Articles by Isabelle Altman
Having their voices heard
Reagan Poston said reading her prose pieces aloud for Mississippi Public Broadcasting was like being published in a “verbal publication.”
Desperate separation: Puerto Rican natives living in Golden Triangle scramble for news, communication with relatives after Hurricane Maria
Starkville resident Daria Rodriguez spent two days viewing online images of the destruction Hurricane Maria wrought on her home commonwealth of Puerto Rico — all without hearing from her 10-year-old son, Diego Cerame, who was on the island when the storm hit Sept. 20.
Man arrested for trying to stab man whose truck he borrowed, smoked meth inside
A Columbus man is in jail for aggravated assault after allegedly trying to stab another man during a dispute over a truck.
CPD prepares zombie-themed Haunted House
Last Halloween, the Columbus Police Department “investigated” a haunted house in downtown Columbus after a woman reported her family missing from it. The house must have bad luck, because this October, a chemical spill turned it into a zombie-infested “maniac house,” CPD investigator Tommy Watkins said.
Missed opportunity: Lowndes inmate laments never getting to know his father; calls on public to help find his murderer
Until early this year, DeAngelo Fisher hadn’t seen his father, Henry Lee Easley, since he was 8 years old.
Columbus woman in jail for embezzlement
A woman is behind bars at the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center for allegedly stealing money from her employer.
Mastering the ‘side hustle’: New Albany bakery owner tells story of starting her business to budding entrepreneurs at small business seminar
It was 1997 and Mary Jennifer Russell of New Albany was reeling because she’d just lost her first “real job” out of college.
Second Baptist deacons still haven’t complied with judge’s order
The board of trustees at Second Baptist Church of Starkville still do not have access to financial information the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court ordered be turned over months ago.
SPED program comes again under scrutiny
Parents of children with disabilities complained to Columbus Municipal School District trustees Monday their children are not receiving special education services in a timely manner — or at all.
Fight like a girl: Local MMA fighter debuts women’s-only self-defense class
Standing in a Tupelo fighting arena in February with a crowd of hundreds — maybe thousands — of people cheering, Hannah Guy tried to take deep, even breaths.
CPD hopes more positive interactions will build trust between officers, citizens
The past two years have been particularly challenging for Columbus Police Department.
Man jailed for Caledonia sexual battery
A Lowndes County man is being charged with the sexual battery of a woman in Caledonia last week.
GTECHS students find success in unconventional setting
Six years ago, Jill Savely didn’t know what an early college high school was.
Area students check out college options
Judd Williams has been all over eastern Mississippi talking to high school seniors at college fairs about admission at Mississippi State University.
Human remains discovered on banks of Tenn-Tom
The Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office received a report Monday of what are apparently extremely old human remains that were discovered on the banks of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.
Lowndes supes OK budget with deficit, tax increase
Lowndes County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a Fiscal Year 2018 budget Friday that includes a roughly $900,000 deficit.
City official: Dowd should have been with training officer on day of stop
A city official has told The Dispatch that the Columbus police officer who initiated a controversial traffic stop on Aug. 18 was not actually supposed to be patrolling by himself.
Man leads police on wild chase that ends at his home
A man who led Lowndes County and Columbus law enforcement officers on a wild, hazardous chase was arrested Thursday afternoon.
Alabama man jailed for molesting child younger than 10
A Brookwood, Alabama, man is out on bond in a case where he is accused of molesting a child younger than 10-years-old.
CMS students board the ‘Choice Bus’
When 11-year-old Chase Bailey got on the Choice Bus with the rest of his sixth grade class at Columbus Middle School Wednesday, he didn’t know what to expect.
