An accused murderer will appear before a jury of his peers in the Panola County Courthouse on March 28, according to a court administrator.

Demetrius Smith is scheduled to appear in Panola County Circuit Court before Judge Ann Lamar on the charge of capital murder.

The charge stems from Smith allegedly kidnapping and murdering Ole Miss Freshman Carnesha Nelson of Moss Point.

According to testimony from Sheriff’s Department Investigator Mark Whitten during a preliminary hearing earlier this year, Smith allegedly bound and kidnapped Nelson from her residence in Oxford, then drove to Sardis Lake where her body was later discovered.

Autopsy reports ruled Nelson’s cause of death to be a result of freshwater drowning.

Nelson’s body was recovered from the water by Whitten and Conservation Officer Marion Pearson during the St. Jude Bass Classic.

Smith was charged with capital murder and bound over to the Panola County Grand Jury by Justice Court Judge James Appleton at the preliminary hearing. He was indicted by the Grand Jury earlier this month and ordered to stand trial.

District Attorney John Champion, who along with Robert Kelly and other representatives of the office will prosecute the case, said he is satisfied with the evidence against Smith, but admitted some of it is circumstantial.

"We are still waiting to get some of our evidence back from the FBI crime lab," he said. "However, the evidence we do have is some we are very comfortable with."

Champion added if he did not have satisfactory evidence, his office would not be proceeding with the case at this point in time.

"If we did not have what we have determined to be sufficient evidence, we would not proceed with this matter to court," he said.

Even with the amount of evidence the DA’s office has, Champion said there could still be some difficulty in convincing a jury.

"I think every case we prosecute is difficult," he said. "You have to consider we are faced with having to convince 12 people of a person’s guilt without a reasonable doubt.

"That is always a tough factor," the District Attorney continued. "I feel like we have a good, solid case, but when it all comes down, it will still be a jury’s decision."

As for the subject of a potential plea bargain in the case, Champion said he has not been contacted by the defense attorney(s) at this point.

"I haven’t been called about pursuing a plea bargain in this case, but I will not enter into plea negotiations without talking to the family first," he said.

"It is important for us to know just what the family wants us to do," he said. "Especially when it comes to a matter like this one."

Champion said he has not made contact with the family, but added Whitten had.

"The family has been very cooperative on their end," he said. "They seem to be just staying out of the way and letting us handle the situation."

The maximum penalty for the charge of capital murder in the State of Mississippi is life without parole or death. Only the jury can impose the death penalty.

Champion said at this time, he is unsure if he will pursue the death penalty.

County road should be 100 percent clear of ice by now, Panola County Road Department Manager Lygunnah Bean said.

Main roads and backroads were hit hard during the recent winter weather, but the roads didn’t receive any major damage, he said.

"The gravel roads held up pretty well except for the shaded areas," according to Bean. "As for the paved roads, they are pretty much in good condition."

Bean said six county crews are presently working to patch potholes in the roads.

"I think the water on the roads from the rain we had hurt us worse than the actually icy weather," he said. "With the water already on the road, it was easier for the roads to freeze."

As of Tuesday, Bean said 95 percent of the county’s paved roads were clear of ice while only 80 percent of the remaining gravel roads were completely thawed.

One major thing Bean said was evident to him during his first bout with winter weather since taking on the job is the need for rock storage.

"I think we are going to need to build a shed or something to store the rocks under," he said. "We discovered that some of the rock we had sitting out during the ice froze up.

"We have to look at better storage so we will be better prepared for this kind of emergency," Bean added.

As for work done on roads during the worst parts of the week, crews were out every night except Sunday, the road manager continued.

"We started getting calls on Wednesday night and went out to put down rocks around 5:30 p.m.," he said.

Bean said the county used very little salt to help them deal with the wintery condition because of distribution methods.

"We really don’t have any way of putting out the salt," he said. "But we may look at using some sand in the event that something like this happens again."

Bean said the idea for using sand came from the highway department.

