Columbus councilman apologizes after weed citation

A city councilman publicly apologized Thursday after being issued a citation for possessing a misdemeanor amount of marijuana over the weekend.

Mayor plans community task force on crime

Mayor Robert Smith announced his intention at Tuesday’s city council meeting to create a task force of a “cross section” of Columbus residents to help police address crime and related issues.

Drive-through vaccine sites set up for health workers

Health care professionals in Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties will have the opportunity to receive a COVID-19 vaccine from the Mississippi State Department of Health this week.

Coroners, funeral directors report climbing death rate in 2020

In 2019, Lowndes County Coroner Greg Merchant and his deputies responded to 705 calls — a fairly typical year, he said.

Bluecutt businesses to appeal Yo’ Bar’s move to area

Several businesses and individuals are appealing a Columbus City Council decision allowing a permitted land use variance for local bar and restaurant Yo’ Bar to relocate to a building on Bluecutt Road.

CPD seeks suspects in fatal Southside shooting

One person has died and another is injured after a shooting in South Columbus Wednesday night.

One arrested, two others sought in McDonald’s shooting

One person is in custody and investigators are searching for two more for their involvement in a shooting at McDonald’s in East Columbus on Christmas Eve.

Food pantries, nonprofits see mixed-bag of donation levels

Of the many people who sought aid from Beth-el Missionary Baptist Church in Starkville over the last few months, two of them stuck out particularly to Ricky Howard, who helps run the church’s food pantry: a husband and wife, both of whom had been laid off from their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic and had three children at home they had to take care of.

Doctors stress importance of taking COVID vaccine as it becomes available

Dr. Jack Reed has worked for Baptist Memorial Hospital for 45 years, and on Wednesday, he was the first employee there to receive a COVID-19 vaccination.

Local officers recommend residents stay home, avoid large gatherings this holiday season

Area law enforcement officers are doling out their usual holiday safety tips for shoppers and travelers, but this year it includes one unique recommendation thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic: Avoid large gatherings, and stay home if possible.

Box does not plan to run again in Ward 3

Ward 3 Columbus Councilman Charlie Box said Monday he does not plan to run for a fourth term in 2021.

“I’ll keep my options open, but my mind’s pretty much made up,” Box told The Dispatch.

Monday Profile: MSMS teacher guides Choctaw Tribal School students, others to upper-level math classes online

One day last school year, Alison Alexander got a text that reminded her of why she loves teaching.

Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science, where Alexander is math teacher and distance learning coordinator, had hosted students from Choctaw Tribal Schools on that particular day.

W sees freshman bump during pandemic

First-year admission to four-year colleges all over the country is down this year in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, but in the Golden Triangle, Mississippi University for Women is an exception to the trend.

First COVID vaccines coming to area hospitals

Golden Triangle hospitals will begin receiving shipments of COVID-19 vaccine as early as Monday, according to officials from area hospitals.

Baptist has four ICU beds left, OCH unit spilling into ER

As COVID-19 numbers increase throughout the state and hospitals fill with patients, there are a dwindling number of beds available in their intensive care units — including at hospitals in the Golden Triangle.

Yo’ Bar to move to Bluecutt despite outcry from area businesses

Columbus sports bar Yo’ Bar will move from its Highway 45 location to a larger building on Bluecutt Road early next year thanks to a 4-2 decision by the city council at its regular meeting Tuesday.

LCSD board president, attorney leave masks off during school board meeting

At the end of a week that saw a decrease in the number of students and staff who reported testing positive for COVID-19 at Lowndes County School District, Superintendent Sam Allison reported to the school board at Friday’s meeting that he does not believe the virus is spreading through classrooms due to the use of plastic dividers between students and a mask mandate at all the schools.

LCSD to hold virtual classes first week after holiday break

Students at Lowndes County School District will attend classes virtually during the first week back after holiday break, Superintendent Sam Allison told the school board at its Friday meeting.

Assault charges dismissed against man after one of his victims charged with murdering the other

Lowndes County Circuit Court dismissed aggravated assault charges against a Columbus man accused of shooting at two men with a rifle in 2019 after one of the victims was arrested for the other’s murder last month.

City: Planned Hindu invocation a show of inclusion

Columbus Public Information Officer Joe Dillon has been arranging for religious leaders — mostly local — to give the invocation at the beginning of the twice-monthly city council meetings since he began in his position in 2016.