FROM STAFF REPORTS

October 2007 was a memorable month in Shelby County.

A Vincent pastor was charged with killing his wife. Shelby Baptist broke ground on an $85 million expansion. A Columbiana couple thought being in the film “Borat” wasn’t very nice.

With this Year in Review, the Shelby County Reporter looks back month-by-month on the news stories and images that defined the year.

Join us as we recall the triumphs and tragedies, successes and failures that were 2007.

This is part 10 of a 12-part series that will run online through Jan. 1

Palmer Hall repairs finished

Repairs to the University of Montevallo’s 75-year-old Palmer Hall Auditorium wrapped up in early November. Palmer Auditorium is home to several significant university events each year, but has been closed since last summer for ceiling repairs. Physical plant Director David Pritchett said the auditorium should be ready for occupancy by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra’s winter performance. While replacing tiles last August, construction workers noticed the auditorium’s ceiling was sagging in three places. Pritchett said supports for the plaster ceiling ultimately had to be reinforced and repaired.

Trooper faces charges

The captain of the Birmingham branch of the Alabama State Troopers surrendered to Pelham police Friday on sexual assault charges. Capt. Keith Wilson Kelley faces charges of first-degree sodomy and first-degree sexual abuse in connection to an incident that occurred in Pelham. Prosecutors say Kelley allegedly threatened to take a 20-year-old woman to jail if she didn’t perform a sexual act on him.

Former Vincent pastor accused of ’05 murder

The former pastor of the Revival Center in Vincent faces murder charges for the October 2005 shooting death of his wife. Timothy Dane Tillman, 44, was arrested after being brought from Florida and charged with intentional murder, according to the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office. Tillman is accused of shooting his wife, Janet Lorita Tillman, in the back at the couple’s home on Carr Drive on Oct. 26, 2005. Tillman contends the gun accidentally went off while he was cleaning it, hitting his wife. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.

Youth pastor nabbed on child sex charges

A former youth pastor faces charges of traveling to Tennessee to have sex with a teenage girl. Donald Brent Page, 33, was indicted by a Memphis grand jury on charges of crossing state lines to have sex with a minor. The Calera resident was arrested Oct. 6 for traveling to Tennessee to meet who he thought was a 13-year-old girl for sex, according to Memphis FBI. The Memphis Commercial Appeal reports Page used the online name “badlilboy8898” to arrange a meeting with the girl, who was actually a member of the FBI’s Crimes Against Children Task Force.

Staph strikes students at high school

Four students at Shelby County High School were confirmed to have staph infections said system spokesperson Cindy Warner. Warner said only one case appeared to be Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, a strain resistant to usual antibiotics like penicillin.

Hospital to expand

Shelby Baptist Medical Center administrators officially broke ground on the site of the $85 million South Tower project. Shelby Baptist President David Wilson said the growth in Shelby County spurred this ambitious undertaking. The 167,712 square-foot expansion, being built by general contractor Robins & Morton, will allow the hospital to replace its existing semi-private rooms with private rooms.

Lawsuit: Borat not very nice

Michael and Lynn Jared of Columbiana, along with three other plaintiffs from the Birmingham area, filed a lawsuit against Sacha Baron Cohen, star of the 2006 movie “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit of Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” and 20th Century Fox. Attorney Brannon Buck said the Jareds were led to believe they were taking part in an educational show to be broadcasted on a Russian television station. The lawsuit, which was filed on Oct. 22 in Birmingham federal court, said “There was no `educational documentary,’ but only a film memorializing the mockery, humiliation and degradation of unsuspecting participants.