Criminal County Constables

It doesn't happen often, but it does happen. Sometimes those sworn to uphold the law are the ones to break it. Here's a 2013 PNS article on county constables, specifically Franklin County constables. It would appear that in 2013, half the constables in Franklin were under investigation themselves (Note: As this is republished, the article is four years old, and there is no current investigation of anyone mentioned here):

Not all Alabama counties have constables. Franklin is among the counties that do; currently four constables serve, but just what is their mission/job description? Franklin County writer and former district attorney John Pilati defines the office thusly:

“Under Alabama law, constables are considered peace officers with the same law enforcement authority as other officers within their county. Constables are elected by voting precinct, so Franklin County could have as many as 24 elected constables, but the numbers have never reached that level. A large reason is that constable is a non-salaried position.”

While there is no salary, the constables share a yearly 15K appropriation. There are currently four elected constables in Franklin County:

Bobby Brown – Russellville II 

Ray Hill – Tharptown (Currently under indictment for Sexual Abuse) 

Kyle Palmer – Red Bay (Currently the subject of a RBPD internal affairs investigation) - not pictured

Earl Potter – Russellville I - not pictured

Brown also works as Russellville Police Department’s chaplain, while Palmer is a sergeant with the Red Bay force. PNS received a question as to a possible conflict of interest in Palmer’s case. Is it legal for Kyle Palmer to hold the office of constable while an active member of the Red Bay Police Force? Below is a link to the duties and qualifications of an Alabama Constable. Nowhere is a conflict of interest addressed. If any readers have questions, they should contact Franklin County District Attorney Joey Rushing and/or the Alabama Ethics Commission.

Besides Franklin, the following counties still maintain the office of Constable: Jefferson, Marion, Mobile, Shelby, Walker, & Winston.

The Tragic Life and Death of "Fat Sam"

Sam John Passarella was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1945. Sam's family moved to Lawrence County, Tennessee, while he was still a young teenager, and the boy who was now known as "Fat Sam" found what amounted to local fame performing with his band at civic events and sock hops. 

After high school, Sam moved to Nashville looking for work as a backup musician or even as the leader of his own band. For whatever reason, fame eluded Fat Sam who alternated his time between Nashville and Lawrenceburg.

By the 1980s, Sam had fallen in with the wrong crowd. The year 1982 proved eventful for Fat Sam, but for all the wrong reasons. Along with James Howard Turner and Earl Carroll, Sam purchased some bogus silver from a Nashville businessman, Monte Hudson. From court documents:

"When they learned that the silver was not genuine, they abducted Mr. Hudson and his wife at gunpoint from the parking lot of a Nashville motel. Mr. Turner forced Mrs. Hudson into his car, and Messrs. Passarella and Carroll took Mr. Hudson away in another car. Mr. Turner released Mrs. Hudson the next day. Mr. Turner and Mr. Passarella were indicted for two counts of kidnapping and their trials were severed. Mr. Carroll accepted a sentence of two years for kidnapping in exchange for his testimony against Mr. Passarella, who was convicted and received a sentence of seventy years imprisonment. Prior to Mr. Turner's trial, Mr. Hudson's corpse was discovered, and the facts indicated that he was killed by Mr. Passarella."

Fat Sam was incarcerated in the Tennessee State Prison system for almost four decades before he was paroled. From a 2015 Pen-N-Sword article:

"Sam John Passarella was no angel. The Brooklyn, NY, native arrived in Nashville in the 1960s to make it big in the music industry. Instead he made it big in crime.

Third from Right in Band Libido

Passarella, 69, spent 30 odd years in a Tennessee prison on charges related to drugs, forgery, kidnapping, and murder. During his stay, the Los Angeles Times reported on his gardening accomplishments. He was released in 2013 and removed to Lawrenceburg where he had family, joining the local music scene. Last October, his band played the Oktoberfest in Loretto.

Passarella in Trilby with Band Survivor

On May 19th, a relative found Sam John Passarella murdered near his home on the Florence Road. Police are saying little but are asking for the public’s help. Someone knows something; in the mean time Passarella’s family is grieving a man they spent too little time with."

