Reminder: Focus 20/20 Regional Economic Development Summit – Feb. 20

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-Press Release, Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments

The Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments announces Focus 20/20, a Regional Economic Development Summit to be held at the McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center in Henderson on February 20, 2020. The summit kicks off at
9:30 a.m.

Keynote speaker for the event is Doug Griffiths, author of the bestselling book, 13 Ways to Kill Your Community. Doug works with communities across the US and Canada to identify and overcome challenges that prohibit their ability to become thriving, sustainable, and desirable.

UPDATE: We are pleased to announce that NC Department of Commerce Secretary Anthony Copeland will also be making remarks at the Summit.

Other featured speakers for the Summit include:

● Dr. Michael Walden, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor and Extension Economist at North Carolina State University
● Hillary Sherman, NC Economic Development Representative, US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration
● Thom Ruhe, President & CEO, NC IDEA
● Jennifer Lantz, Executive Director, Wilson Economic Development Council
● Dr. Jenni Harris, Executive Director of Business Services, North Carolina Department of Commerce, Division of Workforce Solutions
● Dawn Michelle Tucker, Dean of Continuing Education and College & Career Readiness, Vance Granville Community College
● Dr. Pamela G. Senegal, President, Piedmont Community College
● Judy Bradsher, M.Ed., Director, CTE Programs/GEAR UP Liaison, Person County Schools
● Rhonda L. High, Customized Training Director, Halifax Community College

“This Summit is a timely and relevant event for citizens who seek to learn more about the advantages and challenges of preparing their communities for economic development success. It will provide best practices and examples that can be applied locally.” -Diane Cox, Executive Director, Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments.

Summit presentations will focus on the following:
● Setting the Stage for Economic Development in Your Community
● Advancing Entrepreneurship
● Talent Development-Best Practice Workforce Initiatives
● 13 Ways to Kill Your Community – Lessons on what really makes the difference between a prospering community and a failing one.

U.S. Department of Justice

Kittrell Man Sentenced to More Than Six Years on Drug, Gun Charges

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-Press Release, U.S. Department of Justice

United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr., announced that today in federal court, United States District Judge James C. Dever, III, sentenced PRESTON OBRYAN MILES, 35, of Kittrell to 78 months’ imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release.

MILES was named in a two-count Indictment on July 10, 2019, charging him with possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. On November 1, 2019, he pled guilty to the Indictment.

According to the investigation, on Saturday, July 21, 2018, a Franklinton Police Department officer was on patrol near NC 56 in Franklinton, North Carolina, when he saw a black Toyota Camry with heavily tinted windows. As he began following the Camry, he could smell marijuana, and he noticed that the smell diminished when he switched lanes away from the car. The officer ran the tag and also found that the registered owner had an expired license.

The officer initiated a traffic stop and made contact with the driver, who was identified as MILES. The smell of marijuana was strong, and the officer spotted several partially smoked marijuana cigarettes inside the car. Backup arrived and officers searched the car. They noticed that the carpet liner in the trunk was not attached on the edges. In the space between the carpet liner and the frame of the car, officers found a plastic bag containing a cardboard box, which itself contained two bricks of heroin—approximately 100 single-dose bags. The box also contained two loose bindles of 10 bags each, a plastic baggie of approximately 3 grams of raw heroin, and tools of the drug trade, including a wooden stamp with a Mercedes symbol, a bag of small rubber bands, and scotch tape. Further back between the carpet liner and side of the car, officers found a black FN 5.7x28mm pistol.

Officers later reviewed communications from jail, in which MILES, in discussing his car, directed a woman to get items out of “the head” and stated that “I got a brick in the head.”  On July 26, 2018, law enforcement obtained a search warrant to re-search the car. They found a digital scale hidden in a hole in the bottom of the passenger seat headrest, and behind the scale, they found a brick of heroin and a plastic bag of cocaine. Using a camera to search deeper into the area between the carper liner and the passenger side of the car, officers located a second handgun, a Smith & Wesson revolver.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Since 2017, the United States Department of Justice has reinvigorated the PSN program and has targeted violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

That effort has been implemented through the Take Back North Carolina Initiative of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices in those communities on a sustained basis to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.

The Franklinton Police Department, State Bureau of Investigation, and Department of Homeland Security conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jake D. Pugh represented the government.

Strickland Charged With 27 Counts of Exploiting Elderly Relative

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-Press Release, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office

On June 6, 2019, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office received a tip regarding a female elderly person being exploited for financial gain by a relative of the victim. After an extensive in-depth investigation by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division, Kevin Anthony Strickland was charged with 27 counts of Exploit Disabled/Elder Trust. 

