All the news

Long Island duo lends li'l gator aid

2008-08-31T22:01:00.001-04:00

Aug. 31, 2008

By Taylor K. Vecsey and Marcie Young
New York Post

A pair of Long Islanders went toe-to-toe with a gator yesterday.

Lucky for them, the critter was a 33-inch toddler.

Ron Settino, a 63-year-old retiree from Franklin Square, said he'd spotted the American alligator dozens of times in a Hewlett pond since March.

Settino got a hand from fishing buddy, 20-year-old Jared Baglietto.

The duo wrapped some black electrical tape around the animal's jaw until wildlife officials could arrive.

All content © THE NEW YORK POST and may not be republished without permission.

Text marks the spat for Obama fans

2008-08-24T22:01:00.000-04:00

3 a.m. news a very rude awakening

Aug. 24, 2008

By Ginger Adams Otis and Marcie Young
New York Post

OMG . . . It's 3 a.m. R U awake?

Maceo Brown wasn't.

The 25-year-old from Harlem was jolted out of a deep sleep in the wee hours yesterday by a text message from Barack Obama telling him that Joe Biden was his vice-presidential pick.

"It was the first time I've been upset with Obama in a long time, because he woke me up," Brown said yesterday.

"I got up and spent a lot of time on the computer - and I could have spent that time sleeping!" Brown joked.

He added that he's an avid Obama supporter and had been hoping to hear the news before it reached the mainstream media.

Jennifer Miles, 47, was also roused by Obama's late-night message, but she wanted the heads-up.

"I had the phone under my pillow waiting for the text," the interior designer from Harlem said.
"It's not usually there," she said.

The Obama camp isn't talking about when it decided to roll out its text and e-mail messages - but it failed in its goal to reach supporters before it hit the mainstream media.

"My feeling is that they had to speed things up by a few hours once it started to leak around midnight that it was Biden," said a source close to the Obama camp. "They were ready to go, but probably would have preferred to do it a little later."

Benjamin Cook was awake in Illinois when his text came in around 2:45 a.m.

At the time, he was waiting for a friend to keep him posted.

"My first reaction when I read the text was, what in the world is [Obama] doing sending out a text in the middle of the night?"

He assumed Obama was having fun with Hillary Rodham Clinton's infamous "red phone" ad that asked voters who should be in the White House for a 3 a.m. emergency.

"It seems like sort of a slam to Clinton. I don't know what that's going to do for party unity, but it's pretty funny," Cook said.

All content © THE NEW YORK POST and may not be republished without permission.

Falls through skylights injure 2 officers

2008-05-08T01:04:00.000-04:00

Police saw a ladder, suspected a break-in

May 8, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Two police officers in Catawba County were injured early Wednesday morning, one seriously, when they fell through a roof.

The Longview officers were looking into what they thought was a break-in just after 4 a.m. at E.L. Hilts & Co., a roofing equipment and tools company. They had noticed an unlocked gate and a ladder leading to the roof, said Longview Police Chief Cecil Rogers.

One officer scaled the ladder first and fell through the roof while the other officer looked around the outside of the building, Rogers said. When the second officer couldn't get in touch with his colleague, he climbed onto the roof to look for him, Rogers said.

Two fiberglass-like skylights had been painted over with a sealant that matched the color of the roof, Rogers said, and when the officers stepped on the patches, the skylights gave way.

The first officer, Sgt. Michael Ford, fell about 20 feet to the ground. He received serious head injuries and was airlifted to Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem where he was listed in critical condition Wednesday night.

The second officer, Abelardo Maldonado, landed on a stairwell banister and was not seriously hurt.

Maldonado, who has been with Longview for more than two years, was treated and released at a Hickory hospital.

Police learned later that an employee who had been working on the roof had left the gate unlocked and a ladder leaning against the building.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Property taxes an issue in several counties' races

2008-05-07T04:02:00.001-04:00

Wed., May 7, 2008
By Marcie Young and Hannah Mitchell
Charlotte Observer Staff Writers

Caldwell County
A 22.2 percent hike in property taxes cost two Caldwell County commissioners their seats Tuesday during the GOP primary.

Incumbents John Thuss and Faye Higgins were defeated by challengers Clay Bollinger, Ben Griffin and Rob Bratcher. Three other Republican challengers - Bill Oxford, Arnold Wilson and Steven Fekete - did not secure enough votes in unofficial returns to win the party's nomination.

Bollinger received 4,251 votes, Griffin 3,648 and Bratcher received 3,442 votes, followed by Oxford with 2,015, Thuss with 1,497, Higgins with 1,452; Wilson with 1,297 and Fekete with 649.
The winners of the Republican primary will go on to face Barbara Weiller, Randy Church and L.C. Coonse, the top vote-getting Democrats for one of three open seats. Those candidates defeated Jerry Cecil Coffey and Timothy Shore for their party's nomination.

Weiller received 5,133 votes, Church 5,013 and Coonse 4,499.

Challengers also said current commissioners have made bad decisions, citing new county building construction, giving large companies tax breaks and the budget-planning process.

Alexander County
Alexander County chose Democratic and Republican commissioner nominees in Tuesday's primaries to advance to the November election.

Glenn Deal Jr. and Danny Price won the Democratic primary, defeating Lisa Rudisill Bradley, Scott Mitchell and Cody Teague. Deal received 2,612 votes, Price 2,173, Mitchell 1,119 , Bradley 964 and Teague 719.

In the Republican primary, newcomer Ryan Mayberry and incumbent Larry Yoder defeated incumbent William Hammer and newcomer Eric Bumgarner. Mayberry received 1,415 votes and Yoder got 1,353 votes, followed by Hammer with 1,239 votes and Bumgarner with 1,017 votes.

Candidates from both parties criticized the incumbents, saying the property tax rate is too high and spending on some projects unnecessary.

Burke County
Two Republican incumbents in Burke County and a retired law enforcement officer and farmer secured the party's nomination for the county board of commissioners in the general election in November.

With all but one precinct reporting, incumbents Maynard Taylor and Jack Carroll and retired Burke County deputy Gene Huffman defeated challenger Johnnie Carswell.

In the Democratic primary, Bruce Hawkins Sr., Steven Smith and Angela Deal defeated Leonard Ray and J. Pascal.

Deal withdrew from the race last week, but election officials said they could not remove her name because the ballot had already been printed. It was not clear Tuesday night who would be the party's third pick for the general election.

Candidates are vying for one of three open seats. Challengers from both parties have said recruiting industry and finding ways to replenish jobs in an area once controlled by furniture and hosiery factories are paramount.

Catawba County
Incumbents Barbara Beatty and Dan Hunsucker easily defeated challengers in Tuesday's GOP Catawba County commissioner primary.

Beatty and Hunsucker defeated challengers Jack Beach and Phillip Parlier to advance to the November general election, when they face Democrat George McClellan.

The challengers criticized the incumbents for raising the property tax rate last year. The increase came in a property tax revaluation year, creating a double-whammy effect. But the incumbents said they would keep the tax rate stable since voters approved a quarter-cent increase in the sales tax to help pay for services.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Allran survives challenger in 42nd; In 44th, Democrat Cates beats political newcomer

2008-05-07T04:02:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, May 7, 2008
By Hannah Mitchell and Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writers

Longtime Republican state Sen. Austin Allran survived a serious primary challenge Tuesday from Catawba County commissioner Kitty Barnes, moving toward another two-year term representing the 42nd District.

No Democrats were running.

With all but three precincts reporting, Allran led 65 percent to Barnes' 35 percent.
The 42nd covers Catawba County and part of Iredell.

The race turned testy early, with Barnes accusing Allran of breaking a no-taxes pledge because he supported hotel occupancy tax increases requested by local governments, and with Allran calling Barnes a liberal.

In the short campaign season, Barnes portrayed Allran as out of touch with constituents, ineffective, and unwilling to work with the Democratic power structure in Raleigh to help the district.

Allran, who has served in the senate for 22 years, countered that Barnes has stymied economic development in Catawba County by being too eager to raise taxes and said she has no experience in state lawmaking.

Allran said he wants to develop the district's economy by working to cut the state's corporate and personal income tax rates to stimulate business while decreasing spending on economic incentives used to lure big corporations.

Senate District 44

In the neighboring 44th District, which serves Burke and Caldwell counties, a former Burke County commissioner beat out a political newcomer for the Democratic party's nomination.

Based on partial results, Jim Cates, a former schoolteacher who served as a Burke County commissioner for seven years before stepping down in 1985, easily defeated former Marine officer and truck driver Danny Hefner of Lenoir.

Cates, 70, will face Republican incumbent Jim Jacumin of Rutherford College. Jacumin, 71, is seeking his third term.

With all but 12 precincts reporting, Cates received 65 percent versus Hefner's 35 percent.
Cates, who lives in Morganton, said bringing new industry, finding ways to conserve energy, education and health care are big issues, and that he's focusing on listening to voters' concerns rather than pinpointing specific issues.

Hefner, 42, said he would like to focus on bringing more jobs and a better economy to a region hit hard by the recent exodus of furniture jobs, finding ways to provide affordable health care and better benefits for teachers.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Paid to train: recruits learn and earn

2008-05-04T06:22:00.000-04:00

Chief says the process helps lure good officers

May 4, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

HICKORY - Anitra Maldonado was looking for a career change.

She had been working as a medical assistant for several years, but after returning from a stint in Kuwait with the Navy Reserves, the 31-year-old mother wanted to do something new.

Police work had always intrigued her, she said, but that required taking the basic law enforcement training course, which runs more than eight hours a day for four months. With three kids younger than 10, working a full-time job and being a full-time student just wasn't going to happen, she said.

But then, Maldonado heard that the Hickory Police Department was looking to recruit officers and would be willing to pay not just for the training course but a salary, too.

Maldonado applied - a lengthy process that includes a physical fitness test, drug screening, background check, polygraph and psychological assessment. When she graduates this month, she will already be a paid member of the Hickory police.

Covering the salaries for a select number of recruits to go through law enforcement training is one way the Hickory Police Department is expanding its applicant base in hopes of getting a more diverse pool of potential officers.

Five years ago, said Chief Tom Adkins, the Police Department was having a difficult time finding qualified applicants and needed an incentive to get people with life experience to join the force.

The problem, he said, is that those people often had families and couldn't afford to be out of work while they went through training.

So, in 2005, the Hickory Police Department decided to offer a full-time salary - reduced by 15 percent off the starting pay of about $30,000 a year - to one officer to go through the training and then join the force after graduation.

In the years since, Adkins said, the department has expanded the program and now pays for six recruits to go through training and guarantees them, if they do well, a job on patrol.

Capt. Jay Jackson, who oversees Hickory's Support Services division, said paying recruits a salary during training allows the department to be more competitive with other law enforcement agencies and encourages more qualified people to apply.

"When we open it up, we can get 60 applicants," he said. "And because of that ... we're finding people with college degrees who want to make a career change. This is the only way they could afford to do it."

The process starts with an intense physical fitness test to assess whether the applicant is able to do everything that would be required of a patrol officer.

If they can't pass the test - which includes running, sit-ups and pushups, among other things - they can't advance in the application process, said Sgt. Tom Freeman, who picks the recruits the Police Department will pay during training.

Maldonado was one of six recruits hired by the Hickory police at the beginning of the year and has since been taking the basic law enforcement classes at Western Piedmont Community College.

She graduates May 16, and by the end of the month will be patrolling Hickory's streets.

"It's a great opportunity for education and advancement," she said. "And that extra security of already having a job is nice, too."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Candidates take on taxes, jobs

2008-05-04T04:02:00.000-04:00

Heated races in all corners of the Unifour build on voter and challenger frustration

May 4, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Seven big races are dominating the Catawba Valley political scene, and on Tuesday voters will pick their parties' nominees for the general election in November.

Dozens of candidates are vying for seats on boards of commissioners across the Unifour, and four others are competing in two N.C. Senate districts. U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry is also facing a Republican challenger, while two Democrats vie for their party's nomination for the House seat.
Here's your guide to help you prepare before casting that ballot.

Caldwell commissioners
Eight Republicans and five Democrats are vying to run for one of three open seats on the Caldwell County Board of Commissioners in one of the region's most heated races.

Challengers say they are frustrated with decisions made by commissioners in the past year, ranging from the county manager's salary to building renovations. Though they point to what they say are missteps by the board, most challengers agree that the biggest reason they're running is this year's 22.2 percent hike in property taxes.

GOP incumbents Faye Higgins and John Thuss will face challengers Clay Bollinger, Rob Bratcher, Ben Griffin, Steven Fekete, Bill Oxford and Arnold Wilson.

Democrats Randy Church, Jerry Coffey, L.C. Coonse, Timothy Shore and Barbara Weiller are hoping to secure their party's nomination.

Catawba commissioners
Catawba County commissioners knew when they raised the property tax rate last year that the decision wouldn't sit well with some constituents.

The increase, which came in a tax revaluation year that raised most owners' property values, continues to be an issue as two commissioners run for re-election. Commissioners voted to raise the property tax rate 9 percent last year.

Incumbents Barbara Beatty and Dan Hunsucker are competing against challengers Jack Beach and Phillip Parlier for the Republican Party's nominations. The winners face Democrat George McClellan in the fall.

The current five-member board of commissioners is all Republican.

Burke commissioners
Four Republicans and four Democrats are seeking their parties' nominations to run for one of three open seats on the board, and all say recruiting industry and finding ways to replenish jobs in an area once controlled by furniture and hosiery factories are paramount.

Incumbents Maynard Taylor and Jack Carroll are facing two other Republicans, Johnnie Carswell and Gene Huffman, in Tuesday's primary. Republican commissioner Wesley Abele, elected in 2004, is not seeking a second term.

Democratic challengers - Bruce Hawkins Sr., Steven Smith, Leonard Ray and John Pascal - are also hoping to go on to the general election in November.

Alexander commissioners
Alexander County is seeing one of its most competitive elections in years as candidates in both major political parties seek two seats on the all-Republican board of county commissioners.

Incumbents William Hammer and Larry Yoder, both Republicans, are up against two Republican challengers, Eric Bumgarner and Ryan Mayberry.

Five Democrats are running in the primary: Lisa Rudisill Bradley, Glenn Deal Jr., Scott Mitchell, Danny Price and Cody Teague.

The top two vote-getters in each party advance to the November general election.

Republicans have dominated the board since 2002, when voters put Democrats out of power.

N.C. Senate District 42
Veteran state Sen. Austin Allran of Hickory is facing a serious challenge in Catawba County commissioners' Chairman Kitty Barnes of Terrell. While he has easily defeated foes of the past, this year's matchup is particularly competitive.

No Democrats filed to run, so the winner is headed for a two-year term representing District 42, which covers Catawba County and part of Iredell County.

Allran said his tenure proves he's represented his constituents' values and that they appreciate his conservatism, honesty, conviction and common-sense approach.

Barnes said she would provide vision and work with both parties to benefit the district's economy. Her record, she said, proves she can do that.

N.C. Senate District 44
The Democratic primary race for the 44th Senate District has a political newcomer who has spent three years preparing for a bid and a former commissioner who says his people skills make him the best pick.

Former Marine officer and truck driver Danny Hefner of Lenoir and retired schoolteacher and former Burke County commissioner Jim Cates of Morganton are vying for the Democratic nomination for the seat, which represents Burke and Caldwell counties.

The winner will face Republican Jim Jacumin, who is seeking his third term.

U.S. House, 10th District
A retired military judge is challenging U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry for the Republican party's nomination in the race for the 10th Congressional District seat.

Two Democrats, a retired businessman and an attorney, are also hoping to claim the seat.
Republican Lance Sigmon and McHenry are vying for their party's nomination, while Steve Ivester and Daniel Johnson seek the Democratic nod.

Sigmon is a retired military trial judge now in private law practice. Steve Ivester is a retired Hickory businessman and engineer, and Johnson is a former Navy ensign who made national headlines in 1999 after he lost his legs trying to save a fellow sailor.

-Staff Writer Hannah Mitchell contributed

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

1 killed, two hurt in officer-involved shooting

2008-05-02T04:51:00.000-04:00

Office fired, but officials unsure whose bullet killed Paul Vang

May 2, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The man killed in a triple shooting in the parking lot of a Hickory shopping center Wednesday night shot his wife and her male companion, police said.

A Hickory police officer shot at Paul Vang, but police said it was not certain the officer's bullet killed the Conover man.

Hickory police said Vang shot his wife and another man before officers arrived at the Gateway Plaza on U.S. 70.

Officer Jonathan Barnes was the first to arrive, authorities said, and saw a man holding a handgun and standing over a woman.

Barnes ordered the man, later identified as Vang, to drop his weapon, police said. Capt. Clyde Deal said Vang ignored the officer's commands and fired shots in Barnes' direction.

Barnes also fired, but it was not clear which man fired first, police said. Police would not say how many times Barnes fired. A press release from the department said Vang died at the hospital from gunshot wounds.

Deal said police are also looking into the possibility that Vang turned the gun on himself. An autopsy would determine that, Deal said. That could take several days.

Barnes, who has been with the Hickory police for more than two years, was not injured.

Police said they believe Vang shot his wife, 37-year-old Sandy Vang, and the man with her, 27-year-old Xao Vue.

Sandy Vang, shot in the lower body, was in fair condition Thursday morning at Carolinas Medical Center. Vue, shot in the head, was in critical condition at Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, police said.

Authorities Thursday were still trying to piece together exactly what led to the shootings, which happened outside Jason's Deli and Barnes & Noble. Both businesses were still open when the shots were fired.

Barnes has been put on administrative leave with pay, which is the department's policy when an officer shoots someone. The State Bureau of Investigation is also looking into the shooting.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hopefuls zero in on '07 tax hike

2008-04-27T06:10:00.000-04:00

Eight vie in GOP contestes; 5 Dems seek nomination

April 27, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A decision to hike property taxes more than 22 percent last year has become the key issue incumbent commissioners in Caldwell County are being forced to defend as primary day approaches.

Commissioners passed a sharp property tax hike last year, which challengers from both parties say is one of the top reasons that motivated them to run for one of three open seats.

Incumbent Republicans John Thuss and Faye Higgins will face six other candidates vying for the GOP's nomination, three of whom have formed a bloc and hope to fill all of the board's open seats. Five Democrats are also hoping to secure their party's nomination.

The winners of the May 6 Republican primary will go on to face the three top vote-getting Democrats.

Longtime Republican commissioner Herb Greene's seat is also open, but he is not seeking re-election.

Beyond the tax increase, challengers from both sides say current commissioners have made bad decisions, citing the county manager's salary, building a new Department of Social Services building, giving large companies tax incentives, and how the board plans the budget.

Incumbents, meanwhile, argue that the board has been making sound decisions, like creating better educational opportunities, boosting economic prospects and making sure county buildings are in good condition and able to provide quality service.

The Republicans
Thuss, a retired veterinarian, has served on the board for two stints, from 1988 to 1992 and from 1996 until now. Having a bevy of challengers in the Caldwell County primary is normal, but his opponents, he said, don't fully understand what commissioners have to consider when making budget decisions.

They have to adhere to mandates issued by the state and federal government, he said, while keeping a fund balance and juggling each department's budget.

"What do you want us to cut?" he said. "That's what they don't understand. They want the service to be top of the line and for people to be the best trained. But that costs money, and that's what taxes cover."

Commissioners, he said, are trying to satisfy all of these demands while also finding ways to bring new industry and jobs to the county while recovering from the exodus of furniture factories in recent years.

Higgins, who was elected to the board in 2004 and retired from the Department of Social Services, voted against the tax increase and said she would like to see commissioners pass a quarter-cent sales tax referendum to help meet budget needs.

"It doesn't seem right to make property owners shoulder most of the taxes," she said. "There has to be a better way to handle that."

Higgins also said she will focus on bringing new industry and jobs to the county and finding ways to bring more educational opportunities, like the Appalachian State University extension program.

Retired businessman Clay Bollinger, textile director Rob Bratcher and real estate developer Ben Griffin are running as a group and say their 98 years of collective business experience make them the best candidates.

"(County government) is a $78 million business, and it's absolutely not being run that way right now," Bollinger said.

The men said they would look at the budget in the long term, setting goals beyond the fiscal year and looking forward as far as 2018.

"You have to have planning and not chaos," said Griffin, who has made three unsuccessful commissioner bids. "By balancing the budget and living within our means, we can find a workable plan for the future that we can afford and prosper with."

Bratcher, who has spent his entire life in Caldwell, said he and his running mates would also like to make sure their children have long-term educational and professional opportunities and won't feel forced to seek better jobs outside the county.

"I'd prefer my son, who's a freshman, and my daughter, who is graduating this year, to live in Caldwell County and have rewarding careers here," he said.

Steven Fekete, meanwhile, said his reason for running was simple.

"I'm tired of complaining," he said.

He's frustrated with the property tax increase, he said, especially when commissioners decided to give incentives to Google that would slash the company's taxes for several years.

"There is no justification for giving a billion-dollar company handouts for coming to Caldwell," he said.

Fekete, a mechanic, said he would also try to trim the budget by cutting services he doesn't think are necessary, like air-conditioning at the county jail and forgoing tax incentives for companies looking at coming to Caldwell.

Bill Oxford, a furniture manager retiring next week, served on the Cajah's Mountain Board of Alderman for eight years and said his experience of working with budgets would benefit the county.

"The biggest thing that I hear is that people want change," he said. "I don't think anyone is satisfied with where we are and where we're going."

He said he would find ways to control spending by looking at each department's request and see what could be trimmed.

Arnold Wilson, a business owner making his first bid for office, did not return several messages left by the Observer.

The Democrats
The key issues - the tax increase and jobs - have varied little between the parties, with candidates saying they want to focus on bringing fresh ideas to the board and allowing residents to be more involved with decisions.

Barbara Weiller, a retired banker and former member of the Caldwell County School Board, said she would bring decades of business and political experience.

Weiller said she has already met with most of the mayors in the county's chartered municipalities and wants to make sure every community feels involved. She would also like to have better communication with each county department.

"I want to let them know I'm interested in their communities," she said. "I plan on being as open to everyone as I can."

Randy Church, a former chief of the Lenoir Fire Department, retired from the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office in December and said his years working in the community would benefit the board.

Church, who's running based on a "common-sense approach," said bringing Google to Caldwell was a good first step that needs to be followed up with fresh ideas.

Jerry Coffey, meanwhile, drives a tiny, lime green and fuel-efficient car and said he would like to encourage Caldwell residents to look for ways to conserve energy. Beyond that, he said, he would like to implement a "monitoring system" in which one person hired by the county would review every tax dollar commissioners propose spending and present it to the community before voting.

"The people in Caldwell County need to know they are stockholders in the county, and they need to approve of what's happening with their money," he said.

"We're going to have to address the issues with more out-of-the-box kind of thinking about how we are going to recruit new business," he said. "(It's going to require) some unconventional thinking."

L.C. Coonse, a retired schoolteacher, said he hasn't seen the leadership from commissioners that he thinks is necessary to run a county. Watching taxes soar, he said, was just one thing that motivated him to run.

"There has been a lot of reaction to problems, and all that causes is more reactions to more problems. It's a spiral," he said.

Coonse said he would like to review all the numbers commissioners are privy to and set objectives for long-range financial plans that would allow the county to stay within its budget from year to year.

That's a plan that Timothy Shore, who has run for a commissioner seat twice before, said commissioners need to implement if they are going put the county back into the global economy.

The tax increase, he said, could have been a much softer blow if the board had been thinking about the budget in four-year increments rather than one. Setting priorities for life's necessities, he said, is something he does with his money and something he expects commissioners to do as well.

"If families have to tighten their budgets, the county needs to do the same," he said.

About the tax increase
On June 18, commissioners approved, in a 3-to-1 vote, a 12-cent property tax increase that would fund a $77.5 million operating budget. Faye Higgins voted against the tax hike.
The board initially considered an 18.5 percent tax increase but voiced concerns about residents still struggling with unemployment and low wages being able to handle the hike. When they gathered to vote two weeks later, however, the board decided against the 18.5 percent hike and raised taxes more - to 22.2 percent.

