Dangerous Substance
INCOMING Possession of Drug Paraphernalia – First Offense

TAYLOR IV, ALBERT W
97082 Criminal Street Gangs and Patterns of Criminal Street Gang Activity

TAYLOR, ALDARAVION
97082 Criminal Street Gangs and Patterns of Criminal Street Gang Activity

TAYLOR, JASON ARTHUR
100263 Simple Burglary

TAYLOR, JASON ARTHUR
99560 Possession Of Firearm Or Carrying Concealed Weapon By Convicted Felon

TAYLOR, JASON ARTHUR
T161416 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled
T161316 Operating a Vehicle with an Unlit License Plate

WATSON, HALLIE RENEE
INCOMING Possession of Schedule II CDS

WEEKS, KIMBERLY R.
INCOMING Conspiracy Conspiracy Theft of a Motor Vehicle – $5,000 or more, but less than $25,000
INCOMING Conspiracy Conspiracy Theft of a Motor Vehicle – $5,000 or more, but less than $25,000

WHITE, SPENCER
99806 Malfeasance in Office
99806A CT 1 Forgery
99806A CT 2 Forgery
99806A CT 3 Forgery
99806B Filing or Maintaining False Public Records
INCOMING Malfeasance in Office
INCOMING Trespassing Against State Computers
INCOMING Offenses Against Computer Users

WILSON, JOMARCUS
100483 Possession With Intent to Distribute a Schedule II CDS (Twenty-Eight Grams Or More)
Please make sure forfeiture of $622 in US Currency is part of any plea/sentencing agreement.

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Over my career, I have fished in every southern state below the Mason Dixon Line. Of all the lakes and river systems I have fished, I have never heard as many anglers hate on a body of water like they do the Red River. 

Why does this body of water garner such disdain? What is it about the Red that makes anglers’ blood boil like it’s the worst place on Earth to fish? 

For the life of me I have never been able to figure this out. Before we answer these questions, let’s take a look at some history of this wonderful river system. 

Before the great floods of 2015 and 2016 and from the time the locks and dams were implemented, the Red River became a fishing and hunting paradise. There was great duck and deer hunting along with some awesome bass fishing; fishing so good that both major professional bass fishing organizations, the FLW (now MLF) and the Bassmaster Classic, held championship events on the Red.

Well-known backwater areas like the Jungle, Little Jungle, Knee Knock, Sutherlands, White House and Goose Pond, to name a few, offered some of the best bass cover imaginable. Lush green acres of lily pads and hydrilla along with plenty of standing timber and laydowns were just loaded with bass.

Then in 2015 and 2016 the Red River went through two floods of Biblical proportions. These were truly 100-year events that took the Red River system years to recover. 

So much of the main river was destroyed with small islands totally wiped out. Tree lines along the river were completely stripped of the timber that once stood tall. 

Backwater areas off the river that held good vegetation like reeds, hydrilla and lily pads were all wiped clean. There was little to no cover left behind after these devastating floods. 

Just to give you an idea of how massive these back-to-back floods were, the water reached record levels of 25 to 30 feet above pool! 

There was also a huge fish die-off during the floods but give credit to the Red River Waterway Commission for developing a restocking program that has brought the river back to life with quality bass being caught once again.  

OK, enough history. Let’s get back to the question: why do so many anglers hate the Red River? First, it can be a tough place for a bass boat to navigate, especially in some of the backwater areas. It’s full of stumps and laydowns that can do damage to an outboard engine’s lower unit, not to mention the fiberglass damage that can occur to the boat. It is a very unforgiving body of water if you don’t know how to get around.

Additionally, there are underwater rock jetties. Knowing where these are located is VERY IMPORTANT, especially along the main river system. Some of these jetties are not visible and run straight off the bank several yards underwater. If you cut the corners too tight or run the river too close to the bank, you can hit these rocks and do major damage to your outboard motor. But if you stay between the red and green buoys that line the main river, you’ll be just fine. 

Let’s talk about the fishing! Some anglers really struggle to catch fish on the Red River, especially anglers who have never fished a river system. Rivers are a different animal than your man-made lakes. Fish relate a little different in a river system than they do in a lake.

Current and moving water can be a big factor in catching bass with any river system. Bass relate to current breaks like sand bars, big laydowns, and rock jetty points, making the main river current very important. However, the backwater areas do fish like any other lake.

So, between the difficulty of navigating the Red and the challenges of river fishing, the weigh-ins are a cry fest of guys complaining about coming to fish here! Tournament directors are inundated with complaints from the guys who can’t stand a Red River event. 

Here’s my advice to all the whiners. “Get your butt in the boat and learn it like you would any other body of water!” It’s no different than going to a new lake; you have to learn it! STOP YOUR WHINING!

Another reason some anglers hate coming to the Red is the fact that it levels the playing field. Every lake has a handful of local guys who you must beat when you back your boat in the water, which can make it more difficult for a lot of anglers to compete for a win. But the Red River is an equalizer and gives a lot of anglers a shot at winning.

Here’s my personal viewpoint. I absolutely love the Red River and everything about it! It’s a great fishery with both backwater and main river habitat. It’s a body of water on the rebound as local tournaments are now taking over 18 pounds to win. 

After the two major floods of 2015 and 2016, anglers needed 14-15 pounds to win. But now, due to the impact of the restocking program, good fishing has returned with more quality bass being caught.

From the very first time I fished an event here, I was hooked! I have loved the Red River ever since and made it a priority to learn it. As an angler, some of my greatest tournaments have been on this body of water. To all those who hate it, take the time to learn it and it will probably become one of your favorite places to fish!

Contact Steve at sgraf26@yahoo.com

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The following civil suits were filed with the Webster Parish Clerk of Court the week of July 10 through July 16. Civil suits are public record.

July 10
Mia Malone vs. Gavin Dempsey, divorce
Darius Goree vs. Michelle Pittman, damages.
Planet Home Lending LLC vs. Shanikquwya Williams, executory process.
Carmen Gail Gamble Tuggle, succession over $125K.
Tims and Hock HOldings Inc. FKA Fairway Carts Inc., vs. Joshua Lynn Malone, Gregory Jones, JPRPS Group, Llc, monies due.

