Area high school students learn about county government

Saline County Circuit Clerk Sharon Crawford gives visiting students a taste of what it's like to be in court as a prisoner Thursday, March 4. She asked a group to try out the padded bench where the accused often sit, wearing orange jumpsuits and shackles.
(Sydney Stonner/Democrat-News)

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Students from Malta Bend, Marshall and Sweet Springs school districts gathered at Saline County Courthouse Thursday, March 4, for the annual Government Day, sponsored by the American Legion.

Associate Court Judge James T. "Tut" Bellamy welcomed students to the Division 4 courtroom, and said he hoped they wouldn't be returning there soon because of any wrongdoing. But, he said he realized that their behavior, as minors, would not be perfect.

"Odds are that some of you will drink some alcohol, and some of you will drink some alcohol and drive," he said.

Bellamy noted the consequences of receiving a conviction of driving while intoxicated: eight points off a drivers license, a 30-day suspended license, a 60-day limited license and increased insurance premiums, among other things. He said these things can often lead to more legal troubles as well.

"It's a perfect spiral," he said. "I just don't want it to happen to you."

Saline County Prosecuting Attorney Don Stouffer also spoke about the costs of a DWI. Even if a minor receives a deal for being a first-time offender, the individual and his or her family could end up paying anywhere from $1,500 to $3,500, he said.

Plus, the offender's movements might be restricted.

"I am infamous for believing very strongly in curfews," Stouffer said.

A less common but more severe crime, murder, is even costlier, he said.

"The three most recent murders we had, we had innocent people killed," he said. "They're interesting, they're challenging; but they're also terribly expensive."

In addition to the human suffering, Stouffer estimated a murder trial could literally cost about $300,000.

Saline County Sheriff Wally George gave a law enforcement perspective on youth misbehavior.

"We have many arrests, I'm sorry to say, of 17-year- olds," he said.

He said that is the age at which people can be treated as adults in the correctional system, meaning they can be sent to a Missouri prison. But, no offender will ever spend more than one year in Saline County Justice Facility, George said.

He noted that, even though some inmates are eligble for school or work release, they are still incarcerated.

"The bottom line here is -- those folks, we have control of their lives," George said.

So, like Bellamy, he advised students, "You just simply do not want to get on the wrong path."

Other speakers at Government Day gave students a bit of a civics lesson.

County Clerk Ken Bryant, who also served as emcee of the event, said that citizen involvement and participation in all levels of government is vital. He strongly encouraged the students to register to vote once eligble.

"If you don't think your vote counts, we've had some elections in the last few years that have been very close," he said. "It's very important that we still get out and try to elect good people to every office."

As an even greater form of involvement, County Recorder Jamie Nichols and Auditor Tara Vogelsmeier both told students to keep an open mind about the possibility of holding county government positions in the future.

"When I was your age, I never thought that I would be serving as an elected official," Vogelsmeier said.

Other officeholders who participated in the event were Circuit Clerk Sharon Crawford, Judge Hugh Harvey, Public Administrator Mary Toliver, Assessor Margaret Pond, Treasurer Sam Jones, Presiding Commissioner Becky Plattner, Northern District Commissioner Norvelle "Brownie" Brown and Southern District Commissioner Richard "Dick" Hassler.

Contact Sydney Stonner at marshallbusiness@socket.net