By the time Sam Passarella was released from prison, he may have been older and wiser, but he still loved his music. He often played with his band Survivor at local benefits and other functions. He moved into a subsidized apartment complex for those over 65 and made new friends...one new friend too many.

The last gig Sam mentioned on social media was at Nana's Pizzeria in Loretto in mid-April 2015. Four weeks later he was found dead in his apartment. While police may have initially thought Sam John Passarella was killed by some of his old Nashville crowd or a friend of Monte Hudson, one by one the suspects were eliminated.

After almost a year, an arrest was finally made. From a Lawrence County press release:

"On February 5th, 2016 Detectives with the Lawrenceburg Police Department and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Agents arrested a subject responsible for the Murder of Sam John Passarella that occurred in Lawrenceburg, TN on May 19, 2015.

Detectives have worked extensively during the joint investigation and have discovered evidence linking Crystal Gregoire (35) of Lawrenceburg to the crime.
On February 5, 2016 a special session of the Lawrence County Grand Jury met and reviewed evidence in the case before handing down Indictments against Gregoire for 1st Degree Murder, Aggravated Assault, Tampering with Evidence and Theft. Gregoire is being held in the Giles County Jail."

Gregoire's trial was in April 2017, more than a year after her arrest. From Lawrenceburg Now:

"After hearing testimony throughout the week, jurors returned a guilty verdict against thirty-seven-year-old Crystal Gregoire in the death of Sam John Passarella, age 69.

Passarella’s badly beaten body was found inside of his Crockett Senior Housing apartment on Old Florence Road on May 19, 2015. He was lying across his bed with a bread knife in his right hand and had sustained numerous blows to the face, head, neck and torso from a claw hammer before being stabbed in the neck with a kitchen knife.

Gregoire was indicted on murder, aggravated assault and theft charges on February 5, 2016 after the hammer, knives, Passarella's empty prescription bottles, and other evidence was found buried behind the home where she had resided at the time of his death.

Gregoire entered a plea of guilty on the count of aggravated assault. During deliberations jurors found her not guilty on one count of theft, not guilty on one count of felony murder, and guilty as charged on one count of first degree murder.

The first degree murder conviction carries an automatic life sentence. Attorneys are working on an agreement that will allow a three year sentence on the aggravated assault count to run concurrently with that life sentence."

Sam John Passarella...he never really had a chance to live.

Jessica Broadfoot & Danger Grisham - A Lethal Combination

The following accounts of the Jessica Broadfoot murder, investigation, and legal proceedings originally appeared in Pen-N-Sword and have been used with permission:

Timeline:

May 8 – Arrested outside Atlanta for DUI
May 13 – With victim in motel room
June 27 – Posted on Facebook: I had one of my retarded exs texting me every five seconds last night.
June 29 – Found wearing bloody clothes in truck with knife, both also soaked in blood.

The day after Jessica Bevis-Broadfoot’s 2013 death, Homajean Grisham III was charged with Felony Murder. Today those charges in the brutal stabbing death have been upgraded to Capital Murder. Grisham has given a brief confession to authorities, but it remains to be seen if he will claim self-defense or insanity or other plea that will necessitate a trial. His chance at 1.5 million dollar bail has now been revoked and he will not see freedom unless acquitted at the trial to be scheduled later.

The Arrest:

Above is a mugshot of Homajean Grisham III from May 8th of this year when he was arrested outside Atlanta for Driving Under the Influence and other more minor traffic related offenses. Now the 34 year old resident of Cherokee has been arrested for Felony murder in the death of Jessica Nicole Bevis Broadfoot, 32, of North Florence. Her body was found in a vacant pasture at the 420 acre Grisham family farm on Fossik Lane in Cherokee.

The father of a nine year old girl from a previous relationship, Homajean preferred to be called Lee or his nickname “Danger.” Standing over six feet tall and weighing 200 pounds, Grisham could obviously be a danger if he so intended. Authorities state that Bevis-Broadfoot was beaten as well as stabbed.