The new rate, 65.99 cents for every $100 of value, means that taxes on a $150,000 house would be $989.85, an increase of $180 a year.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

2 square off in race for senate

2008-04-27T00:53:00.001-04:00

Hefner, Cates vie for democratic nomination

April 27, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The Democratic primary race for the 44th Senate District has a political newcomer who has spent three years preparing for a bid and a former commissioner who says his people skills make him the best pick.

Former Marine officer and truck driver Danny Hefner of Lenoir and retired schoolteacher and former Burke County commissioner Jim Cates of Morganton are vying for the Democratic nomination for the open Senate seat, which represents Burke and Caldwell counties.

The winner will face Republican Jim Jacumin of Rutherford College. Jacumin, a 71-year-old retired engineer, is seeking his third term.

Hefner, 42, spent 13 years in the Marines and served four tours of duty in the Middle East and South Korea. He has been driving a truck across the country in the years since he was discharged from the military in 1996, and for the past three years has been talking to people as he's traveled across the state about what they want to see in their state politicians.

"This is not a whim for me," he said.

Hefner said he would like to focus on bringing more jobs and a better economy to a region hit hard by the recent exodus of furniture jobs, finding ways to provide affordable health care and better benefits for teachers.

Cates, 70, said he recently decided to venture back into politics after a 23-year hiatus from public office. Cates, who taught at Western Piedmont Community College and in Burke and Caldwell schools, served as a Burke County commissioner for seven years before stepping down in 1985.

"A couple months ago I mentioned to someone that I wondered if I could beat Jimmy Jacumin," he said. "I figured with my years on the board of commissioners and my education, I could stack up to him."

Though Cates said bringing new industry, finding ways to conserve energy, education and health care are big issues, he's focusing more on listening to voters' concerns rather than pinpointing specific issues.

"I'm still in the formulation stages of things," he said. "But when I'm informed of issues in the area, I will go to the gizzards chasing the pros and cons and taking it as far as it can go."

The men, who face off in the May 5 primary, say they would be a good fit for the state Senate because they understand the people in the district and say constituents would benefit from new representation.

Hefner's plans would include proposing legislation to implement a toll for cars traveling in and out of the state and to use that income to subsidize health care. He's also looking into ways to pay teachers more, including proposing that each resident pay an additional 52 cents a year to fund salary increases.

"We need to pay our teachers what they are worth," he said. "Would it be worth one penny a week to have your child schooled better? It's worth it to me."

Cates said he's "making a big deal out of the fact that I'm not pushing any one issue" and that he plans to focus on all the concerns district residents bring to him. He acknowledges that creating good educational opportunities and recruiting new industry are paramount, he said, but wants people to know that he'll work hard to find solutions for their problems.

"I'm trying to be a totally open-minded person," he said. "I'm a bottom-up kind of guy. You tell me what's going on and we'll take it from there."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Paralyzed officer sets new life in motion

2008-04-10T04:03:00.003-04:00

SWAT team member was shot in neck; adapts to life in wheelchair

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

ATLANTA --Detective Martin Lawing sat in his wheelchair and looked at his car.

The four-door, 1989 Mercedes had been in Atlanta for less than a day -- driven down by colleagues at the Burke County Sheriff's Office -- and Lawing was hoping to conquer it.

Four months ago, getting into a sedan was easy for the 31-year-old former Army Ranger, like brushing his teeth or pulling on a pair of pants.

But that was before Lawing, a SWAT team member, went to work on Dec. 11. Before a mentally ill, 60-year-old woman was charged with shooting him in the neck during a standoff. Before he became a quadriplegic.

Now, Lawing, who used to run daily and had been dubbed "the most in shape" deputy by colleagues, is learning how to live his life from a wheelchair.

He's been told he'll never walk and has been forced to adjust the plans he had for his life. But he's determined to focus on recovering and not spend time thinking about what he's lost.

"Your future is kind of bleak when you've got tubes coming out of you and everyone is saying you'll never walk again or use your hands," he said Friday during his last week of in-patient physical therapy at the Shepherd Center, a spinal cord injury hospital. "But if you stay mad about it all the time, you're not doing anything good for yourself."

He's resolute, also, about getting back to his job as a narcotics officer, even if that means a desk job and working in the courts.

"It's not all undercover work," he said. "There's a lot more to it than that."

Doctors have classified Lawing as "C7 incomplete," which means he can't walk or feel much below his chest but has some limited use of his hands.

For three months Lawing has been meeting daily with therapists -- physical, occupational, psychological and recreational -- to adjust to his new reality.

Wednesday was Lawing's first day living away from the hospital in an off-campus apartment, a landmark that brings him closer to moving back to Morganton with his wife, Leslie, and their 2-year-old daughter, Isabella.

Every week, he's noticed himself getting stronger and doing more than doctors said he should have expected.

"There have been a lot of little instances, like being able to pick up a piece of paper or being able to pick up a potato chip and eat it with my hands," he said. "Little things like that."

The right attitude can go a long way, doctors say.

"The patients who get better ... are the folks who focus on what they can do rather than the folks who focus on what they've lost," said Dr. Brock Bowman, associate medical director of Shepherd's spinal injury program. "Thinking, `Why me, why now?' are totally normal human emotions, but that doesn't maximize getting better like pushing forward and focusing on the future."

Getting stronger

Lawing wakes up about 6 a.m. every day, though he doesn't usually have to be at therapy until after 8. Everything he could do quickly and without help before can now take hours, he said.

Doctors say it takes about 18 months before a body will respond fully to treatment but every patient reacts differently. That makes it difficult to predict what Lawing will be able to do in a year, or 20 years.

"Nobody wants to give you false hope and say you're going to walk again or use your hands," Lawing said. "But I've gotten a lot stronger since I've been here. Every day it's like, `That's something new.' "

Signing his name, using a strap that attaches a pen to his hand, takes a few minutes, while two attempts to climb into the Mercedes last week took about an hour and required the aid of his father, his wife and a therapist.

"This is what it means to get out of the house," his wife said. "He's 6-3 and has got long legs to get in there. That's not easy."

Occupational therapists teach him how to get dressed in bed and show him how to maneuver his legs into his pants. Sometimes it takes a half hour and he gets frustrated.

But he tries to focus on just one part of his therapy at a time rather than worry about all the things he must learn to do differently.

"You just have to take the task in front of you and move on," he said. "If you take it all in, it's just too much."

Long-term goals

Lawing can't tell when Leslie, his wife of eight years and an intensive care unit nurse, places his legs onto the pedals of the electronic stationary bike that stimulates his muscles, he said. But he can feel his father, John, pat his upper back and can feel his mother, Jane, rest her hands on his shoulders.

Over time, he's been able to extend his fingers and his arms have gotten strong enough to partially lift his 175-pound frame. That's more than doctors predicted, he said.

The achievements allowed doctors to reclassify his injury and therapists to set higher goals, including learning how to move himself from bed or a car into his wheelchair without help.

Lawing still has another six weeks or so of daily out-patient therapy at Shepherd but is already setting long-term goals beyond the hospital. He wants to go back to work and has talked with his wife about learning to kayak or start cycling with a hand propelled bicycle.

"He's got such a positive attitude. When you talk about going to (physical therapy), he never says, `I just want to stay in bed,' " said his mother, Jane. "He's so determined and so anxious to do everything he can do."

For now, Lawing's just trying to stay focused on getting better and is taking one thing at a time -- like getting into his car so he can take a ride and see Atlanta and eventually get back home.

An outpouring of support
In the weeks after the shooting, Burke deputies kept vigil at Carolinas Medical Center, where Lawing was before moving to Shepherd. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police, still coping with the deaths of two officers months before, paid for a hotel room for Lawing's parents and brought food. "This is what we do," said John Collins, a CMPD officer who also planned a fundraiser. "We take care of each other."

Law enforcement officers and communities across the state have planned several other fundraisers, including 5K runs, barbecue dinners and bluegrass concerts, and Lawing has received hundreds of letters offering encouragement.

It's these little gestures, his father, John, said, that mean the most. "There was a little lady who sent $3 to the Sheriff's Office," he recalled. "It was the last bit of money she had in her pocketbook. She knew nothing about Martin, but she gave him all she had."

Want to help?
Checks and money orders can be sent to the Fraternal Order of Police, c/o Martin Lawing Fund, P.O. Box 1216, Morganton, NC 28680. Write "Martin Lawing Fund" in the memo line.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission. Photo by Jeff Willhelm.

Teen killed, father injured in wreck

2008-04-07T16:05:00.000-04:00

Monday, April 7, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Newton teenager died and his father was seriously injured Sunday afternoon when their car sped off the road and hit a utility pole, authorities said.

Shavonne Lesha Parson, 19, was driving a 1994 Honda Accord south on Sigmon Dairy Road shortly after 3:30 p.m. when he entered a curve near Shady Lane and veered off the right side of the road, Newton police said.

Parson was going about 70 mph in a 45 mph zone, police said, when he tried steering back onto the roadway. He lost control of the car, and the Honda flew through the air before hitting the pole, police said.

His father, 48-year-old Leander Parson, was sitting in the front passenger seat and was seriously injured. He was taken to Catawba Valley Medical Center and is being treated in the neurological intensive care unit, police said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

She's going to run for Robby

2008-04-06T16:04:00.001-04:00

A year after husband's death in Iraq, her 5K will raise funds for others

Sunday, April 6, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Michelle and Robby Bowman had plans.

They were going to climb Mount Rainier, have a baby and keep up with their morning runs around the lake near their Washington state home.

But then, on April 13, 2007, Michelle Bowman heard a knock on her front door and opened it to find an Army chaplain.

Her husband, 29-year-old Sgt. Larry "Robby" Bowman, a Granite Falls native, had been killed in Iraq by a roadside bomb.

Nearly a year has passed since her husband died, and Michelle Bowman still has plans. She's going to scale Mount Rainier in August, and on the anniversary of his death next Sunday, Bowman is hosting a 5K run through the Lenoir greenway in his honor.

"The last thing I wanted to do was spend the day alone just sitting and sulking," said Bowman, also a Caldwell County native. "The whole community was greatly affected when Robby died, and I didn't want the day to simply pass by. This is a way to celebrate his life."

Running was something the Bowmans picked up together. Robby Bowman had never been much of a runner before his joined the Army, and Michelle Bowman started jogging with him when they got married. It was just one of the things they enjoyed doing as a couple, she said.

"On the weekends, we'd get up and go for a run around the lake," Bowman said. "It was something we did together."

So, when Bowman started thinking about something she could do to honor her husband a year after his death, a race -- which she's named "Robby's Run" -- seemed like the perfect option.

Bowman said she is expecting more than 100 people to show up at the event, which she plans to continue every year. The proceeds, she said, will be donated to the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, which helps the families of soldiers injured or killed during war.

Four soldiers from Robby Bowman's unit, the 513th Transportation Company based out of Fort Lewis, Wash., are planning on traveling to Lenoir for the event. They include Staff Sgt. Eric Sears, who was stationed with Bowman in Iraq and has named his son after his fallen friend.

"He was a pretty big impact on my life," said Sears, who is in South Carolina and training to be an Army recruiter. "I just want to be (at the race) for the support factor. It's a great idea, and I wish things like this were done for more soldiers."

Want to go?
Robby's Run, honoring Sgt. Larry "Robby" Bowman, will start at 2 p.m. April 13 at the Lenoir greenway, 710 Powell Road.

Early registration is $15 and race day registration is $20. Participants can choose to either walk or run the 5K. Registration for the 1-mile fun run is $10. Donations are also accepted; proceeds from the event will go to the Intrepid Heroes fund, which offers assistance to families of soldiers killed or injured during war.

New Life Baptist Church in Lenoir is hosting a barbecue after the run.

Register at New Life Baptist, 2111 Walt Arney Road or at Fleet Feet Sports in Hickory, 1776 N. Center St. Details: 828-728-1473.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Savoring the start of life after death row

2008-04-03T04:04:00.004-04:00

Charges dropped in 1992 Catawba Co. killings; court-appointed defense faulted

Thursday, April 3, 2008

By Marcie Young and David Ingram
Charlotte Observer Staff Writers

RALEIGH --Glen Edward Chapman walked free Wednesday after nearly 14 years on death row in a case that a judge said was marred by a flawed police investigation and a faulty defense.

Murder charges against Chapman, 40, were dismissed Wednesday morning by District Attorney Jay Gaither, who in November was told by a Catawba County judge that the case needed to be retried.

Hours later, Chapman, sentenced to death in 1994 in the deaths of 31-year-old Betty Jean Ramseur and 28-year-old Tenene Yvette Conley, left Central Prison with one of his attorneys in a green Volkswagen.

He waved to reporters and photographers and later said in a news conference that he didn't know for sure he was leaving prison until 10 minutes before he was released.

"Everybody's like, `You're going home,' " he said. "I still didn't believe it until I was actually out."

Ramseur's brother said he was disappointed that the justice system couldn't resolve his sister's death.

"If it wasn't him, then I really do wonder who the killer was," Charles Ramseur, 55, said.

Chapman's release comes five months after Judge Robert Ervin issued a 186-page ruling that said the lead investigator in Chapman's double-murder case withheld critical evidence and lied on the stand. He also said Chapman's defense attorneys, who were court-appointed, did a poor job investigating the 1992 killings.

The case, according to court documents, was also marred by an incompetent defense by two lawyers with a history of alcohol abuse.

The ruling forced the District Attorney's Office to decide whether to retry the case. Gaither dismissed the charges, he said in a news release, because the prosecution's case was "factually incomplete" and there was not enough evidence to try Chapman again.

Ervin found that Chapman's trial attorneys had missed critical evidence, including that Conley was alive after Chapman last saw her and may have died of a drug overdose. Ervin also said in his ruling that the lead Hickory police investigator on the case withheld information that a key witness in the Ramseur case identified someone other than Chapman in a photo lineup.

Chapman's appeals attorney also argued that his trial attorneys, Thomas Portwood and Robert Adams, had failed to interview several critical witnesses and were "excessive users of alcohol."

Portwood, who admitted he drank more than a pint of 80-proof rum every evening during several death penalty trials, has been challenged in court for his representation of at least two other men, one of whom was executed in 2001.

According to Observer archives, Adams told the N.C. State Bar that he drank three scotches a night but that it did not affect his trial performance. A 1998 psychiatrist's evaluation of Adams, ordered by the bar, concluded that Adams "had a drinking problem" and referred him to Alcoholics Anonymous, according to a bar discipline order.

Portwood died in 2003, and Adams could not be reached for comment.

Ramseur and Conley's bodies were discovered within a week of each other in abandoned Hickory homes. Ramseur, according to court documents, was found in a burned-out building and likely had been dead for several weeks. Conley was found in a closet in another empty home.

Prosecutors argued that Chapman had beaten the women to death in separate drug-fueled fights. While Chapman has admitted that he knew both women and had smoked crack with each of them, he has long denied any involvement with their deaths.

Chapman's release, said Ramseur's brother, Charles, raises concerns about the legal system and whether it's working the way it should.

"I would think you would make sure you got the right one before you put him on trial or give him a death sentence," he said by phone Wednesday. "(Murder is) too serious a crime to convict someone if (there's a possibility) they didn't do it."

No relatives of Conley could be found Wednesday.

Chapman is among other inmates set free from North Carolina's death row in recent years. Another former inmate, Jonathan Hoffman, was freed in a Union County case challenged by post-conviction attorneys. Prosecutors declined to attempt a second trial.

The cases have renewed the debate about the state's death penalty -- currently on hold because of a dispute over lethal injection -- and led to changes in how capital cases are handled. But some older cases, including Chapman's, went to trial before the reforms.

On Wednesday afternoon, Chapman made phone calls -- using a cellular phone for the first time -- to his family and other members of his legal team. He ate a bologna and cheese sandwich made, he said, like his mother used to make.

"That was my comfort food," he said.

He was planning to have steak for dinner Wednesday night.

Beyond that, Chapman said he's not certain of his plans but is looking forward to seeing his sons, ages 17 and 22. He said he doesn't think he'll move back to Hickory, where he was born.

Chapman declined to criticize either the criminal justice system or the investigators -- in particular lead investigator Dennis Rhoney, formerly of the Hickory Police Department -- whose work has drawn scrutiny.

"His fate is not in my hands," Chapman said. "I have no bitterness. Why should I give somebody the benefit of knowing that they can just make me bitter?"

Rhoney, who works for the Burke County Sheriff's Office, couldn't be reached Wednesday.

Chapman's attorneys said they would explore a request for a pardon from Gov. Mike Easley, which if granted would allow Chapman to apply for compensation from the state for the time he was in prison.

Chapman said he has no idea who or what might have caused the two women's deaths. He and his attorneys called for abolishing the death penalty.

"The way it's going now, it's not working," Chapman said.

Timeline
Aug. 15, 1992 Prospective renters looking at a home in Southeast Hickory discover 28-year-old Tenene Yvette Conley's body in a downstairs closet. Investigators originally thought she had been killed, but testimony indicates she may have died of a drug overdose.

Aug. 22, 1992 The body of Betty Jean Ramseur, 31, is found in a burned-out and abandoned house in Southeast Hickory. She had died several weeks before.

Jan. 11, 1993 Glen Edward Chapman, then 25, is indicted on first-degree murder charges in the death of Ramseur.

Aug. 16, 1993 Chapman is indicted on first-degree murder charges infor the death of Conley.

Oct. 31, 1994 Chapman's trial, which combined Ramseur's and Conley's cases, begins in Catawba County Superior Court.

Nov. 10, 1994 Chapman is convicted of two counts of first-degree murder.

Nov. 16, 1994 Chapman is sentenced to death.

July 5, 1996 Appellate defense attorneys begin post-conviction proceedings.

July 23, 2002 Frank Goldsmith becomes Chapman's appellate defense attorney. Jessica Leaven joins Goldsmith in December 2002.

Aug. 1, 2003 Judge Robert Ervin makes the complete investigation and case files available to Chapman's attorneys.

Aug. 2, 2006 After all post-conviction hearings, defense attorneys file a motion asking Ervin to order a new trial in both cases based on new evidence.

Nov. 6, 2007 Ervin orders a new trial.

April 2, 2008 Charges against Chapman are dismissed by District Attorney Jay Gaither. He said the prosecution's argument was "factually incomplete" and there was not enough evidence to retry the case.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

NASCAR returns to Caldwell

2008-03-30T04:08:00.002-04:00

Group will sanction races at Tri-County
Move is expectde to be a draw for fans and driver and boost speedway's 'credibility fcator'

Sunday, March 30, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

HUDSON -- NASCAR is back in Caldwell County.

On Friday, a couple dozen drivers will line up at the Tri-County Motor Speedway, start their engines and launch the first NASCAR-sanctioned race the track has seen since 2000.

"This is going to be great," said Scott Hatton, who has been going to Tri-County races since the track opened in 1985. "Great for the drivers, great for the fans. Just great."

The speedway's 2008 season starts Friday, and this year brings to Hudson the prestige and allure of NASCAR, which recently sanctioned the 0.4-mile paved track as part of its short-course racing family.

"These tracks bring a level of competition and excitement to the fans that have become synonymous with NASCAR's short-track racing," said George Silbermann, managing director of NASCAR racing operations, in February.

Tri-County joins 59 other speedways across the country and six others in the state as a NASCAR-sanctioned short-course track. But it isn't the first time that Tri-County, which seats about 3,000 in the bleachers and several hundred more in trackside parking, has been part of the elite.

In 1986, in its second season, the speedway became the state's only NASCAR-sanctioned dirt track. Though it had sporadic NASCAR affiliation in its more than two-decade history, the track hasn't been part of the national association since 2000, said speedway General Manager Joe Lewandoski.

And the name recognition of NASCAR, he said, brings more authority.

"Everyone knows about NASCAR, and when you say you're NASCAR affiliated, that goes a long way," he said. "It brings a real credibility factor."

But Lewandoski is hoping it will bring more fans, too.

With three tracks - Tri-County, Antioch and Hickory - within 25 miles of each other and the bigger races televised throughout the season, it's tough to get people out to the track every Friday, he said.

"It's a challenge to get the NASCAR couch potato to come out and see real racing," Lewandoski said. "But if you're a big fan and you haven't seen a race at Tri-County or (the Hickory Motor Speedway), you need to get out there."

Now, with its NASCAR association, drivers who race at Tri-County will be eligible to compete for state and national championships in addition to the individual track titles.

If drivers do well, they could be looking at a $14,000 prize for a state title, $25,000 for the national title and $3,000 for titles at Tri-County and the Hickory Motor Speedway, which is also a NASCAR-sanctioned track.

And for Hatton, who led a crew at Tri-County for 15 years and is teaching his 3-year-old son everything he knows about the sport, bringing the prestige of NASCAR back is exciting.

"I've seen a lot of big names come through Tri-County (when it's been affiliated with) NASCAR," he said. "If you can tell someone you won at a NASCAR-sanctioned track, well that just means more."

Want to go?
NASCAR-sanctioned races at the Tri-County Motor Speedway begin Friday and run Friday nights though Sept. 5. The front gate and trackside parking open at 6 p.m., qualifying races start at 7 p.m. and the featured races begin at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors 65 and older, $5 for children ages 4-15 and free for children under 4. Family passes cost $25 and include admission for two adults and up to three kids.

Tri-County Motor Speedway is at 4405 Hickory Nut Ridge Road in Hudson. Details: call 828-726-6600 or visit www.tricountymotorspeed way.com.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hospital gets federal inspection

2008-03-26T04:07:00.000-04:00

Medicaid, Medicare reinstatement at stake

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Federal inspectors Tuesday made a surprise visit to Broughton Hospital to do a complete review of the facility and its operations and possibly reinstate Medicaid and Medicare funding, state officials said.

Broughton has gone without Medicaid and Medicare funding since August, when the federal government halted payments amid concerns over a patient death and another patient injury.

If the Morganton hospital, one of the state's four mental-health facilities, passes inspection this week, funding could be reinstated within a few weeks, said Mark Van Sciver, spokesman for the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.

The cuts have cost Broughton about $1 million a month.

Van Sciver said state officials should know by Friday whether inspectors recommend reinstating Medicaid and Medicare funding. The federal inspection is expected to last the whole week.

Since August, a team of state doctors and consultants has been working at the hospital to identify and fix problems, reorganize clinical staff and retrain every employee, from housekeepers to doctors.

Broughton serves about 4,000 patients each year from the state's 37 westernmost counties and has about 1,200 employees and a $77 million budget.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Authorities identify 2 men slain during March 19 home invasion

2008-03-26T04:06:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Authorities have identified two men killed last week during a botched home invasion in Hickory.

Thomas Devon England, 23, of Hickory and 19-year-old William Justin Terrell Parsons of Taylorsville were shot to death March 19 after they forced their way into a home on 33rd Avenue in northeast Hickory around 11 p.m., according to the Catawba County Sheriff's Office.

England and Parsons, who were found dressed in black, wearing masks and with handguns, were killed by the homeowner, authorities said.

A warrant was taken out Thursday to search the house. The District Attorney's Office hasn't decided whether to charge the homeowner.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Incentive package -- denied

2008-03-23T06:27:00.000-04:00

First time in over decade Caldwell board has turned down an eligible firm's request

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

LENOIR --Caldwell County commissioners last week did something they've never done before. They denied an eligible incentive package.

It was the first time in more than a decade -- since the incentive plan was adopted -- that the board has said no to a company's request to get an economic development tax break.

And that, said rejected developer Hunt Shuford, just doesn't make sense.

"I am not happy with Caldwell County," said Shuford, a Hickory-based developer who is planning on building a 48,000-square-foot medical complex on U.S. 321 in Lenoir. "It's a very shortsighted decision on their part. ... and I've been pretty well slapped around."

Since 1997, commissioners have approved 48 incentive requests to return a portion of property taxes for companies and developers promising to add to the tax base or bring jobs to the county.

Shuford and partner David Looper's incentive application was denied by a 3-2 vote, with Republican commissioners Herb Greene and Faye Higgins in favor of approving the deal.

It was the first and only request to be rejected that met the county's guidelines, and Shuford and Looper say they don't understand why commissioners Ron Beane, John Thuss and Don Barrier decided against their specific project.

"We're confused," Looper said. "I just don't have an understanding as to why they would chose to reject our application (and accept others)."

