OTSELIC – Today at 3 p.m., accused murderer George Ford Jr. will have his verdict handed to him by Broome County Court Judge Joseph F. Cawley. The tragedy which left 12-year-old Shyanne Somers of Otselic dead has generated controversy which has been even more potent for the small communities in the region of the victim’s hometown.
The Evening Sun contacted area residents who live in those communities to see what they had to say about the unfolding murder trial.
Alan Huntley, 65, of South Otselic, lives on Will Warner Road, the scene of the alleged murder. Huntley said he had not been following the case in the media and didn’t know many details of the incident.
“It just seemed kind of funny to me, a grown man with a girl that age at that hour. A grown man shouldn’t be with a girl like that at that hour unless he’s her father,” he said.
Although Huntley lives only a couple miles from where Somers died, he said the incident hasn’t affected his view of the community or made him feel unsafe.
“No, not at all, this is a good place to live and he’s (Ford) an outsider who hasn’t been here that long. This community is a good community, and I’m glad to live here,” he said.
Chris Lavancha, 48, of Preston, said he’s been reading newspaper accounts of the unfolding trial on a regular basis. “I think he’s guiltier than sin,” said Lavancha, who added that the graphic circumstances surrounding the crime were “hard to put into words.”
Lavancha said he sympathized with the Somers family. “I imagine they feel just like I do, they want him gone.”
Shyanne’s ex-cheerleading coach, Sadie Allen, 39, of South Otselic, said, “He (Ford) took her from her home and did not return her. I feel there should be an immediate verdict. I understand there is a process to be followed, but I truly feel it should be just a very simple, ‘he’s guilty.’ I just don’t understand what anyone could be pondering.”
Allen said the unusual high-profile crime in such a small area has caused a number of discussions among its residents.
“All of us are very connected and it’s so sad it just happened. Many of us just can’t wait for this to be over,” she said.
Despite the loss from event, Allen hopes the community and parents might learn from the incident.
“I don’t know, I just truly wanted people to recognize that there is a chance for something to happen,” she said. “We must remember even in a small community things like this can happen. We, adults, need to be responsible for our youth. Parents need to be aware of their children’s whereabouts and know exactly who it is they’re with and where. Hopefully nothing like this will ever happen again,” she added.
Tina Cruikshank, 38, of North Pitcher, works at the Otselic Valley Elementary School as an aide and was familiar with Somers. “I’d see her on and off throughout the day,” she said.
Cruikshank said she has kept a close eye on the case daily through newspapers, television and the Internet.
“In my heart I just feel he’s guilty. This just doesn’t happen around here. I can’t imagine what the family is going through,” she said.
Cruikshank dismissed any question that the incident had affected her feelings toward her community one way or the other or made her feel unsafe.
“I think he’s guilty. The whole thing about looking at horses at midnight in the dark – I’m sure it’s not lit up 24 hours a day. The stuff just doesn’t add up.”
Cruikshank said she found the time difference between the Shyanne’s death and when it was reported to authorities difficult to grasp.
“From the time he killed her until the time he got to the hospital, that part I just don’t understand,” she said.
“Even if he’s found guilty, I don’t think the parents will even have any closure,” said Cruikshank.
Gail Waltz, 59, of South Otselic, was the Somers’ neighbor at the time of the incident, living less than a half mile from Shyanne’s home.
Waltz was one of more than 200 guests attending the graduation party Ford said he was at the day of the incident.
“I was at the party Ford went to. I saw Ford at the party, as I was leaving he was coming. We also saw Shyanne there with her family. My kids knew her and I even helped to provide the meals for the funeral,” said Waltz.
Waltz is a mother of 12 and has 25 grandchildren, many of whom live in the South Otselic area. She has taken an interest in the case, reading newspaper accounts and watching television reports, but said she had missed the past week’s developments.
“I think that everything he’s said from the onset was a lie. I know he’s a human being and he probably feels bad, but he was under the influence and a girl died, so who knows what happened. I always thought that there was something sexual to the case,” said Waltz.
She also said “a lot people in the community thought Ford was a good guy” before the incident took place.
“I hope he goes away for a long time. I’m not a hateful or bitter person, but that child had a right to live. But even if he serves the 25 years, it still won’t bring that little girl back,” she said.
“No parent would ever believe a person would take a child to see horses at 11:30 at night. I wouldn’t,” added Waltz.
In total 16 people where asked to share their thoughts and five gave responses. No one surveyed advocated for the defendant, on or off the record.