Public records show that Homajean III was named for his grandfather, a co-owner of a large building supply store in Cherokee as well as a director with both Farm Bureau and Colonial Bank. He was also the first Shoals resident to be appointed to the Alabama Forestry Commission. Homajean Sr., who passed away in January 1989, also lends his name to a Northwest Shoals Community College scholarship for deserving graduates of Cherokee High School. It would appear that just having the same name was not enough to lead his grandson down a productive path.

Grisham is now being held in the Colbert County Jail on bail of 1.5 million dollars. This could be lowered early next week if his attorneys manage to schedule a reduction hearing. The amount is possibly this high due to his family’s assets making the prospect of flight extremely plausible.


Danger Had Many Faces:

Today is alleged killer Homajean “Danger” Grisham’s 35th birthday. He’ll be spending it in jail unless his family can come up with 1.5 million in bail. Danger’s Facebook page has a collection of snapshots of the Colbert County farming heir, most of them along the same theme. Besides these more prosaic shots, there’s also a photo of his crotch and a German Shepherd urinating on a scantily clad woman.

Homagean Grisham III, sometimes known as “Lee” or “Danger,” now faces a grand jury in the stabbing death of his on-again off-again girlfriend Jessica Bevis Broadfoot. PNS has learned that on the night she last saw Grisham, Broadfoot left her cell phone with her mother to keep. She reportedly stated that Grisham would scroll through her recent calls and become angered if she had contact with any males he didn’t know.

Authorities in California have indicated they will not extradite Grisham on pending charges of drug trafficking; however, they may reopen an investigation into the death of Grisham’s former girlfriend who died of a drug overdose while he was in the process of tying up loose ends at his former residence.

Homajean Grisham III may have been living a small town life at his family farm in Cherokee, but he had recently been residing as far from that Colbert County town as possible. It was only a matter of months ago that Grisham was living in Costa Mesa, California, where he ran afoul of the law for a crime of violence. On probation, Grisham returned to north Alabama where his parents and two children live.

Sources say it was Grisham’s father, Homajean Jr. aka Butch, who reported the murder of Jessica Bevis Broadfoot to authorities. When found, Grisham was reportedly covered in his girlfriend’s blood, as was the interior of his truck. Officers reported finding a bloody knife in his vehicle, as well as a second knife covered in blood lying by the victim’s body. It’s believed that Grisham’s record of violence is such that prosecutors can obtain a sentence of Life Without Parole even if Grisham is charged with only Felony Murder.


A Plea:

Homajean Grisham III, aka Lee, is currently under indictment for the murder of Jessica Nicole Broadfoot. On Thursday afternoon, Grisham, the grandson of a noted Colbert county philanthropist Homajean Grisham Sr., pleaded not guilty by reason of mental defect. Will it wash?

Such defenses rarely do save a defendant, but what does it mean? From a legal website: A person is considered insane and is not responsible for criminal conduct if, at the time of the offense, as a result of a severe mental disease or defect, he was unable to appreciate the nature and quality or the wrongfulness of his acts. Grisham’s trial date has not yet been set.


A Sentence:

Cherokee native Homajean Grisham III has accepted a plea deal in the Colbert County murder of his girlfriend Jessica Nicole Bevis Broadfoot. Grisham will be sentenced to 30 years and be given time for the almost three years he has served while awaiting trial.

The 37 year old Grisham will be eligible for parole consideration in seven years; however, any early release will almost surely be opposed by the Colbert County district attorney’s office.


A New Reality for Danger:

The man who dubbed himself “Danger” now rates only a medium security ranking in the Alabama Prison System. Homajean Grisham III, also known as the more innocuous “Lee,” is currently housed in the Bibb Correctional Center.

Grisham, now 39, pleaded guilty to Felony Murder in Colbert County in May of last year. The Cherokee man received a 30 year sentence in the death of his girlfriend Jessica Broadfoot, for which he receives no Correctional Incentive Time. He will be eligible for parole at some point, but no date has yet been set. His end of sentence date is June 22, 2043. Assuming Danger Grisham doesn’t make parole, he will be 65 years old when he returns to his North Alabama home.