Shuford and Looper pitched their plan to commissioners in August and asked that the board OK incentives that would help defray the cost of building a $10 million complex on geographically challenging land. The unexpected rocky conditions, Shuford said, tacked on an additional $350,000 to the project's cost.

Based on Caldwell's tax rate and the project's anticipated cost, a "tier two" incentive would have returned $49,492 to Shuford and Looper each year for four years, said Alan Wood, the county's senior development manager. The project, he said, met the guidelines necessary to be eligible for an incentive package.

But, in the months leading up to last week's vote, the plan to build a medical complex that would add physician offices and possibly an urgent care center drew criticism from officials at Caldwell Memorial Hospital, the county's largest healthcare facility.

At a December public hearing, hospital President Laura Easton told commissioners that other developers have shown interest in building similar facilities without the lure of a tax break.

"There would be so many people who would be happy to come in and partner and be involved with real estate development," she told commissioners. "Our belief is that ... you can do this without economic incentives."

Barrier, who served on the hospital board before becoming a commissioner in 2006, said he voted against the project because it seemed as though the medical center would be built regardless of receiving a tax break.

"That's a reward, not an incentive," he said. "I'm not of the mind that we need to give incentives whenever someone wants to build something."

But Greene, who helped mold the incentive plan in 1997, said he voted in favor of incentives for the medical complex because it would increase the county's tax base, which has been hard hit in recent years with the closing of several factories.

"Any time a project would increase the tax base, we've given the incentive," he said. "I was doing what I've done for 11 years by voting for what the whole incentive plan was meant to do."

Shuford said he is still planning on building the complex and hopes to break ground within four to six weeks.

"I'm very disappointed," he said. "But we will build that building and we will market it to the whole health-care industry. Hospitals, physicians, urgent care. Everything is on the table."

48 incentive packages passed
Until last week, Caldwell County commissioners had passed every incentive request -- 48 in all -- made since 1997 by companies and builders promising to add to the county's tax base or bring jobs to the area. The incentives, according to the county development office, are awarded for three to five years.

Incentive recipients include furniture factories, veterinary hospitals, commercial buildings, a recreation facility and a Lowe's home improvement store.

The Google and Vantage Foods incentive packages are not included in the count, said Senior Development Manager Alan Wood, because the companies made agreements with the county that exceed five years.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Name change for Lenoir-Rhyne: College will become `University'

2008-03-23T06:22:00.000-04:00

Move meant to reflect school's expansion goals

Sunday, March 23, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

It's time for Hickory to become a university town.

Lenoir-Rhyne College, the Catawba Valley's only four-year school, is growing, and along with adding new buildings and broadening its curriculum, the institution is getting a name change, too.

Come August, students at the small, 117-year-old liberal arts college will be attending Lenoir-Rhyne University.

The move, approved by the school's board of trustees last week, is a reflection of the institution's expanding mission to bring more educational programs and serve a larger constituency, said President Wayne Powell.

"We were focusing on what kind of agenda we could build to help the school progress," he said. "We wanted to create more programming and do it in the context of the things that we are really strong at, and the (suggestion) to change the name came after that."

The Lutheran school, a private and liberal arts college, is now in a transition phase as amendments to its bylaws and charters are made, Powell said. He expects the plan to be complete by the 2008-09 school year.

Powell said the school hasn't set a specific goal for adding courses and increasing enrollment, but thinks Lenoir-Rhyne will see about 10 new academic programs within five years.

The first, a master's track in sports management, is expected to start in the fall. Other programs, including a health care curriculum and expanded business, religious studies and education tracks, are to begin within a few years.

Lenoir-Rhyne is already planing a $50 million expansion to include a science complex, an overhaul of the student center and new and renovated housing.

"When you add programs, you add students and facilities and faculty," Powell said.

Currently, he said, 1,628 students are enrolled, but current campus amenities could accommodate about 2,500.

But the move isn't sitting well with everyone on campus.

Students and alumni are split on how it will affect the way people look at a school that has built a reputation on small classes and an intimate and close-knit campus community.

While some have argued that the changes could bring a new level of prestige, others worry that changing the college's name could alter its identity.

"I think it complicates and compromises the school's tradition and the mission," said 2006 graduate Silas Webb. "The word `college' is more indicative of the small, liberal arts environment. If (students) wanted to go to a bigger school, they would have. People pick (Lenoir-Rhyne) because of what it offers."

About 114 students and alumni have joined Webb's "Students for Lenoir-Rhyne College" on the networking Web site Facebook, and have been debating in the online forum.

"I just don't think the word `college' is limiting," Webb said. "My sense is that it can be a college and be a very rigorous academic environment."

But freshman Jacob Thie, who sat in on focus groups and staff meetings, likes the plan.

"They're looking to build on what we have now and not necessarily make Lenoir-Rhyne become a big university," he said.

Thie, who graduated from Bandys High School in 2007 and is studying outdoor personal and religious development, said he's looking forward to seeing more variety in the curriculum.

But he's looking forward to the name change, too, he said.

"If nothing else, `Lenoir-Rhyne University' just sounds better," Thie said. "The university name is just going to enhance any degree you have. I'd rather graduate from a university than a college any day."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Caregiver charged with murder after 2-year-old boy dies

2008-03-07T06:23:00.001-05:00

Friday, March 7, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The caregiver of a 2-year-old boy who died last week is now facing murder charges, Newton police said.

Armando Hernandez Martinez was charged Thursday in the killing of Ethan Miguel Gibbs, who died Feb. 28 after a day in critical condition, said Sgt. Tracey Cline of the Newton Police Department.

The boy, Cline said, had a fractured skull, swelling and bleeding of the brain and bruises and cuts across his body. He also had what appeared to be human bite marks on his body. Cline would not say where he had been bitten.

Before Ethan died, Martinez, 27, had been charged with felony child abuse after the Catawba County Department of Social Services reported the child's injuries to police.

Martinez, who is not related to Ethan, was being held without bond Thursday at the Catawba County jail.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

TV show honors SWAT team member injured in standoff

2008-03-07T06:23:00.000-05:00

Friday, March 7, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The Burke County Sheriff's Office has long agreed that Martin Lawing is an all-star, but now he's getting some national credit too.

Lawing, a SWAT team member who was critically shot in a December standoff, has been nominated as one of "America's Most Wanted" All-Stars, which honor first responders who go above and beyond.

Lawing, a 31-year-old former Army Ranger, was shot in the neck Dec. 11 during a standoff and has since undergone several surgeries. Doctors are unsure if he'll walk again.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Probe follows squashed protest

2008-03-05T06:23:00.000-05:00

Among issues: Some staff lack American Sign Language fluency

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

State officials are looking at practices at the N.C. School for the Deaf after administrators last week squashed a protest planned by high school students and possibly some staff members.

Four students were suspended and three staff members put on administrative leave last week after school administrators stopped a protest that would have disrupted classes, said Dwight Pearson, director of the Office of Education Services, the state department that oversees the school.

Several students planned the protest to raise concerns they had about practices and policies at the Morganton institution, including cell phone use, athletics, quality of education and ability to communicate with all members of the staff, Pearson said.

He said students were not suspended for planning a protest but for "harassing other students." Neither Pearson nor school officials would say what prompted staff members to be put on leave, citing personnel laws, but said they were being investigated with regard to a single incident related to the protest.

Amid last week's controversy, Linda Lindsey, the school's director, said she would step down from the top post April 1 to take a job with the Office of Education Services in Raleigh. Principal Janet McDaniel will be interim director while the state launches a national search to fill the role.

Lindsey said the administration heard about the protest, which was planned to take place during the school day on Feb. 25, a few days beforehand.

"We became aware that (the protest) might involve a number of people from off campus," Lindsey said. "Monday was an operational day for us, and the safety of our students and staff is paramount all the time."

To learn more about the planned protest, administrators decided to talk with boarding students, who spend the week at the school and go home on weekends, when they returned to campus Sunday evening, Lindsey said.

About 20 high school students met with staff at the campus chapel and broke into small groups to talk about their concerns, Lindsey said. About 35 high school students live on the campus during the week, she said, and those who didn't know about the protest or didn't want to participate in the meeting were excused.

Students were separated during the meeting, Lindsey said, and created a list of wants and needs.
"We were trying to let it be the kids' meeting," she said.

Though some of their requests included being able to watch R-rated movies and play Mature-rated video games, other concerns revolved around quality of education and ability to communicate with administrators, said David Abundis, whose 15-year-old daughter, Danielle, is a sophomore at the school.

The school has procedures in place for students to bring their concerns to administrators, Lindsey said, such as going through representatives on the student body or by talking to or e-mailing staff requests for meetings.

Another big concern for some of the students and parents, Abundis said, was that Lindsey and some other staff were not fluent in American Sign Language.

"It's only fair for them to have administrators they can communicate with," said Abundis, who lives in Charlotte. "That's why the students are there in the first place."

Pearson and school administrators held a meeting with about 20 parents Thursday at the school to talk about the protest and any concerns. Because students who attend the school are from all over the western part of the state, not all parents were able to make the meeting.

Several issues were raised by parents, Pearson said, and in response state officials are planning to do an analysis that would look at executive communication, ways to improve education, fostering more parental involvement and getting all staff members involved in the total school program.

"We'll be looking at all the issues that are contributing to challenges at the school," he said.

About the N.C. School for the Deaf
The school, established in 1894, is one of two state institutions for the deaf and hearing impaired and serves day and boarding students ages 5 to 21.

The Morganton campus, about 70 miles northwest of Charlotte, caters to about 100 deaf and hearing-impaired students from across Western North Carolina and operates under the state's Office of Education Services in Raleigh.

The other facility, the Eastern N.C. School for the Deaf, is in Wilson and was established in 1964.
SOURCES: N.C. School for the Deaf and Eastern N.C. School for the Deaf

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Sightings lead to ASU lockdown

2008-03-04T06:22:00.001-05:00

Police get calls on suspicious man, possibly with gun, around campus

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

By Marcie Young and Greg Lacour
Charlotte Observer Staff Writers

BOONE -- Appalachian State University officials locked their campus down for 80 minutes Monday evening after receiving reports of a man with a gun near campus.

The lockdown at the campus in the N.C. mountains was ended a little more than an hour later without incident. ASU and Boone police did not find anyone with a gun, and police said Monday night they weren't certain the man, first spotted by a student in off-campus apartments, was armed.

The unidentified man remained at large late Monday. Classes are expected to resume as normal today.

The university canceled all Monday night classes and ordered buildings locked at 5:10 p.m. after receiving reports that a man with a gun was spotted earlier off-campus.

Chancellor Kenneth Peacock and other officials lifted the lockdown at 6:32 p.m., after campus police told them the man had not been seen again, said Lynn Drury, associate vice chancellor for communications at the university of about 16,000 students.

Drury said she didn't know how many people were forced to stay inside during the lockdown. Most faculty and staff had gone home for the evening, and most classes were over.

The university didn't want to take chances, Drury said, especially given the fatal campus shootings in the past year at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University.

"Given the same set of circumstances, I think we'd do the same thing over again," Drury said. "We can't be too cautious with the safety of our students, faculty and staff."

The first report regarding the man came in at 3:45 p.m. from an off-campus apartment on Hill Street, Boone police said, when the student who lived there returned home. The student told police that he saw a white male in a black Pink Floyd "Dark Side of the Moon" T-shirt, dark jacket, ski mask and red and green tennis shoes in his home.

The student said he also thought he saw a small black handgun.

The man ran from the apartment, police said, in the direction of the campus.

The first campus alert, which included a description of the man, went out at 4:14 p.m.; another went out at 4:28 p.m., Drury said.

Then, a little before 5 p.m., campus police received two reports, Drury said: one that the man was spotted at Sanford Hall, which contains the English and foreign languages departments, and another that he was at Welborn Cafeteria at the center of campus.

The two sightings prompted the lockdown, Drury said.

Campus police responded immediately and found no sign of the man, she said.

The lockdown came just hours after school officials sent a campus-wide e-mail to students updating them about plans for an emergency messaging service, said sophomore Lauren Hill of New Bern, who lives at the Appalachian Panhellenic Hall on campus.

"It was kind of strange because they just sent out an e-mail this morning," she said. "I was pleased with the way the university responded and kept us well-informed."

Hill and her roommate, junior Sarah Hord of Hickory, spent the evening inside their building while campus and Boone police asked people on campus to remain alert and report suspicious activity or sightings of the man.

The quick campus response was reassuring, Hord said.

"I wasn't scared and didn't have that feeling that this was going to be like Virginia Tech," Hord said. "It wasn't that severe, and by letting everyone know what was happening and making people aware was the best way to respond."

Many universities are deploying such systems in a response to last year's shootings at Virginia Tech, where a student gunman killed 32 people and himself.

"Everything's back to normal in the morning," Drury said. "I hope."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

UPDATE on story:
An Appalachian State University senior's attempt to avoid paying for a damaged apartment door led him to fabricate a story of a masked gunman in a Pink Floyd T-shirt running toward the Boone campus, police said Tuesday. That prompted authorities to lock down the university for more than an hour Monday evening.

Haney told the story of the gunman in a series of television interviews. It wasn't until Tuesday morning, when he was grilled by a Boone detective, that Haney conceded that it had all been a hoax -- a tale that got away from him. --The News & Observer

Housing market humming at lake

2008-03-02T06:15:00.001-05:00

March 2, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

LAKE JAMES -- Across the nation, the housing market is feeling the crunch. Foreclosures are up, new building permits are down and home sales are sluggish.

But along Lake James, Burke and McDowell counties' gem in the Blue Ridge Mountains, things aren't looking quite as glum.

"We've had just as much traffic this year, more actually, than this time last year," said Tim Miner, director of sales and marketing for Crescent communities at the lake.

Lake James has been touted in recent years as a retirement destination or mountain getaway for people wanting to build second homes, and that, said Realtor Broker Dianne Reihl, seems to have kept building booming.

"I just got a call from a man in Long Island (N.Y.)," she said. "The phones are ringing." Last week, she said, 43 homes and 188 lots were for sale along the lake in Burke and McDowell.

While permits to build new houses, townhomes and condos in Mecklenburg County last month plunged by 59 percent, compared with January 2007, Burke County has seen a steady rise in those permits since 2005.

Last year, 46 new permits were issued for building between the lake and Jonas Ridge in northern Burke, down from 50 permits in 2006 and up from 34 in 2005, said Taylor Dellinger, data analyst for the Western Piedmont Council of Governments.

"(The lake region) is getting the most single-family homes of any area in the county," Dellinger said.

About 16 percent of all new permits in 2007 were on or around Lake James.

Developers and Burke planners say they haven't seen residue of the economic downturn in lakeside land and home sales. But Burke Planning Director Marc Collins said the poor housing market elsewhere in the country could make it difficult for people to buy before selling their homes.

"There's still the demand to locate here," he said. "But people in other areas are having problems selling their homes and that (could lead) to a slowdown here."

Residential development along Lake James began in the 1980s and has steadily grown over two decades to include about 24 communities on or near the water.

In years past, Miner said, people were building homes at the lake and reselling them for profit, but now developers are seeing more people who are planning on sticking around.

"People are buying so they can live here," he said. "That's been the trend for the last 2 1/2 years."

Lots at Crescent's developments range from $150,000 to more than $2 million, and homeowners building in several of the communities are filing permits for homes ranging from $400,000 to more than $1 million.

Property around the 6,500-acre lake is limited, Collins said, because of efforts to protect the area's natural beauty.

Lake James State Park grew by more than 480 percent in November 2004 when the state bought nearly 3,000 acres from Crescent Resources for $18 million.

The purchase increased the size of the park from 606 acres on the lake's south shore to 3,521 acres, creating the largest waterfront park in the state. The acquisition allowed state officials to conserve more than 24 miles of shoreline.

And that, Reihl said, is part of its appeal.

"It's such a great recreation area, and our winters are so mild," she said. "If you're coming from the Northeast, this looks pretty darn good."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

N.C. school for deaf director steps down

2008-02-29T06:15:00.001-05:00

State administrator leaves amid controversy, planned student protest

Friday, Feb. 29, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The director of the N.C. School for the Deaf abruptly stepped down Thursday afternoon amid controversy over a protest students had planned at the school earlier this week.

The state announced that Linda Lindsey would be stepping down from the institution's top post while officials from the Office of Education Services were discussing a situation that took place on campus Sunday, said Lori Walston, Education Services spokeswoman.

Walston did not know many details about the planned protest, which apparently never took place, but said school staff met with concerned students Sunday evening. One issue, she said, was complaints about communication with administrators.

Lindsey, who is not fluent in American Sign Language but has taken classes, is aided by an interpreter when she speaks with students, Walston said.

Lindsey, has led the Morganton school since August 2004, and will remain in the position until an interim director takes over April 1, Walston said. She is not leaving the state system, Walston said, and will take a job with Education Services in Raleigh, the same division that oversees the school.

The School for the Deaf, established in 1894, is one of two state institutions for the deaf and hearing impaired and serves day and boarding students ages five to 21.

Before coming to the school, Lindsey worked with the state Department of Health and Human Services in the late 1980s and early 1990s, according to a DHHS press release. Lindsey, who has a master's and a doctorate in education from N.C. State University, worked in education and management of residential services programs for children for several years before coming to the school.

Janet McDaniel, the school's principal, will take over as interim director beginning April 1 while the state launches a national search for a new director, Walston said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man held on murder, assault charges

2008-02-28T06:14:00.000-05:00

Darrell Wayne Buchanan's ex-wife's boyfriend was killed

Thursday, Feb. 28, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Newland man is facing murder and assault charges after a nearly 14-hour search and standoff in the Blue Ridge Mountains ended Wednesday.

Darrell Wayne Buchanan, 47, was charged Wednesday with murder and could face other felony charges, including kidnapping and assault on an officer with a deadly weapon.

His ex-wife's boyfriend, 49-year-old Thurman Ray Hudson, was killed Tuesday night in a dispute that later led to an overnight standoff at Hudson's Jonas Ridge home.

It all started shortly before 10 p.m. Tuesday, said Burke County sheriff's Maj. David Pendley, when a Burke deputy responded to a domestic dispute at Hudson's home.

Burke County asked for assistance from Avery County, and Avery sheriff's Sgt. Mike Ellenburg arrived first, Pendley said.

Lola Mae Carpenter Buchanan flagged Ellenburg down as she drove from the home in a Jeep. Darrell Buchanan was sitting in the passenger seat, Pendley said.

Authorities said the woman screamed that her ex-husband was going to kill her and would try to injure Ellenburg.

Ellenburg told authorities he then saw the man point the rifle at him. He drove away from the Jeep and heard a shot. When he turned around to pursue the Jeep, he told authorities he saw the man get out and fire several shots at the patrol car.

Ellenburg was not hit, but received minor injuries when bullets shattered the windows. The Jeep, meanwhile, returned to the mobile home, Pendley said.

That's when Burke Deputy Scott Bray arrived, Pendley said. Authorities got closer and saw Hudson's 11-year-old twin boys screaming in the front yard. Their father, pronounced dead a short time later, was lying nearby, authorities said.

The man jumped out of the Jeep, Pendley said, and ran behind the home.

Authorities were not sure if the man had gone into the home or into the woods, so SWAT team members from Burke and Avery counties, Hickory and other municipalities surrounded the area.
After several hours, they got the man in the home on the phone, Pendley said, and by 11:50 a.m. Wednesday persuaded him to come out.

Buchanan was treated for at least one bullet wound in his left arm, Pendley said. Burke Sheriff John McDevitt said in a press release that investigators "know that it didn't come from any law enforcement officers."

Darrell Buchanan was being held in a Burke County jail Wednesday.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man accused of rape makes 1st court appearance

2008-02-27T06:14:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

HICKORY A Hickory man charged with several felonies, including a rape from three weeks ago, made his first appearance in court Tuesday.

Hickory police charged Floyd Lee Bonds, 43, Monday night with first-degree rape, first-degree attempted burglary, kidnapping and assault inflicting serious injury, said Capt. Thurman Whisnant.

Bonds was charged in connection with a Feb. 2 rape at a northwest Hickory home. Police said a man pried open the side door of the house and sexually assaulted a woman who was there alone.

Authorities spoke to Bonds and several other people of interest in the days following the assault, Whisnant said, but did not file charges until Monday evening when the State Bureau of Investigation returned evidence linking him to the crimes.

Police have no indication that the woman knew the man who assaulted her, Whisnant said, and cases of rape by a stranger are rare in Hickory.

Bonds was being held Tuesday at the Catawba County jail on a $250,000 secured bond.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Broughton seeks to win back funding

2008-02-26T06:14:00.000-05:00

Reviews are next step to regain ability to bill Medicare, Medicaid

Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Officials at Broughton Hospital, one of the state's four mental health facilities, said Monday they are ready for inspectors to return and reinstate federal funding.

Broughton has gone without Medicaid and Medicare funding since August, when the federal government decided to halt payments amid concerns over a patient death and another patient injury.

The state responded to the cuts - about $1 million a month - by sending a team of doctors and administrators to the Morganton facility to identify and fix problems, reorganize clinical staff and retrain every employee, from housekeepers to doctors.

Now, Broughton officials are asking that the federal government review the hospital's progress and allow it to bill Medicare and Medicaid, said Director Art Robarge. About 98 percent of the hospital's annual, third-party insurance revenue comes from such funding.

Since August, a team of state doctors and consultants has been working at Broughton to correct problems and improve care. They've focused, Robarge said, on finding ways to reduce the physical restriction of patients, revamping policies about patient falls and infection control, and reorganizing staff to ensure better clinical supervision.

"We've gone back to the drawing board, read the standards and (drawn) out a plan to make sure it's appropriate for Broughton Hospital," he said. "(We want to make sure) that what folks are doing here is in compliance with those standards."

Broughton has also been recovering from a series of hits since August, including threats that it could lose its accreditation and a shake-up in leadership when Seth Hunt was dismissed as director and Robarge, who led the hospital from 1986 to 1989, took over.

Robarge said he sent a letter Friday to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, asking that inspectors visit the hospital soon and assess changes the hospital has made.

If everything goes as anticipated, Robarge said, inspectors should make their initial visit to the hospital within two to four weeks. On the first visit, Robarge said, inspectors will evaluate how staff members handle aggressive patients and how they keep those situations from escalating.

The February 2007 death of 27-year-old Anthony Lowery, who died of cardiac arrhythmia after a staff member sat on his torso while trying to restrain him, was one of two incidents that led the federal government to stop Medicaid and Medicare payments.

Situations where staff members have had to physically restrain patients, Robarge said, have dropped 40 percent to 60 percent since last year.

"There has been a tremendous effort to become creative at all levels and use restrictive methods only when absolutely necessary," he said.

If Broughton passes the first inspection, which Robarge said is likely, inspectors will come back to the hospital again within 30 days to make sure it is meeting other standards set by the federal government.

Even if Broughton meets all the federal government's standards during the initial and follow-up inspections, Robarge said it will still take at least an additional 45 to 75 days before Medicaid and Medicare funding is reinstated.

Broughton serves about 4,000 patients each year from the state's 37 westernmost counties and has about 1,200 employees and a $77 million budget.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Book too raw for school?

2008-02-24T06:13:00.000-05:00

Burke board member objects to novel 'Kite Runner'

Sunday, Feb. 24, 2008
By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Forty years ago, it was "The Catcher in the Rye."

Today, in Burke County, it's the fictional story of two boys growing up in pre-Taliban Afghanistan.

"The Kite Runner," a New York Times bestselling book taught earlier this year to a Freedom High School honors class, has drawn recent criticism from at least one member of the Burke County school board because of a scene of male rape and use of profanities.

Board member Tracy Norman last week asked that the novel be pulled from the county's public school system curriculum because she believes the content is inappropriate for high schoolers.

"We have a responsibility to the students in our system," Norman said. "I don't think it's the public schools' place to be the one exposing them to this."

But others, including parents and at least one other board member, said banning "The Kite Runner" because it describes a scene of sexual violence, alludes to molestation and includes profanities could compromise the students' educational experiences.

