News
?
SERVING THE PEOPLE OF MADISON COUNTY
-?J MAD X BOM
. ,v ] COUNTY LIBRARY
B GENERAL. DELX'v'ER'fj
Vol. 84 No. 5
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE COUNTY SEAT AT MARSHALL, MARSHALL
February
25c
4
Stale Trooper,
License Examiner
To Be Assigned
To Hot Springs
Hot Springs residents can
expect to see more of the
Highway Patrol in the near
future. Those drivers needing
to renew their license won't
have to make a trip to Mar
shall or Clyde anymore,
either.
Both developments were an
nounced last week at a
Madison County Courthouse
conference by Wayne
McDevitt of the governor's
western office. McDevitt and
Highway Patrol officials
made the announcements at a
gathering of Hot Springs
residents.
In announcing the changes,
McDevitt said that a change in
Highway Patrol administra
tion in the county will allow for
an additional trooper to be sta
tioned in the Hot Springs area.
Highway Patrol Capt.
Charles Long said that he is
actively recruiting a trooper
to relocate in the Hot Springs
area. Long said that he
thought a trooper could be
found for the new position. If
no one volunteers for the
assignment, a, trooper will
then be assigned to duty in the
Hot Springs area. Long said
the new assignment would
"greatly improve our
response time in the Hot Spr
ings and Spring Creek ana."
The new trooper assigned to
the Hot Springs area will not
affect Highway Patrol opera
tions in the rest of the county.
The new assignment was
created by shifting one
trooper assigned to the county
to perform breathalyzer ex
aminations and equipment
maintenance to the troop
headquarters. Two troopers
will continue to be stationed to
Mars Hill and Marshall
patrols.
The arrival of the driver's
license examiner will be a
first for Hot Springs. McDevitt
pointed out that Hot Springs at
one time had a trooper assign
ed to the town. McDevitt in
troduced examiner Kathy
Ramsey, the examiner assign
ed to Madison County.
He said that the office for
driver's tests will be donated
by the Hot Springs Lions Club.
The club will also be fur
nishing desks, lights and heat
at the testing site. Beginning
on Feb. 20, Ramsey will test
Hot Springs residents apply
ing for licenses on the first and
third Monday of each month.
The Marshall test office will
be closed on these days.
Testing will continue to be
conducted in Marshall on
Thursdays and Fridays and on
the second and fourth Mon
days of each month. Testing in
Mars Hill will continue un
changed, with the tests being
offered each Tuesday and
Wednesday.
In announcing the agree
ment, McDevitt credited the
Hot Springs Lions' Club and
town officials for th^ir
cooperation. "This is a perfect
example of the partnership
between state and local
government and a private
organization." Hot Springs
mayor Debbie Ponder also
thanked the Lions for their
assistance in obtaining the ex
aminer.
FORMER HOT SPRINGS POLICE CHIEF
Leroy Johnson, right, will have more time to sit
on the front porch swing with Mrs. Johnson now
that he has retired.
Leroy Johnson Retires
30- Year Career As Hot Springs Police Chief
By ROBERT KOENIG ,
A part of Hot Springs history ,
came to a quiet end last week
when police chief hatoy <
Johnson officially retired. ,
Johnson had served as the ,
town's sole policeman for the |
past 30 years.
Johnson announced his ,
retirement plans at the ,
January meeting of the town's
Board of Aldermen. His last
day on the job was Jan. 20 en
ding a career that began on
Aug. 17v 1953.
Johnson succeeded Jasper
Treadway as the town police
chief and wasted no time in
making his presence felt. A
week after taking on the job of
enforcing the law in Hot Spr
ings, Johnson crowded the
own's jail with 41 people' for
Irinking in public.
"I went downtown my first
Satui day night on th* jofc. and
warned them that Uwre'd be
110 carrying on in public. The
next Saturday night, I went
back and they were still carry
ing on. I arrested 37 men and
seven women that night. They
were stacked in the jail like
cordwood."
Fortunately for the new
police chief, matters quieted
down after the mass arrest.
