The Jackson Sun from Jackson, Tennessee • 1

Humid, partly sunny HjghS4- Low-65- G)mplete weather forecast on 10 A. 50 Jackson, Tennessee Madison County Edition jack so com Inside Weswei? (isdses ffa-OGMGM sBwftMD Fa school budget making up more than 60 percent of the county's budget, "there are just some things they are going to have to cut back on," Commission Chairman Gary Deaton said. Commissioner Lacy Rose sees the issue as a long-term investment. "If the $6.5 million is what it takes to educate our children, then I would have to say yes on raising property taxes," Rose said. Please see BUDGET, 2A coming back wanting more." Every penny that's brought in from property taxes represents roughly $136,000 for the county.

That means the property tax would have to be raised more than 22 cents to make up for the $3 million shortfall in additional requests without taking away from other departments. The county's tax rate is $2.46 per $100 of assessed value. With another rocky budget year ahead, with the county taking a cut in shared taxes from the state, and with the By JAMIE PAGE jpagejacksonsun.com It's likely that Jackson-Madison County Schools will get only about half of additional funds the School Board is requesting for next year's budget. Superintendent Roy Weaver walked away somewhat disappointed from a meeting with Madison County Commissioners this week. So on Friday morning, he spoke on WNWS 101.5 to get the word out to the public about school budget concerns for schools for the 2003-04 fiscal year, or about a 7.5 percent increase.

The original budgeted revenue is about $79.7 million. The largest single requested increase almost $2.5 million is to staff two new high schools opening in August. The county will see a 2 percent increase in its overall budget this year because of added sales tax and property tax collections, adding about $918,000 to the school budget The commission has proposed letting the school system use an additional $2 million of its $4.62 million fund balance. Then, an additional $649,042 of county funding, above the 2 percent growth, has also been proposed. Even with these additions, the budget would still fall more than $3 million short of the schools' request.

"Tax money is not going to be there like they think it will be," said a caller, who called into the radio show just after Weaver's segment had ended. "Just give it a little time. Live within your means like most of us have to do. These different departments just keep Weaver Deaton and answer related questions from callers. Without the additional funding, all non-mandated programs are in jeopardy, Weaver said.

The board is asking for $6.5 million more than the revenue originally budgeted Miss Tennessee Scholarship Pageant show goes Bredesen names James Butler Chancery judge w--rw. By TAJUANA CHESHIER tcheshierjacksonsun.com Gov. Phil Bredesen announced Friday that James F. Butler, a Jackson attorney and senior partner of Spragins, Barnett, Cobb and Butler; will be the new Chancery Court judge in the 26th Judicial District. Butler, 60, will replace Chancellor Joe Morris, who died in April from a heart attack.

A swearing-in date has not been scheduled; however, Butler is ready to get started. "I am gratified that Governor Bredesen is investing this kind of confidence in me," Butler said. "The governor had several fine applicants to choose from, and I am humbled that I was the one chosen." Bredesen chose Butler from three finalists selected last week by a state Judicial Selection Committee. The ,1 i JANELLE SOUThe Jackson Sun James Buchanan, left, and Jason Stanfill work on the stage for the Miss Tennessee Scholarship Pageant on Friday afternoon at the Carl Perkins Civic Center in downtown Jackson.The pageant runs Wednesday through June 21. Tornado won't dampen pageant Dispute nearly cancels concert U.S.

Open again Tiger Woods competed in the U.S. Open in Illinois on Friday. Vijay Singh shared the lead with Jim Furyk. Sports, IB Picnic for LAN A Organizers are hopeful that today's 10th annual Flag Day Picnic introduces more people to the LANA neighborhood. Local, 3A Consumer confidence Well-heeled shoppers, who analysts say curtailed their spending largely for emotional reasons over the past few months, are showing signs that they're interested in spending again, their spirits lifted by the stock market rally and resolution of the war in Iraq.

Business, 8B New in Cy High A group of art students from Jackson I Central-Merry left a unique leg acy the school's library before leaving to attend Madison Academic Magnet High School next fall. Read all about it at CyHigh, the Web site by and for West Tennessee teens. For more, log onto cyhigh.jacksonsun.com. Bodies found A 37-year-old pharmacist, Michael Kerkowski, had been missing a year when his corpse was discovered on June 5, buried along with the remains of his girlfriend. Nation, 8A Bonnaroo music festival Lucinda Williams performs "Broken Angel during the opening day of the Bonnaroo festival in Manchester on Friday.

Local, 3A Index Business 8B Classifieds 7C Comics 4C Deaths 6A Living 1C Local 3A Nation 6A Opinion 9A Sports IB Weather 10A other finalists were Jackson attorneys Nathan B. Pride and Linda Warren Seely. The 26th Judicial District includes Madison, Henderson and Chester counties. Chancery cases include Morris divorce, contract, worker compensation, title to estates, validity of wills and adoptions, according to the Madison County Web site. The chancellor position pays a salary of $112,836.