July 11
Portfolio Recovery Associates LLC vs. Reynaldo Walker, monies due.
July 13
Fannie Mae Cook Millner, succession under $125K.
Freedom Mortgage Corporation vs. Garrett Lancaster, petition.
American Express National Bank vs. Linda N. Hill, monies due.

July 14
Rodney Joe Allen Jr. vs. Tanya Denise Allen, divorce.
Lynsie Strickland vs. Ronald Adams, divorce.
Jimmy Wayne Dillon vs. Gina L. Dillon, divorce.
Dianna Smith vs. Robert Allen Smith, divorce.
Rural Housing Service Department of Agriculture vs. Lasundra Mendenhall, executory process.
Rural Housing Service Department of Agriculture vs. Christopher Lenn Rowe, Deserae Ann White, executory process.

July 15
Peggy Viola Schmalz, succession over $125K.
American Express National Bank vs. Michael N. Sewell, monies due.
Capital One vs. Eboni S. Hawkins, monies due.
Capital One vs. Marquisha Brown, monies due.
United States of America acting through the Rural Housing Service, United States Dept. of Agriculture vs. Lavina Denice Thompson, executory process.

July 16
Taylor Brienne Lawson vs. Tyler James Humphrey divorce.
Capital One vs. Jennifer Godwin, petition.
Capital One vs. Justin Page, monies due.
Capital One vs Alexia L. West, monies due.
Capital One vs. Steven E. Hayden, monies due.

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By Jessica Gorman

T.B. Neal is a name that I’ve been familiar with for some time, but didn’t know much about who he was. I knew enough to realize that he was a prominent businessman of Minden in the early 1800s and yet, I’ve never taken the time to dig any deeper. As I’ve been working on maps for the Minden Cemetery, and was studying the old section, I noticed a lot marked for T.B. Neal but knew there are no grave markers for any member of the Neal family and have always assumed they moved on from Minden. So, I decided to check into the Neals.

Thomas Benton Neal was born 21 October 1838 in Pike County, Alabama. His father, John, married Mary Ann Low in May 1830. Mary Ann died about five days after the birth of their only child, a daughter, Mary Ann. John Neal remarried to Mary Jane Campbell in December 1834. T.B. Neal was the third of their children.

In October 1849, T.B.’s half-sister, Mary Ann, married Joseph Murrell, brother of Drury Murrell of Minden, where they made their home. As a teenager, T.B. left Georgia and joined the Murrell household in Minden. Here, he worked as a clerk before opening his own store. According to his obituary, he was self-educated.

T.B. Neal was 22 years old at the onset of the Civil War. He enlisted in the Confederate army as a member of the Minden Rangers just before the Confederate Conscription Act was enacted in April 1862. Only two months later, he was captured at Booneville, Mississippi and sent to Gratiot Street Miliary Prison in St. Louis before being transferred to Alton Military Prison in Alton, Illinois in August where he was held until September.

Meanwhile, back home in Georgia, his father, John, had moved the family to Atlanta where he built a large home at the corner of Washington and Mitchell streets. T.B.’s older brothers, Andrew Jackson and John Henry, enlisted in the Confederate army soon after the onset of the war.  In 1864, as Union troops advanced toward Atlanta, John Neal left the city with his wife and younger children. The Neal home was seized by Sherman and used as his headquarters.

After the war, John Neal returned to Atlanta. The family home survived the burning of the city, but he built a new home instead. Their previous home served as the campus of Oglethorpe University from 1870 until 1872 and then Atlanta Girls High School. Today, Atlanta City Hall stands on the site of the Neal home. John’s oldest sons were both killed in the war. A.J., 27 years old, was killed near Atlanta on 10 August 1864. John Henry, 29 years old, was killed in battle in North Carolina on 8 March 1865. 

T.B., the only surviving son, returned to Minden. On 5 May 1866, he married Mary Cash at Coliseum Place Baptist Church in New Orleans. Mary, or Mollie as she was called, was a native of Bossier Parish. T.B. went into business with his brother-in-law, J.H. Murrell, but that partnership was short-lived. Murrell died in June 1868.  Other partnerships were formed and the business continued on under the names Murrell, Neal, & Carter, and later, simply T.B. Neal.

In 1871, when Webster Parish was established, T.B. Neal was appointed by Governor Warmouth to serve as Police Juror for Ward 4. The following year, the contract was let to build the first courthouse. That contract was awarded to T.B. Neal for $19,900. He also served as an alderman for the Town of Minden and worked to promote both the town and the parish. 

As plans were made for the construction of the Vicksburg, Shreveport, and Pacific Railroad through the parish, the businessmen of Minden were sure it would be built through Minden. In anticipation, Alfred Goodwill built what was, at the time, thought to be the largest store in the state. Across the street, T.B. Neal built a new two-story store of his own. His confidence in the future of Minden is reflected in a statement published 20 August 1881 in the Webster Tribune. “Mr. Neal also has an abiding faith in the future of Minden. When such men as Messrs. Neal, Loye, & Goodwill do not despair why should others trouble themselves?”

When the railroad began to favor the more southerly route, T.B. Neal was among those who took action to convince railroad officials that the route through Minden was the best choice, but they knew a backup plan was necessary to protect their business interests and the future of Minden.

“Should the railroad from Monroe to Shreveport, however, pass too far below the flourishing little town, it is possible that in the near future it will begin to decay. But the merchants of Minden have too much at stake to permit their town to be injured when the judicious outlay of money will prevent it. They are awake to the danger. A conversation with Mr. T.B. Neal, an energetic, sagacious merchant, gave the writer much interesting information that may be presented to the readers of the Times at some other time.” – Weekly Times Picayune, July 1880

The V. S. & P. did, in fact, bypass Minden. They would have to go with the backup plan of building a tap road to connect to the main line at Lanesville.  In May 1882, T.B. Neal and Captain Goodwill traveled to Cincinnati to discuss their options with railroad officials. 

In early 1885, T.B. Neal was called back to Atlanta by his father who realized he was nearing the end of his life. He wanted his only remaining son to take over management of his business. T.B. moved with his wife, Mollie, and two daughters, Mary Lizzie and Emma, to Atlanta, but he did not turn his back on Minden. His business remained in operation under the management of J.D. McIntyre and he remained active in efforts to complete the Minden Tap Road which opened later that year.

