The Montgomery Advertiser du lieu suivant : Montgomery, Alabama • 11

Ji MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA TUESDAY. APRIL 22, 1986 PAGE 11A High Court Lets Child Pornography Conviction Stand ALABAMA DIGEST tory of the country that someone has been punished for having the material in the privacy of their own home," Carroll said. At issue in the case is a 1984 amendment to the Child Protection Act passed by Congress to combat the nation's multimillion-dollar child pornography and child prostitution industry. The 1977 law made it a crime to knowingly receive child pornography materials books, magazines, films and the like "for the purposes of sale or distribution for sale." The 1984 amendment eliminated the so-called commercial purposes section of the law. As interpreted by the 11th U.S.

Circuit Court of Appeals in Miller's case, the law now makes it a crime to receive such materials even for private, non-commercial uses. Associated Press Report The U.S. Supreme Court Monday let stand the conviction and 10-year prison sentence given to a Montgomery man accused of receiving in the mail a booklet depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct Wallace Merrell Miller, 42, who was arrested in his home two years ago by federal agents, had argued that the law used to convict him violated his privacy rights. Miller's attorney, John Carroll, who currently teaches law at Mercer College in Macon, said the decision allows a "bad precedent" from the lower courts to stand. "The law had always been that if you transported or It is the first case in the his Miller has been free on bond pending the outcome of his appeal.

Miller could not be reached immediately for comment "The statute is designed to dry up the market for child pornography." Bell said. "Children are exploited and abused" when the materials are produced. Only Justices William J. Brennan and Thur-good Marshall voted to hear Miller's appeal. Four votes are needed to grant such review.

Miller's appeal relied heavily on a 1969 Supreme Court decision in which the justices ruled that the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution's First Amendment prevent making it a crime to possess obscene materials in one's home. According to court records. Miller ordered a child pornography booklet from Europe and had it delivered to his post office mailbox in August 1984. He took it home and kept it there until federal agents, carrying a search warrant, two months later seized the booklet and arrested Miller. There was no evidence that Miller intended to distribute, sell or trade the booklet "Our argument was that it was a right to privacy," Carroll said.

Nevertheless, Miller was convicted and given the maximum penalty under the law, a 10-year prison sentence. U.S. Attorney John Bell said Monday that Ex-fax Collector In Hot Water Again With State Auditors By ALVIN BENN Advertiser Staff Writer State accountants again have cited former Perry County Tax Collector Clementine Essex for shortages of more than $10,000. Building a Church A couple of workmen do their part in the con- completed later this year, is being built at the struction of the new Vaughn Park Church of corner of Vaughn Road and Perry Hill Road. Christ.

The church, which is scheduled to be Charges Against Probate Judge Upheld State Troopers Endorse Evans For AG's Office The Alabama State Troopers Association, which represents more than 600 highway patrolmen, has unofficially endorsed Montgomery County District Attorney Jimmy Evans for attorney general. In January, the 23-member board of directors unanimously passed a resolution stating "Alabama needs a man such as Jimmy Evans as attorney general," according to association president Willie Willis. Willis pointed out that state tax laws prohibit non-profit organizations from officially endorsing candidates. Willis said the board has no plans to amend or rescind the resolution in light of a swelled candidates list. "At the time, Evans was the only man interested in the Job who had any prosecuting experience," Willis said.

"Naturally, we being law enforcement officers, want someone who has a lot of experience." Evans, who also has qualified for the Montgomery County district attorney's race, called the resolution a "blessing" because "it came from a group with a vital interest in the attorney general's office." Turnout Low The amount of money raised during the annual George Lindsey Celebrity Weekend won't be known for about a month, officials said Monday. Susan O'Kelley, coordinator of the celebrity weekend, said bad weather had an impact on the turnout at Sunday's golf tournament. "We were really sorry about it, because the same amount of work goes into this, no matter what the weather is," Ms. O'Kelley said. Officials do expect a good return from the Great Stars Show, which nearly filled the Montgomery Civic Center Saturday night.