As a one-man police force,
Johnson was expected to be on
call 24 hours a day. In addition
to providing police services,
Johnson also served as the
town's maintainence man.
A native of Madison County,
Johnson was born in Hot Spr
ings in 1910. He went to work
at tt? age of nine for J.D.
Henslepy Recking groceries
Johnson said he worked for
Hensley until he turned 18. In
1929, he married the former
Frankie Sands of Shelton
Laurel and found work with
the state highway depart
ment, maintaining the road
through Hot Springs.
In 1996, Johnson visited
West Virginia for what he
thought would be a couple of
weeks. The couple of weeks
became almost 18 years.
Johnson went to work as a coal
miner and remained in the
mines until 1953, when black
lung disease forced him to
look for another line of work.
It was then that the job in Hot
Springs came open and the
native son returned home.
Jc&nson took the police
chief's job, which then paid
$150 a month. "I had to supply
my own uniform and gas for
the car." Johnson
remembers.
During his many years as
Hot Springs' police chief,
Johnson was never called
upon to deliver a baby. He did,
however, have to rush a
premature baby to Asheville.
Richard Johnson, no relation
to the retired police chief, was
born weighing only one and
half punds, Johnson recalls
that he sped the tiny infant to
Memorial Mission Hospital in
(Continued on Page 5)
WNC Tomorrow Honors
State Legislators
The Leadership of Western
North Carolina Tomorrow
honored legislators for their
work to secure a ridge law and
hear Speaker of the House
Lis ton B. Ramsey plead for
more community develop
ment block grant proposals
from western communities.
Legislators representing the
34 western counties who sup
ported the ridge law received
plaques naming them "keeper
of the ridge tops" and express
ing the Appreciation of the
17-county citizens leadership
council.
Ia addition to Speaker
Ramsey, Raps. Marie Colton,
Gordon Greenwood. Charles
M. Beall, and Martin Nesbitt.
and 'Sans. Dennis Weaver,
because our cities and towns
are not making applicaiton for
these funds. According to
Ramsey, in 1982, $45.6 million
was distributed statewide, of
which only $3.3 million went to
the area represented by
WNCTomorrow. Of 356 ap
plications Filed statewide, only
23 were from this area. Only 10
of the 17 counties here filed an
application. In fiscal year
1963, 230 applications were fil
ed statewide, with only 19
from the 17 western most
counties
Ramsey suggested that
WNCTomorrow and the lead
regional organizations could
be of more assistance to
"dosens upon dozens of small
towns that are eligible to par
ticipate."
According to Penn
Dameron, chairman of the
WNCT committee on natural
and other aquatic life in
streams and rivers. A task
force will be formed with
representatives from
Development, the regional
councils of government, coun
ty planning boards and local
government, Trout Unlimited,
the League of Women Voters,
TVA, the health service, and
many others.
The Uuk force will study the
N.C. Sedimentation Pollution
Control Act of 1S73 to see if it
needs to be strengthened and
will examine design and con
struction practices for large
subdivision development.
Recommendations for action
will be prepared in time for
the next WNCT meeting in
April.
Pollution Prevention Pays is
the name of a second project
undertaken by the natural
resources committee. Awards
will be made to industries.
stability is eligible for con
sideration. More information
is available from Margie
Allison, WNCT, Box 222,
Cullowhee, NC 28723 or call
704-227-7492.
A Cultural Arts Hall of
Fame for western North
Carolina was proposed by Ed
Spears of Asheville to the
WNCT subcommittee on
Cultural resources, chaired by
Dr. Newton Smith, N.C.
representative fyUHe Gorton
told the subcommittee of the
work of the legislative com
mittee on cultural resources.
The education" committee,
chaired by Joe Nanney, presi
dent of Haywood Technical
College, endorsed the concept
eft a math and science school
for gifted high school students
to be located in the western
region and called for higher
salaries for all public school
Route Numbers
To Be Replaced
Route and box numbers are being
eliminated and replaced by house numbers and
road names. A list of road names supplied by
the Department of Transportation is currently
being used to name roads. Residents are being
asked to check the name of their road if they
have not received a change.
