JACKSON – Tears welled up in Kay Warnock’s eyes Tuesday as she spoke of her daughter to members of the Mississippi House of Representatives’ county affairs committee.

&uot;This is a picture of Casey,&uot; Warnock said. &uot;She was 18.&uot;

Warnock’s daughter, Casey Schrock, died two weeks ago when she was hit on Morgantown Road while working as a school crossing guard.

Since then, the Warnock family has made it their &uot;mission&uot; to support legislation allowing county sheriff’s deputies to patrol county roads with radar. &uot;I don’t want any other parents to have to bury their children,&uot; Warnock said.

Despite her comments, committee members modified the bill to include only the 12 counties with populations of 50,000 or more. Adams County would not have been included.

With that measure in place, committee members, including Rep. Phillip West, D-Natchez, voted 9-7 to kill the bill in committee. The bill might get another chance for review before a senate committee, officials said.

West said he did not support the bill because of the population requirement. &uot;I felt … it should affect every county equally,&uot; he said. West was surprised by the added provision – and that it cost the passage of the bill. &uot;I just didn’t see anyway that it would be defeated until it was,&uot; he said.

But Adams County Sheriff Tommy Ferrell said Tuesday’s decision did not surprise him.

&uot;I’m not surprised because I’ve been going through this for so many years,&uot; he said. &uot;I’m frustrated, but it shows you the mentality of the Mississippi Legislature.&uot;

After at least 10 years of fighting for this legislation, Ferrell said he does not think it will ever become law unless the federal government mandates it. &uot;It’s frustrating to professional, modern law enforcement not to be able to use the tools there for us to use,&uot; Ferrell said.

And Ferrell does not agree sheriffs would only use radar to set up speed traps, a common perception across the state.

&uot;We live in modern times. We need to have modern equipment to save lives,&uot; Ferrell said. &uot;Apparently the Mississippi Legislature does not want to save lives.&uot;

But whether Schrock’s death could even have been saved with radar is a debated question.

Schrock died Jan. 9 after being struck by a Ford Explorer at the intersection of Booker and Morgantown roads.

Schrock’s stepfather, James Warnock, said he does not believe the 17-year-old driver was only driving 40 mph, as stated on the accident report. &uot;I used to be a traffic cop, and you don’t knock 200 pounds 73 feet in the air doing 40 mph,&uot; he said.

But officials with the Adams County Sheriff’s Department do not agree, blaming ice and sun glare on the windshield for the accident.

When asked if speed was a factor in the accident, Ferrell said, &uot;Absolutely not.&uot;

&uot;The investigation and the facts do not indicate speed,&uot; he said.

Ferrell said he thinks once the Mississippi Highway Patrol finalizes its report on the accident, it will confirm his findings.

But regardless of that fact, the Warnocks plan to continue their fight for radar legislation.

James Warnock said he does not understand why sheriff’s departments are not allowed to use equipment used by other law enforcement agencies.

&uot;To me this is a slap in the face to (the) sheriff’s departments all over the state,&uot; he said, adding that it was almost like state officials did not trust county sheriff’s with the responsibility.

And his wife, Kay, said she does not want her daughter to die in vain.

&uot;I’m going to hold my head up,&uot; she said. &uot;I’m going to keep going until I get (radar legislation) passed for all counties.&uot;

In contrast to Mississippi, sheriff’s departments in Louisiana including Concordia Parish are permitted to use radar.

&uot;Deputies with the Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office and surrounding parishes do use it,&uot; said Kathleen Stevens, of the Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office, in a press release Tuesday.