John Neal died a year later. T.B. spent much of 1886 tending to the business of his father’s estate. In early 1887, Neal Loan and Banking opened and found great success with T.B. Neal as President. He became an active, prominent businessman in Atlanta as he had been in Minden, serving as chairman of the chamber of commerce, president of the Georgia Bankers’ Association, and was a director of the Cotton States and International Exposition. 

In 1889, his daughter, Mary Lizzie died. She was about 21 years old. In 1894 his wife, Mollie, died. A monument was placed in memory of them in Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta and is said to be one of the most beautiful in the cemetery. T.B. Neal died in 1902 and was buried alongside his wife and daughter.

“Few men were honored more highly than Captain Neal for his integrity of character, lofty ideals and splendid ability. His energy and untiring effort made themselves deeply felt in the business circles of the city, and his public spirit gave him a sincere interest in everything that made for the prosperity of Atlanta.” – The Atlanta Journal, 12 April 1902

(Jessica Gorman is Executive Director of the Dorcheat Historical Association Museum, Webster Parish Historian, President of the Minden Cemetery Association, and an avid genealogist.)

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LBI arrests Colorado man for exploitation and extortion
Louisiana Bureau of Investigation (LBI) has arrested 19-year-old Elijah Lee Olden, of South Nelson Circle, Denver, Colorado, for exploiting and extorting a Louisiana juvenile online. The investigation determined that Olden allegedly exploited and extorted a Louisiana juvenile on TikTok. Olden allegedly forced the juvenile to produce child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and send it to him. He then allegedly used those images to further extort the juvenile through text messages, Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram.

State Fire Marshal arrests Pitkin Woman in Allen Parish arson investigation
Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal (SFM) deputies have arrested a Pitkin woman following an investigation into multiple intentionally set fires at an Allen Parish home on Independence Day. State Fire Marshal deputies arrested and charged 51-year-old Peal Ann Turner on July 6, 2026, with two counts of Simple Arson, one count of trespassing and one count of Manufacturing a Delayed Incendiary Device.

FDA recalls rice balls with sesame filling
FDA has recalled Khong Guan Corporation’s glutinous rice balls with black sesame filling and black and white glutinous rice balls with black sesame filling. Reason for the recall is the product may contain undeclared peanuts.

OMV no longer submitting information to Selective Service System
Effective July 1, 2026, the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles will no longer submit information for male applicants between the ages of 15 and 26 to the Selective Service System when issuing a credential. For more information or to register, please visit http://www.sss.gov.

Kamara makes new deal with Saints
New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara agreed on Wednesday to restructure his contract for the coming season. While the new deal – which is undisclosed – is expected to reduce the burden of Kamara’s contract under the 2026 salary cap, it does not preclude the Saints from trading him.

House Republicans release $95B plan
House Republicans on Wednesday unveiled a $95 billion legislative plan focused on boosting defense, aiding farmers and enacting stricter voter registration rules, a sequel to the massive tax and spending cut bill that President Donald Trump signed into law last year. The Budget Committee is expected to consider the outline Thursday, ahead of floor action in the House next week.

Federal court ends school desegregation program in Concordia Parish
A federal appeals court on Tuesday ended more than 60 years of federal oversight of a Louisiana school system that had been ordered to eradicate segregation. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals lifted a decades-old desegregation mandate for the Concordia Parish School Board, handing a victory to President Donald Trump’s administration, which has pushed to end the court-ordered plans. The school system has been a focal point in the administration’s attempt to end legal cases dating to the Civil Rights era.

Alexandria man charged in shooting death of marshal
A Louisiana man has been accused of murder in the fatal shooting of a deputy U.S. marshal who joined other officers in trying to arrest him at his home after he failed to show up for trial on rape and sexual battery charges. Clarence A. Frazier Jr., 48, of Alexandria, faces one count in federal court of murder of a federal officer, Deputy Marshal Drew Hanson, a crime punishable by either life in prison or death.

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Friday

A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4 p.m. Mostly sunny, with a high near 93. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.

Friday Night

A 10 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 7 p.m. Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. Calm wind.

Saturday

Sunny, with a high near 94. Calm wind becoming west around 5 mph.

Saturday Night

Mostly clear, with a low around 75.

Sunday

Sunny and hot, with a high near 95.

Sunday Night

Clear, with a low around 75.

Monday

Sunny and hot, with a high near 97.

*Information provided by National Weather Service.

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Send non-profit calendar events to wpjnewsla@gmail.com .

July – Every Tuesday

2 until 4 p.m. K-4th grade, Lakeview Methodist Church, Minden, crafts, games, and snacks.  July 28 we will have a movie and popcorn. Come join us for a month of summer fun – we can’t wait to see you!  Please wear clothing that you can paint or get messy in.

Register at: LakeviewMinden.com .

July 21

9 until 10 a.m., Veterans Meet and Greet coffee, Webster Parish Council on Aging, Sheppard St., Minden.

July 23

10 a.m. Town of Sibley: Identity Theft Community Awareness session, Sibley Town Hall. Call 318-377-0345.

July 24-26

6 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. Saturday, 10:45 a.m. Sunday, Vacation Bible School, Pine Grove, Methodist Church, 4549 Lewisville Rd., Minden. 

July 26 – 31

6 until 8:10 p.m. Vacation Bible School, Calvary Baptist Church, 1400 Homer Road, Minden. For more information: calvaryminden.com/vbs .

August 2

1 p.m. Backpack Give Away, Beech Springs Baptist Church, 15910 US-80 Minden, pre-K through 5th grades. First come, first served. A parent must be with the child in order for them to receive a backpack. For more information, email jennyogle83@gmail.com or call 318-344-4919.

August 8

9 a.m., 11th Annual Prayer in the Park, Academy Park, Minden. Prayers for kids going back to school, teachers, first responders, public officials, City of Minden. Clear backpack giveaways. For more information, call Michael Walker at 318-210-1799.

August 14

Nomination deadline for 15 Under 40 Top Young Professionals. greatermindenchamber.com/15under40.