If residents wish to have the road name
changed, a name will have to be submitted to
the county commissioner for an official change.
If the road does not have a name, a name can be
submitted through the same process for official
naming. Before new names are submitted,
residents need to check with their local post of
fice to aasure that road names are not
duplicated.
If you do not know the name of your road,
contact the mail carrier serving you residence.
Chandler Withdraws
The Democratic field lor the
lladision County register of
deeds office attracted ? tern
patory candidate last .weak.
William Chandler of Walnut
entered the race tor the Job
last Friday when he paid the
lit filing fee with the
Madia* Count) Board of
Chandler's aborted cam
paign leaves incumbent Jem
Lee Buckner unopposed in fa
Democratic primary. As a
? y, no
p, imary
tor tto
race, In
*Uc
for til
motion
Marshall
Begins
Crackdown
Speeders To Be Cited
In response to residents'
complaints, Marshall police
last week began a crack-down
on speeders on Main Street.
Marshall mayor Betty Wild
announced that the town's
police officers stopped more
than 30 speeding drivers last
week and issued warnings.
The officers stopped deliver
ing warnings and began
writing citations on Monday.
Wild said that the police will
be enforcing a 20 mile per bour
speed limit on Main Street and
will also cite drivers failing to
stop at the traffic light in front
of the Madison County Court
House. Wild said the law will
"be enforced for everyone."
Wild warned drivers that
the light in front of the cour
thouse is now in operation 24
hours a day. The light former
ly was switched to a flashing
light during evening hours.
Speed limit signs
designating the 20 mile per
hour speed limit have been
ordered from the state
Department of Transporta
tion.
Explosion Kills
Hot Springs
Teenager
A 16-year-old Hot Springs
resident was killed last Tues
day when gasoline he was us
ing to clean a toy train ignited
and exploded. Timothy West
of Hot Springs died as a result
of inhaling flames from the ex
plosion according to Madison
County Sheriff E.Y. Ponder.
- According to the police
report, West was cleaning a
toy train some 18 inches from
a portable kerosene heater.
Ponder believes that the
heater ignited the gasoline.
The gasoline spilled, covering
a four-foot square section of
the floor.
The victim was found by his
mother when she returned
from work Tuesday afternoon.
Ponder said the teenager was
dead when officers arrived at
the scene
DWT Cases
Are Heard
Judge Phillip Ginn sentenc
ed a number of defendants I
charged with driving under I
the influence during last
Thursday's session od District i
Court in the Madison County
Court House. One defendant
was convicted under th old
DUI law, while four other
defendants were sentenced
under the terms of the tougher
state law enacted on Oct. 1.
Judge Ginn found Love
Gunter guilty of driving under
the influence and issued a
prayer for judgement until
Feb. 10. Gunter was convicted
under the old DUI law.
In cases involving the new
law, the court accepted guilty '
pleas from Larry Dwayne
Rice, Mark Bradford Pace,
Jerry Lamar Worley and
Richard Hugh BA11
Mars Hill police officer Rick
Hayftes testified against both
Pace and Rice in unrelated
cases. Haynes testified that
both men registered .10
readings on breathalyser ex
aminations. The court decided
on level S punishment in both
perform 72 hours of communi
ty service. Ball was given un
til Feb. 10 to pay the fines and
will be eligible for limited
driving privileges.
Jerry Lamar Worley receiv
ed a seven day jail sentence
after the court decreed level 2
punishment after finding that
he registered a .20 in the
breathalyzer test. Worley
received a one-year sentence,
with all but seven days
suspended. He was also
ordered to serve two years un
supervised probation, attend
ADES, pay a $250 fine and
court costs and consult with
the Blue Ridge Mental Health
Center. Judge Giim ordered
Worley to Comply with any
treatment recommended by
the mental health program.
Roger Whitaon of Hot Spr
ings entered a guilty plea to a
charge of driving with a
revoked license The court
sentenced Whitson to two
years in jail, suspended on the
condition that Whttson serve
two years superriatd proba
tion. The court also fined Whit
tend the Multiple Offenders
Program at the Blue Rid*