Police look for missing woman

Police are searching for a Jackson, S.C., woman who went missing after her release from Medical College of Georgia Hospital on Jan. 3.

Isabell Rouse Trottie, 60, was taken to MCG's emergency room for treatment and released on the same day, according to a Richmond County sheriff's report.

The victim's daughter said she has not been seen since she was taken to the hospital, the report stated.

Anyone with information on Ms. Trottie's whereabouts can call the sheriff's office at (706) 821-1080.

A judge denied bond Thursday for a man accused of shooting an off-duty sheriff's officer.

Corey Lee, 35, has been held in jail since his arrest in the early morning hours of Dec. 26 after Sgt. Elijah Parker was shot at the Soundtrack Supper Club. Sgt. Parker was working security at the club.

He was shot in the chest as he escorted a man from the club. Sgt. Parker, who was wearing a bullet-proof vest, was treated and released from the hospital.

Mr. Lee has several prior convictions, the latest being trafficking in cocaine. He faces charges of aggravated assault and weapon violations.

The 1200 block of Laney-Walker Boulevard will be closed from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. today during the Tabernacle Baptist Church's monument dedication.

Motorists may use Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, R.A. Dent Boulevard, 11th Street, 12th Street and James Brown Boulevard as detours during that time, according to a Richmond County Engineering Department news release.

Fees paid by the U.S. Department of Energy to use Aiken County property will double in the coming year.

The Aiken County Council recently approved negotiations with DOE to change the fee in lieu of taxes from $800,000 to $1.6 million per year, Aiken County Administrator Clay Killian announced Thursday. Part of the money will go to Aiken County schools. It is the first time the fee has been renegotiated in 17 years.

The payment goes toward DOE using the 300-acre Savannah River Site. Barnwell and Allendale counties will also see changes in payment from the DOE for use of land.

The trial of a man accused of killing Christopher Pollin in Aiken 13 years ago ended with a deadlocked jury Thursday.

Prosecutors were given a deadline of March 10 to retry Joseph Hankerson, who was extradited last year after being arrested in New York, or he can be freed from jail on $50,000 bond.

Jurors deliberated for about a day and a half before telling Judge Clifton Newman on Thursday they could not reach a unanimous decision.

Joseph Morrison III, Mr. Hankerson's cousin, has already been found guilty of killing Mr. Pollin. Authorities say Mr. Hankerson was involved in the 1994 slaying in a local cemetery.

They issued warrants for his arrest in 2002, and he was arrested last year.

A former Burke County Magistrate Court deputy clerk charged with embezzling more than $21,000 was sentenced to five years probation earlier this month.

Nichole K. Hammock's indictment alleges that she stole from the county 237 times between July 2006 and January 2007 by pocketing the money when people paid fines, fees and court costs. The county hired an auditor after two checks from the magistrate's office bounced, and Mrs. Hammock tried to diffuse the situation by giving an accountant $26,000, which she got from her mother-in-law, the indictment states.

She was charged with racketeering and theft by taking, but the racketeering charge was dropped in a plea bargain. She pleaded guilty as a first offender, and the last four years of her probation will be unsupervised so long as she pays a $3,920 fine, performs 300 hours of community service, passes drug tests and stays away from the magistrate's office, among other conditions.

The sentence was handed down Jan. 3 by Superior Court Judge Michael Annis. Restitution has been paid in full, the order notes.

Two men remained in jail Thursday after being accused of stealing several items from an Augusta potato chip company.

Seanque Lavert Hester, 27, of Sharon Road in Augusta, and Rashawn Walker, 28, of Louisville, Ga., were charged with felony theft by taking after police said they stole several boxes of potato chips and snacks from a truck parked at Frito Lay, 1035 Franke Industrial Drive, near Barton Chapel Road.

A police report stated that the truck's side window was broken and the rear cargo area was ransacked.

Company personnel recently complained about a rash of similar thefts, said Richmond County sheriff's Investigator Aaron Hannsz. Police said the items were stolen about 5 p.m. on Monday and were valued at just more than $600.

The men were caught when witnesses called 911 dispatchers after seeing the suspects transporting boxes of snacks and dip into a room at a nearby Red Carpet Inn at 2050 Gordon Highway, police said.

In partnership with Augusta Technical College, the Richmond County Board of Education's 21st Century Community Learning Centers will offer several classes for certification.

Lucy C. Laney High School will have basic gas metal arc welding classes. For more information, call (706) 823-6677 or (706) 481-1632.

Certification classes for automotive drivability technician, business office assistant and nail technician will be at Glenn Hills High School. Call (706) 796-4924, ext. 258 to learn more. GED classes are offered at both locations.

-- From staff reports