"They were putting sand on the bridges and in some of the shaded areas, and it seemed to be working," he said. "So that is something we will probably be looking at for the next time."

Bean said he understands there are some people who might find themselves upset with the county, but said there was a lot to get to in a short amount of time.

"People are frustrated with us," he said. "I know that. But what they don’t understand is that there is 900 miles of road in the county that we have to take care of.

"That is a tremendous job," he said. "Especially during something like this."

As for difficulty dealing with the ice, Bean said it wasn’t much different than a large rain.

"The ice is more dangerous, but you don’t have to worry about a road washing out," he said. "Everything you have to deal with is right on top of the road."

Bean said roads should be back to 100 percent now thanks to the warming temperatures, but encouraged people to still be careful in shaded areas and on hills.

"You can never tell just how long it might take for something like this to get out of here," he said. "And most of the accidents we had were from people speeding or breaking wrong.

An automobile accident involving an officer of the Batesville Police Department and the Panola County Sheriff’s Office was not a result of a pursuit according to Chief Deputy Craig Sheley.

Sheley said the two units could have been on their way to assist with a pursuit on Old Panola Road at the time of the accident, but that has not been determined.

Deputy Gerald White was the driver for the S.O. involved in the accident. The Batesville Police Department would not release the name of the party involved in the collision.

"This accident occurred on Highway 51 Christmas Eve at 5:20 p.m.," Sheley said. "They were not in pursuit of another vehicle at the time of the accident."

Sheley said who was at fault for the accident has not been determined, but the icy conditions are believed to have played a part in the accident.

As of Tuesday, only one of Batesville’s aldermen had qualified to seek re-election.

Rufus Manley has filed the necessary paperwork to seek re-election as alderman for Ward 2. That leaves Bobbie Jean Pounders, Bill Dugger and James Yelton left to qualify for the upcoming municipal election. Hudson Still has qualified to run for mayor.

Manley said the decision to run for re-election was an easy one for him.

"My constituents asked me to run again," he said. "They think I have done a good job in my first four years.

"On top of that, I enjoy doing the job of an alderman," he said. "I like being able to help out the people in my ward with their problems."

In his first four years, Manley said there have been some big changes in Ward 2 including more equal treatment from the city.

"The city board no longer does one thing for a person that it would not do for any other," he said. "In the past they might have allowed something for one person and turned it down for another.

"That is something that doesn’t happen anymore," Manley added.

Manley said in addition to fair treatment for the citizens of his ward and the entire city, the biggest change to the area is the clean up work.

"Perhaps the biggest change the people of Ward 2 have seen has been the clean up of the west side of the city," he said. "We are making sure the grass on vacant lots stays cut, junk cars are taken away, old houses are demolished, and old mobile homes are being removed from the city limits."

As for his relationship with the present board members, Manley said it was initially stressful, but he believes all of the board members work well together.

"The first two months of meetings were probably an experience for the other board members," he said. "I think they just needed to learn that I wasn’t going to take everything they threw at me."

After seeing the progress made in his ward during his first term, Manley said he would like to see more of the same upon re-election.

"I hope we can continue to help people solve problems they might be having with the city," he said.

Big projects for the next four years include working on the sidewalks on Tubbs Road and areas of Patton Lane.

"I would also like to see some kind of city-wide transportation," he said. Manley said, overall, he is he is basically pleased with the way the city has run, but added there are some things he would like to see changed in the future.

"I think we have worked so hard at the civic center that we neglected areas of the inner city that have needed work because we didn’t have the people," he said. "Now that we have shifted our work force away from the civic center it’s getting a lot better."

As for the things he would like to see happen, improving the streets is at the top of his list.

"I think we have a lot of streets in the city that need to be overlayed," he said. "All of the aldermen seem to agree on that."

Manley said he would also like to see more drainage work done to improve the city.

"I think we need more drainage," he said. "It will help relieve the water that might be standing in areas of town."

Manley added he would also like to see positions within the police department filled.

"I think at this point we have something like 11 openings in the department," he said. "I think it would be a great thing for the city to have a police force that was at full capacity.