Morning update: Kimberly mayor wore wire for FBI

Published 1:29 am Monday, March 19, 2012

Good Monday morning to you, and here’s how we start the work week…

Harris part of FBI probe. Kimberly Mayor Craig Harris, who last month was subject to resolutions by his own city council calling for his resignation, has been a key figure in a probe by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Harris was allegedly offered a bribe by persons who wanted to operate an illegal electronic bingo facility in the city; the bribe was for Harris to keep city police away. Harris revealed the investigaiton in an interview with The North Jefferson News in February, which was given on the condition that the information be kept secret until the investiagtion was made public by the FBI. That happened Sunday afternoon, when The Birmingham News reported the investigation on its website. That report indicated that a federal indictment had obtained against Daniel Stone, a partner in the closed IGA Supermarket in Kimberly; he agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors in exchange for a lesser fine and prison sentence. Stone will be arraigned in U.S. District Court on Thursday morning.

We expect to have more updates on this story throughout Monday; check njeffersonnews.com for more information.

Romney rolls in Puerto Rico. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney overwhelmed the opposition in the Puerto Rico primary this weekend, getting 83 percent of the vote and picking up all 20 GOP convention delegates up for grabs. According to CNN, Romney now leads the delegate count with 518, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum is second with 239, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has 139 and Texas Rep. Ron Paul has 69. A candidate needs 1,144 delegates to win the nomination on the first convention ballot.

Sports: Rough weekend for Mortimer Jordan softball. The Blue Devils won just one out of four games at the Orange and Black Classic in Hoover, but did manage a 4-3 win over Clay-Chalkville, with Haylie McCleney driving in a run on a double and then scoring on a grounder on Tiffany Chaviers… Good Hope 2, Hayden 1: At the Cullman Umpires Tournament, Good Hope took the lead in the top of the seventh when Darcie Wilson doubled, and came in on a Kacie Thomas hit. Katie Parr and Caitlin Kirkland each hit doubles, with Kirkland relieveing Parr in the pitching circle in the sixth inning and getting tagged with the loss…. Baseball – Gardendale 8, Hayden 6: Pitcher Chris Walton came in to stop a Wildcat rally in the sixth inning, and the Rockets added an insurance run in the seventh for the win Friday. Bryce Jay had a two-run triple for Gardendale (11-3), while Lee Hargett drove in three runs with a double and a triple…. Minor league football – Alabama Warriors 49, Escambia (Fla.) Sharks 6: At Jimmie Trotter Stadium on Saturday night, the Warriors had their way with the outmanned visitors, as Rob Taylor ran for two TDs and John Stelman caught two scoring passes, as the Warriors remain undefeated in Xtreme South Football League play…. Bass fishing: Gerald Swindle placed 18th in the Bassmaster Elite Series tournament on the St. Johns River in Florida, winning $10,000.

Weather: Gorgeous. The skies couldn’t be nicer over the next four days, with high temperatures in the low to mid 80s and nighttime lows in the 60s. We don’t see any change until Friday, when a cold front enters with a chance of storms.