Kevin Anthony Strickland (FCSO photo)

Kevin Anthony Strickland was located in Tennessee and was extradited to Franklin County where he was formally charged and received a secured bond of $350,000.

This matter remains under investigation and no further information will be released at this time. If anyone should have any additional information pertaining to this investigation, please call Detective Ashley Camp at 919-340-4312. 

Kevin Anthony Strickland, 45-years-old

3140 Bennett Road

Cookeville, TN 38506

Louisburg Man Arrested on Stolen Vehicle, B&E Charges

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-Press Release, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office

On February 6, 2020, personnel at Richards Oil Company located at 2063 NC 39 N. Louisburg reported a vehicle had been stolen. On February 7, 2020, around 2 a.m. officers responded to an alarm activation at Royal Food Mart and found the building had been broken into. Hours later, the Dollar General located at 5977 NC 561 HWY Louisburg was also broken into. 

Charlie Brantley Hudson III (FCSO photo)

Detectives with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office investigated the crimes and were able to identify Charlie Brantley Hudson III as a person of interest in the crimes. On February 8, 2020, Charlie Brantley Hudson III was arrested in Vance County. 

Charlie Brantley Hudson III was charged with one (1) count of Larceny of Motor Vehicle, one (1) count Felony Larceny, two (2) counts Breaking & Entering, and two (2) counts of Larceny After Breaking & Entering.

Charlie Hudson III is currently being held in the Franklin County Detention Center under a $40,000.00 secured bond. 

This matter remains under investigation and no further information will be released at this time. If anyone should have any additional information involving this investigation, please call Detective Dean Woody at (919) 340-4369.

Charlie Brantley Hudson III

49 years old

867 Moulton Road Louisburg, NC 27549

FCSO: Rodgers, Kittrell Resident, Arrested on Rape Charge

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-Information courtesy Franklin County Sheriff’s Office

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division issued a warrant for arrest on Terell Fredrick Rodgers, Franklin County resident, on Friday, January 31, 2020. Charges consisted of the following: (1) count Felony Second Degree Forcible Rape and (1) count Misdemeanor Sexual Battery.

Terell Fredrick Rodgers (FCSO photo)

On Tuesday, February 4, 2020, Terell Fredrick Rodgers was arrested and served on the above-listed charges by Louisburg Police Department.

Terell Fredrick Rodgers was given a $100,000.00 secure bond and is currently being held in the Franklin County Detention Center.

Terell Fredrick Rodgers
32 Hedge Way
Kittrell, NC 27544
DOB: 02/01/1993

 

Franklin County Logo

Heavy Rain Results in Discharge of Untreated Wastewater in Franklin Co.

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-Information courtesy Christopher Doherty, Public Utilities Director, Franklin County

Notification of Discharge of Untreated Wastewater

Franklin County Public Utilities experienced a discharge of untreated wastewater from the Youngsville Regional pump station in Youngsville. The spill was a result of rain on Thursday, February 6, 2020.

The spill occurred at 3:15 p.m. and discharged until 4:30 a.m. on February 7, 2020. The discharge of wastewater was estimated to be 14,175 gallons and approximately 12,000 gallons entered into an unnamed tributary of Richland Creek which is a tributary of the Neuse River Basin.

Franklin County Public Utilities staff was dispatched to the site and started clean up after the overflow stopped.

The department also experienced a discharge of untreated wastewater from the Franklinton Regional pump station in Franklinton. The spill was a result of rain on Thursday, February 6, 2020.

The spill occurred at 7:10 p.m. and discharged until 10:30 p.m. The discharge of wastewater was estimated to be 5,250 gallons, and it remained on the pump station site. Franklin County Public Utilities staff was dispatched to the site and started clean up after the overflow stopped.

The division of Water Quality was notified of this event on February 7, 2020, and is reviewing the matter. For additional information concerning this event, please contact Chris Doherty, Franklin County Public Utilities Director at (919) 556-6711. Additional information can be obtained by visiting Franklin County’s website at www.franklincountync.us.

NC State Board of Elections

Friday Marks Deadline to Register to Vote in Primary Election

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-Press Release, North Carolina State Board of Elections

The State Board of Elections is reminding residents that the deadline to register to vote in North Carolina in the 2020 primary election is Friday, February 7.

For more information about registering, visit ncsbe.gov/Voters/Registering-to-Vote.

Individuals who miss the regular voter registration deadline may still register and vote at any one-stop early voting site in their county during the early voting period, February 13-29. To see the early voting sites in your county, go here: https://vt.ncsbe.gov/ossite/

At an early voting site, registered voters may update their address, but not their party affiliation. Registered voters who wish to change their party affiliation must do so by February 7.

 For more information about same-day registration, visit ncsbe.gov/Voting-Options/One-Stop-Early-Voting.