"It's not about vulgarity or the rape scene that's depicted," said board member Buddy Armour. "It's a look into the culture, and there's value there. Our kids need to know a little bit about the world, and it's not all pretty and lovely."

Cultural education

The book, which was adapted as a movie in 2007, was taught earlier this semester to a 10th-grade world literature class at Freedom High and was picked as one of four books meant to teach the honors students about other parts of the world, said Randal Garrison, the head of the school's English department.

"Our curriculum was just updated to try to do a good job at acknowledging other groups of people and cultures," he said. "We have a well-recognized canon. It's not just about teaching Greek and Roman (literature)."

Norman's recommendation last week to pull the book from the county's educational curriculum wasn't honored by the school board, which opted instead to rely on the system's challenge procedure.

The policy, instated in late 2006, allows parents and members of the community to file official complaints about material they think may not be appropriate for underage students, said Superintendent David Burleson.

Once a challenge is made, he said, a media advisory committee of teachers, parents and students will review the complaint and content and decide whether the material should be barred from the curriculum.

But the decision, Burleson said, cannot be made by just one person.

"Where do you draw the line? That's a fair and valid question," Burleson said. "You draw the line based on your community make-up and what the community expects that's why we have the advisory committee."

About the book

"The Kite Runner," which was meant to be taught this year by three teachers at Freedom, gives a cultural and historical account of Afghanistan from the late 1970s through the Soviet invasion and into the Taliban regime.

The book will not be read by any other classes until the issue is resolved, Burleson said.

Norman, who was contacted by a parent with concerns about the rape scene, said the book's story line is strong, but she worries that teenagers are being forced into reading content that's too mature for a high-school setting.

There must be other ways, she said, to teach students about other cultures without depending on scenes of sexual abuse and books with foul language.

"Does the benefit outweigh the exposure? I don't think it does," she said. "Anything in our school curriculum that has foul language and these issues (doesn't) belong in the classroom."

But Tony Matthews, who has a 10th-grade daughter at Patton High School and is the pastor at North Morganton United Methodist Church, said literature is a powerful tool for teaching lessons about the world.

"The point of the book was to show the horrors of living under an oppressive regime such as the Taliban," Matthews said. "Getting a set of facts on a piece of paper is a way to sterilize the problem. A character in a book becomes someone you're familiar with and you bond with. By telling the story in a piece of fiction it makes the horrors more real."

High school students are not naive, he said, and are capable of handling difficult material, especially when they are guided through it by a trained and professional teacher.

The concern, Norman said, is not only with "The Kite Runner" but with all books that use profane language and include graphic sex scenes and other potentially offensive material.

But Armour said what Norman is proposing borders on censorship. If "The Kite Runner" is banned from Burke schools, he said, other material will likely also be forced from the curriculum.

"If you start tossing out the books that might be offensive, you won't have anything left," he said.
What's happening at other schools
The Hickory and Newton-Conover school systems and Alexander, Caldwell and Catawba counties have similar procedures for banning books, although none have had challenges in recent years.

Catawba County Schools approved "The Kite Runner" last year, said spokeswoman Carleen Crawford, and it is being taught to at least one advanced English class. Caldwell County is considering adding the book to its curriculum next year, said spokeswoman Libby Brown.

Staff Writer Jen Aronoff contributed

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

BBB warns of scam on mystery shoppers

2008-02-22T06:13:00.000-05:00

Letter asks you to wire money to Canada

Friday, Feb. 22, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The Better Business Bureau Thursday warned of a company enlisting mystery shoppers and encouraging them to wire money to Canada for which they are not repaid.

The company, Bargain Shoppers Express, is sending checks to people across the country using the home address of an elderly Hickory woman and is asking them to be mystery shoppers, said Janet Hart, spokeswoman for the BBB of Southern Piedmont. The checks later bounce, she said.
Since Jan. 30, the BBB has received nearly 300 inquiries and eight complaints from people who say they have received checks, Hart said.

Company representatives reached at three different phone numbers in Ontario, Canada, answered calls from the Observer Thursday, but the calls disconnected when they were asked about the warning.

The checks, usually written for $4,770, appear to have been sent to several hundred people nationwide and arrive with instructions on how to evaluate four businesses, Hart said.

Each shopper is asked to spend a small amount of money at the stores and wire about $2,000 to individuals in Canada though Moneygram and Western Union, Hart said.

Within a few days of wiring the money, Hart said, the checks bounce, forcing shoppers to repay thousands of dollars.

The Hickory address, which belongs to a woman not involved in the scam, appears to have been randomly selected, Hart said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Grandfather accidentally backs over, kills 2-year-old grandson

2008-02-21T06:13:00.000-05:00

Thursday, Feb. 21, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

An Alexander County toddler died Wednesday after his grandfather accidentally ran over the child with his truck, authorities said.

The 2-year-old boy was staying at his grandparents' home about four miles northwest of Taylorsville Wednesday afternoon, said Alexander County Sheriff Hayden Bentley.

The child ran behind the truck as his grandfather was backing up and was hit, Bentley said. The boy died in the ambulance before he arrived at Frye Regional Hospital, he said.

Bentley would not release the names of the child or his grandfather because family was still being notified. He said no charges will be filed because it was "an obvious accident."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Newton couple face sex charges

2008-02-20T18:12:00.000-05:00

Police: DSS uncovered offenses dating to 1970s

Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Newton husband and wife are facing charges in felony sex allegations that date back more than 30 years, police said.

George Michael Kennedy, 58, faces three felony counts of indecent liberties, and his wife, Donna Reinhardt Kennedy, 53, was charged with two felony counts of aiding and abetting indecent liberties.

George Kennedy was charged with sexually abusing at least three female family members, the youngest of whom was 5, said Sgt. Tracey Cline of the Newton Police Department.

The abuse started in 1977, Cline said, and continued through 2007. The authorities began investigating the couple in November after the Department of Social Services passed along a report that a relative of the Kennedys had been sexually abused as a child, said Sgt. Tracey Cline of the Newton Police Department.

Cline would not say how the girls were related to the Kennedys but said the abuse ended with each girl "once they reached puberty," Cline said.

Donna Kennedy was charged, Cline said, because she knew about the abuse and did not go to the police.

The Kennedys were being held on bond Tuesday at the Catawba County jail and are scheduled to make their first court appearance Wednesday.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hickory High teacher charged

2008-02-20T06:12:00.000-05:00

Allegations of taking indecent liberties with female JROTC student

Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Hickory High School teacher who resigned last week amid allegations of sexual misconduct was charged Tuesday with taking indecent liberties with a student, police said.

Charles Allan Wilkins, 44, was charged with taking indecent liberties with one of his female JROTC students on school property, said Capt. Thurman Whisnant of the Hickory Police Department.

The incident, Whisnant said, happened on the Hickory High campus after members of the JROTC performed at a home basketball game. Whisnant would not discuss the case in detail but said investigators do not think Wilkins and the student had sexual intercourse.

Officials at the school learned about the incident Feb. 11 when students approached them with information about Wilkins and the student, Whisnant said.

Wilkins, who resigned Feb. 11, was hired as school's JROTC teacher in October. He had recently retired from the U.S. military and had not worked in a public school system, Whisnant said.

Police are still looking at Wilkins' history and are talking with students, but Whisnant said they think this is an isolated incident.

Wilkins was being held in the Catawba County jail Tuesday on a $25,000 bond and is expected to make his first court appearance Wednesday.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Dissatisfied residents run for Caldwell seats

2008-02-17T06:12:00.001-05:00

Nearly a dozen join incumbents in commissioners race; most cite 22% property tax hike

Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Rumblings of dissatisfaction with commissioners in Caldwell County have appeared for months on giant billboards along U.S. 321, on yard signs and on Internet discussion boards.

But last week, nearly a dozen Caldwell residents decided that simply complaining about the board's actions wasn't enough and decided to run for one of three open commission seats.

Challengers say they are frustrated with decisions made by commissioners in the last year, ranging from the county manager's salary to building renovations. Though they point to several recent missteps by the board, most challengers agree that the biggest reason they're running is this year's 22.2 percent hike in property taxes.

"That's too much at one time," said Clay B. Bollinger, a retired business owner from Hudson who filed on the first day. "They just have no business (increasing taxes) on people who are struggling already."

Eleven residents - including incumbents Faye Higgins and John Thuss - flooded the Caldwell County Board of Elections on Monday, the first day they were legally allowed to file for the May 6 primary, to join the race.

The surge is unusual, said elections Director Sandy Rich, but this year it wasn't a surprise. "We heard rumors that we were going to have a number of people coming in because of the tax increase," she said. "And sure enough, they came."

All but one candidate filed to run within the first hour and 15 minutes. Two more people have joined the race since, and Rich said she expects several more to file before the Feb. 29 deadline.

The top three vote-getters from each party will advance to the November general election. Commissioner Herb Greene's seat is also open. Greene, who helped facilitate bringing Google to Lenoir, has said he will not run.

"There's a lot of people signing up now because they think we've gone too far into the 21st century," Greene said, "and they'll like to take us back to the 20th century, when it was a little more comfortable."

Commissioners originally considered an 18.5 percent tax increase when they were working on the budget in June but said they were concerned that residents still struggling with unemployment and low wages might not have been able to handle the sharp hike.

Amid those worries, however, the board decided against the 18.5 percent hike and actually raised the increase even more - to 22.2 percent - to fund a $77.5 million operating budget.

Neither Thuss nor Higgins said they were surprised by the surge of residents deciding to run and acknowledged that the tax increase likely encouraged more people to join the race.

"The county is economically depressed," said Higgins, who voted against the tax increase, "and there's always going to be second-guessing on those decisions."

Thuss defended the increase, citing demands passed down from the federal and state governments and projects meant to bolster economic growth and provide educational opportunities in the county.

"The commissioners ... are obligated to do what is best based on a good, sound financial basis," he said. "You don't cut taxes to get votes. That's a political game, and that is irresponsible."
But the tax increase, challengers say, isn't the only reason they've decided to run.

One of the new candidates is Barbara Weiller, who previously served on the Caldwell County Board of Education, worked in banking for more than 20 years and spent another 20 years as an accountant. Commissioners, she said, have overlooked fiscal responsibility and failed to listen to residents' concerns about the economy and county spending.

Some of the decisions the board has made recently, including building a new $12.5 million home for the Department of Social Services and the Health Department, didn't rely enough on the input of residents, Weiller said.

"With the way our economy is and the high unemployment rates, that's not responsible," she said.

For Bollinger, who said he is running in a block with Ben Griffin and Rob Bratcher, the new DSS and Health Department building and other construction projects, including the courthouse and county offices renovations, are reflections that commissioners "aren't looking down the road."

"There's no long-range budget," he said. "They are just reacting from year to year."

Thuss, however, said commissioners have not only been looking at the budget beyond 2008, but are looking at ways to improve life in Caldwell.

"I do what I feel is best for the citizens of this county," he said. And if that is not what they want, I have an R.V. I'll get in and boogie out of here."

Who has filed?

Republicans
Clay B. Bollinger of Granite Falls
Rob Bratcher of Lenoir
Steven Fekete Jr. of Lenoir
Ben Griffin of Lenoir
Faye R. Higgins of Lenoir (i)
Bill Oxford of Lenoir
John W. Thuss of Lenoir (i)
Arnold Wilson of Granite Falls

Democrats
L.C. Coonse of Granite Falls
Randy Church of Lenoir
Jerry Cecil Coffey of Lenoir
Timothy Shore of Hudson
Barbara Weiller of Lenoir

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Leader of N.C. Hmong Association will step down

2008-02-17T06:12:00.000-05:00

Yang to host radio show, publish newspapers

Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Tong Yang, who has led the United Hmong Association of N.C. for eight years, is stepping down from his post as executive director to host a local radio program and publish a bilingual Hmong newspaper.

Yang, 38, has acted as a liaison between the Hmong community in Western North Carolina and government and law enforcement and has helped foster cultural understanding of the Hmong, who fled Laos following the Vietnam War. About 15,000 Hmong settled in North Carolina since the late 1970s.

In the three decades since, they have been trying to make North Carolina their home without losing their Southeast Asian identity. In 2006, Yang and the association released a report identifying the social and cultural needs of their community, focusing on education, health care and relationships with law enforcement and other government agencies.

In addition to hosting "Hmong Talk" on WCXN 1170 AM in Hickory and publishing Hmong Journal, Yang will work as a consultant with Cultural Insights, a competency training firm in Winston-Salem.

Yang came to the United States in 1988, and in 1998 received a master's in business administration from Wayne State University in Detroit. His last day was Friday.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man charged with exposure after incident in Wal-Mart

2008-02-13T06:12:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Burke County man was charged Tuesday with exposing himself in a Wal-Mart over the weekend, authorities said.

Phillip Wayne Black, 68, was arrested on a warrant charging him with indecent exposure.
About 7:15 p.m. Sunday, a woman shopping at the Hickory Wal-Mart saw a man in the store's electronics section with his pants unzipped, according to the Hickory Police Department. She said he was looking at two young girls and touching his genitals.

The woman told the girls to leave the area, police said, and contacted Wal-Mart security to call the police. Hickory police said they tried talking with Black at the store, but he would not talk about the incident and left.

Police later found evidence that allowed them to issue a warrant for Black's arrest, but they would not say what it was.

Black was picked up by Burke County deputies shortly after midnight Tuesday and charged by Hickory police.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Clinic expands hours of caring

2008-02-10T06:11:00.000-05:00

New funding allows Good Samaritan to operate 5 days a week

Sunday, Feb. 10, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Last week, for the first time, Doug Sharrow had an appointment at Burke County's free medical clinic.

The residual pain from a cancer-related surgery two years earlier had been getting worse, forcing Sharrow to the emergency room several times a year. And with the average hospital visit costing about $2,000, it didn't take long for Sharrow, who doesn't have health insurance, to build $34,000 in medical debt.

He had tried to get into the county's free Good Samaritan Clinic several times before, but the part-time facility only had enough funding to take in a few new patients a month, and Sharrow's name was never picked in the monthly drawing.

But on Monday, two weeks after the clinic expanded from fours hours a week to full time, Sharrow had an appointment. And for the first time in several years, it cost him nothing.

On Jan. 22, the Good Samaritan Clinic, a Christian-based, nonprofit organization, opened its doors full time to uninsured Burke County residents needing medical help and, in the past week, set up about 70 appointments with a new staff doctor and volunteer physicians, said office manager Katie Hayward.

Previously, she said, limited funding allowed the clinic, which receives private and public donations, to see only about three new patients a week, even though several dozen more had submitted applications. Now, doctors are seeing about three patients an hour.

"There are so many people that have such a large need and for many different reasons have fallen into situations where health care isn't available," Hayward said. "I've had two patients come in and tell me that before we went full time, they were just waiting to die."

But local and private grants, as well as several fundraisers, Hayward said, have allowed the adults-only clinic to secure enough funding to go from being open two nights a week to holding regular office hours Monday through Friday.

Dr. Tammy Boyd, the new full-time physician, has been volunteering at the clinic since she moved to Burke County in March 2005 and now works with a volunteer doctor, Dr. Robert Leo, during the week. Together, she said, they can see as many as 60 patients a day.

Patients qualify for long-term help at the clinic if they live in Burke County, meet certain income requirements and can show they do not have health insurance, veteran benefits, Medicaid or Medicare.

Exams, treatment and medications are free, and the clinic often refers patients to private medical specialists, such as cardiologists, in the community, said Boyd, a 2001 Eastern Carolina University medical school graduate who previously worked in a Morganton private practice.

When those services aren't free, she said, patients might have to qualify for charity assistance through the hospital or work out a payment plan.

About 90,000 people live in Burke County, and of those, more than 17,000 do not have any health insurance or other medical financial help, including Medicaid and Medicare, according to the county health department.

"It's a population that has been neglected and hasn't had the money to cover their health care," said Boyd.

"Many times they have chronic problems that have been ignored and now, they're getting the help they need."

Want to help?
The Good Samaritan Clinic needs volunteers to help with new patient screenings, as well as volunteer nurses and other medical professionals. If you want to donate something other than your time, the clinic is also asking for financial donations, copy and computer paper, legal-size envelopes, snacks for volunteers, paper plates and cups, plastic utensils and coffee filters.

For more information, contact office manager Katie Hayward. 305 W. Union St., Morganton 28655, 828-439-9948.

About the Good Samaritan Clinic
The clinic is open from 8:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and holds evening hours from 5:30 until 7 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday. All uninsured Burke County adults will be seen initially but are required to fill out an application, show identification and go through a screening with office staff beforehand, said office manager Katie Hayward.

After the first visit with a doctor, patients will be asked to verify their residency and income and provide proof that they are uninsured before they can become a permanent patient at the clinic.

For more information, call 828-439-9948.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Burke OKs shift of mental services to Catawba

2008-02-07T06:11:00.001-05:00

Thursday, Feb. 7, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

MORGANTON -- Burke County commissioners Tuesday approved a formal plan for merging mental health services with Catawba County this summer.

The plan, which was formalized after several months of discussions between Burke and Catawba counties, outlines the strategy for combining mental health services, establishes bylaws and designates a governing structure for the new agency.

The board approved the plan 4-1 Tuesday, with commissioner Ruth Ann Suttle voting against it.
In March, commissioners voted to withdraw from Foothills Area Programs, the organization that administered mental health services in Burke and three other counties, and to merge with Catawba County's mental health agency.

Since then, representatives from each county have been meeting to talk about merger details, including budget, employee benefits and structure of the agency. The permanent merger is effective July 1.

Changes in state law last year required local mental health service agencies to serve populations of at least 200,000. The Burke-Catawba agency would serve about 241,000 people.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Sales tax on Burke ballot

2008-02-07T06:11:00.000-05:00

Quarter-cent increase up for November vote may raise $1 million

Thursday, Feb. 7, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

MORGANTON -- Burke County voters will vote in November on a quarter-cent sales tax increase to improve public water and stave off an increase in property taxes.

Burke commissioners agreed Tuesday to hold a sales-tax referendum on the ballot during the general election Nov. 4.

The decision passed 4-1, with Maynard Taylor voting against the referendum.

If approved, the sales tax increase could raise more than $1 million a year, which could be used to improve the county's public water infrastructure, said Commissioner Jack Carroll.

"We're talking about (putting this toward) a county project," he said. "If it's not passed, the only alternative we have ... to address this issue is property tax."

If voters don't pass the referendum, Carroll said, commissioners may later be forced to raise property taxes an additional 2 cents per $100 valuation.

Burke is the third county in the Catawba Valley to propose raising sales taxes since state lawmakers agreed to let counties include the measure on the ballot as a way to generate additional income.

Alexander County voters passed a similar referendum in January, and in November, Catawba County overwhelmingly approved a quarter-cent sales tax hike.

Commissioners decided to delay the vote until November, said Commission Chairman Wayne Abele, because they wanted to reach as many Burke residents as possible and are expecting more voters to participate in the general election than the May primary.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Residents fight planned call towers as view blockers

2008-02-03T06:11:00.001-05:00

Officials say emergency communications system needs update for safety

Sunday, Feb. 3, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

LENOIR -- A plan that would allow law enforcement and emergency workers to respond more quickly to calls is meeting strong opposition from some residents who don't want to see communication towers from their porches.

The Caldwell County Sheriff's Office has asked commissioners to finalize a plan to build a five-tower emergency communications system that would allow rescue workers and law enforcement to talk in even the most remote regions of the county.

As more people moved into isolated areas of the county, and trees and foliage have grown taller, emergency officials have encountered more problems reaching responders in those areas.

"Radio waves sometimes don't like to go around things," said Richard Jenkins, Sheriff's Office communications director. "And, now, there are fire departments out there that are only reaching about half of their (responders). This is not something we just choose to do - it's something we've needed to do for several years."

But the plan, which includes building a tower on St. Mark's Church Road near Blowing Rock, has received strong criticism from residents who say the proposed 195-foot structure would lessen property values and taint the view from their homes and from the Blue Ridge Parkway.

"We're promoting the high country as being a gateway to the mountains," Denise Drum, who lives on St. Mark's Church Road, said at last week's commissioners meeting. "Don't kill our golden egg with (putting) towers in our beautiful hiking areas."

About a dozen residents of the Blackberry community, where one of the towers would be built, asked commissioners to consider other options, including building more, smaller towers or building on top of the water tower in Blowing Rock instead.

Jenkins said planners and consultants from Motorola, the company building the towers, said the Blowing Rock water tower was the preferred option. But town officials did not support the proposal, so the county did not make a formal request.

They also exhausted several options for other sites, he said, and found that only a few that would allow the system to work properly.

The St. Mark's Church Road site, he said, would bring better coverage to the east and west sides of the county, including Happy Valley and Collettsville, which are surrounded by mountains and often get spotty transmission.

"It's the prime site that will cover both of those areas," he said. "I can't argue that we couldn't do this with smaller towers, but we would need 10 or 20 times the number of towers to (make this system work). It's just not practical to cover the county in dozens of 110-foot towers."

The five towers, some of which are already built, will be scattered throughout Caldwell, and three, including the St. Mark's Church Road tower, will be on private land leased by the county, Jenkins said. The towers need to be built high enough, Jenkins said, that signals can be sent between each structure and cover the entire county.

It would also allow the county to operate on the state's Viper system, which allows every county in North Carolina to communicate.

Commissioner John Thuss said he understand that nobody wants to see towers marking the county's landscape, he also said the need for emergency officials to communicate is paramount.

"This is about people's lives, whether it be tracking a criminal or getting someone to the hospital," he said. "This is not about cell phones and people being interrupted as they go up and down the mountain."

Previous battles
This isn't the first time Caldwell County commissioners have battled residents opposing 250-foot communications towers. In 1999, when residents argued that cell phone towers would taint the view from their Blowing Rock porches and lessen property values, the county froze construction and looked at regulations that would dictate cell phone tower height, as well as distance from property lines and other towers.

In 2000, after six months of heated debate with some residents, commissioners adopted an ordinance that required cell phone towers to be no taller than 110 feet and strongly encouraged "concealment" technology, which could include putting communication devices on top of steeples, water towers and flag poles and areas within a quarter-mile of a residential zone.

The proposed plan to build five emergency communication towers, commissioners said, is not meant to improve commercial cell phone service and, therefore, not bound by the 2000 ordinance.

Where are the towers?
Three of the five new towers have already been built: a 450-foot tower at the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office in Lenoir, a 270-foot tower on Hibriten Mountain, and one on top of the Granite Falls water tower, which reaches a total height of 150 feet.

The Sheriff's Office has also recommended the county build a 195-foot tower on St. Mark's Church Road and one on Butte Mountain, on Zack's Fork Road, that would not exceed 200 feet.

The project will cost $6.5 million. Four of the towers would be owned by the county, and the Butte Mountain tower would be owned by the state, which will invest $1.1 million in the project in Caldwell County, Jenkins said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hickory merchant spots own stolen jewelry at his shop

2008-02-02T06:11:00.000-05:00

Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Hickory store owner whose house was burglarized last week spotted his own property among some items a patron was trying to sell on Wednesday.

Ed Kanupp of Newton was in his shop, Goldsmith's jewelry repair in Hickory, on Wednesday, when a woman came in and tried to sell some gold and a few pieces of jewelry, Catawba County Sheriff's Office Maj. Coy Reid said.

Kanupp immediately recognized them as some of the items stolen from his house on Jan. 25 and set off a silent alarm, calling Hickory police to the door.

Police detained the woman, and a man waiting for her in a car outside, Reid said, and notified the sheriff's office, which was investigating the break-in at Kanupp's home.

The sheriff's office charged Christopher Garrett, 21, and Christina Belle Webb, 33, both of Hickory, with breaking and entering, larceny and possession of stolen property.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Trucking company president accused of bribing IRS agent

2008-02-01T06:11:00.000-05:00

Friday, Feb. 1, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Hickory trucking company president has been charged with bribing an Internal Revenue Service agent to reduce his tax liability.

Dan Iosif Kalman Baciu, who is known as Dan Kalman, was arrested Wednesday at his Hickory home and charged with two counts of bribery and two counts of paying an illegal gratuity to an IRS agent, said Suellen Pierce of the U.S. Justice Department.

The sealed indictment was filed in Charlotte's U.S. District Court on Jan. 24.