August 15

9 a.m. until 3 p.m. Rooted Women’s Conference, North Acres Baptist Church, 1852 Lewisville Road, Minden. This is a day for women who strive to be rooted in The Word. Hear from our keynote speaker, Stephanie Smithson, as she focuses on spiritual understanding and biblical literacy along with our multi-generational panel of ladies, who will describe what being rooted in Christ means to them. Come for a day of acoustic worship, fellowship, teaching and food! Your $30 ticket includes the conference and a light lunch provided by Hugh Wood Catering. Childcare is provided. Registration is open through July 31. Register at https://onrealm.org/NorthAcresBapti31149/PublicRegistrations/Event?linkString=ZTc4OTQ2Y2EtZmM3Ny00MWM2LWE2NmUtYjQzMzAwZmUyZDgx .

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Word of the Day: Compulsory

Phonetic: /com· pul· so· ry/

Part of Speech: Adjective

Definition

mandatory, enforced
compulsory retirement

coercive, compelling
compulsory measures

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Play Sudoku online!

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Demario Marquis Walker, 39, 500 block Sunset, Minden: arrested July 15 by WPSO on warrants for home invasion, remaining after forbidden. Bond set $100,000.

Jack Jordan, 43, 10 Linda Lane, Long Beach, Mississippi: arrested July 14 by Minden PD for disturbing the peace. 

Nicholas Bryant, 35, 300 block Marshal St., Minden: arrested July 11 by Minden PD.

Cassie Guillory, 39, Hwy. 163, Doyline: arrested July 15 by Minden City Marshall for disturbing the peace. Bond set $1,500.

This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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Anna Lisa Coulter
December 31, 1992 — July 12, 2026
Minden
Memorial service: 11 a.m. Saturday, July 18, 2026, Rose-Neath Funeral Home Chapel, Minden.

Donald Philip Prince
February 19, 1980 — July 13, 2026
Minden
Visitation: 2 until 3 p.m. Sunday, July 19, 2026 First Baptist Church of Homer.
Memorial service: 3 p.m. Sunday, immediately following visitation.

Sheryl Clayton Reynolds
September 17, 1939 — July 15, 2026
Minden/Cotton Valley
Visitation: 5 until 7 p.m., First Baptist Church, Cotton Valley.
Celebration of life: 10 a.m. Saturday, July 18, 2026, First Baptist Church, Cotton Valley.
Burial: Cotton Valley Cemetery, under the direction of Rose-Neath Funeral Home, Minden.

Billie Franklin Treece
April 26, 1943  –  July 14, 2026
Shongaloo.
Visitation: 5 until 7 p.m. Friday, July 17, 2026, Bailey Funeral Home, Springhill.
Funeral service: 10 a.m. Saturday, July 18, 2026, Mt. Paran Baptist Church, Shongaloo.
Burial: Pilgrims Rest Cemetery.

Webster Parish Journal publishes paid complete obituaries – unlimited words and a photo, as well as unlimited access – $80. Contact your funeral provider or wpjnewsla@gmail.com . Must be paid in advance of publication. (Above death notices are no charge.)

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By Pat Culverhouse

A 56-year-old Reno, Nevada man charged in connection with a hit-and-run incident at a local truck stop last month is currently being held in the parish prison following his transfer from Ouachita Parish. 

Chief of Police Jared McIver said John Desersa had been held by Ouachita authorities for charges in that parish related to the incident. He was transferred to Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center Tuesday. 

Desersa is accused of attempting to run down an individual with his vehicle in the parking lot of Love’s Truck Stop around 2 a.m. Tuesday, June 16.

McIver said a second person believed to have accompanied his friend to site was struck during the incident and taken to a Bossier City hospital with a possible broken foot.

According to the chief, a female believed to be Desersa’s estranged wife and five juveniles were in the vehicle at the time of the incident. After slamming two vehicles and striking one man, Desersa reportedly fled eastbound on Interstate 20.

A BOLO was issued for the vehicle and Louisiana State Police reportedly made the stop near Monroe.

During interviews, detectives reportedly learned domestic issues in Reno apparently resulted in Desersa leaving Nevada with his wife and children. He was reportedly tracked via cellular phone to the Minden area by the individual he allegedly attempted to run down with his vehicle.

Charges against Desersa include hit and run (two counts), aggravated assault and aggravated second degree battery. He is being held at Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Center under a $27,500 bond.

This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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By Marilyn Miller

Everything from flashing warning signs to dropping the speed limits was discussed as a means of increasing safety at the approaches to the traffic lights at the intersection of La. Hwy. 80 and La. Hwy. 371N on Tuesday, July 14 by the Dixie Inn Board of Aldermen.

Alderman Lance Milligan said that he has been in talks with Brandon Grecco of the La. Dept. of Transportation & Development regarding the installation of “Dangerous Intersection” signs at the crossroads but was told that the DOTD no longer installs “Danger” signs on Louisiana roadways.

Milligan was told that DOTD can install amber flashing solar lights on speed signs, but a speed study must be performed first, and then DOTD must install them.

“It’s not anything that will help overnight,” Milligan said. “And I don’t know if a sign is going to fix it.”

Dixie Inn Police Chief Jeffrey McNeill concurred, stating that speed enforcement is a better option, with the speed limits lowered. “Right now, we are just monitoring the high points,” the chief said. He added that he really would like a speed study performed, especially at the eastbound approach where the speed limit drops from 50 to 35. “It drops to 35 too late…it really should drop at the city limits or at least Antioch Baptist.”

Milligan agreed, noting that a trailer park, apartment buildings, and businesses in the area are factors in justifying a lower limit. The board will discuss the matter further next month.

Animal control issues have reared their ugly, and expensive, heads over the past few months. Warmer temperatures have led to an increase in the populations of untagged cats and dogs. Milligan asked whether or not the village could afford a part-time animal control officer. “Since that falls under my department, I’ll tell you there’s not enough hours in the day (to do the job in-house),” Chief McNeill replied. However, if a part-time person could be found to collect untagged animals, he could make a chart of how many are picked up and then check it against the veterinarian’s records.

Milligan and the chief are going to talk to other municipalities in south Webster Parish to see how they handle the problem.

Mayor Donna Hoffoss introduced Ordinance #137, pertaining to the adoption of an ABO (servers of legal alcoholic beverages) program in Dixie Inn. All handlers of alcohol within the village limits will be required to carry the cards once the ordinance is adopted.

