2022 was a busy year in Newton County, bringing a wide range of happenings throughout the year. From dodging severe weather to celebrating championships, we’ve done our best to report the news important to you. Here is a compilation of what we deemed the bigger stories of the year, in no particular order.
La-Z-Boy completes layoff of 180 employees at their Newton Assembly Plant
La-Z-Boy completed the permanent layoff of 180 employees at their assembly plant in Newton on Sep. 16, 2022.
With the scheduled layoff of 180 employees, the Newton-based integrated internal supply and other functions will remain in operation and employ approximately 235 individuals, according to a press release from July 2022.
Two Suspects Charged of Double Murder in Newton County
Shaunna Reynolds and Austin George Harrell were charged with the murder of two women found dead on Choctaw tribal lands in Conehatta on March 4.
The two victims were 26-year-old Breanna Strickland Stokes of Union and 21-year-old Kaitlyn Goolsby of Sebastopol. According to Neshoba County Sheriff Eric Clark, Stokes was killed in Neshoba County and Goolsby was killed in Newton County, thus the two suspects are charged with one count of murder in both counties.
The two suspects will have their cases presented to the grand jury in the near future.
Newton County High School Cheerleaders find success in 2022
The Newton County High School Varsity Cheerleaders had a banner year in 2022. In February, they were invited to compete in the UCA National Championships in Orlando, where they took second place, competing against sixty other teams.
And in December, the 2022-2023 Newton County High School Cheerleaders won the state champions in Class 4A for the second year in a row.
Newton man kills fiancé and Meridian Police Officer
D’Ante Bender, a former Newton Police Officer, is charged with first degree murder and capital murder after he allegedly opened fire at a Meridian residence in June, killing Brittany Jones and Meridian Police Officer Kennis Croom.
Immediately after the incident, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation issued a statewide Blue Alert, looking for Bender. He was apprehended in Ackerman the next day.
Roe vs. Wade overturned
The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and the constitutional right to abortion that has been law for almost 50 years.
Decatur’s Kemp Alderman and the Ole Miss Rebels win a National Championship
Kemp Alderman, a Newton County Academy alumnus, helped the Ole Miss Rebels win the 2022 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. The Rebels swept the Oklahoma Sooners in two games to claim the title. Alderman was named to the All-Tournament team.
Roncali convicted of Capital Murder
Carlos Roncali was convicted of the capital murder of his wife, Marian Roncali, by Newton County grand jury in December and faces a sentencing hearing on Jan. 4 in Circuit Court held in Leake County of life in prison without parole.
Shooting kills Lake teenager
On the afternoon of Oct. 13, Lake senior football player Travis Jones was killed when shots were fired into his vehicle, causing it to crash. According to Scott County Sheriff Mike Lee, Jones was not the intended target of the shooting.
Three men have been charged with murder: Cenarius Morgan and Joshua Nicks, of Forest, and Tyrus Tillman of Lake. Although a juvenile, Tillman has been charged as an adult. The case awaits a grand jury ruling in 2023.
Severe weather rears its head in 2022
Severe weather was another newsmaker in Newton County in 2022. Back in April, two tornadoes touched down in the county. An EF-1 tornado briefly touched down along Hwy. 80 from Lawrence to Newton, and another touched down in Lake. Damages from both tornadoes included snapped trees and damage to several homes and businesses.
In December, an EF-2 tornado touched down in Jasper County and travelled 25 miles northeast, though Newton County, until living. The town of Hickory and the surrounding area felt a heavy impact. Damaged homes and downed trees were left in its wake.
Newton County was hit with significant rainfall back on August, resulting in flash flooding throughout the county. Most significant damage from the flooding was a 100-feet wide and 15 deep wide section of SR 489 being washed out.
Newton County opts out of medical marijuana; City of Newton does not
In March, the Newton County Board of Supervisors chose to have Newton County to opt out from the medical marijuana legislation passed in Mississippi.
In April, the City of Newton Board of Alderman voted to not opt out of the medical cannabis act, making them the lone municipality within the county to do so.
