LASER TAG
Landon Albritton, 20, of Terry, was charged in a federal indictment for aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft. Albritton was arraigned Wednesday before a U.S. Magistrate Judge. If convicted, Albritton will face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000. According to the WTOK via the U.S. Attorney’s Office, laser attack reports have increased recently as powerful laser devices have become more affordable for the wider public. The lasers can be extremely dangerous to pilots in the air.
SORRY, MOM, I’M GOING TO BE LATE FOR THANKSGIVING
This Monday, a New York hospital announced that a Mississippi firefighter received the most complex face transplant in history. According to Fox News, the procedure cost around $1 million. The patient, Patrick Hardison, was badly burned in a 2001 fire. The surgery began August 14 and lasted around 26 hours. It left no scars on his new face because the transplant seam runs down the back of his skull. Hardison is now undergoing physical therapy in hopes to spend Thanksgiving at his home in Senatobia.
HAZELHURST HUSTLE
According to ABC News, a Mississippi inmate was charged this week for running a jailhouse scam. Jebarious Neal of Hazlehurst was pretending to be an elected official or federal judge and received funds by promising to get the loved ones of his victims early release from prison. Neal was already in the middle of serving a 30-year sentence for burglary and larceny and is now being charged with false pretense. Tiffany McVane, also of Hazlehurst, was charged as a co-conspirator in the case. She is accused of receiving $5,000 from a victim.
SYRIAN REFUGEE DECISION
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant released a statement saying that he will “do everything humanly possible” to stop the federal government from letting any Syrian refugees in the state. According to WKRG News, Bryant is working with the Mississippi Department of Public Safety and Homeland Security to determine whether there are plans to put them in the state. On Sunday, a spokesman for President Obama said that the administration is making plans to move forward with allowing around 10,000 Syrian refugees into the U.S.