Methodist Minister & Convicted Pedophile Oliver Brazelle

The following account has been taken from various websites and used with permission:

From January 2014:

Oliver Brazelle, 78, is facing at least three charges of sexual impropriety with underage males. Much has recently been written about these events, but little of Brazelle himself. Here’s a short bio of the former Methodist youth minister, partially taken from a 2006 interview with the long-time church employee:

Brazelle is a Florence native.
He attended Brandon Elementary and Coffee High Schools.
He attended Florence State Teachers College and was an officer for the school’s choir.
He began duties at Sheffield’s United Methodist Church at the age of 22.
He originally planned to work with the Sheffield congregation for only two years.
His first assignment was as Youth Director, a position he assumed in October 1956.
He founded the church’s first Children’s Choir.
A few years later, Brazelle founded the Youth Choir for older children.
He eventually assumed duties as director of the Adult Choir.
At one time, Brazelle had a total of nine youth oriented choirs under his direction.
He took one youth choir on summer tours, visiting many major US cities and traveling to Europe in 1986.
Brazelle’s hobby is spelunking and he often took youth groups to explore local caves.
He was named unofficially as the “Dean of District Music Directors.”
He formed a singing group composed of local businessmen called “The Wait a Minutes.”
He was relieved of duties as Youth Director in 2003.
He became the subject of a private investigation in 2012.

***** 

Former youth and music minister of Sheffield United Methodist Church, Oliver Brazelle, has been arrested in Lauderdale County on charges of sexual abuse of a young boy. Brazelle previously faced at least three similar charges in Sheffield in 2012. Originally, 10 men came forward with charges, but only three agreed to testify in court. Later, the three men who had initially agreed to testify against Brazelle declined to do so. If convicted of the charges that spanned 40 years, the 79 year old Brazelle could face up to 20 years in prison and be required to register as a sex offender upon his release. 

***** 

From August 2014:

As I walk a long the Bois de Boulogne with an independent air,
You can hear the girls declare,
He must be a millionaire,
You can hear them sigh and wish to die,
You can see them wink the other eye
At the man that broke the bank at Monte Carlo.

Early this afternoon, two men walked away from the Lauderdale County Courthouse. The first looked fit, tanned, and probably Praxeled. Following closely behind Florence attorney Ralph Holt was his antithesis, an elderly man, excruciatingly thin and leaning heavily on a cane. A faint smile graced the face of Oliver Brazelle as Holt spoke briefly with this writer’s companion who had finished law school school with Ralph’s father. 

Yet Brazelle is now in what could be called a fight for his life. If convicted of the crimes of second degree sexual abuse and sodomy, the 81 year-old Brazelle could finish his days in a state prison facility. The maximum sentence the former youth and music minister could receive would be 20 years, but it’s doubtful a judge would levy such punishment on one with no previous record. While rumors have abounded about similar crimes in Sheffield, only one alleged victim has come forward to press charges, and that was in Lauderdale where Brazelle once owned a lake home.

The witness list for the trial appears long, with at least one Methodist bishop being called to testify. Today’s court appearance involved, among other issues, a piece of evidence that spoke to motive. Holt contends that motive in the case is not an issue. No…the motive in the crime, assuming it actually happened, is quite clear. Brazelle’s trial is scheduled for August 10th.

*****

Former Methodist youth minister of Sheffield, Oliver Brazelle, unexpectedly pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a minor on Wednesday afternoon. The 81 year-old Brazelle was originally charged with crimes that could have led to a 20 year sentence, but his plea assures his total time will be no more than half that.

While Brazelle has not yet been sentenced, Assistant District Attorney Will Powell, who along with the victim’s family accepted the elderly man’s plea, has mentioned “jail time.” Obviously Powell knows the difference between jail and prison. Is this where the sentencing will be heading? If Brazelle receives less than a year total incarceration time, his sentence would be served in the Lauderdale Detention Center. Vina coach Sonny Tibbs, convicted of illicit sex with a minor, is currently serving his time in the Marion County Jail. Even a sentence of over a year may be served locally under certain circumstances. Brazelle is not eligible for community corrections, but it’s not unheard of for a state prisoner to do his/her time locally, as one Lauderdale County woman convicted of investment fraud did only a few years ago.