Tickets to the concert, which featured Roy Clark, the Judds and B.J. Thomas, sold for $12 and $15. According to information from the civic center box office, 5,200 attended the show. Ms. O'Kelley said proceeds from all events won't be determined until all expenses for the weekend are paid.

Candidate Files Suit Amos Harris has filed a lawsuit asking the Montgomery County Circuit Court to force the probate office to reinstate his independent candidacy for sheriff and return his name to the November ballot. Earlier this month, the probate office disqualified Harris for failing to file documents outlining his financial committee within five days of qualifying. Harris, a 55-year-old retired Chicago policeman, contends that he qualified April 4 when he submitted a second and final petition and paid the five-cent-per-signalure fee. Officials with the probate office say Harris qualified on April 2 when he Harris qualified on April 2 when he submitted a petition with 1,700 names. Harris turned in another petition with 300 names two days later and filed his financial documents April 8.

Probate Judge Walker Hobbie said he had not seen the lawsuit as of late Monday and could not comment A court date has been set for April 24 before Judge Mark Kennedy. Man Held in Slaying GREENVILLE A 25-year-old Greenville man was being held without bond Monday in the strangulation of his wife Sunday night. Police Chief Lonro Ingram said. He said Johnnie Edward Malisham has been charged with murder in connection with the death of Betty Ann Malisham, 24. Ingram said the slaying apparently followed an argument outside the couple's automobile about 9 p.m.

He said Mrs. Malisham's body was put into the car and driven to a relative's house where Malisham called police. Ingram said Butler County Coroner Pete Tutchtone pronounced Mrs. Malisham dead Sunday night First Alabama Robbed Police were searching late Monday for a gunman in connection with the robbery of a branch of the First Alabama Bank, according to a Police Department spokesman. Lt Larry Armstead said a man entered the bank at 59 W.

Fairview Ave. about 2:15 p.m., pulled a shotgun on a teller and left on foot with an undisclosed amount of money. The man was described as about 25 years old. 5 feet 4 inches tall and 150 pounds, Armstead said. He was wearing a a brown leather jacket, khaki pants and a cap, Armstead said.

No one was injured in the robbery, Armstead said. FktM k) Frank C. William completed presenting evidence for "those cases in which he was interested," a special assistant attorney general called witnesses to testify about the alleged incident involving Sharpe. He said all the indictments were returned at the same time, although the Sharp indictments were included in a separate grand jury report "The question is, has the substantial rights of the defendant been prejudiced?" Parker said. prejudice to the defendant has been shown." Richard Doyle Veal.

26, signed warrants alleging that he was kidnapped and assaulted by Sharpe and Tommy Jay Young both of Dadeville. Veal has since moved to Panama City, Fla. in Shootout Motley, 36, was killed about 10 p.m. Friday in a shootout with about 50 officers approximately 500 yards i from the site of the earlier shooting, i Turner said. Turner said he did not know how many times Motley was shot, whether he fired first or which officers shot him.

Price and Fulton had traveled to a home about 12 miles northwest of Autaugaville to serve commitment I papers on Motley and to take him to 1 a Veteran's Administration hospital. By CHUCK CHANDLER Advertiser Staff Writer DADEVILLE An Anniston judge has denied requests to dismiss several charges against Tallapoosa County Probate Judge Eldon Sharpe based on legal technicalities surrounding his March 6 indictment. Retired Circuit Judge Robert M. Parker on Monday ordered Sharpe to appear for a May 2 arraignment Parker was appointed to hear the case by the state attorney general's office. Parker said in his order denying the dismissal that no prejudice was shown when Sharpe was indicted by the spring grand jury on charges of criminal solicitation, false imprisonment and first-degree assault.

Defense attorney Tom Radney Reprimands Autauga County Sheriff Robert Turner said Monday he does not expect any officers to be reprimanded as a result of an investigation into a Friday night police shootout that killed an Autaugaville man. The Department of Forensic Sciences and the Autauga County Sheriffs Department are investigating the shootout. Turner said. "At this time, I don't see anything coming out of it" he said. Turner confirmed Monday that a In an audit released last week by the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, Ms.