The IRS performed an audit of 40-year-old Kalman Baciu's 2005 federal income tax return and his reporting of income at his company, DNK Trucking, according to the Justice Department.

The indictment claims Kalman Baciu, in his first meeting with IRS officials, handed an agent a cash-filled envelope, which she refused. In a subsequent meeting, the indictment alleges, Kalman Baciu handed the IRS agent an envelope with $10,000 cash in it to persuade her to reduce his tax liability by $55,000 for the 2005 tax year, according to the Justice Department.

Kalman Baciu could face up to 30 years in prison and a $500,000 fine if convicted on all counts.
He was released Thursday on a $50,000 bond, and his next court date has not be scheduled, Pierce said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man charged in IRS bribe scheme

2008-01-31T18:19:00.001-05:00

Thursday, Jan. 31, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Hickory trucking company president has been charged with trying to bribe an Internal Revenue Service agent to reduce his tax liability.

Dan Iosif Kalman Baciu, who is known as Dan Kalman, was arrested Wednesday at his Hickory home and charged with two counts of bribery and two counts of paying an illegal gratuity to an IRS agent, said Suellen Pierce of the U.S. Department of Justice.

The sealed indictment was filed in Charlotte's U.S. District Court on Jan. 24.
The IRS performed an audit of 40-year-old Kalman Baciu's 2005 federal income tax return and his reporting of income at his company, DNK Trucking, according to the Department of Justice.

The indictment claims Kalman Baciu, in his first meeting with IRS officials, handed an agent a cash-filled envelope, which she refused. In a subsequent meeting, the indictment alleges, Kalman Baciu handed the IRS agent an envelope with $10,000 cash in it to persuade her to reduce his tax liability by $55,000 for the 2005 tax year, according to the Department of Justice.

Kalman Baciu could face up to 30 years in prison and a $500,000 if convicted on all counts.

He was released Thursday on a $50,000 bond, and his next court date has not be scheduled, Pierce said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Woman in court in deputy shooting

2008-01-31T18:15:00.000-05:00

Thursday, Jan. 31, 2008

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Morganton woman involved in a December shooting that critically injured a Burke County Sheriff's deputy made her first appearance in Superior Court this week.

Eva Joyce Smith Nelson, 60, is charged with attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill or inflict serious injury, assault on a law enforcement office and two counts of discharging a firearm onto an occupied property, all felonies.

On Dec. 11, Nelson forced members of the Burke County SWAT team into a 12-hour standoff after a deputy tried serving her involuntary mental health commitment papers.

Detective Martin Lawing was shot in the neck in the standoff and is still in critical condition at an Atlanta hospital that specializes in spinal cord injuries and neurological conditions.

Nelson was taken to Broughton Hospital, a state psychiatric facility in Morganton, following the Dec. 11 shooting, said Sheriff John McDevitt. She was transferred to the Burke-Catawba jail on Jan. 25 and is being held there on a $500,000 bond. Her next court date is scheduled for March 3.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hickory man hit by train

2008-01-29T11:15:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Hickory man hit by a train Monday night was in serious condition Tuesday after coming out of surgery, authorities said.

John Kirk Neal, 42, was standing too close to the railroad tracks that cross through downtown Hickory and was hit when a train passed through about 10:30 p.m. Monday, police said.

Authorities said Neal was taken to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, where he had surgery and is in serious condition. They are not sure whether alcohol was a factor.

It was the third time in six months that a passing train in Hickory has hit a person near the railroad tracks.

On Nov. 5, a train hit and killed Mack Junior Johnson when he lost control of his bicycle in a crosswalk near the railroad. On July 31, another train hit and critically injured Lester Glass, who was walking near the tracks in southeast Hickory.

All three accidents happened less than a mile from each other.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

`Life was real simple,' then wife's slaying shattered it

2007-12-01T06:32:00.000-05:00

As he puts pieces together again, Anderson says his son is his first priority

Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007
By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Two years ago, Jerry Anderson and his wife, Emily, were working at their Caldwell County dairy farm and preparing to start a new, larger spread in Tennessee.

The farm would have been the largest in four states and something Anderson, who had been a dairy farmer for most of his life, had been working toward for years.

"My life was real simple. Dairy. Church. Work," he said.

But now, Anderson is building a whole new life after spending 18 months in jail on charges that he murdered his wife.

On Tuesday, District Attorney Jay Gaither's office dismissed first-degree murder charges against Anderson, who became the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office's main suspect after his wife disappeared and her body was found stuffed in the toolbox of her truck. She had been shot twice.

"I worked hard for 25 years, my whole life, and saw it crumble in 25 seconds," he said Thursday.

Anderson was charged with murder in his wife's death, but after a 10-week trial, a Gaston County jury could not reach a verdict. The jury split 11-1, with the majority favoring acquittal. Anderson was released on bond and returned to Caldwell County.

The cows had been sold, stalls at the Sawmills dairy farm sat empty and plans to start a larger farm in Tennessee were abandoned.

Since July, Anderson has been living with friends not far from the Sawmills farm and has spent time reconnecting with his son, 13-year-old Matthew, whom he didn't see while he was in jail.

"My son is No. 1 right now," he said.

Anderson said he's still trying to cope with losing his farm and his wife. "Emily was super outgoing, and she was really good for Matt and I," he said. "We offset each other well."

Morganton attorney Dan Kuehnert is representing Anderson in several civil matters, including a wrongful death suit filed by Emily Anderson's sister, Adelia Griffitt Watson, in 2006. Neither Kuehnert nor Anderson would talk in detail about the criminal charges and the arguments made during the trial by the district attorney's office, but Anderson has maintained his innocence for nearly two years.

"It's nothing I should have ever gone through," he said. Court documents showed that Emily

Anderson had more than $4 million in life insurance, and authorities originally said they believed at least part of the motive in her slaying was financial gain. Anderson said Thursday that his life was also insured -- for $10 million.

Gaither's office, in a press release sent by the lead prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Eric Bellas, said Tuesday it "remains committed to the prosecution of the person or persons responsible for Emily Anderson's murder."

Anderson said he hopes they catch her murderer and can prove it in court. "If you're going to charge someone with capital murder," he said, "be sure you've got the right person."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Company's stolen data used in scam

2007-12-01T01:05:00.000-05:00

Fake checks made with financial information from trucking business

Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A family-owned trucking company in Claremont has been used in an international fake-check scam, officials at the Better Business Bureau said Friday.

Financial information, including bank account numbers, were stolen from Freedom Transportation and used to generate fake checks that were sent all over the world, said Janet Hart, a spokeswoman for the BBB of Southern Piedmont.

The checks were printed with Freedom Transportation's name, address and bank account routing number and were accompanied by a letter that said the recipient had won a home improvement grant, said company owner Kathy Gregory.

In most cases, she said, a $4,900 check arrived with a letter telling the recipients that they had won $34,000.

The recipients were asked to cash the checks and were told they'd receive the balance of their prize money after they had sent at least $3,100 to another bank account, usually in another country, to cover taxes and fees.

"A few days later, the `winners' found out that the original check was fake and that they had lost the money they sent," Hart said.

Neither Gregory nor Hart knew how many of the fake checks had been cashed.

In the past four weeks, Freedom Transportation and the company's bank have received several hundred calls from people across the country asking about the letter or saying the cashed checks had bounced.

"I just hate that there are poor people out there who have cashed these checks, and now the banks are wanting their money back," Gregory said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

For some Hmong, law is still tough to understand

2007-11-29T01:05:00.000-05:00

About two-thirds need legal speech translated

Thursday, Nov. 29, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

It has been 30 years since the Hmong began settling in Western North Carolina, but community leaders say they are still trying to fully bridge the language barrier and need more and better trained translators in the courts.

About a third of the 15,000 Hmong living in the Catawba Valley and McDowell County speak English well enough to communicate and understand the law, said Tong Yang, executive director of the United Hmong Association of North Carolina, leaving many others dependent on translators if they have to go to court.

"Even though they can communicate well enough to get by in everyday life," Yang said, "they might not be able to fully understand what a judge or a lawyer is saying in a court proceeding."

And that creates several hurdles for the Hmong, who have been trying to adjust to this county's culture and still maintain their Southeast Asian identity.

Court administrators, judges and lawyers, Yang said, often don't understand the Hmong culture and the complexity of the language, making it, in turn, difficult for non-English-speaking Hmong to grasp how the system works.

"There's a lot of legal jargon ... and we just don't have those terms," Yang said. "Sometimes one word in English would take a couple of sentences in Hmong to explain."

That's a common challenge in the legal system, said Jenny Fernandez Griffin, a state certified interpreter, and one that she has been working with Yang and Hmong translators to overcome.

Her company, Bilingual Consulting, coordinates contracts between interpreters and the courts and has been training Hmong translators about the court system and introducing them to some of the more complex legal terms.

"Even though they can be very good interpreters, they might not understand how the court system works fully, and that can cause interpreters to freeze up," she said. "What they need is a little bit of direction on how to operate in a courtroom and the mechanics of the system."

Currently, courts only provide Spanish translators but will work with other groups, including the Hmong, who need to provide their own translation services, Yang said.

The United Hmong Association works with all Hmong needing translation services, Yang said, but only gets reimbursed if the court requested the translator to work on criminal, child protection and domestic violence cases.

Since the association doesn't charge clients for translation services, and the courts will only pay for time spent in court, Yang said, it is difficult to recruit translators and have them available when needed.

"Nobody can make a living out of that, and it's hard to find someone who is willing to make that sacrifice to be a court translator," he said.

The solution, Yang said, would be for the association to hire a full-time translator to work on cases, both criminal and civil, in Burke, Catawba and Caldwell counties and have a few other interpreters on call.

And while members of the Hmong community say there's a need in the court system for more translators, there may not be enough Hmong going through the courts to justify paying for a full-time interpreter.

District Judge Bob Brady, who has been talking with Yang on ways to provide better translation services, said he doesn't see Hmong in court very often and thinks the state would prefer to pay for translators on a case-by-case basis rather than fund a full-time position.

"It's always better to have someone on staff," he said, "but you have to look at the need for it."
And as fewer Hmong immigrate to the United State and younger Hmong learn the language, the need for translation services will likely diminish over the years, he said.

"Many of the second generation and the young people learn to speak English," he said. "It doesn't seem like it would be a long-term need and goal."

Who are the Hmong?
Originally from China, the Hmong fled to the mountains of northern Laos in the early 1800s, where they remained until after the Vietnam War. When the Communist Pathet Lao overran the country in 1975, thousands of Hmong fled to refugee camps in Thailand and then to the United States.

More than 300,000 Hmong have sought refuge across the United States, and about 15,000 have settled in North Carolina. Most of those live in Catawba, Burke, Alexander, Caldwell and McDowell counties, where the foothills terrain and climate are similar to their Laotian homeland.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

D.A. dismisses murder charges against husband

2007-11-28T06:05:00.001-05:00

Wife's body found in truck's toolbox

Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Almost two years after Emily Anderson's body was found stuffed in the toolbox of her pickup, the district attorney's office on Tuesday dismissed murder charges against her husband and said it would re-evaluate the case if new evidence comes in.

But lawyers for Jerry Anderson, 48, who has been free since his murder trial ended with a hung jury in July, say they doubt new charges will be brought against the Caldwell County dairy farmer.

"For all practical purposes, I think this is it," said his attorney Lisa Dubs.

Emily Anderson was last seen alive Dec. 29, 2005. Ten days later, the 49-year-old woman's Chevrolet Silverado pickup was found in a Duncan, S.C., restaurant parking lot, about 100 miles from their farm in the town of Sawmills. She had been shot twice.

Jerry Anderson was charged in the death, but Gaston County jurors split 11-1, with the majority voting not guilty.

Since being released, Anderson has been living with friends near the farm. He could not be reached Tuesday evening. But Dubs said he was "obviously very pleased."

"He's avoiding attention right now and taking some time for himself," she said. "(But) he's always told us that the right thing was going to happen, and he has never faltered in his faith that he would be exonerated."

But for Mike Griffitt, Emily Anderson's brother, the dismissal doesn't end the case.

"We're not through with him," said Griffitt, who lives in Nicholasville, Ky. "Dismissing the case doesn't mean he can't be recharged with a crime. ... There's no doubt in my mind that he did it."

Court documents showed that Emily Anderson had more than $4 million in life insurance, and authorities originally said they believed at least part of the motive in her slaying was financial gain. Witnesses said they saw the couple arguing, and lawyers on both sides agreed the marriage of more than four years was strained.

District Attorney Jay Gaither's office, in a press release sent by the lead prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Eric Bellas, said it will look at any new information in the case. The office "remains committed to the prosecution of the person or persons responsible for Emily Anderson's murder," the statement said.

Several messages left with Gaither and Bellas were not returned Tuesday, and the statement did not say whether Jerry Anderson is still a suspect or whether the district attorney's office would consider charging him again.

The case's lead investigator, Maj. Jeff Stafford of the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office, said authorities are looking for more evidence that could help solve the murder.

"If we feel comfortable bringing something against this man again, then we'll bring what we find to the D.A.'s office. Or if we find something else, we'll bring that to the D.A.'s office," he said. "We'll go where the evidence points us."

Family and friends of Emily Anderson, including some of Jerry Anderson's supporters, are offering a $3,500 reward for information that leads to a conviction in her killing and have created a Web site, http://www.emilygriffittanderson.com/, to solicit information about her death.

Friends of Jerry Anderson, many of whom attended most of his 10-week trial, said they hoped investigators would be able to figure out who killed his wife.

"I'm thrilled that he's able to get back with his life," said Jennie Wilson, a friend of Emily and Jerry Anderson. "I just hope they can find who did it."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Driver critically injured when truck crashes into gas station

2007-11-27T01:05:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Lenoir man was critically injured Saturday when the truck he was driving slammed into a gas station, police said.

David Shawn Miller was driving his 2004 Dodge Ram north on Blowing Rock Boulevard about 6:50 p.m. when the truck veered off the right side of the road, police said.

Miller, 34, was not wearing a seat belt when the truck hit a utility pole and sign before colliding with the steel column over the Gas n' Go's pump station.No one else was injured in the wreck.

Miller was taken to Carolinas Medical Center, and police said he will be charged with reckless driving to endanger, driving while impaired and failure to wear a seatbelt.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Low water levels close last public ramp at Lake James

2007-11-27T01:05:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Low water levels at Lake James have forced the state to close the lake's last open ramp, officials said Monday.

Officials at the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation closed the Canal Bridge boat access point because water levels have dropped so low that the ramps are no longer safe.

The ramp was the last open public access point on the 6,510-acre lake. Officials closed ramps at Hidden Cove and the Linville River in August, and the Black Bear access point was closed in October.

Water levels at the lake are about 12 feet lower than normal, and officials said the ramps will remain closed until enough rain falls to raise the water level.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hickory police get ready for more giving

2007-11-25T01:05:00.000-05:00

Department collects for Cops for Tots program

Sun, Nov. 25, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Santa's helpers at the Hickory Police Department are starting to work on getting toys and gifts ready for the holiday season.

Every year, the department collects new and slightly used toys for Hickory-area children who might not otherwise have gifts waiting for them, said Sgt. Bob Winters, the department's community services supervisor.

The Cops for Tots program has been growing steadily since the early 1980s, when the department first started gathering games and toys -- and asked officers to play Santa and make deliveries to Hickory homes.

As the program grew more popular, the department started thinking about ways it could reach more kids and give more gifts, Winters said.

In the early 1990s, the department decided to open a Christmas Wish House where parents could browse toys and pick which toys they wanted for their children, he said.

The Wish House worked so well, Winters said, that it grew over the years, and police were able to get gifts to hundreds more children. Last year, more than 2,100 children opened Cops for Tots gifts, he said.

The department sets up donation boxes across the city and, for three days, opens the Wish House to parents and legal guardians shopping for infants, toddlers, elementary and middle school-aged children and teenagers.

Gift collection will run through Dec. 14, and the department will give the toys away at the Wish House -- the multipurpose building at Winkler Park, next to L.P. Frans Stadium -- Dec. 17-19.

Want to give?
Police are collecting gifts for children of all ages, including infants and teenagers. Gifts can be dropped off at several locations across Hickory, including most of the city's middle schools.
Monetary donations can be sent to: Hickory Police Department, Cops for Tots, 347 Second Ave. S.W., 28602

Drop-off locations
Hickory Police Department, 347 Second Ave. S.W.
The Arts and Science Center of Catawba Valley, 243 Third Ave. N.W.
Jenkins Elementary School, 3750 N. Center St.
Viewmont Elementary, 21 16th Ave., N.W.
Oakwood Elementary, 366 Fourth St. N.W.
Details: 828-324-2060

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Drought helps drug agents in fight against marijuana

2007-11-18T11:06:00.000-05:00

Illegal crops drying up across region and state as rain levels plummet

Sunday, Nov. 18, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Severe drought has baked the state, leaving crops withered and the water supply dangerously low, but law enforcement officials say the extreme weather isn't all bad.

It's dampened the production of marijuana.

Through October of this year, drug agents have seized 16,139 plants, compared to the 92,614 plants found during the same period in 2006, due at least in part to the drought, said Noelle Talley, a spokesperson for the N.C. Department of Justice.

In Caldwell County, for example, pot plants usually grow to be between 6 and 8 feet tall, said David Barbour, a narcotics agent with the Sheriff's Office, but this year, the tallest outdoor plants seized barely cleared 2 feet.

"A marijuana plant is just like any other plant," he said. "If it doesn't receive enough water, it just won't grow."

The dry conditions have helped curb outdoor pot production across the state and the Southeast, as well, said Special Agent Chuvalo Truesdell, a spokesman for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration whose division includes North and South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee.

"I've been an agent for 18 years, and we've never had this much help from the weather," Truesdell said. "We'll take a victory wherever we can."

Outdoor marijuana crops usually hit peak heights in the late summer, Barbour said, but the dry weather stunted growth early in the season.

Most of the state's marijuana, he said, is grown in rural areas, planted near creeks so tending to the plants is more convenient and less conspicuous.

But as the smaller streams dried up during a year of record heat and little rain, so have the crops. Dragging bucket-loads of water through rural parts of the state is not only a difficult task, Barbour said, but could draw attention and increase the grower's risk of getting caught.

"Growing a patch of marijuana is harder than growing a garden ... and the lack of water makes it even more difficult," he said. "The drought isn't a good thing, but it did help us out with this."
And growers can't easily move their operation indoors, where water is easily accessible.

"Hydroponic growers are quite a different operation," Truesdell said. "It's a lot more scientific and requires a lot more work ... it's a totally different commitment level."

Outdoor marijuana production in N.C.
According to a 2006 study by Virginia-based researcher Jon Gettman, North Carolina is the fifth-largest outdoor producer of pot in the county, and marijuana is the state's top cash crop.

DEA officials said that marijuana is one of the most common drugs in the state and has recently become more prevalent. Though the drought has helped stunt the plants' growth this year, Special Agent Chuvalo Truesdell said, large outdoor marijuana operations are being planted in rural areas across the state and the Southeast.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Late shakeup in Lenoir race

2007-11-11T11:06:00.000-05:00

Mayor narrowly fends off last-minute challenger

Sunday, Nov. 11, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Seven days before last week's election, David Barlow thought his third term as Lenoir mayor was clinched.

No one had filed to run against him, and he hadn't heard any murmurings around town that anyone was planning to seek the seat as a write-in candidate.

But then, with a week to go before the Nov. 6 election, Debra Venti, a downtown merchant, launched an intense write-in campaign, nearly ousting Barlow.

Barlow narrowly won with 661 votes, but write-in candidates got 619 votes. And most of those went to Venti, said Caldwell County Board of Elections Director Sandy Rich, though she won't have the exact totals until the votes are canvassed on Tuesday.

Venti, a political newcomer, began a whirlwind campaign promoting the need for a fresh perspective in city government. She printed hundreds of flyers, posted signs, sent e-mails, took newspaper ads and booked radio spots, and within a week had garnered wide support.

"It just really came down to being motivated for change and being excited about it," she said. "And people were really supportive (of that)."

Barlow, meanwhile, said he hadn't heard about any frustrations or concerns from residents and said Venti's intense campaign caught him off guard.

"We had to respond very quickly," he said. "We were working all day long, and I didn't know if I'd win by a lot or lose."

Venti's decision to run, she said, wasn't motivated by discontent with city leaders, but by her feeling that Lenoir needed new ideas for revitalizing downtown and bringing more business to the city.

Venti, who owns Venti's Casa, She-Sha's and a downtown upholstery studio, moved to Lenoir from Greenville, S.C., more than five years ago and said the city needs to start thinking more about how it is going to adjust as factories continue closing.

"On the edges of our town, it still says, `Welcome to the furniture capital of the world,' but those mainstays are changing," Venti said. "We need to redefine who we are and what we are about today."

But Barlow, who owns a real estate company, said the city is constantly looking for new ways to bring more business to the city, improve downtown and find ways to overcome the exodus of furniture and textile jobs.

"We have a lot of good things here, and a lot more good things are happening," he said.

Bringing Google to Caldwell County, a project that Barlow worked on closely with county officials, will help attract new business, he said, but is only one of many projects the city is looking at.

"Google is not totally the answer. It's a steppingstone," he said. "(Development) just doesn't happen overnight."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Most of salmonella cases related to eatery, officials say

2007-11-10T11:06:00.000-05:00

Saturday, Nov. 10, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Catawba County health officials said Friday that 176 people have reported symptoms of salmonella, and most of the cases are connected to a Newton restaurant that closed last week.

Health officials have confirmed 25 cases since Oct. 31. Most of the people reporting symptoms - including diarrhea, vomiting, headache and fever - had eaten at Carniceria y Taqueria Hermanos Chavez off U.S. 321 Business, said a spokeswoman for Catawba County Public Health.

The restaurant closed Nov. 2 after a visit from public health officials

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Troopers investigate case of child being hit by SUV

2007-11-08T17:59:00.000-05:00

Thursday, Nov. 8, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Authorities are trying to determine if the caution lights were blinking and the stop sign was extended on a Caldwell County school bus Wednesday morning when a kindergartner was hit by another car.

Trooper M.T. Stutts of the state Highway Patrol said Thursday that 5-year-old Dancy Porter was crossing the street near the intersection of Calico and Autumn roads at about 6:45 a.m. when she was struck by a sports utility vehicle.

She was taken to Carolinas Medical Center, where she was in critical but stable condition, Stutts said.

The driver of the SUV, 22-year-old Karmen Stewart of Lenoir, was not speeding and has not been charged, Stutts said.

Authorities have heard conflicting reports about whether the caution lights were flashing and the stop sign was extended, Stutts said.

"Until we get something concrete, that’s the question mark," he said.

Dancy’s mother, Melissa Porter, was waiting at the bus stop with her daughter, Stutts said, when the bus stopped at the intersection. Porter told authorities that the bus’ caution flashers were not activated and the stop sign was not extended from the side of the bus when her child stepped out into the road and was hit, Stutts said.

But Cheri Mayberry, who was driving the bus, told Stutts that she had turned on the orange, flashing lights and that the stop sign arm was out, he said.

A witness behind the bus told authorities that the bus was stopped and the rear, brake lights were, but was not sure if the caution lights were flashing or if he saw the stop sign arm extending from the driver’s side of the bus, Stutts said.

Authorities inspected the bus, Stutts said, and found that the lights and extendable stop sign were not broken.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Newton sewer line ruptures, spills 4,300 gallons

2007-11-08T17:58:00.000-05:00

Thursday, Nov. 8, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A sewer line in Newton ruptured Wednesday, spilling about 4,300 gallons of wastewater, the city reported.

A 12-inch pipe ruptured at the Burris Road Pump Station in northeast Newton, according a statement from the Division of Water Quality. About 1,075 gallons of untreated wastewater spilled into a nearby stream, McLin Creek, officials said.

Authorities spent about six hours cleaning McLin Creek, which is near the N.C. 16 bypass and Burris Road, city assistant public works director Doug Wesson said.

Officials do not think drinking water was contaminated, and there was no evidence that fish were killed, Wesson said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Bicyclist who was hit by train in town center dies at hospital

2007-11-08T12:58:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Hickory bicyclist who was struck by a train Monday died overnight at an Asheville hospital, police said Tuesday.