“The State Board encourages every eligible North Carolina resident to make sure they’re registered before the primary election,” said Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the State Board of Elections. “This includes making any changes, such as address and party affiliation.”

 To confirm your registration status, use the State Board’s voter lookup tool.

To register, individuals must meet certain qualifications and complete a North Carolina Voter Registration Application in English or Spanish. Applications are available at the state and county boards of elections, public libraries, public high schools, college admissions offices and many state agencies.

Once completed, the applicant must sign the form, and mail it or return it in-person to their county board of elections. Voters who are already registered may update their information by submitting a voter registration form by email, fax, mail, or in-person to their county board of elections.

To find the address of your local board of elections, use the county board lookup tool: vt.ncsbe.gov/BOEInfo/.

Prospective voters must meet the following qualifications to register to vote:

  • Be a U.S. citizen;
  • Have been a resident of North Carolina, the county, and precinct for 30 days before the election;
  • Be at least 18 years old; 17-year-olds may register and vote in a primary election if they will be 18 at the time of the general election; and 
  • Not be serving a sentence for a felony conviction (including probation or parole). (Citizenship and voting rights are automatically restored upon completion of the sentence. No special document is needed.)

Note: Voters are not required to show photo ID for the March 2020 primary election. In a December 31 order, a federal district court blocked North Carolina’s voter photo ID requirement from taking effect. The injunction will remain in place until further order of the court.

District Court Judge Asks Voters to ‘Keep Katherine Burnette’

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Katherine Burnette, the incumbent district court judge for the Ninth Judicial District of North Carolina, faces challenger Brian Cloninger in the March 3, 2020 Primary election. The district court judge position serves Vance, Franklin, Granville, Warren and Person counties.

Katherine Burnette, the incumbent district court judge for the Ninth Judicial District of North Carolina, faces challenger Brian Cloninger in the March 3, 2020 Primary election. (Photo courtesy Katherine Burnette)

Appointed district court judge by NC Governor Roy Cooper in 2018, Burnette filled the vacancy created by Judge Carolyn J. Thompson who was appointed to serve as a Superior Court Judge in the Ninth Judicial District earlier that year.

With 15 months of experience as a district court judge, Burnette said her current service coupled with her varied legal experience make her the ideal candidate for the job. “I have 35 years of legal experience, and it’s been broad legal experience; it’s been private practice, clerking for court of appeals judges and bankruptcy judges. I have also been a public servant since 2002 when I became an assistant district attorney in this district.”

Describing the district court process in an interview with WIZS, Burnette said she oversees a range of cases including mental health, child support, abuse/neglect/dependency, family law, domestic violence and criminal.

“I hope the main thing people say about me [as a judge] is that I am fair, that I listen to everyone and that I make reasoned decisions on the bench,” Burnette stated.

She graduated cum laude from Wake Forest University in 1981 with a BA in both English and politics and from the Wake Forest University School of Law in 1984. In 2019, she was awarded a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from Queens University in Charlotte.

According to Burnette’s website, she has practiced law in state and federal courts and has experience in family law, criminal law, and bankruptcy law as well as civil and commercial litigation. She served as an assistant district attorney for the former ninth (now eleventh) prosecutorial district from 2002-2007.

In her role as an assistant United States attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina from 2007-2011, Burnette received two national service awards for her work in financial litigation, as the civil division’s financial litigation attorney, primarily in the recovery of restitution for crime victims.

From 2011-2018, Burnette served the Violent Crimes Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office where she participated in multiple criminal trials and prosecutions for bank robbery, federal firearms, and controlled substance offenses in North Carolina.

Burnette has also held positions on the NC Board of Elections, NC Board of Ethics and State Personnel Commission.

Burnette and husband Tom, an attorney, reside in Granville County. For more information on her background, awards and volunteer work, please visit https://keepkatherineburnette.com

To hear the interview with Burnette in its entirety, please click the link below.

(This is not a paid political advertisement. Political candidates are offered equal time.)

 

Attorney Brian Cloninger Challenges Burnette for District Court Judge

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Brian Cloninger, a Henderson resident and private defense attorney at Cloninger Law Offices, PLLC, will challenge incumbent Katherine Burnette for district court judge of the Ninth Judicial District of North Carolina in the March 3, 2020 Primary election. This position serves Vance, Franklin, Granville, Warren and Person counties.

Brian Cloninger, candidate for the Judicial District 9, District Court Judge seat, is shown here being interviewed on WIZS’ Town Talk program. (WIZS photo)

Cloninger attended public schools and graduated from the Reich School of Education at Appalachian State University in 2000 and the North Carolina Central University School of Law in 2006.

According to Cloninger’s website, he is a current member of the Vance County Bar, the 9th District Bar, the North Carolina State Bar, the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, and the VCS Board of Directors.

