The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 145, No. 4, Ed. 1 Saturday, March 14, 1998 Page: 1 of 12
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BPD officer to take on county animal problem
By Jason Suchomal
OSOR WIWI
Bastrop County will soon
have a familiar face to tackle its
ever-growing stray animal
problem.
Officials on Thursday an-
nounced that they win recom-
mend to commissioners that
Bastrop Police Department
Animal Control Officer Betty
Wade be hired to head up the
county's animal control depart-
ment.
Though the position will be
filled next month, Wade will not
begin actively flckihg up ani-
mals until the county has a site
in which to hold them.
Wade, who has 13 years ex-
perience in animal control, will
handle all animal-related calls
outside of Bastrop, Smithville
and Elgin city limits. Her de- “We had many qualified ap-
partment will not be affiliated plicants and some could possi-
with the Bastrop County Sher- bly be chosen to work with
iffs Office. . Betty,” he said.
on tjoara wen we ante to attack sup ne wm oegm tne searcn tor
the animal problem in the Bede's replacement as soon as
county,” said Commissioner he receives a formal resignation.
Johnny Sanders. “It's a very important position
Sanders praised Wade's expe- for the city,” Anderson said,
hence and character and said
she was a perfect fit for the job. Soo WADE, Page 2
Manslaughter
nets 8 years
in state prison
By Davis McAuley
Editor
A Cedar Creek man was
sentenced Friday to eight years
in prison for intoxication
manslaughter in the traffic death
last fall of 21-year-old Annie
Weatherall, a senior at the Uni-
versity of Texas at Austin.
A jury returned guilty ver-
dicts against Guadalupe Del-
gado, 49, Friday morning for
intoxication manslaughter and
intoxication assault.
The same jury of eight
women and four men returned
its punishment verdict about
5:30 p.m. following almost
three hours of deliberation.
Trial testimony indicated that
Delgado had a blood alcohol
level of 0.25 some two hours
after the 7:30 p.m. accident
September 7 on Texas 71 at
Tucker Hill Lane west of Bas-
trop. In Texas a driver is legally
drunk with a blood alcohol level
of 0.10.
Prosecutors argued that Del-
gado pulled his 1984 Oldsmo-
bile into the west bound lane of
Texas 71 where it was struck by
the motorcycle driven by Robert
Ritchey, 25, of Austin.
Weatherall, Ritchey's fiancee,
was a passenger on the motor-
cycle.
Ritchey spent almost two
months in Austin hospitals fol-
lowing the crash and still suffers
from his injuries, he told the
jury. Weatherall died on the
way to a hospital in a Star Flight
helicopter.
Delgado, the father of six
children, could have been sen-
tenced to as much as 20 years in
prison for Weatherall's death.
Defense attorneys asked for
probation, citing Delgado's 24
years as a legal U.S. resident
without any prior felony or mis-
demeanor convictions or
charges.
Mary Weatherall, the dead
woman's mother, briefly told the
jury how the death has affected
her life. “It’s come as close to
destroying my life as anything
could,” she said. “She was my
only child, my best friend. She
was my proudest accomplish-
ment, and she's gone.”
Mary Weatherall said she
was wearing her daughter's
clothes as she testified. “It's like
having a hug from her,” she
said.
Robert Ritchey also de-
scribed the accident's effect on
his life before the jury retired to
decide on punishment. “The
worst thing is losing the woman
See TRIAL, Page 2
Elgin heist
Armed robber placed on probation
A jury in Bastrop sentenced a
29-year-old man Thursday to 10
years probation and a $300 fine
for taking part in the armed rob-
bery of an Elgin convenience
store last August
District Attorney Charles
Penick said the jury's punish-
ment verdict was a stunning dis-
appointment
The owner of the Stop *N
Shop on U.S. 290 identified
Arthur Lee Benford as one of
two men who entered the store
about 7:40 a.m. August 18, one
of whom brandished a pistol and
demanded money, the man re-
called.
The owner denied the sug-
gestion of defense attorney
Howard Jenkins Jr. that Benford
was selected, from a police
photo line-up because he was a
regular customer and thus a fa-
miliar face.
Benford's alleged companion
in the caper, whom trial testi-
mony indicated was the gun-
man, is scheduled for a later
trial, said Assistant District At-
torney Paul Haymes.
Under Texas law, each par-
ticipant in a crime is equally re-
sponsible
This week's trial was
presided over by visiting Dis-
trict Judge Don Morgan of
Austin.
Key defense testimony dur-
ing the punishment phase of the
trial came from Bastrop psy-
chologist Dr. Cedi Reynolds
who was called in to evaluate
Benford after reported suicide
threats while be was being held
in Bastrop County Jail.
Reynolds testified that stan-
dard psychological tests re-
vealed that Benford's intelli-
gence was on the borderline
between normal and retarded.
That testimony apparently in-
fluenced the jury’s punishment
decision, said Haymes.
Benford had no previous
felony record.
ON TO STATE
Mina Elementary's Create and Animate team attended the Odyssey of the Mind Competition
aariter thia month and won that ptoco. Next they wW compete In tha alate competition. For more
on the team, see pogo 2.
Smithville ISD hears proposals for possible school expansion
The Smithvifle School Board
received proposals this week
from an architectural firm on
“One of the primary prob-
lems with that is there's not
enough room for expansion,” he
said.
Another plan is to build a
new campus to replace one of
die existing ones.
Tom said! a facilities study
committee spent last week
studying the district's campuses
and win make a remmmmda
tion as early as next month.
The facilities committee has
also been studying surrounding
districts that have recently
If necessary, Tom said, the
district may call for a bond
election in September.
izismct omciais are coosio-
ering four lots on which to build
a new campus. Tom said all four
are on or near city limits.
Tom said the district's current
facilities are operating at capac-
ity.
Enrollment for the district
climbed 7.7 percent this year,
from 1597 to 1721.
If the trend continues, those
figures can be expected to rise,
as the freshman class makes up
35 percent of the high school
The senior, junior and
sophomore classes have the
three smallest enrollments of ail
grade levels of the district
In other action, the board re-
viewed bids on a new cooling
system for the high school gym-
nasium.
Two types of air conditioning
units are being considered, with
bids ranging from $41,495 to
$66,784.
NSIDE
■ Bears soccer
team falls.
See Page 6
■ Complete recap
of election results.
See Page 2
WEATHER
■ Saturday’s forecast:
Sixty percent chance of rain
with a high of 65 degrees and a
low of 50.
B Provided toy MEGAN HESEMAM
four#>-gradbrMMh« EtonwnSvy and
KXAN School MMatfwr Notwot*
■ Last week:
High
Low
Proc.
Wednesday 65
30
norm
Thursday 49
40
.06
Friday 60
43
.10
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McAuley, Davis. The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 145, No. 4, Ed. 1 Saturday, March 14, 1998, newspaper, March 14, 1998; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1177366/m1/1/: accessed July 8, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Bastrop Public Library.