Brazelle will again appear before Judge Gil Self in October. Self has told the aging former youth/music minister to have his affairs in order. It’s a sad end for what most thought was a life dedicated to serving God.

*****

 Some Insight into Oliver Brazelle Crimes/Sentencing

It is my understanding that Oliver will most likely serve time at Hamilton Aged & Infirm Center, which is a facility that normally cares for elderly or sickly prisoners. The plea agreement has been submitted to the judge, who will review and decide whether he agrees with the terms of the plea agreement. He could approve as is, or could impose what he thinks is a more appropriate sentence.

I do not know the name of the victim in this case, nor do I care to know, but it seems to me this young man has acted in a brave way, to put his allegations forward and to stick with them all the way. I believe the fact that Oliver was removed from his position as youth minister, but was kept as a church employee, contributed to many of his victims’ fears that “no one would believe them.” It took a lot of guts (and probably lengthy and expensive therapy) to stand up and accuse Oliver.

No matter what sentence Oliver receives, he will deserve a longer one, but at his age and with his serious health issues, he likely won’t come out of there alive. Compared to doing hard time in a real prison, Hamilton AIC will be a piece of cake, but Oliver won’t know the difference. He’s already suffering dementia, or so I hear.The harshest sentence, the one Oliver must have feared the most, was losing his elevated position in the community, along with the respect and admiration of so many church-goers. I was one of those, long ago, and could not possibly be more disappointed in him. He will no longer make beautiful music, nor will he enjoy the company of family and old friends. He will leave all those blessings behind. It took decades to bring Oliver to this and I, for one, am grateful justice will be served up to him on October 7, 2015.

Not only do I feel personally betrayed, because I had thought so well of Oliver since the late 1950’s, but I feel betrayed on behalf of a good friend who is now deceased. One of the last messages I received from my friend reviled Oliver for what he did to him as a young boy. It had been hard for me to believe his accusations, which were private and not public, but his story had not changed over a number of years.

After a time I did believe his accusations and I said to my friend, who knew he was dying, that Oliver was old and weak and suffering from heart disease; that he could no longer cause him harm. My words seemed to help him, or at least he said it meant something to think of Oliver as weak instead of as a force. He kept his experiences with Oliver secret for over 50 years and I believe he suffered from shame and fear, not to mention anger and fury, the entire time. He told me many times that Oliver always threatened, “No one will believe you.”

So, none of that can be undone. But it means something to me that Oliver will be held accountable, however long or short his sentence may be. It is important that Oliver knows he has this permanent scar on his precious sterling reputation. I should have said, instead of I am grateful Oliver will be served justice, that I am grateful to the heroic young man who brought him to justice.

*****

Oliver Brazelle, 81, is currently housed in the Bibb County Correctional Facility. The former Sheffield youth minister is serving a two year term for sexual abuse in Lauderdale County. His release date is October 5, 2017. Classed as an Adult sex offender under the Alabama Sex Offender Registration and Community Notification Act, he is not eligible for WR, CWC or minimum custody.

Two weeks later:

Earlier this month, Oliver Brazelle was returned to Lauderdale Circuit Court where he was transferred to Community Corrections. The 81 year old former Methodist youth minister is serving a two year sentence for enticing a child. He was formerly held in the state prison system.

And the end:

Convicted sex offender Oliver Brazelle has died. Brazelle, 81, was serving a two year sentence in relation to crimes against young men who were ostensibly in his ministerial care. His death was confirmed this morning by the Lauderdale County District Attorney’s office. Had he lived, he would have been free in October 2017.

Despite being convicted of a sex crime, Brazelle was allowed to leave hardcore prison after a few months and to serve the remainder of his sentence in community corrections. The former Methodist youth minister had kept a low profile during these past few months.

The funeral for Oliver Brazelle is today at Elkins Funeral Home in Florence. Services are reported to be private and no details have been given out to the press. One person deeply affected by Brazelle’s crimes stated:  

I would like to make sure he is in the ground.

