The Advocate-Messenger from Danville, Kentucky • 7

THE ADVOCATE MESSENGER Danville Kentucky Wednesday June 10 1987 7 Mother arrested charged in murder of missing child UNION CITY Tenn (AP) The arrest of a mother on charges she killed her 4 year old daughter and dumped her body into a river has spawned mixed feelings among some of the people who spent nearly two months looking for the girl Clara Wyrick founder of the ind Marlena Childress Commit tee said Tuesday she has not yet given up her hope Marlena could still be alive even though the mother Pam Childress Bailey told authorities she accidentally killed the girl are just too many loose ends We still have a said Mrs Wyrick of nearby Mayfield Ky a friend of the missing grandparents The group was made up of hun dreds of volunteers in Tennessee Kentucky and neighboring states who searched for Marlena since she was reported missing April 16 Mrs Bailey 22 was arrested Monday night after telling authorities she accidentally killed the child and then disposed of her body in the nearby Obion River said Obion County Sheriff Nathan Cunningham Search teams began dragging the Obion River on Tuesday authorities said been suspected all the time that something right She just finally broke Cunn ingham said Union City Police Chief David Rhoades said Mrs Bailey was charged with second degree murder which can bring a prison sentence of 10 years to life Mrs Wyrick said a private in vestigator told her that sometimes a distraught mother might confess to a crime she did not commit am not saying that is what happened I am just saying we need to wait and she said Mrs Wyrick said the search committee will continue to exist until she is satisfied that authorities have a case against Mrs Bailey The commmittee headed by Mrs Wyrick has spent nearly all of the $10000 it raised to look for the girl Alan Pearce owner of a Union City grocery store near home said area residents are angry over Mrs arrest heard anyone who has sympathy with the he said are really upset There have been a lot of sugges tions about what they should do with Mrs Bailey told authorities that in a fit of anger she slapped her daughter who fell hit her head on a table and died She told police she called a man she knew to help her get rid of the body Rhoades who declined to release the name said the man was questioned by police but was not arrested Mrs Bailey is divorced from father Kevin Childress 24 of Martin and is remarried Neither her former husband nor current husband is a suspect in the case Rhoades said Speculation that Marlena had been kidnapped while playing near her home in Union City led volunteers to blanket the region with fliers carrying her picture and description AP Photo "Wk This April 17 photo shows Pam Bailey and Kevin Childress the divorced parents of 4 year old Marlena Childress the day after the child was reported missing from her Union City Tenn home The search for the child has involved hundreds of volunteers in Tennessee and Kentucky Mrs Bailey was in police custody Tuesday after authorities said she told authorities that she killed the youngster Mrs Bailey reported the child missing and made tearful pleas through the news media for her return have a right to keep her" she said mine and I know she wants to come The missing relatives posted a $10000 reward blow ups of her picture were plastered on tractor trailer rigs dispatched by a west Tennessee company and volunteers in Union City and Mayfield released several thou sand helium balloons carrying the child's description Panel likely to say state should keep its prison farms By CHARLES WOLE Associated Press Writer RANKORT Ky (AP) A legislative subcommittee ap parently will recommend keeping prison farms under the Corrections Cabinet instead of handing them over to a private contractor But the lawmakers want a strict accounting system installed at the four farms including one at Nor thpoint Training Center which have been plagued by a near absence of record keeping and some serious thought about eliminating the biggest money losers among farm programs Rep Bill Lear a Lexington Democrat who chairs the Subcom mittee on Prison arms on Tues day ordered the staff to draft a report recommending the farms but with some changes and improved The order followed receipt of a state audit that said the farms are and having lost $12 million in fiscal 1985 and 1986 The Corrections Cabinet disagreed saying the losses mir rored a national decline in the farm economy in those two years and were when compared to the costs of other programs for keeping 320 in mates busy or the past eight months the subcommittee has been the forum for a debate about whether the prison farms should be turned over to a private contractor who would attempt to turn a profit