In other business, the board:

• Unanimously approved a “Back-to-School Bash” for Saturday, Aug. 1 from 2-5 p.m. at the eastern Dixie Inn Park. Last year’s park opening and Back-to-School Bash attracted over 600 people;
• Unanimously approved declaring the 2014 Tahoe surplus and donating it (loaded) to the Dubberly Police Dept.;
• Unanimously approved allowing VDCI (Vector Disease Control International) of Ruston to perform a one-time mosquito control treatment to determine how much chemical would be needed to cover Dixie Inn, and its cost. “I’m proposing one free treatment to look into it,” alderman Milligan said. “…Especially since we are surrounded by water,” alderman Judy McKenzie concurred.
• Approved the minutes of the June Regular Session;
• Approved the June Financial Statements.

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It is early and I am standing in front of the bathroom mirror. The house is dark. Nobody is up yet. I lean in to look at something on my face, and I breathe, and the glass goes white.

It cleared in about three seconds. Then the mirror looked exactly the way it did before. It did not know I had been there.

I’m forty-seven years old and that has started to bother me.

A Tuesday morning. I get up. I am not excited about it. I brush my teeth, I put my shoes on, I do it again. I have done this roughly seventeen thousand times, and most of them are just gone. I know where a lot of them went, though. I spent them worrying about what people thought of me, wanting things I don’t even want anymore, performing for rooms that weren’t paying attention.

I would like those mornings back. I am not going to get them.

So I started doing math, which I don’t recommend. Figure I make it to eighty. That is generous. Nobody in my family has a great track record. But say eighty. That is thirty-three more years. Twelve thousand more mornings. I already burned through more than that and barely noticed.

People have been walking around on this planet in something close to our current shape for about three hundred thousand years. We have only been writing anything down for about five thousand. Everything I have ever heard of fits in that little sliver at the end. The Egyptians, the Romans, Jesus, all of it. Billions of people came before them and left nothing. They had families and bills and the same Tuesday morning I’m talking about right now. Then they were gone, and nobody remembers any of their names.

I can’t tell you my great-grandfather’s name. Can’t pick him out of a photograph. My grandfather I barely have, and what I do have doesn’t hold together, because my aunts told me one thing about him and my father told me something completely different. Two generations back and the story is already falling apart.

That is where I’m headed.

Lindsey Graham died Saturday night. He was 71. He flew home from Ukraine a day before. He was supposed to be on Meet the Press Sunday morning. The president said they talked that evening and Graham seemed fine, just tired. Then his aorta tore open and that was it.

I didn’t know the man and I’m not going to sit here and tell you what he was. What got me was how fast the arguing started back up. Within hours, people who had spent a decade calling him a traitor and people who had spent a decade calling him a hero were right back at it, over his body, using the exact same words they were using on Friday.

He had a Sunday planned. That is the part I can’t get past.

Thirty-three years in the Air Force and thirty years in Congress. The man sat with presidents. Five hundred years from now nobody will say his name, and mine won’t be any different.

I teach high school. Every year I have to explain what the word finite means, because my students hear it and think it means a long time. It means it ends.

They don’t believe me. I didn’t believe it at their age either.

So I ask them. Know who Joe Montana is? A couple of hands. Denzel Washington? More. Muhammad Ali? And it gets thin. Then I go further out. Alexander the Great. Muhammad. Jesus Christ. Out of every person who has ever lived, a handful of names made it two thousand years. I am not one of them.

Good.

I mean that. I hope now that I am going to try to stop pretending I am building something permanent, a lot of the weight will come off. My great-grandkids are not going to know my name. I don’t have a legacy to protect. I just have today, and I have been spending it on the wrong things for a very long time.

Psychologists have a name for what I’ve been doing. They call it the hedonic treadmill. I wanted the thing. I got the thing. For about two weeks I felt great. Then it was just a thing I had, and I wanted the next one. My brain is wired that way. Everybody’s is. I have been on that treadmill my whole adult life.

John Agan wrote about Webster Parish history for the Minden Press-Herald back when. We disagreed about nearly everything. One night I was on the treadmill in my garage, this was before my oldest was born, and I had posted something ugly about somebody online. I didn’t use a name. He knew anyway. He texted me and told me he knew exactly who I was talking about.

I started to argue with him, because that is what I did then. I thought I could win. And then I stopped and typed something close to this. John, I’m a guy. I like cheeseburgers. I like Lord of the Rings. I’m not your enemy. We have to get past this.

He wrote back and told me I was right.

He’s dead now. I have spent two days trying to work out whether that kind of thing could even happen anymore, and I don’t know that it could.

A rich man asked Jesus what he had to do to get into heaven, and Jesus told him to sell everything he owned and give it to the poor. The man walked away sad, because he had a lot of stuff. That story is two thousand years old and it is the most modern thing I know.

Love God. Love your neighbor. That was the assignment. I have not been good at it. Most days I’m on the treadmill right there with everybody else, wanting the next thing, worrying about what people think. But I know what the assignment is, and the fact that nobody is going to remember me is the thing that finally made me take it seriously. Because once that is gone, once the legacy and the name and the monument are off the table, the only thing left is the person standing next to me.

Last week I sent my wife a text. I told her we should show our daughter Terminator 2 because she has never seen it.

That is just love. Ordinary and small. And it is the only thing I have found that is worth a single one of those twelve thousand mornings.

Josh Beavers is an award winning columnist who has been recognized numerous times for excellence in writing by the Louisiana Press Association. He traded the newsroom for the classroom in 2014. 

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Courtesy Mark Chreene, KASO/KBEF Radio

After winning Louisiana state championships, the Minden 9U baseball and 15U softball All-Stars are set to represent Louisiana this week in Diamond Youth World Series competition.

The Minden 9U All-Stars earned their berth by completing an undefeated run through the Louisiana Diamond Youth State Tournament, finishing 6-0 and defeating Alexandria 14-0 in the championship game.

The Minden 15U All-Stars also claimed the Louisiana Diamond Youth Softball State Championship with an unbeaten tournament run to earn their place in the World Series.

The 9U team will compete in Montgomery, Alabama, while the 15U softball team travels to Laurel, Mississippi.
KASO Radio, AM 1240, will provide game results, schedules, and tournament updates throughout the week as both teams compete for World Series titles.

