Fighting mad: Friction surfaces again between Lauderdale supervisors

By By Steve Gillespie / staff writer
April 30, 2004
District 5 Supervisor Ray Boswell and District 2 Supervisor Jimmie Smith exchanged insults Thursday during a work session.
At one point, Boswell seemed ready to take the argument to a physical level.
The fight erupted while supervisors discussed plans to place a memorial at the Lauderdale County Courthouse in honor of Chris Mabry, a U.S. Marine from Meridian killed in action earlier this month.
Boswell took offense to Smith's comments, and suggested that Smith was against the memorial because Boswell brought it up.
Smith yelled at Boswell, saying he is not against the plans.
Leaning forward and slightly rising out of his chair, Boswell said: "Do you want to make something else out of it?"
Smith said: "That's up to you."
Boswell said he was tired of Smith being against him.
District 1 Supervisor Eddie Harper, who presided over the meeting as vice president of the board, asked the men to stop arguing. But, the jabs continued.
The flap was the second at a work session this month. On April 1, Boswell and Harper got into a heated exchange during a discussion about an appointed position.
Plans for the memorial honoring Mabry were finalized later in the day, after the supervisors' work session.