Mack Junior Johnson, 53, of Hickory was riding his bike Monday morning through a parking lot in Union Square, Hickory's city center, while a train was passing through.

Witnesses said Johnson was riding on the sidewalk toward the train when his front wheel jerked and he fell off the bike. He fell to the ground, said witness Justin Cornett, and was hit in the head by the passing train.

Johnson died in the trauma unit at Mission Hospital in Asheville, police said Tuesday.

Johnson was regularly seen riding his bike in downtown, around the soup kitchen and sitting in Union Square, said Hickory resident Kathy Brewer, who was picking up a prescription Monday not far from the accident.

"He's been around here for years," Brewer said, "and he always greeted you. He was a pretty nice man, real friendly."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man accused in sex ring says he's innocent

2007-11-08T06:05:00.001-05:00

Thursday, Nov. 8, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

TAYLORSVILLE - A prominent Alexander County photographer and community volunteer said Wednesday that he's innocent of charges connecting him to a high-dollar prostitution ring in Charlotte.

Glenn Fox, a Taylorsville native, said he took photos of nude women but didn't know anything about the prostitution ring described in federal court documents.

"This whole thing has been a nightmare," he said Wednesday. "Turns out I got caught in a web, and I didn't know the web was there."

Federal authorities this week charged Fox, Sallie Saxon and Donald Saxon of Charlotte with coercing women across state lines to engage in prostitution at upscale hotels in the Tyvola Road and South Park area.

Fox was released on bond Monday, and the Saxons' bond hearing is scheduled for today.
According to court documents, Fox, 58, took nude photos of the women, which were used to advertise them to clients on a Web site, http://www.asouthernlook.com/.

Sallie Saxon, who also goes by Sallie Wamsley, paid Fox about $32,000 to take the pictures, according to the documents.

Some of those photos were also posted on another Web site - www.hushhush.com - which the documents referred to as "a very exclusive prostitution service, catering to affluent clients" that was run by Saxon.

Fox, who has no criminal record, declined to talk in detail about the charges. He said he was told the photographs would appear on www.asouthernlook.com, which bills itself as a site offering erotic photography and fine nude art. He said he didn't know anything about the site possibly being connected to a prostitution ring. He said he had never heard of www.hushhush.com before he was charged.

"Maybe I was being naive," he told the Observer.

Most of the photos he took for Saxon, whom he knew as Sandy Bradshaw before being charged, were taken at bed-and-breakfasts and expensive hotels in the Charlotte area, he said. He never met Sallie Saxon but was paid by Donald Saxon, whom he knew as Jim, he said.

Fox's attorney, Samuel Winthrop, also would not talk about details of the case, but said Fox would plead not guilty.

Fox opened his photo studio in Taylorsville, 64 miles northwest of Charlotte, 32 years ago and has become a prominent figure in the Alexander County community, said Cindy Wallace of Hiddenite, who said she has worked with him on several projects.

"You'd be amazed at the things he's done and the (committees) he's served on," she said.
Fox serves on the county's Chamber of Commerce board of directors, volunteers with United Way, plays the piano at community events and has sung in his church's choir, friends said.

Each year, Wallace said, Fox photographs the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn Presented by Kia Motors, a golf tournament near Hickory, and donates his earnings to the United Way of Alexander County.

Fox said he has been photographing the annual charity event for four years and has donated about $20,000.

Denise Elder, the executive director at the Alexander Chamber of Commerce, would not talk about Fox in detail, but said he has been an active member of the chamber for 15 years.

In February, his studio, Glenn Fox Photo, was the chamber's business of the month, and his work, which includes wedding photography, portraits and model portfolio photos, has been featured in several national magazines, according to his Web site.

Wallace said Wednesday that she and others in the community knew that Fox was taking nude photographs and that he was honest about his work.

"Everything was always out there in the open," she said.

Lory Beth Huffman, pastor at the First United Methodist Church in Taylorsville, has known Fox and his family for nearly five years and said he has been active at the church, singing in the choir and teaching.

"I hope that the community will support him and not abandon him and his family during his time of need," she said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

The Dart: Lover of N.C. lighthouses transformed Burke field

2007-11-08T06:02:00.000-05:00

The Dart: People and places off the beaten path

Thursday, Nov. 8, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

MORGANTON -- The crashing waves and sandy beaches of the N.C. coast are hours away from the rolling foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, but that didn't stop Millard Duckworth from building seven miniature lighthouses in rural Burke County.

Sure, a small creek tumbles past the cylinder-shaped structures that jut 12 feet or more into the sky, but no ship or wayward fisherman runs the risk of getting lost on its waters.
Duckworth built the towers -- replicas of seven of the state's lighthouses lining the N.C. coast for one reason.

"He just liked lighthouses," said his cousin, J.B. Duckworth, who was recruited to help build and paint the structures. "He'd say, `Why go all the way to the coast if you can just come to Burke County?' "

Millard Duckworth, 74, died in March, but the staggered row of lighthouses still sit where The Dart landed Monday -- in a wooded field near a stream, fallen tepee and two-story treehouse off Dentons Chapel Road in Burke County.

Built to look like smaller versions of the actual lighthouses, Duckworth's structures are also staggered throughout the field in rough approximation to their locations on the coast.

The Currituck Beach lighthouse, a brick tower with two yellow windows on its face, is closest to Virginia and is the most northern structure in Duckworth's display.

The six others -- lighthouses from Bodie Island, Cape Hatteras, Ocracoke, Cape Lookout, Bald Head Island and Oak Island -- zig-zag across the thick, long grass in the same order they dot the coast.

Duckworth's fascination with the beacons began when he was in the U.S. Marine Corps, seeing lighthouses as he traveled across the county and other parts of the world, said Tony Duckworth, his first cousin, once removed.

"He was a lighthouse man," he said.

In the years after his retirement from Great Lakes Carbon Corp., Millard Duckworth and his wife, Nancy, spent time at the coast, admiring the towering beacons, his cousin said.

He brought family members trinkets from trips, including a decorative license plate with all seven lighthouses -- for J.B. Duckworth to attach to the front of his pickup truck -- and a magazine with shots of each structure.

But the gifts weren't just souvenirs from the beach, J.B. Duckworth said. They were guides.
"He just came up with this idea to build these lighthouses," Duckworth said. "Every time he'd go, he came back with a different picture. " `I want this, and I want this,' he'd say."

Millard Duckworth recruited his cousin and a longtime friend, Bill Crawley, to help find the giant steel tubes that they later cut into two and sank into deep beds of cement, J.B. Duckworth said.
It took nearly a year, he said, to secure the giant posts, polish the metal and paint them to match seven of the state's lighthouses.

"We had to sandpaper those jokers so they were as clean as they could be before we could paint `em," he said. "It was a lot of fun, but it was a lot of aggravation, too."

Not long before Duckworth died, his wife took him on a road trip along the coastline to make sure the lighthouses he had built on his family's property matched the real thing.

"He wanted them just exactly like the pictures," J.B. Duckworth said. "And he wanted to see each one again to make sure they were just right."

Duckworth didn't make any changes to the structures when he returned, his cousin said, but the park became a sanctuary where Duckworth played cards with friends, sat in a treehouse he built above the lighthouses and swung from a rope into the nearby steam.

Duckworth died a few months after his last trip to the coast, his cousin said, but his wife made sure he'd be able to take his lighthouses with him.

Marking his grave in the cemetery at Hopewell Baptist Church -- just a few miles from the lighthouse park -- a shiny, black headstone stands out among the gray marble markers.

Etched on it are a rolling stream, a treehouse, and of course, seven lighthouses -- exactly as they look at the beach.

The point of The Dart
The idea behind The Dart is simple: We're looking for the kind of news the media don't usually report. We throw a dart at a map of one of the counties in the Catawba Valley, and we'll write about what's happening at that spot. We hope this feature will bring out stories that too often are ignored and will help you meet some of your neighbors in the region.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Restaurant closes after reports of salmonella symptoms

2007-11-07T05:58:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Newton restaurant has closed after dozens of people became ill with symptoms of salmonella, Catawba County health officials said Tuesday.

Since Oct. 31, nearly 100 people have reported having salmonella symptoms -- including diarrhea, vomiting, cramping, headache and fever -- and 13 cases had been confirmed by Tuesday, said Maria Reese, a spokeswoman for Catawba County Public Health.

Most of the people with symptoms had eaten at Carniceria y Taqueria Hermanos Chavez off U.S. 321 Business in Newton, Reese said. The owner closed the restaurant Friday after a visit from public health officials, Reese said.

Anyone with symptoms should be tested, Reese said.

About 40,000 cases of salmonella are reported each year in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, but the actual number of infections is likely considerably higher because milder cases are often not reported.

To report salmonella symptoms or for more information call Catawba County Public Health, 828-695-5800.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Cyclist loses control, struck by train

2007-11-06T06:00:00.000-05:00

Witness says rider `jerked his wheel,' fell, was then hit in head

Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

HICKORY --A bicyclist riding through downtown Hickory was injured Monday when he lost control of his bike and was struck by a passing train, witnesses said.

Mack Junior Johnson, 53, of Hickory was riding his bike about 10:50 a.m. through a parking lot in Union Square, Hickory's city center, while a train was passing through, Hickory police said.

"I saw him ride up the sidewalk toward the train, and that's when he jerked his wheel and just lost control," said witness Justin Cornett.

Johnson fell to the ground, Cornett said, and was hit in the head by the passing train.
Cornett, who was setting up an ice cream and hot dog stand in Union Square, ran to get his cell phone from his car, he said, while his co-worker, Sherry Baxter, ran to where the man was lying near the train.

"I went over immediately to check his pulse," she said. "I knew he was in trouble."

Baxter, who is trained in first aid and CPR, said Johnson was unconscious, had a rapid pulse and was bleeding severely from the back of the head.

"He had just smiled at me," Baxter said, "right before he got hit."

Johnson was taken to Frye Regional Medical Center and was transported Monday afternoon to the trauma unit at Mission Hospital in Asheville, police said. His condition was not available Monday evening.

The 36-car and seven-engine cargo train was stalled on the tracks for more than three hours after the accident, and police blocked downtown traffic between Fourth Street N.W. and North Center Street, said Capt. Clyde Deal of the Hickory Police Department.

It was the second time in less than four months that a passing train in Hickory has hit a person near the railroad tracks. On July 31, a cargo train hit and critically injured Lester Glass, who was walking near the tracks in southeast Hickory.

Monday's accident happened less than a mile from where Glass was hit.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Political battles stir distruct in tiny town as election looms

2007-11-04T11:06:00.000-05:00

Rhodhiss struggles to rebound from turmoil

Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

In the town of Rhodhiss - a tiny community straddling two Western North Carolina counties - years of political troubles have created an atmosphere of distrust during a contentious election.

The squabbles and problems in this town of about 1,000 people have peaked in recent months. In just the last year:

A longtime public works supervisor - who also is a town commissioner - was fired, charged with felony embezzlement and later cleared of the charges by the district attorney's office.

The town manager who fired him was herself fired, and has sued the town. Town Hall closed for a month, and a new manager was hired.

The mayor abruptly resigned and is being investigated by state law enforcement for matters not related to town business.

A commissioner took the open mayor's seat, and the council appointed someone to fill his spot.

Now, as Rhodhiss prepares for Tuesday's election, eight challengers and sitting commissioner Barbara Kirby are campaigning against three incumbents - interim Mayor Rick Justice and commissioners Joe Kirby and Wayne Wilson.

"If you're elected into a position, you need to do what is best for the town," said Barbara Kirby, who was elected four years ago and calls the other commissioners and mayor "an old boy's club."
"All this fighting is doing nothing for the town and the people have had enough," she said.
But Justice, a former commissioner who took over as mayor in May, said the problems are in the past. "It doesn't have anything to do with today, and that's what we're concentrating on," he said.

Town commissioner Clarence Burns, who is also the fired public works supervisor, is in the middle of a four-year term and is the only commissioner not at risk of losing his seat.

The most recent string of problems surrounds the February firing of former Town Manager Rose Waldroup. Until then, Waldroup appeared to be doing well in her job and three months earlier had received a raise - unanimously approved by the council.

The controversy began in June 2006, when she asked Police Chief Tim Anthony to investigate allegations that Burns, in his role as public works supervisor, was collecting scrap metal from town streets using Rhodhiss employees and equipment, exchanging it for cash and pocketing the money.

Burns was eventually charged, but the charges were later dropped.

Burns could not be reached for comment - several messages left at his home, including one with a woman who identified herself as his wife, were not returned.

In October, Waldroup fired Burns, later questioning his job performance.

Three months later, the council voted to fire Waldroup, who had worked only 18 months out of a 10-year contract.

In response, she filed a lawsuit against the town, then-mayor Jimmy Wilson, Justice and Burns in March, saying she was fired because she had discovered possible illegal conduct by elected officials.

The suit claims Waldroup was improperly fired and that the town officials breached her contract, violated her First Amendment rights, defamed her and intentionally and negligently inflicted emotional distress.

Waldroup could not be reached for comment.

But her firing sparked controversy, and residents - in online forums, at town meetings and privately - say that the bickering between commissioners and the mayor has left an atmosphere of distrust.

The meeting held a month after Waldroup's firing drew 47 people, most of whom voiced "concerns about the termination of the manager, duties of elected officials, lack of unity among commissioners, pros and cons of employees having a contract and general concerns about the needs of the citizens not being met because of the circumstances," according to a record of the meeting.

Some, including Gary Rash, say the controversy encouraged him to run for the council.

"The commissioners have had their way too long in this town and act like it's their town to run without regard to how the citizens feel," he said. "People turned against each other, and hardly anybody trusts our government anymore."

Though commissioners talked about rehiring Waldroup - but altering her responsibilities and revoking her right to hire and fire employees without the council's approval - Kirby said no such offer was ever extended.

Justice declined to comment on the allegations in the suit, and Jimmy Wilson refused to comment on anything related to Rhodhiss or his time as mayor.

But Justice and Wayne Wilson - Jimmy's brother - say the deluge of controversy is in the past.
"I see that the people have confidence in this board," Justice said. "People have seen a change in town and have seen people trying (to do better)."

Though they say meetings - which were for months marred with arguments between commissioners and often resulted in profanities and personal attacks - are improving, some residents aren't so sure.

The instability and controversy in Town Hall, said Don Lowman, who is running for mayor, have left a deep rift that could only be repaired by a new council with fresh ideas and no baggage.

"I'm sick of the bickering and going to town meetings that might as well be (the World Wrestling Federation)," he said. "I'm sick of seeing government officials being arrested and sick of watching the street fall in."

Wayne Wilson, who was elected to the council four years ago and walked out of the Feb. 13 meeting before the commissioners voted to fire Waldroup, said he's certain that the town is healing. The council, he said, has been making plans to revamp the sewer system, build a new park and clean up the community overall.

"We're coming together," Wilson said. "I just hope I get re-elected and get this place straightened up. I want to see this town improve and grow and prosper. I love this town to death."

Now, he said, the commissioners need to make sure they are open and honest. It's clear, he said, that residents don't trust the council, and he hopes that will change.

"I hope they trust me," he said. "I don't want to hide things. If something has happened and someone is being charged or is being investigated, we need to be up front."

A history of instability in Rhodhiss
July 2003 - Mayor Doug Cowick unexpectedly resigns after an argument with commissioners about who holds keys to Town Hall. He changes his mind the next day but doesn't get the job back and, in November, loses the election to political newcomer Jimmy Wilson.

January 2004 - The town's accountant, Marvin Harold Witherspoon of Hickory, and former part-time Rhodhiss clerk David Hollar are charged by the federal government with inducing minors to participate in filming of sexual activity. Both men plead guilty to federal charges.

July 2004 - Commissioner Allen Spencer, town clerk Julie Trivette and Frannie Thompson resign because of controversy on the council.

May 2005 - Police Chief Terry Campbell abruptly resigns.

July 1, 2005 - Rose Waldroup begins job as Rhodhiss town manager. She signs a 10-year contract requiring that she can only be fired by a unanimous vote of the commissioners.

June 2006 - Waldroup asks for an investigation into allegations that commissioner Clarence Burns had been exchanging scrap metal for cash.

Sept. 14, 2006 - Board unanimously approves raise for Waldroup.

October 2006 - Burns fired as public works supervisor.

Feb. 13, 2007 - Waldroup is fired from town manager job by a 3-to-1 vote. Commissioner Barbara Kirby votes against the firing, and Commissioner Wayne Wilson leaves the meeting early and is not present for the vote. According to state law, his vote counts as a yes.

February - March 2007 Town offices close for about a month because there is no administrative staff.

Feb. 21 - Burns is charged by the N.C. Department of Justice with felony embezzlement by a public officer and misdemeanor willful failure to discharge duties as a town employee.

March 13 - Town Attorney Wayne Clontz dismissed; Jonathan Jones hired.

March 22 - Waldroup files civil suit against the town, former Mayor Jimmy Wilson, Burns and commissioner Rick Justice over her firing, saying she was dismissed because she had discovered possible illegal conduct by elected officials.

April 20 - District attorney's office dismisses the misdemeanor willful failure to discharge duties as a town employee charges against Burns.

May 8 - Mayor Wilson abruptly resigns, citing family problems.

May 9 - District attorney's office finds no evidence or probable cause on Burns' felony embezzlement charges and drops the charges

June 4 - The defendants in Waldroup's suit deny she was fired because she discovered possible illegal activity by elected officials.

October - SBI Public Information Officer Noelle Talley confirms investigation into former Mayor Wilson. His older brother, commissioner Wayne Wilson, says the investigation is not related to town business.

The candidates
For mayor
George Clarke
Rick Justice, interim mayor
Don E. Lowman Jr.

For town commissioner
Dean Isenhour
Barbara C. Kirby (i)
Joe C. Kirby, interim commissioner
William Allen Spencer Sr.

For town commissioner (unexpired term ending in 2009)
Gary Rash
Wayne D. Wilson Jr. (i)

Campaigning for town commissioner as write-in candidates
Larry Bowman, David Hylton and Robert Turner

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Providing a lively note near Day of the Dead

2007-11-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

La Catrina brings chamber music to a more diverse crowd

Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

HICKORY - La Catrina was trying to be a little scary this week.

It was the day before Halloween -- two days before the Mexican holiday Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead -- and the string quartet was hoping the 80 kids at the Centro Latino performance would feel a little creepy when they heard Franz Shubert's "Death and the Maiden."

"This one is about a chase between death and a lady," said Daniel Vega-Albela, one of the quartet's two violinists. "Guess who ends up winning?"

The string group -- three Mexicans and a New York-born Puerto Rican -- launched into the piece, playing the high-pitched ferocity of death with fervor and the whimsical protests of the maiden softly.

The Tuesday evening performance -- held for a group of mostly Latino students -- was one of several shows La Catrina will play during its three-year residency with the Western Piedmont Symphony, which began in the fall.

But the group, said Chris Brown, the symphony's executive director, isn't getting attention only from the regular classical musician patrons, but from a more diverse audience that might not typically listen to the violin, viola and cello.

"Chamber music is a niche market," Brown said, "but it is one (La Catrina) is opening up by their style ... They play newer music and very lively pieces with great verve and vigor."

La Catrina, one of only a few professional Latino string quartets in the United States, draws much of its inspiration from Mexico's culture and traditions.

So, when the original group started playing together 10 years ago in Morelia, Mexico, and was choosing a name, it wanted something representative of the entire country.

"Day of the Dead is something everyone in Mexico knows about," said cellist Alan Daowz.

And La Calavera de la Catrina, a 1913 etching of a well-dressed skeleton woman by Jose Guadalupe Posada, is one of the best-known images of the Day of the Dead celebrations, Daowz said.

"La Catrina, with her mischievous smile," the group notes in its performance program, "pleads with the living to seize the moment, and through music and dance, find life's meaning."

The group separated for a while but came back together -- this time with George Anthony Figueroa on violin -- a few years ago and has performed as a group and as soloists in Mexico, the United States, Japan and the United Kingdom.

Collectively, the men have more than 86 years playing string instruments and have all earned bachelor's and master's degrees in music -- but they say it is the blending of their backgrounds and attention to newer pieces that elevate their sound and draw attention from the audience and critics.

"Chamber music is sort of dying in a way," said violist Jorge Martinez, "so we start by playing things (younger audiences) want to hear and slowly bring them into it. How can they not like it after that?"

Figueroa, 36, began his classical training at age 6 and is the son of a composer in Puerto Rico. Vega-Albela, 36, was 9 when he started playing the violin but, with a grandmother who was trained as a concert pianist and taught lessons, was always surrounded by music.

The group's violist, 30-year-old Martinez, took piano lessons as a child and was 17 when he was introduced to string instruments at a festival. And Daowz, 34, said he didn't plan to become a professional cellist, but when art school didn't turn out to be what he expected, he started thinking about music.

Though they're from different backgrounds, they come together in the group. "You can hear the four different sounds," Figueroa said. "Somebody usually becomes the diva, and the others are overlooked. But in our quartet, that is not the case."

And while La Catrina draws much of its inspiration from Latin traditions, Vega-Albela said he hopes that their cultural background isn't what defines them.

"It makes people more comfortable to put people in these neat, little packages," he said. "But we can play Mozart, and we can play tango. And we can play both well."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man flung from car, run over in wreck

2007-10-31T17:00:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Minnesota man died Tuesday night after he was flung from his car onto the highway and run over by another vehicle, authorities said.

Peter Yang of St. Paul, Minn. was driving a 1994 Honda west on Interstate-40, less than a mile from Valdese, shortly before 10 p.m. Tuesday and was merging into another lane when he lost control of the car and slammed into the guardrail, said First Sgt. J.G. Duckworth of the N.C. Highway Patrol.

Yang was going about 90 mph in a 65 mph zone, Duckworth said, when he hit the barrier and veered back onto the highway and into a 1995 Lexus driven by Edgar Gamez of Hendersonville.
Yang was thrown from the Honda onto the highway before the car came to rest near the side of the road, Duckworth said.

About a minute later, he said, a 2006 Chevrolet sports utility vehicle headed west on the interstate ran over Yang's body, which was still lying in the roadway.

"Did he die because of the first collision or because of being run over in the second?" Duckworth asked. "That's a question we'll probably never be able to answer."

Two passengers in Yang's car and one other person in Gamez's vehicle received minor injuries in the wreck. The driver of the SUV, Walter Labbett of Fletcher, was not hurt.

Duckworth did not know the ages of anyone involved and said that no one will be charged.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man robs Hickory bank, flees with cash

2007-10-31T15:00:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Police in Hickory are looking for a man who walked into a bank Wednesday afternoon, told the teller he had a gun and fled on foot with cash.

Shortly before 1 p.m. Wednesday, a man walked into the First Citizens Bank on U.S. 70 in Southeast Hickory and handed the teller a note saying he had a gun, said Hickory police Capt. Clyde Deal.

Authorities said the man did not show a gun during the robbery but fled from the bank on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Hickory Police Department at 828-324-2060.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man charged in Newton stabbing

2007-10-30T13:01:00.005-04:00

Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Newton police have charged a man in last week's stabbing of another man, who fled in a car for help and was spotted driving erratically by police.

Horace Eugene Bost, 24, of Newton was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, inflicting serious injury; and armed robbery, both felonies, said Detective Spencer Cline.

On Thursday night, officers stopped Stephen Lewis Norman, 32, when they noticed his burgundy, 1996 Oldsmobile Cierra swerving through Newton's streets, authorities said.

Norman twice ran off the side of the road, hitting an embankment, mailbox, fire hydrant and a home. When police approached Norman, who was still in the car, they discovered that he had been stabbed in the abdomen.

Norman told police, authorities said, that he had been robbed by two men at E-Z Way Food on East D Street. Newton police are still trying to identify the second man involved in the robbery, Cline said.

Norman was at Catawba Valley Medical Center Tuesday and in critical condition. Bost was being held at the Catawba County Jail on a $200,000 bond.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man killed during home invasion

2007-10-29T10:25:00.000-04:00

Monday, Oct. 29, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Valdese man died early Sunday morning after a botched home invasion at a neighbor's apartment, authorities said.