Thursday’s Schedule: 9U Baseball World Series, Montgomery, Alabama:
9 a.m. Minden vs. Magnolia, Arkansas

3:15 p.m. Minden vs. Municipal, Alabama

15U Softball World Series, Laurel, Mississippi
11:00 a.m. Minden vs. Pleasant View, Tennessee

Looking Ahead
Friday – 9U Baseball
1 p.m.
Minden vs. Troy, Alabama

2:15 p.m.
Minden vs. Ocean Springs, Mississippi

Following Friday’s games, teams will advance to championship bracket play based on pool play results.

Friday – 15U Softball

If Minden defeats Pleasant View, Tennessee, the All-Stars will play Friday at 3:15 p.m. against the winner of Carthage, Mississippi and Tri-Cities, Texas.

If Minden falls in Thursday’s opener, Minden will play Friday at 12:30 p.m. against the loser of Perry Junior League, Georgia and Laurel-Jones County, Mississippi.

Bracket play continues Saturday, with the championship scheduled for Sunday.

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Springhill Medical Center, one of the country’s Top 100 rural and community hospitals, is seeking a Perioperative Registered Nurse (PRN) to care for patients before, during and after surgeries.
SMC offers excellent benefits and competitive pay.
Apply at www.smccare.com .

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The following persons are scheduled to appear in 26th Judicial District Court Friday, July 17:

ANDERSON, PHYLISE JAYVETTE
100372 Domestic Abuse Battery – 1st Offense

ARCENEAUX, JENAYA LEEANN
99520-CT.1 Unauthorized Entry Of An Inhabited Dwelling
99520-CT.2 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

ARCENEAUX, JENAYA LEEANN
100315 Attempted Unauthorized Entry Of An Inhabited Dwelling

BAMBURG, JUSTIN
100156 Aggravated Battery

BODEN, KOURTNEY OCASICO
100121-CT.1 Speeding 11-15 MPH
100121-CT.2 Possession of a CDS I Marijuana (Fourteen Grams or Less)
100121-CT.3 Possession of Drug Paraphernalia – First Offense
100121-CT.4 Possession Of Alcoholic Beverages In Motor Vehicles

BRUNSON, JR., MICHAEL JAY
100475 Resisting An Officer With Force Or Violence

BURRIS, TEADRIEN ROMOAN
99805 Unauthorized Entry Of An Inhabited Dwelling

CAHILL, JAQUARIUS JAMAL
99684 Possession With Intent to Distribute a Schedule I CDS

COMBS, KOURTNEE
100438 Violation Of Protective Order

COMEAUX, CASSIDY J
100351-CT.1 Improper Supervision of a Minor by Parent or Legal Custodian
100351-CT.2 Improper Supervision of a Minor by Parent or Legal Custodian

CRAVENS, ALLTON B.
98115B Second Degree Murder

CURRY, CHARNEIDRA L
100386 Aggravated Battery

DEAVER, ROBERT CHARLES
99968 Indecent Behavior with Juveniles

FISH, JODIE MICHELLE
100344-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule I CDS
100344-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS (Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)
100344-CT.3 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS (Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)
WPJ Total bond $105,000
Bond Reduction Hearing

FISH, JODIE MICHELLE
100344-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule I CDS
100344-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS (Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)
100344-CT.3 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS (Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)
WPJ Trial 11/30

FLORES, SAMANTHA MICHELLE
100174 Issuing Worthless Checks
Restitution to Minden Family Care Center $104.50 plus fee $35=$139.50

FLOURNOY, RAVI ANDRELAVERE
100101 Possession of Schedule II CDS
Sanity Hearing

FLOURNOY, RAVI ANDRELAVERE
100101 Possession of Schedule II CDS

FRY, MATTHEW D.
100286 Violation Of Leash Law
Notice Sent Restitution Pending

GILL, D’MARCUS A.
99479-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99479-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99479-CT.3 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
99479-CT.4 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
Please make sure forfeiture of $520 IN US Currency is part of any plea/sentencing agreement.

GILL, D’MARCUS A.
99507 CT. 1 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – First Offense
99507 CT. 2 Speeding 11-15 MPH
99507 CT. 3 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

HAIR, DANIEL W.
99857 Simple Robbery
Restitution owed to the victim- $384 plus $57.60 fee = $441.60 total

HAIR, DANIEL W.
100331-CT.1 Simple Battery
100331-CT.2 Interfering with Emergency Communication

HARPER, JOSEPH ALVA
99705 Possession With Intent to Distribute a Schedule I CDS (Two and One Half Pounds or More)

HARRIS, AMANDA
INCOMING Possession of a Schedule III CDS

HENDERSON, SHAMEKA M.
99467 Theft Under $1,000
Restitution owed to the victim- $825, plus $123.75 fee = $948.75 total

HILL, SALLIE R.
100224 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Two Grams or More But Less Than Twenty-Eight Grams)

JACKSON, TADAZION
100397-CT.1 Simple Battery
100397-CT.2 Simple Criminal Damage To Property Under $1,000

JOHNSON, ALEX JAKAR
100082-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
100082-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
100082-CT.3 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
100082A-CT.1 Resisting An Officer With Force Or Violence
100082A-CT.2 Illegal Use/Possession/Control of Weapons – Crime of Violence or Controlled Dangerous Substance

JOHNSON, WESLEY JERMAINE
100478 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

KING, GARY R
100288 Simple Cruelty to Animals

LANE, SARAH JANE
99543 Simple Burglary

LAWSON, THOMAS AARON
100476 Cruelty To Juveniles

MANESS, MIKELLE
96905 Theft Under $1,000
OC 5/29 fee = $1,038.45 total
Per the report restitution in this matter is owed to Sams Southern Eatery in the amount of $903, plus $135.45

MANESS, MIKELLE
100184 Criminal Trespassing

MARTIN, BRANDON EVERETT
99115-CT.1 Aggravated Flight From An Officer Where Human Life Is Endangered
99115-CT.2 Attempted Attempted Illegal Use/Possession/Control of Weapons – Crime of Violence or Controlled Dangerous Substance

MASON, DARRELL
100369 Simple Battery
Defense Motion for Bond Reduction, total bond $50,000

MASON, KEYSHAWN
100203-CT.1 Manufacture/Transfer/Possess Machine Guns
100203-CT.2 Domestic Abuse Aggravated Assault

