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The Chronicle
Volume43,Number 16 WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. THURSDAY, December 24, 2015
Police investigate guardian case
BY CASH MICHAELS
FOR THE CHRONICLE
A police report has
been filed against a promi
nent Winston-Salem attor
ney alleging that he com
mitted "fraud" after receiv
ing the "large sum" estate
of a ward "... 6 months
prior to [the attorney]
being appointed guardian."
The Winston-Salem Police
Department is now report
edly investigating.
As The Chronicle
exclusively reported two
weeks ago, attorney Bryan
Thompson was accused of
"felony theft by fraud ..."
in a Nov. 24, 2015 motion
filed in Forsyth County
Superior Court for alleged
ly taking over $44,000 left
to Steven Epperson prior to
being appointed
Epperson's estate guardian.
The motion primarily
sought to have Thompson
removed as guardian.
That motion, which
was heard in a Dec. 16
hearing in Superior Court,
was filed by Winston
Salem attorney Reginald
D. Alston on behalf of
Epperson's siblings, Susan
and Kelvin Epperson.
They alleged that the
money in question came
from the estate of their
deceased father, John W.
Epperson, and was due to
be paid to Steven. A "Final
Receipt" from the Forsyth
Clerk's office dated Nov.
15, 2009 for "cash" in the
value of $44,180.68, listed
as the "personal represen
tative/trustee" for John W.
Epperson's estate responsi
ble for distributing the
funds as "Bryan C.
Thompson."
And the "undersigned
beneficiary" receiving that
money, according to the
signed and witnessed
receipt, was also "Bryan C.
Thompson," who was also
listed as "Guardian of
Steven W. Epperson."
Thompson signed the doc
ument.
But it is not until April
15, 2010, court documents
show, that attorney Bryan
Thompson was allegedly
appointed by assistant
clerk Paula Todd as
"Successor Guardian of the
Estate" for Steven
Epperson, allegedly replac
ing Susan, the sister.
The Epperson siblings'
motion alleged that attor
ney Thompson "... corn
See Estate on A2
CHRISTMAS 2015
Photo by Tevm Stiuo.
Making spirits bright
The Winstort'Salem Professional Fire Fighters Association (WSPFFA) partnered with Family Services
to provide warm coats to 41 preschoolers on Saturday, Dec. 19 at the Sarah Y. Austin Head Start .
Center. See story on.page All.
North Carolina High Court
rulings set stage for fiery 2016
BY CASH MICHAELS I
FOR THE CHRONICLE j
I
Those in the social activist movement got a one-two
punch to their cause Dec. 18 when the North Carolina j
Supreme Court announced two devastating decisions that ,
effectively further rolled back gains achieved prior to the
Republican-led takeover of state government five years
ago.
First, the state high court decided 4-3 along party lines
to ignore instructions from the U.S. Supreme Court and
upheld for a second time the 2011 redisricting maps by
the GOP majority legislature, which critics said unconsti
tutionally "stacked and packed" black voters statewide
into a limited number of "majority-minority" voting dis
tricts. By doing so, critics charged, African-Americans
weren't able to exert influence in majority-white districts,
and thus were limited in voting for representatives of their
choice.
"That was not a surprise, though it was a disappoint
ment," said attorney Irving Joyner, chair of the NC
NAACP's Law and Redress Committee, and one of the lit
igators for the plaintiffs who filed suit against the GOP
redistricting plans.
See Rulings on A2
Nine black
candidates
running for
N.C. offices
BY TODD LUCK
FOR THE CHRONICLE
Voters will have a variety of African-American candi
dates running for statewide office to choose from in 2016.
According to the cam
paign of gubernatorial can- i???-???
didate Ken Spaulding, there CAMPAIGN
is a record number of
African-Americans who
filed for statewide office as J q| $
of last week. Spaulding, a
lawyer and former state rep
resentative, said that they're
strong candidates who he hopes can shift the balance of
power in the state, which now has two Republican U.S.
senators and Republicans in the positions of governor and
lieutenant governor, as well as majorities in both houses
See Black on A2
Question: How do you plan to spend
Christmas Day?
Chauncey Hill & David Hill Jr.
Winston-Salem
Chauncey Hill: "I plan to spend Christmas with my
family."
David Hill Jr.: "I will be going to my grandmother's
house and spending time with family."
See People on A9
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