Essex was said to have been responsible for a net shortage of $10,790.34 in the tax collector's account The period covered July 1, 1983, through May 31, 1985. Ms. Essex asked to be excused from paying the sum, but examiners denied the request during a hearing in Montgomery. Perry County District Attorney Roy Johnson, who sued Ms. Essex last year to collect more than $11,000 in shortages listed in a previous audit, said Monday that the latest accusations will be presented soon to a grand jury.

In addition to shortages listed in the most recent audit, examiner Dewey Hollyhand also said Ms. Essex and her sister, Linda Essex, deposited personal checks into the collector's official account Some of the checks were later returned because of insufficient funds, the audit said. The former tax collector was unavailable for comment Monday, but her sister denied depositing personal checks in the collector's account "It's news to me," said Linda Essex, who is employed in the Perry County tax assessor's office. "I don't know anything about it." In his report, Hollyhand said bad checks not collected by the department amounted to $209.88. The audit said the tax collector's official bank account did not contain sufficient funds to pay $55,494.89 due various agencies.

It said the official bank account was under amounts due to be on hand by $10,872.54. Tax collectors receive funds from various tax sources and then disburse them to agencies throughout a county. Ms. Essex, who served as Perry County tax collector from 1979 to 1985, did not seek re-election in 1984. Her term ended on Oct 1, 1985.

According to Johnson and Assistant District Attorney Robert Blair, the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts has written four consecutive critical audits during Ms. Essex's tenure as tax collector. In March 1984, a jury acquitted her of using tax money to make her car payment and pay her drug store bill. Ms. Essex, the first black tax collector in Perry County history, was charged with violating the ethics law by using a public office for personal gain.

Johnson, who prosecuted her, said she illegally wrote herself a $7,000 check from county tax funds. Ms. Essex, who was on the fee system at that time, said during the trial that she was borrowing against future fees to pay back a shortage created by a former employee. Perry County tax collectors now are paid annual salaries. Sherry Lynn Marler -missing since June 1 984 anxiously awaited any news of her whereabouts.

About a month after the incident Stringfellow contacted Child Find, an agency that conducts nationwide searches for missing chil Man Vows To Keep Chickens Despite Ruling By MELANIE PARKMAN Advertiser Staff Writer DOTHAN A Dothan man who said he has made pets of nearly 200 chickens vowed to take his cause as far as the Supreme Court after a city zoning board ruled he could not keep the fowls. Billy Mack Webb, who lost his case Monday, said he was considering getting rid of about all but 50 of the chickens, "but now I may just keep them and see what happens." The matter was brought before the zoning board by several of Webb's neighbors who complained that Webb has been in violation of the city's zoning ordinance for several years. "I don't know if you can imagine what 200 chickens smell like on a hot day after the rain," said neighbor Rhonda Kale. "1 am ashamed to ask anybody over to our house. We have reached our limit.

We need to be considered, too." Neighbors contend Webb has had the chickens in his back yard for about three years, but Webb says his chickens go back further than that He said he had chickens when he built his home a decade ago, prior to the neighborhood's annexation into the city limits. According to city Planning Director David Hendrix, the Scott Road neighborhood where Webb lives was annexed into the city in 1980, at which time the residents were required to comply with the city's zoning ordinances. The regulations prohibit any resident from keeping poultry or livestock without a special exception from the zoning board. However, Hendrix explained, that exception may not be granted unless the animals are on property at least 200 feet from any other property owner. Webb, who keeps the chickens behind an 8-foot privacy fence, said his feathered pets "mean as much to me as anyone else's dog or cat means to them." Gary Bennett, a representative of the Houston County Health Department told zoning board members Monday that he has inspected Webb's premises several times and would not favor Webb being allowed to keep any of the fowL "We don't want to see a special variance granted to have livestock in a neighborhood because of the potential health problems," he said.

dren. The Child Find people, in turn, put the Stringfellows in touch with another agency, the Dee Scoflield Center in Tampa, Fla. As a result. Sherry's face and story appeared on billboards, posters and labels across the country, and the publicity has generated some leads. Sherry reportedly was seen with a truck driver traveling through Georgia, Mississippi and Florida.

