Other days
100 YEARS AGO
Jan. 13, 1919 CONWAY — When does a pistol cease to be a pistol? This is one question which the Faulkner Circuit Court will have to settle at its next regular session. Justice G. M. Easterwood of the city ruled on the charge brought against Justice J. M. Baker of Mount Vernon, who was brought into court on a charge of having sold a pistol in violation of the statutes of Arkansas, that a pistol is a pistol even if it is sold by a fellow-justice. The pistol in question, however, was shown to be of an ancient make, wheezy in the joints and fit for nothing better than a place in the junk pile. Judge Easterwood held it to be a pistol, however, and fined Justice Baker the minimum fine of $50.
50 YEARS AGO
Jan. 13, 1969
The body of an unidentified man was recovered from the Arkansas River Friday at the David D. Terry Lock and Dam downstream from Little Rock, the Pulaski County sheriff ’s office reported Sunday. Chief Deputy Cliff Lamb said there was no evidence of foul play and no bruises or wounds on the body. Officials said the body was found by workers at the lock and dam about 3 p.m. … Lamb estimated that the body had not been in the river more than four or five days.
25 YEARS AGO
Jan. 13, 1994 Despite objections from some members, the NAACP’s Little Rock chapter has decided to allow gang members to march in its parade Monday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The decision came Tuesday after the group’s president, Dale Charles, called for a vote. Voting is not the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People chapter’s usual method of selecting parade participants, Charles acknowledged. But the action was “the only way to resolve this” because some members thought allowing rival gangs to march could result in violence, he said. Several gang members said Wednesday that they will leave their guns at home when they march to honor King, though one said he would keep his firearm nearby “just in case.” Members of the Bloods, Crips, Vice Lords, Folks and other gangs are expected to march, bicycle and ride in cars carrying banners and posters displaying gang affiliations, Charles said.
10 YEARS AGO
Jan. 13, 2009 BENTON — Kirk Lane, Benton’s newly appointed police chief, kept his job Monday night after the City Council heard impassioned pleas from several residents who pointed to claims that he was involved in the suspicious deaths of two teenagers in 1987. In a rare move, the council met in executive session to discuss Lane’s employment. The vote to overturn his appointment was five to five, with a two-thirds majority needed for action. … Several area residents, including the mother of one of the boys whose bodies was found on the railroad tracks, told City Council members they can’t trust Lane and that his appointment threatens the credibility of the Police Department and the city.