By Alyssa Schnugg
News editor
This week, Hotty Toddy News will be covering the top stories of 2021 for each quarter of the year, ending on Friday with the Top Story of the Year. Today is the first story in the series with the top stories from January, February and March.
When the clock struck midnight bringing in 2021, it seemed like the entire world was ready to get rid of 2020 and was hopeful 2021 would be better.
Like every year before, there was good news and sometimes bad news here in Oxford, and Hotty Toddy News headlines captured the moments in the local news that affected all of us in one way or another.
While the pandemic continued, dominating headlines almost as often as it did in 2020, other news happened around the Lafayette-Oxford-University community. (Read Hottytoddy.com on Friday for more on COVID-19 in 2021).
During the first quarter of 2021, the Lafayette County Board of Supervisors approved a new ordinance that prohibited the use, purchase, possession, distribution, sale of synthetic opioids, also known as Kratom.
Just about a week later, the Lafayette County Metro Narcotics Unit issued a warning after three local people died from overdoses of opioids mixed with Fentanyl in a two-week time period. By the end of 2021, another seven people would die and 16 other people overdosed but survived from the deadly combination.
Later in January, Daniel Cummings, 34, was released from prison after serving 14 years of a 20-year sentence for killing University of Mississippi police officer Robert Langley during a traffic stop. Cummings, a second-year Ole Miss student at the time, was pulled over for a traffic stop by Langley when he suddenly pulled away and Langley was dragged more than 200 yards.
The Oxford Board of Aldermen and Lafayette County, along with officials from six counties, formed a coalition to gain the attention of federal representatives in hopes of procuring funds for improvements to Highway 7. Later in the year, MDOT agreed to fix the Highway 7 and University Avenue interchange in partnership with Oxford, Lafayette County and the State Legislature. However, widening Highway 7 South still remains unfunded.
Mayor Robyn Tannehill announced she would be running for re-election in June, while Alderman Janice Antonow announced she would not seek re-election.
January ended on a positive note, with the Oxford Community Market and the city of Oxford providing free food by creating food cupboards and placing them around town where people could donate nonperishable food that was available to anyone who needed it.
Early in February, the Oxford Board of Aldermen announced plans to make East Jackson Avenue more pedestrian-friendly, by widening sidewalks and allowing restaurants to provide permanent outdoor dining areas. The project was completed in August.
A winter storm covered Oxford in snow and ice twice in one week in mid-February, shutting down local schools – and much of Oxford.
During the second storm, hundreds of University of Mississippi students gathered in the Grove for a snowball fight on Monday afternoon that led to many of the students rushing Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. University Police issued at least two charges of trespassing as a winter storm shut down businesses, schools and roads around Oxford and Lafayette County.
As the snow and ice were starting to clear, news of problems at Oxford’s animal shelter, then managed by Mississippi Critterz, were starting to surface, causing the Oxford Police Department to investigate claims of animal neglect, lack of medical care, over occupancy and disposal procedures for deceased animals.
The complaints were filed after news reports of photos of dogs allegedly left outside in the cold and plastic bags containing dead animals and other problems at the shelter were being shared on social media.
No criminal charges were issued; however, the city ended the contract with MS Critterz, closed down the shelter and announced in March that the shelter would be run by the city, rather than another private organization and renamed to Oxford Animal Resource Center.
The Board of Aldermen ended mask mandates in Oxford in early March, following Gov. Tate Reeves Executive Order; however, it would be reinstated again in the summer when the Delta variant caused local cases to rise quickly.
The Oxford School District announced that Bradley Roberson was named the new superintendent for the District. In January, former superintendent Brian Harvey announced he would be retiring at the end of his contract on June 30. Roberson officially took over on July 1.
The most devastating headline during the first quarter of 2021 appeared on March 4, when a father and his two children were killed in a wreck on Highway 6 while on their way to Lafayette Elementary School.
Matt Ellington was driving on Highway 6 East toward the F.D. “Buddy” East Parkway when his vehicle was struck by a Panola County Garbage Truck. He died at the scene. His two children, Evangeline and Lincoln, died later from their injuries.
The three deaths rocked the Oxford and Lafayette County communities. Prayer vigils were held for the family at local churches and at Lafayette County schools. North Oxford Baptist Church organized a fundraiser for the family to help pay for medical bills and funeral expenses.
During their memorial service on March 8, close to 100 people attended the service in person while more than 350 people watched online.
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