provide work for inmates and some food for the prison system regardless pf cost or be closed with the state purchasing all food The absence of good records from the farms has frustrated the study An accounting system being devised by experts at the Universi ty of Kentucky College of Agriculture will be in place no later than the end of the year Ken neth Dressman the director of administrative ser vices told the subcommittee The farms cover about 5800 acres near LaGrange Lexington Burgin and redonia producing beef pork milk eggs apples and vegetables The Western Ken tucky arm Center at redonia and Roederer arm Center at LaGrange also have canning and freezing facilities The audit zeroed in on the poultry operations which cost nearly $285000 provided work for only eight inmates and did not pro duce enough eggs The audit said 288006 dozen eggs were produced at 99 cents per dozen a loss of 40 cents per dozen The cabinet had to buy an addi tional 93510 dozen eggs during the period at 59 cents per dozen The audit said poultry opera tions should be abandoned and Corrections Secretary George Wilson in his response said the recommendation would receive The auditors recommended disposing of the dairy herd at Roederer and Western Kentucky to which Wilson disagreed He agreed with recommenda tions to continue swine operations and meat processing and to ex pand beef orchard and cannery operations Committees make suggestions for constitutional revision MONTH MAY 1987 MY BUDDY A (The tivocntc 4Hc55CTigcr extend to city and county govern ments to impose any tax they wish including such things as in come taxes and sales taxes Some of the ideas for constitu tional changes have been tried before though in slightly different form The education subcommit tee recommended removing the superintendent of public instruc tion from among the ranks of elected offices and having the post appointed by the state board of education Unlike the amendment on the subject that was defeated by the voters in 1986 the state board would have seven elected members and six appointed by the governor Howerton said is how those recommendations will be packag ed and whether they should be pro posed to the voters piecemeal in the four amendments allowed every other year or handled all at once in a formal constitutional convention By MARK CHELLGREN Associated Press Writer RANKORT Ky (AP) Kentucky has had four constitu tions during its history and the current one though it has lasted nearly a century is becoming no more popular than the others A special commission studying the document on Tuesday took up suggested revisions to the over whelming majority of its 263 sections The Commission on Constitu tional Review was created in early ebruary by the Legislative Research Commission but has not met as a full group since then In Some of the subcommittee recommendations are certain to cause widespread controversy One for example would delete the provision for local option elec tions in determining whether to sell alcoholic beverages in specific areas and leave the rules to the could see this almost becom ing a wet and dry said former Gov Bert Combs a commission member Other proposals may be less emotional but no less controversial On the pocketbook issue of taxa tion one subcommittee recom mended allowing the legislature to Andy McCoy your Advocate Messenger paperboy is proud to announce that Jim Wilson Jr was our Car rier of the Month for May Jim is a fine example of the kind of carrier that The Advocate takes pride in work ing with Congratualtions! If you are interested in becoming a Carrier for The Advocate Messenger call 236 2551 for more information CARRIER THE the interim six subcommittees have been reviewing the general areas of state government local government revenue and taxa tion education and human ser vices corporations and the bill of rights and elections Chief Judge William Hower ton of the Court of Appeals who chairs the commission said the panel will eventually make recom mendations to the General Assembly for specific changes in the constitution Those sugges tions will be ranked in order of importance What is yet to be determined BW 1 I 1 I fl Ray's Market 14 Stanford Str Danville ipLIy wk' A9O Open: Mon Sat 7:307:30 ZA 1 Sun 10:000:00 We Deliver 9 11 am 9 4 pm 6 days a week We Accept ood Stamps At Ray's Where It Pays" Ray's Beef is Aged ree Bas off ill your reezer Ice with our with $10 order 10 Lb Meat Sale 1st Cut Lb $149 Lb $139 Boiled ma Sirloin pHam Steak J289 resh Asparagus Lettuce 59 129 Peaches49 Ray's Pit Opening Thursday 6 AM 10 PM 936 9545 Try our Steak 4 Biscuit or Tenderloin Biscuit And Hot Coffee for Breakfast Complete line of Bar Que Pork Ckicken or Beef By the piece or pound dine with os on our A ehc 3ii uocnlc JHcsscngcr.