 

Ryan Kent Pollard: From D.A.'s Grandson to Abuser to Drugged Up Gun Thief

Ryan Kent Pollard was born into what should have been a life of privilege. His mother was the daughter of former Marion County district attorney Alvis E. Tidwell. Unfortunately, her bad marriage to bank robber Ronald Eugene Pollard took its toll on the children of that union. 

Ryan, now 27, has been on paper in the Alabama legal system since he graduated from high school in Lauderdale County. Hoping to help his young grandson, Tidwell, who practices law in Hamilton, took Ryan into his home. He hasn't been the only one to do so, but like everyone who has befriended Pollard, he's lived to regret it.

We're publishing the following Pen-N-Sword October 2016 account of Ryan's early crimes here in full, with that publication's permission:

*****

Update: Earlier this month, Ryan Kent Pollard was returned to the Lauderdale County Detention Center and ordered held without bond. His official charge is “work release violation;” however, a source with state probation has indicated the specific charge is one of domestic violence against his most recent girlfriend. PNS will update this article if more information becomes available.

From August 2016:

Ryan Kent Pollard is 26 years old and has already accumulated at least four domestic violence arrests…not to mention his drug and property crimes. One of the first arrests for this Brooks High graduate was five years ago when he was arrested in Marion County for possession of illegal drugs. A theft charge followed.

Then in 2012, his crimes turned violent. Court records show that Pollard attacked his live-in girlfriend in November 2012. An argument had ensued after the young woman asked Pollard to wake up and get out of bed. Pollard then reportedly grabbed the young woman, threw her against the headboard, and began to strangle her. When the woman managed to free herself, Pollard produced a gun, placed it in her mouth, and threatened to kill her.

The young woman struggled to free herself a second time and attempted to seek safety in a closet. Pollard managed to open the door and then close it on his girlfriend’s hand, breaking it in the process. The woman ultimately escaped and ended her relationship with Pollard, who racked up Third, Second, and First Degree Domestic Violence Charges.

While the young woman considered her relationship with Pollard to be over, he apparently didn’t see it that way. While under a court order to avoid his ex-girlfriend, he followed her to a small concert venue and attempted to detain her. He was again arrested.

Now a convicted felon, Pollard was homeless after his latest incarceration and moved in with the family of his next unsuspecting victim, whom he married in November 2015. By December, Pollard was working only sporadically and had missed a regular probation meeting/drug test. He was arrested, but soon bailed out.

By April, Pollard had become controlling and abusive in his new marriage, and his wife left, fearing for her own safety. After deciding that divorce was the only option, Pollard’s wife attempted to meet with him at his apartment to discuss the arrangements. Pollard then physically detained the young woman against her will and spoke of suicide. The young woman managed to escape via a back door and call a family member who phoned the authorities. Pollard had managed to chalk up his third domestic violence arrest as well as another charge of not checking in with his probation officer for a routine drug test.

Pollard was released on the understanding he would attend Peace Program classes and have no contact with his soon-to-be-ex-wife. A month later, Pollard was again arrested for failure to meet with his probation officer, but was released still again under the same terms.

He abided by those restrictions for three months. On August 11^th, Pollard visited the UNA campus, ostensibly to seek out his estranged wife. While the contents of the arrest report have not yet been made public, UNA police charged Pollard with a violation of the protection order. The next day he was also charged with other probation violations. He remains in the Lauderdale County Detention Center as of Sunday morning.

Update: Pollard was released from custody on August 23, 2016. PNS will update the disposition of this case once records become available.

***** 

After Pollard's last release from the Lauderdale County Detention Center, he worked only sporadically and crashed at the homes of whatever friends would give him refuge. Needing a place to stay for the night, Pollard called his grandfather in Hamilton and asked to visit.

No one can be sure what Tidwell was thinking when he agreed, but we can be sure what Pollard was contemplating. When Tidwell awoke the next morning, his grandson was gone and so was his expensive gun collection. Stolen guns are worth their weight in gold on the black market, often making their way to Chicago or Detroit within 24 hours. In other words, the drug-addicted Ryan Pollard was set financially for a few months, but what about the long term?