The most recent report came from Arizona last month, but the caller hung up before Stringfellow could get any information, he said. Betty DiNova of the Scoflield Center said such "sightings give us hope because she doesn't seem to be mistreated. We can't afford to let any clue be overlooked." The Stringfellows and John Home, proprietor of Home Beverage Co. in Brundidge, have offered a $3,000 reward for information leading up to Sherry's whereabouts. "I'm interested in helping any family who's lost a child.

It's worse than death," Home said. Sherry's story will be aired at p.m. Wednesday on WSFA-TV. said he will appeal the ruling to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Radney predicted that the appeals court will dismiss the charges. The indictments stem from the allegations of a former Dadeville res-, ident who said Sharpe beat him with a shotgun on Nov. 25, 1985. Sharpe was arrested and released on $2,500 bond after indictments were returned. Radney contends that a special grand jury called by the attorney general's office brought the indictments.

He said that a special session can be called only by a local circuit judge or by Alabama Supreme Court Justice C.C. "Bo" Torbert. But Parker said in his order that after District Attorney Tom Young Not Expected deputy struck MacArthur Motley, who had a history of mental problems, with a flashlight before Motley opened fire on the deputy and his partner. Deputies John R. Price, 53, of the Booth community, was shot three times and Ronald Fulton, 36, of Prat-tville, was shot twice.

Fulton, who underwent surgery Monday morning, was listed in stable condition while Price was listed in critical condition, a Jackson Hospital nursing supervisor said. She testified that McPherson had sex with her on Dec. 15, sometime after 10:30 p.m. "I couldn't sleep, so he told me to come down to the consulting room and we could talk," she said. The former patient said McPherson sodomized her on Dec.

23, also after 10:30 p.m. When questioned by defense attorneys, the girl said she did not refu-seMcPherson's sexual advances because she was afraid and had a low self-esteem. McPherson testified that he worked in the adult unit for about eight months before transferring to the adolescent unit, where he had worked for four months. He said he made the change so he would have better working hours and could spend more time with his family. The shift he was working began at 4 p.m.

and lasted until 12:30 am. McPherson said he had college degrees in criminology and psychology and th't he worked at Charter Woods grees in criminology and psychology and that he worked at Charter Woods because "I wanted to put my degrees to work and to be able to help people." Greenville Girl Featured on Special Ex-hospital Employee Found Guilty of Rape By BROOKS McNAMARA Special to Th Advertiser GREENVILLE A nationally televised special on missing persons Wednesday night will feature the case of a Greenville girl who disappeared nearly two years ago. "Missing, Have You Seen This Person?" will depict the frustration of Sherry Marler's parents and the law officials who have followed fruitless leads since the morning of June 6, 1984. That was the day that 12 year-old Sherry reportedly came to town with her stepfather, Raymond Stringfellow, from their farm outside Greenville. Stringfellow said he parked his red pickup truck behind a furniture store.

Before heading to the bank, he gave Sherry money for a soft drink, he recalled, and that was the last he saw of the heavy-set dark-haired girt. No one is sure what happened after that "No one can even say they saw her in town that day." said Butler County Sheriff Parker Worthington. Stringfellow reported Sherry's disappearance to the authorities, and Sherry's relatives and friends By MELANIE PARKMAN Advertiser Staff Writer DOTHAN A 33-year-old former employee of Charter Woods Hospital was found guilty Monday of raping and sodomizing a 15-year-old patient at the facility. Tommy Lynn Mcpherson of Ashford was convicted of second-degree rape and second-degree sodomy after a jury of eight women and two men deliberated about 40 minutes late Monday. McPherson, who faces a prison term of up to 10 years on each of the convictions, is scheduled to return to court for sentencing May 22.

The former mental health technician at Charter Woods faces three additional counts of first-degree sexual abuse in connection with the sexual assaults of other female patients between the ages of 12 and 15. During testimony Monday, a 15-year-old former patient of the facility testified that McPherson raped and sodomized her last December in a consulting room. McPherson denied the allegations. The girt testified that she entered Charter Woods on Dec. 13, 1985.

for the treatment of sexual and alcohol-related problems..