Joseph Jay Durkee, 35, was stabbed six times in the chest and the back and died shortly after midnight at Valdese General Hospital, said Chief John Suttle of the Valdese Police Department.

Henry Jackson, 59, told officers that he and his wife were sleeping in their Valdese home at about 11:55 p.m. Saturday when they heard glass shatter and found someone climbing into their apartment through a rear bedroom window, Suttle said.

Jackson and the man, who was wearing a stocking mask and gloves and was carrying a knife, Suttle said, began fighting and moving from one room to another.

"It was evident that there was a significant struggle," Suttle said.

Jackson told police he grabbed the mask off the man's head and recognized him as Durkee, who moved into the neighborhood from Florida a few months ago, Suttle said.

During the fight, Suttle said, Jackson grabbed the knife and stabbed Durkee several times. Durkee was taken to Valdese General Hospital, where he died.

Jackson received a few minor cuts on his hands during the altercation, Suttle said, and his wife, who called police during the break-in, was not injured.

Police have not charged anyone in the death and have turned their investigation over to the District Attorney's Office, Suttle said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Rains cause another Hickory sinkhole

2007-10-25T17:55:00.000-04:00

Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Rain that has pounded Hickory for three days caused another sinkhole to open Wednesday afternoon.

The Hickory Fire Department was responding to a call at a southwest Hickory business on U.S. 70 when they noticed the sinkhole in the parking lot of a neighboring building, said Capt. Farrell Duplain.

The hole was already at least 10 feet wide, Duplain said, and the pavement was giving away around the tire of a car parked in the lot.

The owner of the building, Duplain said, was in the parking lot and had called a tow truck to pull the car away from the sinkhole before it was swallowed.

Within hours, Duplain said, the hole had grown to at least 15 feet in diameter and was surrounded by another 5 feet of loose pavement that looked unstable and ready to collapse, he said.

He was not sure how far into the earth the hole went but said it was several feet deep. He recommended the building owner contact an irrigation or plumping company to pump water out of the hole.

"I told him it was not safe to put anyone near the edge of it at all," Duplain said.

Rain began falling in Hickory Monday evening and was expected to fall through Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

Hickory gained national attention in 2002 when two huge sinkholes, about a mile from the hole discovered Wednesday, opened up in restaurant parking lot and swallowed a new Corvette. Three other sinkholes in the Catawba Valley opened in 2005.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Teens charged with making bomb threat

2007-10-25T17:54:00.000-04:00

Thursday, Oct. 25, 2005

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Two Catawba County teenagers were charged Wednesday with making a bomb threat at their high school, authorities said Thursday.

Brett Aaron Lytton, 16, and Spencer Logan Belair, 17, were charged Wednesday afternoon after school officials found two teenagers in a boys' bathroom at Bandys High School, Reid said.

One of the teens was writing a threat on the bathroom wall, Reid said, while the other watched to make sure no one walked in.

Lytton and Belair were charged with making a false bomb report, which is a felony. No bomb was found.

Bandys High School has initially suspended the teens for 10 days, said Catawba County Public Schools spokeswoman Carleen Crawford, and Superintendent Tim Markley will decide if the students will be suspended for longer.

Markley could not be reached Thursday but has said he'll impose the maximum penalty -- a year-long suspension -- for students caught making bomb reports, Crawford said.

"We take these bomb threats or copycat bomb threats very seriously," Crawford said.

Lytton and Belair were released to their parents' custody on $1,500 bonds.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Rural family, developers at Wal-Mart site work together

2007-10-25T04:54:00.001-04:00

Living in the shadow of The Great Wall

Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

GRANITE FALLS --Kathy Keller wakes up early every morning to feed apples and hay to the 29 miniature horses she and her husband, Danny, keep on their Caldwell County farm.

Six dogs might be yapping behind her, while a cat or two watch lazily from the back porch and a half-dozen chickens and roosters cluck around a fenced-in portion of the yard.

"It's like you've gone back in time," Kathy Keller said of the family's 42 acres tucked into a secluded valley off U.S. 321. "There are so many leaves, and the holler slips below the highway some ... It's wilderness back here."

That's true, Keller said, even as the land has been leveled to make way for a shopping complex and Wal-Mart Supercenter being built behind their garden, woods, pond and long stretches of pasture.

Here, Caldwell County's economic future and its rural past have collided and are learning to co-exist.

And "the great wall of Wal-Mart," as Danny Keller calls it, is the divider.

On top of the 800-foot, concrete-block retaining wall that towers nearly 50 feet above the Kellers' garden and pond, bulldozers clang, giant trucks haul in loads of construction materials and workers build the 280,000-square-foot shopping center.

But on the other side of the wall, seven cows take refuge in the shade of a juniper tree, snakes slither along the parched fields, raccoons capture and kill poultry during the night, grandkids play with the horses, and dogs trot behind the Kellers when they take walks through the property.

"It looks like two worlds," said 61-year-old Danny Keller, who was raised on the farm and has lived on the property most of his life.

Last spring, a national commercial development company announced that it had bought the land adjacent to the Kellers' property and would transform the rolling hills and woods into a shopping complex and later add single-family homes.

"We were just scared to pieces when Wal-Mart first said they were coming," Kathy Keller, 60, said. "No one would choose to have an industry behind them when they're used to having other houses. But how can you pick up a farm and move it?"

And while news of a new Wal-Mart often brings with it opposition and controversy, the Kellers said none of that has been true in their case. Instead, they said, they are learning to co-exist with economic progress.

The development company has been good to work with, the Kellers said, and has adjusted building plans to accommodate some of their requests. The company rerouted the pipes when the Kellers said they were worried about drainage from the complex and the 1,800-spot parking lot seeping onto the their property.

And the company waited until the blue herons, crane-like birds and their chicks migrated before tearing down the oak trees holding the beach-ball-sized nests and leveling the land.

"There have been no cross words whatsoever," Kathy Keller said. "The privacy is gone, but they've been kind ... and have done everything they possibly could to adjust."

Though construction has caused rush-hour traffic jams and the new complex will increase the flow of cars and trucks near the Kellers' home, they say the congestion isn't a problem.

"The traffic light is a godsend," Kathy Keller said. "It used to take me 10 minutes to get onto the highway (from our driveway). Now it takes me five."

The wall, the Kellers said, is higher than they thought it would be and say it's a relief they can't see the trucks moving across the construction zone or see the buildings.

"We hear the boom, boom, boom. It's a racket," Danny Keller said. "But the wall is so high, we can't see much."

Mostly, the Kellers said, they're sad to see urban sprawl encroaching on the country way of life they've always known.

They've noticed a little more litter -- beer cans and empty chip bags -- at the base of the giant wall, have heard the clanging of construction for months and have noticed that there are more deer, snakes, raccoons, rabbits and other wild animals making their way onto the Keller land.

"They don't have anywhere else to go," Kathy Keller said. "There isn't much land left for them."

They understand the need for progress, she said, but hope that they can keep this sliver of country just as it is for as long as they can.

"Until the last Keller is alive, this will still be a farm," she said. "It's in their blood."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Johnson begins his challenge for McHenry's seat

2007-10-25T04:54:00.000-04:00

Ex-Wake prosecutor, a Hickory native, known for saving fellow sailor

Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Daniel Johnson, a Hickory native and former Navy ensign who made national headlines in 1999 after he lost his legs trying to save a fellow sailor, said Wednesday that he'll challenge U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry next year.

Johnson, 31, resigned three weeks ago from his job as an assistant district attorney in the Wake County District Attorney's Office and moved back to Hickory, in part to run for Congress, he said. He said he was in job negotiations with a law firm in Hickory.

He said Wednesday that he's running against McHenry, a Republican, because he's "tired of the partisanship and divisive politics" on Capitol Hill.

"When a person is elected as a representative in Congress, they aren't elected to represent a party," he said. "They need to be focusing on the problems people are facing in this area of North Carolina."

The biggest issues in the 10th District, he said, include economic growth, health care and veteran care.

Johnson, a Democrat, was a Navy ensign when he lost his legs below the knees while helping to free another sailor who had become entangled in a rope on the USS Blue Ridge in August 1999. The Navy gave him the Navy-Marine Corps Medal, its highest peacetime award for bravery.

"There's not a lot of people in Congress right now who have a lot of military experience, yet they make the decisions about war," he said.

McHenry, also 31, would be running for his third term next year.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Police seek bank robber who left crime scene on foot

2007-10-25T03:54:00.001-04:00

Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Hickory police are looking for a bank robber who fled on foot Wednesday after demanding money at a BB&T branch.

Shortly after 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, a white man with dark eyebrows, mustache and goatee walked into the BB&T bank on Springs Road in Hickory and handed a teller a note saying he had a gun, Hickory police said. He did not show the teller the gun, authorities said, but demanded money.

The man, dressed in a black, hooded rain jacket and jeans, was carrying a green, military-style bag, police said. He left the bank on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Hickory Police Department at 828-324-2060.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Police: Collision with truck kills woman who ran red light

2007-10-25T03:54:00.000-04:00

Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Newton woman died Wednesday when she ran a red light on U.S. 321 and collided with a tractor-trailer, authorities said.

Martha Ann Cook, 56, was driving a 1999 Subaru north on U.S. 321 shortly before 8 a.m. Wednesday and drove through a red light at the intersection of Second Avenue S.W., said Capt. Clyde Deal of the Hickory Police Department.

A tractor-trailer driven by Robert Swingle of Maryland was turning east onto Second Avenue from the highway and slammed into the driver-side door of Cook's car, Deal said. Cook was taken to Frye Regional Medical Center in Hickory, where she died.

Neither Swingle nor a passenger in Cook's car were injured.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

13 years for fatal crash

2007-10-20T02:53:00.000-04:00

Catawba man accused of DWI, speeding in wreck that killed Hickory woman

Saturday, Oct. 20, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Catawba County man charged with driving drunk through downtown Hickory was sentenced Friday to at least 13 years and five months in prison in connection with a crash that left a woman dead.

Jurors deliberated for five hours before deciding to find 21-year-old Enrique Cardenas Zavala guilty of second-degree murder in the Sept. 29, 2006, death of 55-year-old Rena Moore. Her husband, 59-year-old Jerry Moore, was critically injured.

Attorneys on both sides said they agreed on the facts -- that Cardenas Zavala had gone to Hickory High School's homecoming football game and decided to drink alcohol. Afterward, they agreed, he stopped at a convenience store and bought some beer.

He was speeding through downtown Hickory's streets, going 62 mph in a 25 mph zone, when he drove his 1997 Pontiac Grand Prix through a red light and slammed into the Moores' pickup truck.

A blood test showed that Cardenas Zavala's alcohol level was 0.13. The legal limit in North Carolina is 0.08.

Cardenas Zavala, then 20, was also charged with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury, driving while impaired, driving by a person less than 21 years old after consuming alcohol and failure to stop at a stop light.

It was the second time Cardenas Zavala had been charged with DWI in less than 14 months. In August 2005, he was charged with DWI in Catawba County, but the charges were dismissed when he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge. He served 30 days in jail and paid a fine.

Defense attorney Dan Fulkerson asked jurors to find Cardenas Zavala guilty of involuntary manslaughter, he said, because there was "no malice involved."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Authorities on lookout for burqa-wearing bank robber

2007-10-18T02:54:00.000-04:00

Thursday, Oct. 18, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Authorities in Alexander County Wednesday were looking for a robber who wore a burqa during a hold-up at a Hiddenite bank.

Shortly before 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, a robber dressed in black pants, a long-sleeve, black shirt and burgundy burqa -- a waist-length wrap covering the body, head, nose and mouth -- walked into the Peoples Bank on N.C. 90 in Hiddenite, authorities said.

The robber pointed a handgun at a teller, said Chief Deputy Chris Bowman of the Sheriff's Office, and demanded bank employees put cash into a black plastic bag.

The robber left the bank and a burgundy sport utility vehicle or similar type of truck was waiting, Bowman said. The vehicle had a white license plate with black letters.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Alexander County Sheriff's Office at 828-632-4658.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Trial in fatal DWI case begins

2007-10-16T16:17:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Jurors heard opening statements and witness testimony Tuesday in the trial of a Catawba County man charged with murder and drunken driving charges after a fatal car wreck last year.

The trial against 21-year-old Enrique Cardenas Zavala started Monday in Catawba County Superior Court with opening statements and testimony by responding officers, said Capt. Clyde Deal of the Hickory Police Department.

Cardenas Zavala is charged in the Sept. 29, 2006 accident in downtown Hickory that killed 55-year-old Rena Moore and critically injured her husband, 58-year-old Jerry Moore.

Cardenas Zavala was indicted on several charges, including felony murder, felony assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury, driving while impaired, driving by a person less than 21 years old after consuming alcohol and failure to stop at a stoplight.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Anderson's friends offer reward for information about her killing

2007-10-16T04:54:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Friends of Emily Anderson, a Caldwell County woman found shot to death in January 2006, are offering a $3,500 reward for information that leads to a conviction in her killing.

A Web site was created in September to solicit more information about her death Friends increased the reward by $1,000 last week.

Anderson's best friend, Patricia Thorpe of New Jersey, has said people wanting to make donations to the reward fund can contribute through the Web site at www.emilygriffittanderson.com or by visiting any Wachovia branch.

Emily Anderson was last seen alive Dec. 29, 2005. Ten days later, her Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck was found in an S.C. restaurant parking lot, about 100 miles from Caldwell County. She had been shot twice, and her body had been crammed into the truck bed's large tool box.

Her husband, Jerry Anderson, was charged with first-degree murder, but a judge declared a mistrial in July after a Gaston County jury could not reach a unanimous verdict.

Anyone with information about Emily Anderson's death is asked to call the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office at 828-758-2324.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Death of man Tasered probed

2007-10-15T16:16:00.000-04:00

SBI investigating case in which man hit head after police shocked him

Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The State Bureau of Investigation is looking into the death of a Morganton man who died Sunday morning after two police officers shocked him with Tasers.

Donald Clarke Grant, 54, fell and hit his head Saturday night after two officers from the Morganton Public Safety Department tried subduing him with Taser shocks, said Chief Mark Tolbert.

He was first taken to Grace Hospital and, about 10:40 p.m., was taken to Mission Memorial Hospital in Asheville, Tolbert said. Clark died in Asheville about 9:45 a.m. Sunday.

Grant, authorities said, had been pounding on a neighbor's door about 8:15 p.m. Saturday and had made several threats toward other neighbors.

When officers arrived at the Morganton neighborhood, near Logan and South Matthews streets, they asked Clark to return to his home, but he refused, Tolbert said.

Clark charged at the officers several times, Tolbert said, but would back away before reaching them. The officers told Clark they were going to arrest him for communicating threats and resisting and delaying officers, Tolbert said, but Clark would not listen to the officers' instructions.

"They tried to get him to go into the house, so they could leave," Tolbert said, "but he continued to charge and retreat."

Clark did not threaten police with a weapon, Tolbert said.

When Clark charged at the officers again, Tolbert said, two of the four police officers shocked him with their Tasers. The force of the shock caused Clark to fall and hit his head, Tolbert said.

The four officers involved, including the two who shocked Clark, have been put on administrative leave with pay until the SBI has finished its review of the incident, Tolbert said.

Tolbert would not name the officers involved.

The SBI's report will be turned over to the district attorney's office for review.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Leg custody battle to hit reality TV

2007-10-13T06:17:00.000-04:00

Pair go to Chicago to film episode of reality court program

Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

It was probably inevitable -- the custody battle over an amputated legis headed to reality TV.

Shannon Whisnant and John Wood were in Chicago on Friday, filming an episode for "Judge Mathis" -- a reality court program where cases are decided by a television judge, Greg Mathis.

This week, the show featured the legal battles of former best friends ripped apart by drugs and two other women in a bitter love triangle.

Producers at "Judge Mathis" confirmed that Whisnant and Wood were inChicago on Friday filming the episode, scheduled to air Nov. 1 onWYMT-TV (channel 55).

Whisnant found Wood's amputated leg -- the foot, five toes, ankle and most of the calf -- in a barbecue smoker he bought earlier this month at a Maiden auction, and the men have spent the last two weeks vyingfor ownership of the appendage.

Wood's leg was amputated after a plane crash three years ago. He had been keeping it at a Maiden storage unit with his other belongings, but after he failed to pay $550 in rental fees, the owner of the facility auctioned off his belongings.

Though Whisnant has said he was initially sickened by the leg, which he handed over to law enforcement because he "thought it might have been part of a missing person or someone's ex-wife," he started seeing things differently when newspapers and television networks from around the world started running the story.

He began charging a few bucks for people who wanted to see the smoker and was hoping to get the leg back and charge admission fees -- $10 for adults, $5 for seniors, $3 for kids and nothing for amputees -- to see it.

Whisnant wouldn't say how the case was settled but said he was "having a hell of a time in Chicago" and was looking forward to having a few cocktails at a fancy nightclub after leaving the television studio.

Wood could not be reached by phone Friday, and his brother-in-law, Tom Lytle, said that Wood no longer has a number where he can be reached. During an interview with the Observer last week, Wood said he didn't want Whisnant to "profit off finding my leg."

But even without the world knowing how Mathis ruled in court, Whisnant said he has plans to make some cash off his discovery.

When his Web site is ready, he said, he'll be selling black T-shirts with a picture of his face flanked by a leg on either side and the words, "I am friends with the foot man."

"They'll be $15.95 plus shipping," he said. "(But) they're beautiful shirts, they really are."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Routine recount for ballots cast in early voting in Morganton

2007-10-13T06:16:00.000-04:00

Saturday, oct. 13, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The Morganton Board of Elections held a routine recount Friday of the ballots cast during the early voting period before Morganton's city elections, which were held Tuesday.

The recount, required by the state Board of Elections, was held to guarantee the hand count of votes matches the machine count. It has been part of every primary and general election since the beginning of 2006, said Don Wright, general counsel for the state board.

"This is routine," Wright said Friday. "No one has protested the results of the election, and there is nothing that indicates that (any one candidate) didn't get a fair shake."

The state board orders such site checks after all elections and notifies local boards which votes - including which race and whether the board needs to recount ballots cast early or votes cast on Election Day - should be audited, Wright said.

Morganton, the only N.C. municipality that holds its own elections, was told Wednesday morning that the votes cast for mayor in early, or one-stop, voting would be recounted, Wright said.

Fines will double for violators of city's water restrictions

2007-10-12T06:16:00.000-04:00

Friday, Oct. 12, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Morganton officials Thursday increased the penalties for violating the city's water restrictions, city officials said.

Morganton implemented stringent water restrictions earlier this month, including bans on lawn watering, residential car washing and running ornamental fountains. On Thursday, officials said fines will double for violations.

The city decided to increase the fines to prepare for what officials predict will be an equally dry winter, City Manager Sally Sandy said in the release.

"We must make every effort to conserve our water until we receive enough rain to replenish our lakes and rivers," she said.

First-time violators will be fined $100, followed by $200 for a second violation and $400 for a third offense.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Patient's death will not result in criminal action

2007-10-12T02:54:00.000-04:00

Staffer sat on man's torsi; incident helped lead to funding cuts

Friday, Oct. 12, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

No criminal action will be taken in the February death of a Broughton Hospital patient who died of asphyxia after a staff member sat on his torso.

The death of 27-year-old Anthony Lowery, a patient at the mental health hospital in Morganton, was one of the incidents that led the federal government to stop Medicaid and Medicare payments in August.

On Monday, the district attorney's office that serves Burke, Caldwell and Catawba counties said in a letter to the State Bureau of Investigation that it will not charge the staff member who restrained Lowery in the death.

According to the letter, witnesses told SBI investigators that Lowery tried biting the staff member during the altercation.

"The evidence that Mr. Lowery was violent and that physical restraint was justified is uncontradicted," Chief Assistant District Attorney Eric Bellas wrote in the letter.

One witness said she saw a staff member put his hands around Lowery's neck, but several others said they did not see anyone's hands around his neck, according to the letter.

Lowery's death prompted the federal government to look at the hospital. While officials were finishing their investigation, another patient was injured on Aug. 19.

The state is working to improve supervision, communication and training at Broughton to prevent the kinds of problems that led to the funding cuts.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Man dies in fiery motorcycle wreck

2007-10-10T16:17:00.001-04:00

Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A Lincolnton man died Tuesday afternoon after he lost control of his motorcycle, hit a ditch and crashed into several fence posts in Catawba County, authorities said.

William Elijah White, 23, was riding a Suzuki sports bike south on Lowrance Road near Toy Campbell Street in southeast Catawba County shortly after 12:30 p.m. when he lost control of the motorcycle, said Trooper C.M. Trouille of the state Highway Patrol.

No other vehicles or people were involved in the crash, he said.

Family told authorities that White has been at lunch with his father and brothers and was returning to the job site where they were all working, Trouille said.

Witnesses told Trouille that the driver lost control of the motorcycle after riding on the back wheel, he said. When the bike's front wheel hit the road, witnesses told authorities, the bike crossed the center line and hit a ditch.

The bike hit several fence posts, which flung White off the motorcycle, and caught fire, Trouille said.

White was flown to Carolina Medical Center and died shortly after 4 p.m.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

DA to decide on charges in shooting

2007-10-10T16:17:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The district attorney's office will decide whether a Conover man will face charges in the Saturday shooting death of an acquaintance, authorities said Wednesday.

Raymond Lee Weathers, 36, of Newton was shot and killed Saturday afternoon during an altercation with John Kenneth Hedrick, 73, said Maj. Coy Reid of the Catawba County Sheriff's Office.

Weathers had been shot at least three times -- in the neck and shoulder -- with a revolver, and Hedrick had "visible injuries" to his upper body and head when the men were found in the yard of a Newton home, said Capt. Roy Brown of the Sheriff's Office.

The Sheriff's Office investigation has been turned over to the district attorney's office, which will determine the charges, Reid said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Hickory skeleton likely a murder victim

2007-10-10T16:15:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007

By Marcie Young Charlotte Observer
Staff Writer

Police think the skeleton found nearly three months ago behind a Hickory shopping center may be the victim of a murder, authorities said.

Lt. Thurman Whisnant of the Hickory Police Department said Wednesday that authorities are waiting on the final autopsy report and want to make sure the have correctly identified the skeleton before they confirm the death as a murder.

In July, construction crews were surveying land behind the Lowe's and Wal-Mart stores along U.S. 70 when one worker noticed a partially buried skeleton beneath the leaves and dirt.

Police did not want to discuss the details of their investigation before it was complete.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Mayor wins rough race for 10th term

2007-10-10T06:51:00.001-04:00

Official says he's still angry over tone of rival's campaign

Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

MORGANTON --Mel Cohen easily won his 10th term as Morganton mayor Tuesday, beating former community college president Jim Richardson in a contentious and sometimes nasty race.
Cohen won with 59 percent of the vote, compared with Richardson's 41 percent, according to unofficial returns.

While Cohen said he was pleased with the victory, the divisive campaign left him "angry," he said.

"I knew when I entered this race, it would be dirty," he said. "He managed to accuse me of adultery and stealing. ... I wouldn't have been surprised if he had accused me of kidnapping the Lindbergh baby."

Richardson did not attend his campaign party, and supporters said he was at home with a fever. Messages left on his cell and home phones were not returned.

His supporters said they were disappointed in the election results, but that they hoped interest in the race would increase involvement in city politics. "We've lost the battle but we won the war to get people to come out and be involved in government," said Gresham Orrison, one of the supporters at the party.

Though both candidates said they didn't want the race to get dirty, it was heated from the beginning. Supporters on both sides said they heard allegations of unethical behavior and campaign techniques by the candidates.

Publicly, Richardson, who led Western Piedmont Community College for 25 years, questioned Cohen's involvement in keeping and maintaining the Historic Morganton Festival's financial records.

Cohen, who is president of the festival board, and members of the board responded angrily, saying the finances were handled appropriately and that Richardson was making unfounded implications.

Morganton residents turned out in big numbers this year, with more than 3,500 people casting votes, nearly doubling the number from the last city election, in 2003.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Incumbent, newcomer take open seats

2007-10-10T06:51:00.000-04:00

Hot election issues involved jobs, economy

Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

MORGANTON -- Voters in Morganton's municipal elections ousted one City Council member Tuesday but kept another veteran in office.

