County proclaims April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month

In recognition of April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, County Judge Allison Harbison signed a proclamation Wednesday, April 3 declaring the county’s support and commitment to promoting awareness and working toward prevention.

Presenting the proclamation were Lizett Mendoza and Emma Skinner of the East Texas Family Crisis Center. Mendoza is the legal advocate for Shelby County and Skinner is the sexual assault advocate for Angelina County and other surrounding counties.

Statistics report that every 68 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted, and on average only 33 out of 1,000 cases of sexual assault end up with a conviction. That young people experience disproportionately higher rates of sexual violence between the ages of 12 to 17, and that college campuses report that one in five women and one in 16 men are sexually assaulted during their time in school.

“I, unfortunately, don’t have the statistics (for Shelby County) here today,” Mendoza said. “But I will say here in the last two months, the number of clients from Shelby County has increased. And that means … domestic violence, sexual assault, continues to happen in the county.

“We’re getting more clients and connecting them with resources to, hopefully, prevent it from happening in the future. And that’s all thanks to all of you and law enforcement and our partnering agencies.”

Maintenance issues at the county clerk’s office was the only agenda item acted on at the meeting. Other items were discussed or tabled.

Plumbing Problems According to County Clerk Jennifer Fountain, her office is experiencing plumbing problems in the kitchen area. Fountain said the kitchen sink stood in water on both sides several days last week.

“When we run water in one side, it comes up the other side,” she said.

Fountain said McWilliams and Sons Plumbing reported the problem as tree roots. “There’s crepe myrtle trees over there and they have just wreaked havoc on all of the pipes.”

Harbison said that was a problem when she was in the clerk’s office.

A quote of $1,853 for the work needed was approved.

Air Duct System

The court reviewed a recent assessment of the heat and air duct system at the sheriff ’s office. “We got a really good report,” said Harbison. “We just need to do some cleaning.”

According to Harbison, mold is growing in the duct system not affecting the air quality (no major mold spores or anything dangerous). “We’re working on finding somebody to come and clean them,” she stated.

Commissioner, Pct. 4 Tom Bellmyer proposed that once the remodeling work is finished at the courthouse annex, the ductwork be cleaned. He also suggested that ductwork in the courthouse be cleaned, and that routine maintenance for all county buildings include duct cleaning.

The court is still looking for janitorial services, and no bids were received for the services. To compound the problem, the temporary cleaner also quit, leaving the county without services.

The issue was tabled for another week allowing time to explore options.

Grant Application The court discussed a request from Paxton Water Supply Corporation for Shelby County to sponsor a 2025-26 community block development grant application through the Texas Department of Agriculture.

After lengthy discussion on who the administrator for the grant would be and how the grant would be funded, the court tabled the request pending clarification.

County Radio System

The court also discussed the county radio system. During the public comment opportunity at the beginning of the meeting, Richard Lundie of Timpson had addressed the court with a suggestion that the county utilize the Corps of Engineers for assistance in siting radio towers it is planning to install.

Lundie cited that despite the court’s previous discussion on radio towers and money spent, communication was still lacking. He also asked what type of engineers were used, and if the Corps of Engineers has been contacted.

According to Lundie, the Corps of Engineers will assess the area and report on needs without spending money.

Lundie pointed out that the Corps had a catalog of topographical maps that show elevations and reliefs that would help in picking the optimum locations for any new towers the county installs.

“So, my question is, have y’all been communicating with them,” Lundie asked? “Because they’re working with FEMA and Homeland Security, and not just in this area, but every area.”

According to Harbison, no money has been spent, but she agreed that the county does need a “game plan.”

“Anybody that’s in the National Forest has a lot of problems,” she said. “We definitely need to have a workshop about radios.”

In other action, the court approved paying weekly expenses.