He is the Immediate Past President of the Vance County Bar, the Immediate Past Chair of the Criminal Defense Section of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, and the Immediate Past Chair of the VCS Board of Directors Policy and Personnel Committee.

He is also a former member of the American Bar Association, the North Carolina Bar Association, the North Carolina Association of Educators, and the American Institute of criminal defense attorneys in Festus.

Sharing his knowledge with other lawyers and judges, Cloninger teaches a class titled “Traffic Practice: Doing it Right and Solving Problems: Courthouse-Based Driver’s License Remediation,” which was approved by the North Carolina State Bar for credit toward required continuing legal education.

Cloninger has 14 years of legal experience practicing in the district courts of the 9th District with a concentration in civil and criminal cases. In a recent interview with WIZS, he said it is his experience and the encouragement of his peers that prompted him to enter the race.

“I’ve been asked by people in the system to run for judge, particularly for this seat. They think that I can help because I have been in the district courts of each of the counties in our district almost every day for 14 years. I know the law. I know about the people who make up the justice system and I know what they need to help make this particular seat a better seat.”

District court handles misdemeanor criminal and traffic matters, including domestic and family law cases. According to Cloninger, with 95% of cases ending in a plea deal or some form of deferred agreement, only 5% of district court cases go to trial. District courts see an exceptional amount of cases, with 200 cases on each criminal docket in Vance County alone.

For Cloninger, the incentive of serving as a district court judge is not financial but rewarding all the same. “The incentive is the ability to help more people, to make sure that our district court is a place that people feel like they can go to get equal justice,” he said.

“The role of a judge is to help victims feel safe and comfortable that justice has been served and help offenders get the rehabilitation they need so that once they’ve served their sentence, they can become productive members of the community.”

Cloninger is married and has two children. His wife, Alison Finch Cloninger, is also from Henderson. For more information on his campaign, please visit www.cloningerforjudge.com.

To hear the interview with Cloninger in its entirety, click on the link below.

(This is not a paid political advertisement. Political candidates are offered equal time.)

Town Talk 01/30/20: First Aid & CPR Save Lives When Minutes Matter

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THIS STORY IS PRESENTED IN PART BY DRAKE DENTISTRY

Jim Gunderson, First Aid and CPR trainer with Durham-based Divers Alert Network (DAN), appeared on WIZS Town Talk Thursday at 11 a.m.

While Gunderson reported that a perhaps surprising 20 percent of Americans have received First Aid and CPR training, he stressed the importance of the remainder of the general public having at least a basic knowledge of how to properly assist someone experiencing an emergency.

“The average response time for EMS to arrive in an urban setting is seven minutes,” explained Gunderson. “It’s 14 minutes, on average, in a rural setting. In a cardiac event, like a heart attack, for every minute you don’t have basic aid, there is a nine percent decrease in neurological recovery.”

These sobering statistics show that “every minute counts; the faster you can get care started, even before EMS arrives, the better chance that person has of surviving.”

Unfortunately, even a well-trained, experienced person administering CPR will have a low chance of successfully reviving the victim, according to Gunderson. “When you perform CPR without an AED or an automated external defibrillator, it’s about a seven percent chance of them surviving. With an AED, the survival rate goes up to as high as 25 percent.”

AEDs are now a staple in many offices and public buildings and can be used on those experiencing a cardiac emergency. The device delivers an electric shock, or defibrillation, to help the heart re-establish an effective beating rhythm.

Even though the chances of survival are low, Gunderson said having more of the public trained on First Aid and CPR is worth the effort, especially considering it could be your spouse, child or other loved one who benefits from your training.

According to Gunderson, 70 percent of cardiac events happen in the home, with 10,000 events happening annually in the workplace. Gunderson said Good Samaritan laws help protect those that render aid to the best of their ability from possible litigation.

“Whether it’s saving a life or just making them more comfortable, it’s very rewarding to know that you’ve helped a person,” he said.

First Aid and CPR classes are frequently offered by DAN, the American Red Cross, county health departments, community colleges and first responder units. Gunderson suggested taking a look at your neighborhood events or calling your local organizations to enquire about class offerings and cost. Costs typically range from $5 to $40 depending on the qualifications sought.

“At the bare minimum, I recommend people get trained in full CPR, which is chest compressions and ventilation,” Gunderson said. “They should also be taught to use an AED and how to deal with airway obstructions that cause choking. For basic First Aid skills, they should know how to stop bleeding, how to treat shock and how to splint a suspected break.”

Classes should be taught by qualified instructors and need to be American Heart Association (AHA) and International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) compliant.

To hear the interview with Gunderson in its entirety, go to WIZS.com and click on Town Talk.