Challenger Forrest Fleming, a retired corrections officer, and incumbent Larry Whisnant won four-year terms on the council.

Fleming beat 20-year City Council incumbent and retired warehouse manager Carl Evans Sr. for the open seat in District 2.

Fleming won with 53 percent of the votes compared to Evans' 47 percent, according to unofficial returns.

In District 1, Whisnant, a 12-year incumbent, defeated challenger Rob Gage. Whisnant won with 52 percent to Gage's 48 percent.

While the candidates focused on several issues during the race -- the location of a new Wal-Mart Supercenter, the environment, development downtown and the city-owned cable and electric systems -- the hottest topic revolved around jobs and creating a robust economy.

Whisnant, who served on the council for 12 years, and Evans, who was elected in 1986, argued that their years of experience and knowledge of current projects made them the best candidates.

But Gage, a graduate of Harvard University and UNC School of Law, and Fleming, who attended Western Carolina University and Livingstone College, advocated bringing a fresh perspective to city politics.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Farmers have an ally in hunt for hay

2007-10-07T06:17:00.000-04:00

Local woman finds supplier, arranges for bales to be trucked in

Sunday, Oct. 7, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

LENOIR --The summer's extreme drought and heat baked the land and stifled crops of hay at A.J. Craig's Caldwell County farm, and until last week, he wasn't sure how he was going to feed his 24 cows.

Then he met Linda Haas, who made a few calls and arranged for 637 bales of hay to be delivered Wednesday at the Caldwell County fairgrounds. Haas, a metal inspector for a Lenoir tool and gauge company, had grown up on a Valmead farm and remembered watching her father worry about feeding his animals during bitter winters and dry summers.

Haas hasn't farmed in years and doesn't own horses or cattle. "I just wanted to help people," she said, "because I know what it's like to hunt for hay."

Prices for hay brought into the county have, in some cases, skyrocketed. Several of the farmers collecting the hay said it normally cost $2 a bale but had heard it was selling for as high as $11 a bale.

Haas said she knew that was too expensive for most people trying to raise cows and horses.
So, about three weeks ago, she started to think about what she could do to get some hay to Caldwell County.

She had heard that the some of the northeastern states had good crops of the grass and started calling farmers in Pennsylvania, eventually finding one who told her he had plenty to spare and would sell it to her for $3 a bale.

Then, Haas and her husband, Jim, talked with a nephew who had a contact at Caldwell Freight Lines and arranged for a truck driver to deliver the load for $1.47 a bale.

Haas said she wouldn't take a commission or charge any fees for brokering the hay delivery, and even refunded the farmers 24 cents per bale when she realized the trucking fee was less than she expected.

Haas went to a Cattlemen Association meeting a couple of weeks ago, and within a few days had taken orders from four Caldwell County families requesting more than 600 bales.

The hay was delivered Wednesday near the Caldwell County fairgrounds, and for the first time, Haas met the people -- from cattle farmers to Paso Fino horse breeders -- she was helping.

Craig, 80, and his family, who run two cattle farms in the Granite Falls area, ordered 300 bales of hay and said they don't know how their cows would have survived if Haas hadn't intervened.
"Everybody is just looking for hay," Craig said. "She's a godsend."

Haas, for her part, said she'll keep trying to get hay to Caldwell County farmers as long as they need it.

"We'll keep on truckin'," she said.

Where to Find Hay
Farmers selling or looking to buy hay or find transportation services can get more information through the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' Hay Alert service. For more information, visit www.ncagr.com/HayAlert or call 866-506-6222 weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Newton's longtime police chief will retire in December

2007-10-05T06:24:00.000-04:00

Friday, Oct. 5, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

After 34 years in law enforcement, Newton police Chief David Dial is stepping down.

The city of Newton this week announced that Dial, who joined the department as a patrol officer in 1973, is retiring.

Dial, 59, was named chief nine years ago and said he's most looking forward to spending more time with his three granddaughters and one grandson. His last day is Dec. 21.

City Manager Todd Clark will start looking for a new chief in the coming weeks, Dial said.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

1 injured, 2 sought after shooting at apartment complex

2007-10-05T06:22:00.000-04:00

Friday, Oct. 5, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Several shots were fired at a Hickory apartment complex Thursday night, injuring one man, police said.

One bullet hit a man in the right leg, just below the calf, said Sgt. Mike Beam of the Hickory Police Department. The injuries were not life-threatening.Beam would not disclose the name of the victim, who was taken to Catawba Valley Medical Center.

Police believe the victim and two other men had gotten in an argument earlier Thursday at the Terrance Hills apartments on Second Street Place and 11th Avenue S.W. Beam said witnesses told police that two or more shots were fired by a man standing near a white car.

Police on Thursday night were looking for two males, one with dreadlocks, and the white car, Beam said.

Anyone with information should call 828-324-2060.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

$10,000 offered for information in slaying of pit bull breeder

2007-10-05T06:17:00.000-04:00

Friday, Oct. 5, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Authorities are offering a $10,000 award for information that leads to the conviction of anyone involved in the April death of a Catawba County pit bull breeder.Roy Thomas Melton, a 38-year-old breeder, was found dead on April 16.

He had been shot to death at his home on South Beulah Road and was found by a friend, the Catawba County Sheriff's office said. When authorities arrived at the trailer, they found 30 pit bulls, which were later euthanized.

Investigators found paperwork in Melton's home that mentioned several names that are also listed in the dog-fighting indictment against Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, Capt. Roy Brown said last month.

Anyone with information is asked to call 828-464-5241.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Morganton's mayoral race pits 2 strong foes

2007-10-04T18:17:00.000-04:00

Cohen, Richardson formidable

Thursday, Oct. 4, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

It's been a battle.

Morganton mayoral candidates Mel Cohen and Jim Richardson have argued about the city-owned cable system, the location of a new Wal-Mart Supercenter and the length of time a mayor should serve.

They've disagreed about the importance of revitalizing downtown, how new industry should be solicited and the city's involvement the Historic Morganton Festival.

But some Morganton residents say they can handle the tension, especially if it means they have a choice between two formidable candidates in Tuesday's election.

"The competition is great," said 35-year-old Donna Lindecamp, a foreign language teacher at Walter Johnson Middle School. "If there isn't competition, where is the motivation?"

The issues are clearly important to the city's vitality, Lindecamp said, but the candidates' abilities to clearly communicate why they are running is equally important in a mayoral race.

"The biggest issue is that Mel Cohen has a little competition, well, a lot of competition," she said. "Both have an easy platform to read, and that's important. It's helpful for voters to see something that is straightforward."

Cohen, who has been mayor since 1985, has won past elections with crushing margins over his opponents or has been unopposed.

In the last election, Cohen secured his ninth term by defeating challenger Tom McCurry, 920 to 263. In 1999, when he faced what many considered a formidable opponent -- Burke County attorney Dan Kuehnert -- Cohen won with 72 percent of the vote.

Since the beginning, Richardson, who led Western Piedmont Community College as president for 25 years, has made one thing clear -- he thinks it is time for a change in city leadership.

"Someone should not make a career of being mayor," he said. "Twenty-two years is too long for any politician."

Cohen, meanwhile, says that his more than two decades in City Hall could only be considered an asset to the community where he was born and has lived nearly all his life.

"It's a simple platform," Cohen said. "I love Morganton, and I want to make it a better place to work and play and live."

Change, Cohen said, should only happen when leadership has became stagnant and the community is no longer benefiting from fresh ideas and the experience of those in City Hall.

"I have never stopped and rested on my laurels," Cohen said.

Emphasis on Morganton's city center -- an 8-by-10-block downtown grid of leafy trees, stores and offices -- has generated more controversy than other issues.

During his nine-term career as mayor, Cohen said, he has been working to create a vital city center by recruiting downtown business and establishing an appealing lifestyle for residents through recreation and activities.

"Downtown is the front porch of our community," Cohen said, "but we have never concentrated on just downtown. If your downtown is not bright and beautiful and clean, your community is not looking out for its future."

But Richardson and his supporters say that Cohen thinks more about bolstering downtown through concerts and festivals than recruiting new industry to other areas of the city.

"We've got all these people without jobs, but we're still talking about downtown," Richardson said. "That bothers me."

Gary Carswell, a Burke County native, has been following the race closely and said that he's impressed by Richardson's ideas. Carswell, 62, lives just outside the city limits and won't be able to vote but said the issues don't effect just Morganton residents.

"It looks like a sleepy, little tourist town," he said, "and that's not the kind of place where people want to bring big business."

Carswell and his wife, Cynthia, said they worried that their adult children will leave the area in search for better jobs. Richardson's focus on more jobs, they said, is a strong approach.

But Bill Allman, a 74-year-old Morganton native, said Cohen's attention is in the right place and the emphasis on downtown has encouraged businesses to look at moving to the city.

The greenway, sports complex, downtown businesses and festivals, Allman said, help bolster the entire community, not just the few blocks that stem out from the Old Burke County Courthouse.

"(It's) all part of the vision plan for the area," he said. "(Cohen) loves this town so much. ... No one could do what he has done for the town."

Cam McNeely, who has lived in Morganton 15 years, owns a temporary physician staffing business downtown and said that most residents are thinking about jobs and new industry.

He's happy, he said, to see that Cohen and Richardson both have a strong vision for the city.

"We're in a good situation and have two good candidates," he said. "But the town is in a tough spot because of industry leaving, and it's going to take more than one man to fix that."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

City council candidates agree: jobs are a priority

2007-10-04T06:17:00.000-04:00

Thursday, Oct. 4, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The candidates vying for two seats on the Morganton City Council agree on one thing - the community needs more high-paying jobs and a stable industry.

On Tuesday, Morganton voters will decide which of the two incumbents and two challengers they think best understands the needs of the city and how to stimulate current industry and attract more jobs.

Attorney Rob Gage is challenging 12-year incumbent and former police Officer Larry Whisnant for the District 1 seat. Carl Evans Sr., a retired warehouse manager and 20-year City Council incumbent, is facing challenger Forrest Fleming, a retired corrections officer, for the open seat in District 2.

Gage, who attended Harvard University and the UNC School of Law, and Fleming, a graduate of Western Carolina University and Livingstone College, have advocated the need to bring to a fresh perspective to the council.

"If you've been in office for 20 years you'll be saying, `Well, it's worked this way so far. Let's keep it as it is,' " Gage said. "If we are complacent and say `It's good now,' then we are missing out on the opportunity for improvement."

But Evans, who was first elected to the council in 1986, and Whisnant, who worked at the Morganton Department of Public Safety for 30 years, say their collective 32 years' experience on the City Council and knowledge of current projects make them the best candidates.
Their long tenures, they agreed, should never be considered a hindrance.

"We don't need change now," Whisnant said. "This city is making progress. You just don't change for the sake of changing."

Other issues the candidates have focused on during the race include the location of a new Wal-Mart Supercenter, the environment, self-imposed term limits, development downtown and the city-owned cable and electric systems.

But the hottest topic, as the city watches the continued exodus of furniture factories, revolves around creating a more robust economy.

Fleming
"We need to see new industry brought into Morganton," Fleming said. "All of our textile and furniture industry is literally gone, and employment is a critical issue."

Fleming, a retired Army National Guard command sergeant major and programs director at Foothills Correctional Institute, said he'd like to see the City Council find new ways to recruit kind of industry and offer incentives, including tax breaks and offering new businesses help finding property.

"We have fewer jobs now than we had 10 years ago," he said. "We need to stop focusing furniture and look toward high-tech industries, like computers."

Evans
Evans, who worked at Morganton Hardware for 44 years, has served on the City Council for two decades and said he wants to help bring more jobs into the city before he steps down.

He wants to offer incentives, including tax cuts and breaks on electric bills, he said, but hopes that businesses looking at Morganton also consider the lifestyle the city offers.

"The people around here are nice and friendly," he said. "(We have) the best recreation in the state, and people want to know what it is like to come in and live here."

Gage
Gage, who left the city government to raise his children after serving two council terms that ended in 1991, said the city needs to start thinking about industry in a way that complements the environment and the natural beauty surrounding the city.

"Presenting a beautiful downtown to potential investors and residents is crucial, but that doesn't mean that all industry needs to be downtown," he said. "The quality of life we offer businesses and their employees is our edge. That's how we're going to win this economic development game."

Gage worked on bringing the Catawba River Greenway to Morganton when he was on the council before, he said. Not only did it help preserve the city's green areas, he said, offering environmentally friendly recreation is what people look at when they are thinking of moving.

"Keeping our city and the surrounding countryside clean and green is important because that's what people want," Gage said. "They come to Morganton to be doctors or health care workers or to run factories, and they make those decisions based on what the city looks like."

Whisnant
Whisnant said the current City Council is working on several projects that could eventually bring hundreds of jobs.

"I hear lots of folks say, `Why don't you bring some industry in?' " he said. "But you just can't pick up the phone and bring in businesses. It just doesn't work that way."

Whisnant, who is on the board of directors for the Foothills Regional Airport Authority, said the council recently recruited an aeronautical engineering company. If government and private contractors follow, he said, Morganton could end up seeing 300 or 400 new jobs.

Whisnant said he would also like the city to consider pairing with the state to build a prison in Morganton.

"Jobs with the (Department of Corrections) are inflation-proof," he said, "and they offer good pay with benefits."

Where to Vote
Early voting is under way in Morganton and ends Friday. Residents can vote at City Hall between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., today and Friday. The city will hold its general election Oct. 9 at the Collett Street Recreation Center. Polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. For more information, call City Hall at 828-437-8863.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

War of words continues over amputated leg

2007-10-03T20:13:00.000-04:00

Each man says leg belongs to him

Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

MAIDEN -- Shannon Whisnant sees movie deals, book contracts, a museum and just plain ol' bragging rights.

That is, if he can convince John Wood to share his leg.

It's been more than a week since Whisnant bought a barbecue smoker at a Maiden storage facility auction and opened it to find Wood's leg -- the foot, ankle and most of the calf -- wrapped in screen wire, setting off a flurry of media attention that has circled the globe.

Now, each man is saying the leg belongs to him.

Whisnant said he has the receipt -- stored in a fire-proof safe -- showing he bought the smoker and its contents. "I told him I'd share custody of it," Whisnant said. "Kind of like young `uns."

Wood was born with the leg, but it was amputated after a plane crash that killed his father and injured two other family members three years ago. "I want to be cremated as a whole man," he said. "It's nothing macabre."

It's been a rocky road since the men first starting talking about ownership of the leg last week, and their first in-person meeting Wednesday didn't do much to smooth it out.

The two seemed to have conflicting ideas and opinions about the leg and never agreed on how to proceed.

Whisnant said he assumed the leg was being stored at a Maiden funeral home, where police left it for Wood because it was not evidence in a crime.

Wood, meanwhile, talked only cryptically about its location. "There are a lot of uncertainties in my life right now," he said when asked directly if he knew where his leg was being kept.

But Wood's sister, Marion Wood-Lytle, said by phone that her brother picked up the appendage from her home shortly before meeting with Whisnant Wednesday.

"I don't know why he's being so secretive about it," she said. "I said, `John, just take it and go.'"

Later, Wood confirmed for the Observer that the leg "was in his control" but would not say whether he was planning to take it with him.

Whisnant has hinted that he would file several lawuits if the leg isn't returned to him.

The men did not reach any agreement before Wood headed back to his home in Greenville, S.C.

"I'm willing to share my story," Wood said, "but I won't let him profit off finding my leg."

But Whisnant said that in their telephone conversations, Wood has been open to sharing the appendage. Whisnant hopes the publicity will turn into more than a few bucks, he said, and wants talk with television and movie executives and maybe set up some sort of viewing room.

If he is able to convince Wood to share custody of the leg, Whisnant said, he would charge a viewing fee of a $10 for adults, $5 for seniors, $3 for kids and nothing for amputees.

"It'd be a great for tourism," he said. "Maiden could use some fresh money. We've got nothin' but old money around here, and we could use a little extra cash flow."

But Maiden Mayor Bob Smyre said he isn't so sure the legend of the leg-found-in-a-smoker is a lasting one.

"He couldn't pay me a dollar to go see that leg," Smyre said. "Is it going to turn into an international tourist attraction? I don't think so."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Taylorsville man is charged with sexually abusing child

2007-10-02T18:17:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

TAYLORSVILLE
A Taylorsville man was being held on a $500,000 bond Tuesday after being charged with sexually abusing a child, authorities said.

Jason Scott Barlowe, 28, was charged Friday with four counts of first-degree statutory rape of a child, four counts of first-degree statutory sex offense of a child and four counts of indecent liberties with a child.

Barlowe made his first court appearance Monday and was being held at the Alexander County jail Tuesday on the secured bond.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Custody battle over leg postponed

2007-10-01T16:52:00.000-04:00

Monday, Oct. 1, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

A custody battle over a South Carolina man’s amputated leg was postponed Monday while the man tried to find a ride to Maiden, where the limb is being stored.

John Wood and Shannon Whisnant are trying to come to an agreement about the leg, which Whisnant found last week in a used barbecue smoker he bought at an auction in Maiden.

Wood stored his leg, which doctors cut off after a plane crash three years ago, in a smoker he kept at a Maiden storage facility. But when he fell behind in payments, the facility owner auctioned off the smoker.

Whisnant bought it last week. When he looked inside, he found the leg – a foot, ankle and most of the calf – wrapped in a wire screen.

Now, each man claims the leg belongs to him. Whisnant said he has a receipt showing he bought the smoker and its contents. Wood was born with the leg, but it was amputated after a plane crash three years ago.

"I told him I’d share custody of it," Whisnant said. "Kind of like young ‘uns."

They had planned to met Monday to talk about ownership, but Wood was not able to find a ride from Greenville, S.C., to Maiden, Whisnant said. He said they are planning to meet later this week.

Whisnant said he would take legal action if the leg is not returned to him by next week.

"Everybody know it’s mine, period," Whisnant said. "And if anyone tries to take it, I want everything they got."

Police gave the leg to a Maiden funeral home to store until Wood could pick it up.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Amputee's leg sets offownership dispute

2007-10-01T06:52:00.000-04:00

S.C. amputee: Profiting off limb 'despicable'

Monday, Oct. 1, 2007

By Cleve R. Wootson Jr.
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

Shannon Whisnant spent the weekend trying to get custody of John Wood's severed leg.

Whisnant found the leg in a used barbecue smoker he bought last Tuesday, and gave it to the Maiden police. Ever since the police said the leg wasn't evidence of a crime, he's been trying to get it back.

Today, Whisnant hopes to make his case in person.

Wood, who lost the leg in an airplane crash three years ago and ultimately stored it in a barbecue smoker, said he plans to travel from Greenville, S.C., today to pick up the leg, stored at a Maiden funeral home.

Wood said they can meet, but he's not interested in using the leg to make money.

"I just think it's despicable," he said. "I don't mind having the 15 minutes of fame, but I'm not looking to really profit off this thing."

The story of Wood's leg goes back to 2004 when it was shattered in a plane crash that killed his father and injured two other family members. Doctors tried to save the leg but had to amputate it. Wood told them that when he died, he wanted to be buried a whole man and asked if they could ship the leg to him.

They obliged. The leg -- foot, ankle and most of the calf -- spent time in Wood's freezer until his electricity was cut off. Wood then hung it on a fence post in his front yard to dry.

He was later evicted from his home and spent time living in his van. His mother said she'd pay to store his belongings for a couple of months, but after that, the $42 payments were his responsibility.

The leg, carefully wrapped in paper and stored inside the smoker, went into storage. But Wood wasn't making the payments, and last Tuesday the owner of the storage facility included the smoker in a sale of items from people who fell behind on their rent.

Whisnant bought the smoker, opened it and "thought it might have been part of a missing person or someone's ex-wife." He contacted police.

Whisnant feels he has a stake in the leg.

The leg has brought both men some fame. Both have done interviews. Wood said he became a celebrity at a charity golf tournament that benefited amputees. Whisnant put a sign on the empty smoker charging for a look: adults $3, children $1.

Whisnant figures there could be more opportunities if he had the leg in hand. He's Googled the phrase "man finds leg in smoker" and got close to 2 million hits.

He took his receipt from the sale of the smoker to the funeral home. The staff there wouldn't budge, but did give him Wood's cell phone number.

Wood said he was livid after talking to Whisnant.

"He's making a freak show out of it," Wood said. "He wants to go on `The Tonight Show' and he wants to sell it to the National Enquirer ... He wants to put money in his pocket with this thing."

After talking with a lawyer this weekend, Whisnant decided his best move was to convince Wood to share custody and profits.

"It's a strange incident and Halloween's just around the corner," Whisnant said. "The price will be going up if I get (a stake in) the leg."

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Final report on 1-40 wreck goes to D.A.

2007-09-26T16:51:00.000-04:00

Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007

By Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writer

The state Highway Patrol on Wednesday ended a nearly four-month investigation into a rush-hour accident that killed a trucker on Interstate 40, authorities said.

Trooper Dan Suther, the Highway Patrol's lead investigator on the crash, said he gave the 425-page report to District Attorney's office Wednesday. Investigators talked with 18 witnesses and reviewed about 700 photographs taken at the scene of the crash, he said.

The District Attorney's Office Wednesday afternoon confirmed they received the report but would not talk about the specifics of the case or when charges are expected.

Bill Ray Parker, 52, of Fayetteville, Ark., died May 31 when he lost control of his tractor-trailer while driving on I-40. The truck jackknifed and overturned near the Fairgrove Church Road exit in southeast Hickory.

Lt. Everett Clendenin, public information officer in the Highway Patrol's Raleigh office, said in June that two tractor-trailers were headed west on I-40 about 6:20 p.m. when a silver Toyota pickup truck merged onto the highway.

The three trucks collided, Clendenin said, causing Parker to lose control and flip.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.

Human leg found in smoker

2007-09-25T23:50:00.000-04:00

Amputee: 'I didn’t have anything else to secure it in'

Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2007

By Cleve R. Wooston Jr. and Marcie Young
Charlotte Observer Staff Writers

John Wood is trying to get from South Carolina to Catawba County today to retrieve his leg.

On Tuesday, a Maiden man found the lost appendage in a barbecue smoker he’d bought from a storage facility.

The man took the smoker home, looked inside, and saw something wrapped in paper. Inside, said Maiden Police Chief Troy Church, was Wood’s leg - the foot and most of the calf. Police are keeping it for Wood.

Doctors amputated Wood’s leg after a 2004 plane crash in Wilkes County that killed Wood’s father and injured two other family members, Wood said.

“When it was amputated, he told (the hospital) that he wanted that leg saved,” said his sister, Marin Wood-Lytle. “He wanted to keep the bone because he wanted to be buried as a full man.” But instead of a bone, a funeral home delivered the whole leg.

Wood put it in his freezer, his sister said. It became something of a joke when she came over. “I wouldn’t even get a Pepsi out of his refrigerator.”

But it stopped being funny when Wood got behind on his power bill and his electricity was shut off, the sister said.

Despite his family’s protests, Wood-Lytle said, her brother took the screen off his front porch, wrapped the leg inside and “tied it to two posts to let it dry. He was going to mummify it.”

Wood-Lytle said her brother was homeless for a while, living in his van, which he eventually lost.

Their mother put his belongings in a storage facility in Maiden, about 45 miles northwest of Charlotte, Wood-Lytle said, and paid for the first few months.

Reached Tuesday, Wood declined to answer most questions. He did say he put the leg in the smoker because “I didn’t have anything else to secure it in. There were no macabre intentions.”

Maiden Police talked with the storage facility’s owner, who was auctioning off items in the units of people who were behind on their payments. Wood said he asked the owner of the storage facility not to open his belongings and is trying to get from Greenville County, S.C. to get his things.

On Tuesday his sister was watching TV and saw the man who found her brother’s leg and thought “it just seems to never go away.”

She said that on Tuesday, an officer came by and said they had her brother’s leg.

“John had told them ‘how about just dropping it off at my sister’s and she’ll just hold it until I get there,' ” she said. “I told them ‘don’t bring that thing in my house.’ ”

- Staff researcher Maria Wygand contributed.

All content © THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER and may not be republished without permission.