MCCARTY, JUSTIN W
100185 Unlawful Refusal To Submit To Chemical Test

MCLAIN, ASHLEY S
100332 Accessory After The Fact

MCMILLIAN, RENTAVIONNA
100118 Aggravated Battery

MITCHELL, JEROME RODRIKUS
100405 Obstruction Of Justice

MOORE, DANA MICHELLE
99209 Ct. 1 Misdemeanor Access Device Fraud
99209 Ct. 2 Theft Under $1,000
Restitution owed to the victim- $550 plus $82.50 fee = $632.50 total

NEWSOM, TREY
100471-CT. 1 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – Second Offense
100471-CT. 2 Reckless Operation of a Vehicle
100471-CT. 3 Failure to Use Safety Belt

NEWSOM, TREY
100023 CT. 1 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – First Offense

NOLES, TYLYNNSKI
100406 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

PERKINS, AUSTIN
100254 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Less than Two Grams)

POTTS, TIFFANY
100306-CT.1 Distribution of a Schedule II CDS
100306-CT.2 Distribution of a Schedule IV CDS

RASCOE, DEVON
99217-CT.1 Simple Burglary
99217-CT.2 Forgery
Sanity Hearing
Restitution owed to the victim- $825, plus $123.75 fee = $948.75 total

RICE, DEREK RODRIQUEZ
99453-CT.1 Resisting An Officer With Force Or Violence
99453-CT.2 Attempted Attempted Armed Robbery
99453-CT.3 Aggravated Battery
99453-CT.4 Aggravated Battery
Sanity Hearing

RICHARDSON, JAREL K
100358 Aggravated Flight From An Officer Where Human Life Is Endangered

RUSHING, DEROME
100407 Possession of a Schedule II CDS (Two Grams or More But Less Than Twenty- Eight Grams)

SHAW, SHONTRANAE T.
100465 Introducing Contraband Into Or Upon The Grounds Of Any State Correctional Institution

SNEED, TYWON
100390 Operating A Vehicle While Intoxicated – First Offense

STEPHENS, JALIK
100355 Illegal Use/Possession/Control of Weapons – Crime of Violence or
Controlled Dangerous Substance

STRONG, FRANKLIN DOYLE
99839 Domestic Abuse Battery – 1st Offense

SULLIVAN, VOLTAIRE
90904 Habitual Offender
Contradictory Hearing

WARREN, SARAH ASHLEY
100319-CT.1 Possession of Marijuana or Synthetic Cannabinoids
100319-CT.2 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

WOODWARD, KALLIE R
100204 Unauthorized Use Of A Motor Vehicle

WRIGHT, CASANDRA
99737 Violation Of Leash Law
FFD 8/21

WRIGHT, NICHOLAS JAMES
100479 Possession Of Firearm Or Carrying Concealed Weapon By Convicted Felon

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The following persons are scheduled to appear in 26th Judicial District Traffic Court Friday, July 17:

ANDERSON, JONATHAN J
T109824 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/

BAIRD, CODY G
T026922 Failure to Use Safety Belt
T026922A Intentional Littering
T026922B Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

BEENE, DRAKERION
T092526 Speeding 16-24 MPH
*77/55

CLARK, ALEXUS ELISE
T092123 Speeding 16-24 MPH
T092123A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

COLE, ASHLEY D
T093726 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

COUCH, MARSHUNDA LASHAY
T110524 Switched License Plates
T110524A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled
T110524B Operating A Vehicle Without Proof Of Insurance

DAVIS, GAVIN WYATT
T092626 Speeding 25 & OVER
*90/55

DAVIS, JANICE MARIE
T119125 Failure To Secure Registration
T119125A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled
T119125B Improper Equipment (License Plate)

HAWTHORNE, TARCUS M.
T038026 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

HILE, JUSTIN ERIC
T092726 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

HOWELL, JR, RICHARD E
T092826 Speeding 11-15 MPH
T092826A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled
*70/55

JOHNSON, LATIA
T092926 Speeding 16-24 MPH
*67/50

JOHNSTON, STEPHANIE MICHELLE
T093826 Failure to Use Safety Belt

KIRKSEY, DARRELL JERROD
T093926 Failure to Use Safety Belt

KISER, LISA C.
T130020 Speeding 16-24 MPH
T130020A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

KRANTZ, JR, JASON JACK
T094026 Failure to Use Safety Belt

LINDER, CHARLES FRANKLIN
T094126 Failure to Use Safety Belt

LOUD-JOHNSON, JAROSHALYN JYSHAWN
T020726 Careless Operation of a Motor Vehicle
T020726A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled
T020726B Improper Child Restraint
T020726C Improper Child Restraint
T020726D Improper Child Restraint
*Crash

MACK, AARON
T093026 Speeding 16-24 MPH
*78/55
T093026 Operating a Vehicle Without a Driver’s License

MADRIGAL, CARLOS
T093226 Operating a Vehicle Without a Driver’s License
T093226A Improper Equipment (License Plate)

MALONE, JAMES DAVID
T093126 Operating A Vehicle With Improper Headlamps
T093126A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

MCLEMORE, ERIC
T108624B Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

MILLER, JUSTIN CASSIDY
T085425 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled
T085425A Switched License Plates
T085425B Failure To Secure Registration

MOSS, ADAM RICHARD
T045426 Operating a Vehicle with an Expired Motor Vehicle Inspection
T045426A Operating A Vehicle with an Expired License Plate

MURPHY, MAURICO DESEAN
T063326 Failure to Use Safety Belt
AT Arraignment LSP

OGLEE, NICOLE STATON
T093326 Speeding 16-24 MPH
*85/55

PATEL, HANY
T094226 Failure to Use Safety Belt

PERRY, DECAVEON TE SHAWN
T093426 Speeding 16-24 MPH
*70/45

ROGERS, JR, JUNICE JUSTIN
T093626 Operating A Vehicle Without Proper Required Equipment

SIKES, BRENT D
T094326 Failure to Use Safety Belt
T094326A Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/
STEWART, JR., JAMES ANTHONY
T094426 Failure to Use Safety Belt

SWINT, KRISTON JAID
T094526 Speeding 11-15 MPH
*71/55

VIDAL, ISABEL CRISTINA
T094626 Failure To Yield At An Intersection When Turning Left
Crash

WARD, DELJANAE
T154723 Operating a Vehicle While License Suspended/Revoked/Cancelled

WASHINGTON, RENEA ANTIONETTE
T094726 Failure to Yield Right of Way

WATSON, MERECLE EMONE’
T094826 Speeding 16-24 MPH
T094826A Speeding 16-24 MPH
*44/25
T094826B Operating A Vehicle with an Expired License Plate

WILSON, THOMAS MICHAEL
T029926 Failure to Use Safety Belt

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By Paige Gurgainers

A day on the pickleball court this September will mean far more than keeping score. Every serve, volley and point played will help open doors for Webster Parish students preparing to take their next steps after high school.

