Cops Pass Toys, Meds to 6-Year-Old Alabama Hostage

The man suspected of holding a 6-year-old hostage in his Alabama bunker was due in court yesterday in a separate case: Jimmy Lee Dykes allegedly shot at his neighbors in a December property feud. A standoff between police and Dykes continues, with Dykes reportedly in the bunker with the boy. The lines of communication are open, and authorities "have no reason to believe that the child has been harmed," the Dale County sheriff said last night.

Officers are speaking with the suspect through PVC piping coming out of the bunker, CNN reports. They have passed coloring books, crayons, and medicine to the boy, who reportedly has Asperger's syndrome and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. A neighbor said that the suspect was able to capture the boy because he had fainted. In the earlier feud, Dykes reportedly started yelling at his neighbors, then shooting at their truck after it damaged a speed bump he'd installed. (More Alabama stories.)