Pollard announced on his Facebook page that a friend had stolen cash he had put aside to pay on fines and that he would probably soon be returning to jail in Lauderdale County. In reality, Pollard had spent every dollar on drugs and was desperate for cash.

It's hardly an unusual path from drug addict to drug dealer, and it's one that Lawrence County, Tennessee, law enforcement think he's taken. In late August of this year, Pollard was arrested in Lawrenceburg with needles and other drug paraphernalia after disposing of a large amount of drugs authorities believe to be heroin, oxycodone, or a combination of drugs. 

Since law enforcement was unable to produce the evidence of drug dealing...or even more tellingly trafficking...Pollard was sentenced to a few months in the Lawrence County Jail for possession of drug paraphernalia and evidence tampering. For whatever reason, Pollard is expected to leave jail a few weeks early and will be released on October 28th pending further incidents.

Why does Ryan Kent Pollard rate a place in Shoals Crime among the murderers and rapists? Pollard has more arrests and convictions for assaults on women than any Shoals resident our blog has ever encountered. Friends of the Brooks High graduate tell us these incidents were all drug fueled.

We don't doubt that drugs exacerbate Pollard's anger toward society in general and women in particular. What we do doubt at this point is Pollard's ability to turn his life around.

Jon Thomas Wallis: Ink Slinger, Stalker, Trafficker, Would-Be Wife Killer?

Jon Thomas Wallis is many things to many people. Unfortunately for Wallis, to the Alabama Department of Corrections, he's a number.

Ink Slinger:

Those familiar with the art of tattooing would obviously call Jon Thomas Wallis an accomplished practitioner. Wallis himself liked the name "Ink Slinger" well enough to have it permanently inscribed on his neck.

 

Stalker:

Early on Monday morning September 7, 2009, Wallis was in a Florence bar where he had a documented altercation with another man. During the next few days, Wallis was accused of attempting to find the man, threatening two separate individuals, and going so far as to break into a mutual friend's home to find information on the man's whereabouts.

Florence Police arrested Jon Thomas Wallis for stalking, making terrorist threats, and burglary. Was he found not guilty? No, it seems for whatever reason, a grand jury did not indict Wallis. According to legal sources, the grand jury could have considered that all testimony came from friends of the alleged victim, or that possibly the investigating officer was unable to testify for whatever reason. This in itself proves Wallis neither innocent nor guilty.


Trafficker:

In October 2010, police arrested Wallis and his wife on charges of trafficking in marijuana. Authorities found drugs having a street value of $75,000.00 in their modest apartment, along with two hand guns, three rifles, and a large amount of ammunition.

In October 2011, Jon Thomas Wallis, having been convicted of the trafficking charge, was sentenced to 15 years, with three to serve and 12 on probation. The charges against Tanya Marie Wallis were dropped. 


Would-Be Wife Killer:

Jon Thomas Wallis of Florence was well known to police before he allegedly shot his wife during a domestic dispute. Wallis, 31 in 2011, claimed his wife Tanya Marie Wallis, then 28, shot herself in the bedroom of their Quail Run Apartment located off Chisholm Road.

According to a local paramedic, even though Mrs. Wallis sustained severe head injuries, the weather on April 27th prevented her being transported to the NICU at Huntsville Hospital. After treatment at ECM, Mrs. Wallis improved rapidly and spoke with Florence police who promptly arrested the Ink Slinger.
  

In December 2011, a Lauderdale County jury convicted Wallis of the attempted murder of his wife, a Class A felony. In February 2012, a Lauderdale County Circuit Court judge gave the local tattoo artist a sentence of life with the chance of parole. Tommy Wallis had previously seemed to admire tattoos of guns; we doubt he feels the same way now.

 

Jon Thomas Wallis won't be eligible for parole until April 2026. Those who wish to go on record as opposing Wallis' parole may write:

Alabama Board of Pardons & Paroles
Re: Jon Thomas Wallis, AIS 280574
Post Office Box 302405
Montgomery, Alabama 36130-2405
Telephone: (334) 353-7771, 353-8067
FAX: (334) 242-1809

The above account was taken from blogs originally published in Shoalanda Speaks.