Missing a gun?

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How do deputies search an ex-con on parole, cuff and place him in the back seat of a patrol car, then return a few minutes later to find him blazing away at them with a pistol?

As of late last week, Arkansas State Police investigators were still trying to figure out how Jonathan McIntosh, 35, got the gun, then died when exchanging fire with officers in Cabot. They'd arrested him while searching for another man.

McIntosh was no stranger to prison, having been in and out several times on charges ranging from drugs to weapons. He would have been released from parole in July.

When deputies returned to their Lonoke County patrol car, they opened the door to find McIntosh holding a pistol in his cuffed hands in front of him. He began firing at them and was shot multiple times by the deputies and other officers.

Either this man had supernatural conjuring powers, or someone overlooked a pistol on McIntosh when frisking and cuffing him. There is the possibility that a friend dropped a gun to him in the car or it already was lying on the floor when he got in. It wasn't reported to be a police-style weapon.

At least these officers escaped what could have been a far worse scene for them. Bet there are some serious lessons learned from this event. In fact, this example oughta be taught at the academy.

Bridge-building reforms

Back at the ongoing bridge scandal in Washington County, the quorum court heard the other night that County Judge Marilyn Edwards--who just lost her chief of staff, Dan Short--is pushing for major reforms in the way county bridges are constructed.

Now there's a long-overdue great idea! She's still reviewing results of a county investigation into problems with the faulty construction of three county bridges, and other changes can be expected.

Among other needed changes already announced, according to Edwards and the county's Human Resources director Lindsi Huffaker, will be to bid out future bridge construction, revive an employee-run safety committee, and resolve questions of internal favoritism and retaliation by overhauling the road department's hierarchy.

The news account of the meeting also said future openings within the department will be handled objectively, based primarily on ability and experience. Huffaker was quoted saying she's working with Blair Johanson to streamline the department's job structure. It seems some employees said there are times they don't even understand what their job is or who the heck they work for.

And this is the part that rang loud with me. Huffaker added that "most counties are in the exact boat we are in. There's definitely some work that needs to be done."

To that I'd add how worthwhile it might prove if journalists across Arkansas discover just what shape their county actually is in when it comes to bridge-building.

Heat of the moment

In further discussing the irrational behavior of human beings, I refer you to the youth baseball coach in Siloam Springs who chose to strike a teenage umpire in the face.

Brandon Duncan, 34, of Colcord, Oklahoma, made headlines after being charged with misdemeanor abuse of an athletic contest official. Duncan reportedly poked, then punched, the 16-year-old official who apparently wasn't listening close enough to Duncan's complaints about runners taking leads off the bases.

That would be 9- and 10-year-old players. by the way.

After the smoke of a moment's heat cleared, Duncan was quoted in a rambling sort of way: "There's two sides to every story. Just like this deal, I've got kids too, and it's a bad deal. I'm sorry that it is what it is now. There's more to the story."

The coach said he didn't realize the umpire was a youth and that the official had approached him "with a bad attitude." Duncan also said he wasn't really trying to justify his behavior. "That is not who I am and ... I hate it that it's got to be something negative because that is not who I am. It is what it is. Now I've got to face the deal. What I did was wrong."

Yes, I'd say he's right about that. And now the league has banned Duncan from further participation.

There are obvious lessons here for every coach and parent with children in sporting events. Reason will always trump rage in emotionally charged moments.

Inside the Pyramid

I recently spent a couple of lost hours with daughter Anna wandering through the unbelievable expanse of the gleaming Memphis Pyramid turned newly remolded Bass Pro Shop.

As vast as the place is, it was astounding to comprehend the grandeur and enormity of what Johnny Morris has created. Ponds filled with different fishes, wall-sized aquariums, stuffed animals of every species, caves that lead into entire sections, a first-class hotel and restaurant and on and on.

It's an enchanting place, complete with a glass elevator to the top observation deck, and is well worth a summer afternoon just to fully absorb the fanciful atmosphere and all it offers. For us, this was reminiscent of a Disney park in lots of ways.

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Mike Masterson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email him at mikemasterson10@hotmail.com.

Editorial on 05/26/2015

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