Please see JUDGE, 6A Battershell-McCollum. "It was necessary to reach an agreement with Max Norton and Richard Jacobs in order to salvage the event on behalf of the tornado victims," McCol-lum said, reading from a statement quickly prepared after the hearing by her lawyer David Camp. "How could he do this to the tornado victims?" McCollum sighed after the deal was made between Camp and Norton's attorney Charles Exum. "It's so sad that he's done this on the backs of these people." The amount McCollum agreed to pay Norton was not disclosed. McCollum said she has already spent a lot of her own money on the project, including special event and liability insurance for $1,500.

Organizers have put a lot of work into the event and it is a worthwhile cause, Please see CONCERT, 6A Bredesen "zr fife on Meet the contestants Contestants will meet the public from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at Old Hickory Mall in front of Kirkland's. Tickets for the pageant are available for all four nights, Wednesday through Saturday, at $50 per person. The ticket office is in the lobby of the Carl Perkins Civic Center and is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Beginning Monday, the ticket office will be open at 6:30 p.m. each night during competition. For more information, call 425-8590 or Visit www.misstennessee.org on the Web. Please see PAGEANT, 6A on the roof of his home nearby when he heard the explosion of rockets, followed by more explosions and the rattle of automatic fire. After several moments of silence, another column of U.S.

armored vehicles rumbled up the road, he said. Fowler, looking haggard, said the pursuit lasted through the night and into daylight Friday. Some attackers fled through sunflower fields and ducked into sand-brick "I ordered my men to cease fire. We searched the houses and found two men and several women and children," he told reporters. The soldiers uncovered no weapons in the houses, and the residents were released.

Fowler, of the 3rd Infantry Division, said his patrols had been ambushed several times before, "but nothing like last night" He added: "It was a very long night." television coverage because of uncertainty early on over where the event would be held. The building for TRTV, which broadcasts the event, was destroyed in the storm, further complicating matters. Hensley said organizers had enough on their minds with damage to the civic center and didn't want to have to deal with the headaches associated with setting up television coverage. "We decided that would be one less worry," Hensley said. The pageant has been televised for about 20 years.

Fans disappointed that it won't be on the air this year include By WENDY WILSON wwilsonjacksonsun.com The Miss Tennessee Scholarship Pageant has been held in Jackson for decades, and that's a tradition that not even two tornadoes can thwart. "The show will go on," said pageant chairman Tom Hensley. The pageant runs Wednesday through Saturday at the Carl Perkins Civic Center. But there will be at least one major difference this year: the event won't be televised. Hensley said organizers didn't want to commit to the expense and logistics of Patty Ladd and her 16-year-old daughter, Tricia.

"I think it's odd to have a beauty pageant and not have it televised," Patty Ladd said. Tricia Ladd said she's worried about what the contestants will think about not getting on camera. "The girls put a lot of work into it, and they'll be missing out," she said. The 36 contestants are set to arrive in town this weekend in time for an event Sunday at Old Hickory Mall where they will meet the U.S. plan to rout Saddam loyalists rages on By W.

MATT MEYER mmeyerjacksonsun.com Today's planned concert at Anita's Travel Station to benefit tornado victims was nearly halted until organizers agreed Friday to pay money to a disgruntled landowner. The agreement came after Madison County Circuit Judge Roy Morgan ruled in favor of the landowner, who sought an injunction to stop the event, which includes 10 bands and food vendors. Max Norton, who co-owns the Anita's property near the Garden Plaza Hotel, sought the order because he had not granted permission for it and was worried about the possibility he could be sued over a potential injury. The event was planned with the permission of the site's other land owner, Richard Jacobs, and is fully insured against any liability, said Anita's owner Anita 1 By B0RZ0U DARAGAHI The Associated Press BALAD, Iraq U.S. troops in Apache helicopters and Bradley armored vehicles fought Iraqi attackers Friday after Iraqis hiding in a thicket of reeds rushed a U.S.

tank patrol. The battles marked day four of a U.S. sweep to hunt down supporters of Saddam Hussein's fallen regime. About 100 anti-American fighters have been killed in the sweep, the biggest U.S. military operation since Saddam's regime fell.

Staged by the 3rd and 4th Infantry Divisions, the fighting follows the U.S. strategy of luring opposition holdouts into the open, where their assault rifles and rocket launchers are no match for American forces equipped with computerized weaponry and heavy armor. The Iraqi ambush started just before midnight Thursday, when large force of insurgents detonated a land mine and fired VICTOR R.CAIVANOThc Associated Press U.S. military police officer Brian Pacholski comforts his hometown friend, U.S. military police officer David Borello, both from Toledo, Ohio, at the entrance of the military base In Balad, about 30 miles northwest of Baghdad, on Friday.

In reinforcements, including rockets on a two-tank patrol of Apache helicopters, and gave the 4th Infantry Division about chase to the fleeing attackers, 30 miles northwest of Baghdad, killing 23, U.S. Central Corn-said Lt Col. Andy Fowler, mand said. There were no The tanks returned fire, killing American casualties, four assailants. The patrol called Hossein Sadoon was sleeping New exit! A truck passes the new Campbell Street exit off Interstate 40.

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