Progress made on jail construction
Concrete blocks have been put down at the new jail site located in the Bedford Industrial Park.
Ashley Pipkins
By Chad Fell
Courtesy of the Northwest Alabamian
HALEYVILLE — A man wanted on escape charges from Marion County was in the wrong place at the wrong time on Wednesday, Feb. 1, in Haleyville.
Arrested during a traffic stop on Highway 13 at 18th Street in Haleyville was Ashley Dewayne Pipkins, 46, of Haleyville, who has been charged with trafficking methamphetamine (possessing 28 grams or greater) and possession of marijuana second degree, according to Haleyville Police Investigator Lt. Eddie Collins.
From left, Bob Burleson, Keith Nichols, Dale Holt, Angela Berry, Kevin Williams and Tim “Ears” Estes break ground on the new Marion County Jail facility in Hamilton. Not pictured is Commissioner Kenneth Cochran.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — Marion County Sheriff Kevin Williams and the Marion County Commission joined with government officials and leaders in the county to celebrate the groundbreaking of the new Marion County Jail in Hamilton.
The event took place at the future jail site located at the Bedford Industrial park in Hamilton located near Marion County DHR Friday, Nov. 4.
Groundbreaking for the new jail will be Friday, Nov. 4, at 10 a.m. at the Bedford Industrial Park. Shown is the old jail.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — In a decision that may have been too close for comfort, the Marion County Commission voted to award several bids that signals the official start of the Marion County Jail construction.
Commissioners had eight bid packages on the table for their meeting on Monday, Oct. 24, at the commission office in Hamilton.
Bids were opened just last month, giving commissioners the cost of contracts for general works, detention and security, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, concrete, masonry and sitework to be done for the new jail facility.
Marion County projects $1.9 million surplus in this fiscal year’s budget.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON —Things are looking up at the perfect time financially for the Marion County Commission. With the new Marion County Jail looming over the county's head, things have seemingly been looking negative due to the high cost of the jail’s construction.
According to the county's approved budget for 2023, however, Marion County is in the best financial shape it has been in quite some time.
Andrew Jackson, president of WAR Construction, is shown opening a bid package during a Marion County Commission bid opening for the new Marion County Jail in Hamilton.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — The new Marion County Jail in Hamilton is a giant step closer to having a price tag on it after bids were opened for the project on Thursday, Sept. 22, at the commission office in Hamilton.
Many were present during the bid opening, including Marion County Sheriff Kevin Williams, who has been waiting desperately for the new building to be completed.
Chris Yielding
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — Two Hamilton residents died after a murder and suicide shooting involving a murder suspect who was out on bail.
Chris Yielding, 43, and his father, Charles Yielding, 80, were reported dead to emergency dispatchers by Chris Yielding’s mother on Monday, Sept. 19, at 3:15 a.m.
Yielding was arrested in August of 2020 for the murder of his partner Mandy Dozier and was released from the Marion County Jail in Hamilton on Jan. 25, 2022, on a bond amount of $506,000.