The Minden Junior Service League (JSL) is bringing the community together for Paddle for a Purpose, a pickleball tournament on Saturday, Sept. 12, at Pine Hills Country Club, with every dollar raised supporting scholarships for graduating seniors across the parish.

For the women behind the event, it’s an opportunity to turn a fast-growing sport into something that leaves a lasting impact.

“The Minden Junior Service League is excited to host ‘Paddle for a Purpose,’ a pickleball tournament benefiting scholarship opportunities for graduating seniors in our community,” said JSL President Samantha Kramer. “This event is about more than competition. It’s about coming together to invest in the future of our local students.”

That investment has already made a difference.

“Over the past three years, JSL has proudly awarded more than $30,000 in scholarships to graduating seniors in Webster Parish,” said Scholarship Fundraising Event Chairs Lexi DiCiolli and Halea Lipinski. “These annual events make those scholarships possible while giving our community a fun and meaningful way to support our local youth.”

The tournament welcomes players of all experience levels, with men’s, women’s and mixed doubles divisions available for beginner and intermediate competitors. Whether participants have been playing for years or recently picked up a paddle, organizers hope they’ll come ready for a day of friendly competition and community fellowship.

Registration is $120 per team, which includes team shirts, lunch on tournament day, complimentary refreshments and tournament balls.

Behind the scenes, local businesses have also stepped up to ensure the tournament’s success.

“We are incredibly grateful for the generosity of our sponsors, whose support has made this event possible,” Sponsorship Chair Morgan Hall said. “Their commitment to giving back to our community is helping create opportunities for the next generation, and we truly couldn’t do it without them.”

While the tournament promises exciting matches and plenty of fun on the courts,  the real winners will be the students whose educational dreams are supported through the event.

As pickleball continues to grow in popularity across the country, the Minden JSL hopes the tournament will become an annual tradition.

Play begins at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12, at Pine Hills Country Club in Minden. Team registration is now open, but space is limited. Community members are encouraged to register early by scanning the QR code on the event flyer or using the online registration link.

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“Jason Richards Martin, 52, passed away unexpectedly of natural causes at his home on July 4, 2026. While his passing came far too soon, the impact he made on the lives of so many will be remembered for years to come.”

So began the obituary this week for our friend Jason “Big Jim” Martin, a husky, big-hearted, “Aw, shucks” kind of guy who was quick to laugh and slug-slow to seek a spotlight. The “Big Jim,” with all sorts of variations, was a sort of inside joke between him and his buddies, of which he had tons.

He had other nicknames too. “Gentle Giant” was the one most tossed around during several short and from-the-heart eulogies Monday morning at his service in Ruston. “Servant Leader” was another.

Other handles were son, brother, uncle, golf partner — solid player who could hit it a country mile — dependable sidekick, adopted family member.

As “famous” is generally understood, Jason was not famous. Unless you were us. “Us” being people who saw him all the time, people who really knew him. So when the holiday weekend news came of his passing, the immediate feeling was of loss, not just for ourselves but for everybody. The world had lost a friend it didn’t know it had, a friend the world didn’t know it needed.

He was that kind of famous, made that kind of in-the-shadows impact. “A life of quiet service,” his obituary read. 

Amen to that.

Jason didn’t want to be a groomsman in one of his best friend’s wedding. Even being an usher was too much spotlight for Jason. But to help out with the honeymoon by being the long-distance airport cabbie for the couple? Bingo. Big Jim was your guy.

He didn’t want to be a distraction beyond that hole in the wall in the sanctuary when he ran the sound system for Sunday morning services. Instead, a blind was hung so he could be the opposite of seen but not heard: you could hear the preacher and you couldn’t see him.

We call that “serving The Big Jim Way.”

He was an equipment manager as a Louisiana Tech student after he graduated from Ruston High in 1991, then on the payroll as head of all athletic equipment years later. There are few jobs more invisible to the masses and more important to a coaching staff than that one. Being invisible is one of the job requirements. Be efficient, tie every loose end, be invisible. Be an ear and a shoulder for teammates who need it. Serve and let the big dogs eat.

Right down Big Jim’s alley.

In the service Monday were several peers like Dan Takata along with “kids” he’d worked with, now young men, students he’d managed while they’d literally managed together down West Alabama Avenue at Joe Aillet Stadium and in each of America’s time zones. Ethan Porta. Cam Ayers. Russ Hillhouse. Dempsey Flannery. Brayden Wilkinson. Like most everyone else, they were in Tech gear, as the family had, for Jason’s service, requested. Unlike everyone else, they’d been with Jason at literally every hour of the day, working side by side, learning how it’s done, how to be loyal, how to be selfless, how to be kind in chaos.

He evolved last year out of Athletics and into the University’s residential life department. In a way, his job hadn’t changed: he was still making students feel at home away from home. 

“You raised an amazing man,” one of his golf buddies, fellow managers, and “adopted” brothers Marty Stokley said Monday to Jason’s family in a short testimony to his friend. “I was lucky to be his friend. It was an honor to know him.”

Contact Teddy at teddy@latech.edu

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A scheduled Back to School Revival will provide a time and place for the community to come and seek the Lord and to give thanks as the busyness and routine of school begins again.

Emmanuel Baptist Church, 713 Homer Rd., Minden, will host the two-day event August 9 and 10. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Organizers said the revival is for all ages and families, and child care will be provided during the services.

Worship will be held both nights with local area musicians. Speaker is John Lary, head pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, Shreveport, and there will be specific prayer time for our local students and teachers and schools

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