If the UA fires disgraced head football coach Houston Nutt, he stands to make more than $4.5 million, minus mitigation for future earnings once he gets another job. Nutt will collect all of the deferred compensation – roughly $2.5 million plus accrued interest – as well as monthly payments on his base salary of $329,644 per year. The funds for the deferred portions of Nutt’s agreements have already been placed into escrow accounts as written in his contract.
The University of Central Arkansas will not play host to one of the four competitive joint press conferences for presidential candidates next year. The press conferences will be at Washington University in St. Louis, Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., and the University of Mississippi at Oxford.
A state representative says he is still interested in serving as House speaker for the 2009 regular legislative session, even though his name is not set to appear on the ballot when House members elect a new leader in January. State Rep. David Rainey of Dumas, says a family emergency prevented him from attending a meeting Friday in which House speaker candidates drew for ballot positions. Rep. Robbie Wills of Conway, drew first position and Rep. David Dunn, of Forrest City, drew second slot.
Dan Coody’s run as Fayetteville mayor will come to a close when 2008 does. Coody announced Monday he would not seek a third term as Fayetteville mayor. Rumors have been circulating for the past few weeks that Coody would not seek re-election next year.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff did not search long or far for its new head football coach. Former NFL star Monte Coleman was named UAPB coach Monday, replacing Mo Forte in an abrupt change coming less than 48 hours after the Golden Lions completed a 4-7 season.
Tickets for Saturday’s Fayetteville-Springdale Har-Ber Class 7A state championship football game go on sale today at both schools. In Fayetteville, tickets will be on sale today only at the district administration building at 1000 Stone St. from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
The Capital Hotel is open after two years, and at least $24 million worth of renovations. The Victorian charm remains, but the historic hotel has added modern touches, like wireless Internet and flat-screen TVs. The hotel’s owners, investment banker Warren Stephens and his wife, Harriet, oversaw the renovations.
Little Rock police raided the National Poker Challenge in a local shopping center and arrested five employees on gambling charges. The officers also seized six poker tables, “assorted gambling paraphernalia,” and “documents pertaining to the business,” according to a statement released Monday by the Little Rock Police Department. Michael White, president of the Memphis-based poker franchise, said police raided the business in “full tactical gear” and upset customers.
After a day and a half of deliberations, and a weekend in between to stew over it, jurors hearing a federal fraud case against Nelson Miller of Louisiana, former owner of a mortgage brokerage firm in Little Rock, announced Monday that they were hopelessly deadlocked.
A Pine Bluff woman who police say tried to kill her 12-day-old son is being held in the Jefferson County jail on a criminal attempted capital murder charge. Tonya Alice Reaves is accused of beating her son Ethan, who was taken to Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff on Saturday with a collapsed lung, broken ribs, a broken arm, a stab wound in the back and injuries to the face and head,
The scheduling of the second-degree battery trial of Cedarville Middle School Principal Curt Ledbetter has seen many delays and now has been continued until May. Ledbetter was arrested July 2, 2006, on second-degree battery charges in connection with a paddling that he administered that allegedly caused substantial pain, swelling and extreme bruising to then-12-year-old Michael White on Feb. 15, 2006.
A Little Rock man accused of killing his wife and dumping her body in a creek had to be subdued after he sprang to his feet in court and screamed out his innocence as prosecutors played his taped confession for a judge. “I didn’t do it!” Joseph Francis Oliver yelled repeatedly as he pushed papers off the table where he had been sitting with his attorney, Tom Devine.
A 23-year-old man is recovering in a Springfield, Mo. hospital after a homemade explosive device blew up in his hands Sunday, police said. Adam Griffin of Jonesboro, who was listed in satisfactory condition, is facing charges once police complete their investigation said Detective Jason Simpkins of the Jonesboro Police Department.
A 14-year-old boy was shot in the leg while he and a cousin were playing with a bullet Sunday afternoon, according to a report on file at the Forrest City Police Department. According to the report, Kendrick Hamilton and Edward Funches reportedly found a bullet on the ground and started throwing a brick at it while Deante Clark watched. “They didn’t know what kind of bullet it was, but the bullet exploded and struck Hamilton in the left calf,” police said.
The owner and employee of Big Daddy Pawn Shop at Hickory Hills near Memphis are under arrest, a three-state investigation is underway and more than 3,000 stolen items valued at a total of more than $1 million were recovered, from diamond rings to chain saws to drywall stilts. Officials called it the largest local pawnshop bust in recent memory. Investigators hauled two tractor-trailers of stolen goods from the store to a warehouse near Millbranch and Interstate 240 for temporary storage.
Filed under: Arkansas
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After the last couple of weeks of your column’s fox passes about the Green Party, I expected that you might at least mention that 4 Greens will be on the Arkansas Presidential Primary ballot.