Hot Springs Police Chiefs Face Charges
Two Teens Say Getman Threatened,
Assaulted Them In Traffic Arrest
By BILL 8TUDENC
Editor
Two Madison High School students have charged
Hot Springs Police Chief Terry Lee Getman with
assault and communicating threats after a routine
traffic arrest Sunday afternoon.
According to warrants filed this week in the
Madison County Magistrate's Office, Getman has
been charged with communicating threats against
Michael Miller and Randy Riddle and with simple
assault against Miller.
Those charges stem from Getman 's arrest of Miller,
17, on a reckless driving charge at 5:40 p.m. Sunday in
downtown Hot Springs. Getman said that Miller was
"spinning the tires of a Pontiac Trans-Am in front of
the police department and in broad daylight."
According to one of the communicating threats war
rants, Getman told Miller, "It you don't change your
attitude I'll knock the f? out of you." The other com
municating threats warrant charges that Getman told
Riddle, "If you don't give me your goddam license, I'll
knock the f? out of you."
Getman is charged with simple assault for allegedly
pushing Miller into the police vehicle.
Getman turned himself into the Madison County
Sheriff's Department Tuesday afternoon, Sheriff
Dedrick Brown said.
Getman called the charges "ridiculous," and said
he suspects Miller's father, Marshall attorney Rick
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SBI Charges Barrett With DWI
In New Year's Eve Accident
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
The State Bureau of Investigation has charged
former Hot Springs Police Chief John Barrett with
driving while impaired when he wrecked the town's
patrol car shortly after midnight New Year's Eve.
The charge stems from a nearly four-month SBI in
vestigation of Barrett's accident, which injured the
then-police chief and a passenger, former Madison
County Commissioner Virginia Anderson, and totaled
the only patrol car in the Hot Springs Police Depart
ment.
According to a warrant, obtained Tuesday by SBI
agent Ronald Perry, in the Madison County
Magistrate's Office, Barrett has been charged with
driving "a vehicle on U.S. 25-70 and N.C. 209, a
highway, while subject to an impairing substance."
William Farrell; special prosecutor with the N.C.
Attorney General's Office, told The News Record on
Monday that, after his examination of the SBI in
vestigation report, he had instructed agents to obtain
a warrant for Barrett's arrest on the DWI charge
''I instructed the SBI agents that did the investiga
tion to present their findings to judicial officers in
Madison County," Farrell said from his Raleigh of
fice. "I instructed them to seek a warrant toward a
DWI offense."
Law enforcement officials may find it a little dif
ficult to serve the warrant on Barrett, however. He
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Homecoming
A Hot Time
By ANNE KITTHELL
Staff Writer
Hot Springs Homecoming '87
was the place to be last weekend
as the town celebrated what of
ficials promise will be an annual
event.
And, with made-to-order
weather, the festivities went off
without a hitch, according to
organizers of the event, designed
to attract former Hot Springs
residents back home for a
weekend.
"I'm tired and I'm relieved,"
said Cecilia Champion, Homecom
ing Committee vice-chairman
"The entire weekend went so
smoothly. It was really well
organized."
Organized it was, as hundreds of
people flocked to Hot Springs to
eat, dance and be merry. From
hot air balloon rides to river raf
ting races on the French Broad,
Madison County was treated to an
extravaganza of sights and
sounds.
Homecoming organizers had
been hard at work for the past five
months pulling together various
events to entertain a variety of
tastes.
Festivities began Friday night
with a beauty pageant with a
special appearance by Miss North
Carolina, Karen Bloomquist. Girls
ranging in age from 4 to 18 com
peted for awards and trophies.
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BILL STUDENC PHOTO
Worker* straggle to keep a hot air balloon In place as it is
inflated at Hot Springs Homecoming '87 this past weekend.
Florida Firm May Purchase
Most Of Wolf Laurel Resort
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
A Florida real estate group will
purchase most of Wolf Laurel Resort
next month, if the directors and
stockholders of Bald Mountain
Development Corp. approve a final
sales agreement.
Bald Mountain Development Corp.,
which owns Wolf Laurel Resort,
agreed in principal Saturday to ap
prove the sale of the majority of the
resort's assets to the Stokes, O'Steen,
Williams Group of Jacksonville, Fla.
? If the corporation's board of direc
tors and stockholders agree to the
sale, the Florida developers will pur
chase the the ski slope, golf course,
restaurant, Wolf Laurel Inn and ap
proximately 1,800 acres of
undeveloped land, said Walter
Williams of Walter Williams Realty
in Jacksonville.
The firm would also assume, under
a contract, management of the ski
operation, real estate sales and resort
rental management, Williams said.
June 1 has been targeted as the
takeover date, but that has not been
finalized, Williams said.
"All of this is subject to getting all
the details worked out," he said Tues
day in a telephone interview from his
Jacksonville, Fla., office
"We left the (Saturday) meeting
and the Bald Mountain people left the
meeting with an agreement that we
all felt we could bring to a conclusion
that was mutually beneficial," he
said.
Williams would not reveal the
terms of the transaction
The Florida firm's purchase of
Wolf Laurel, located on the border of
Madison and Yancey counties, comes
after the resort suffered through
financial difficulties last summer.
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Board Puzzled By Refusal
To Investigate Finances
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
Madison County commissioners
are scratching their heads over
District Attorney's J. Thomas
Rusher's refusal to investigate possi
ble mishandling of public funds by
former county commissioners and
their employees.
"We've done everything but get
down on our knees and beg," said
Robert Cappe, board chairman. "I
don't know what the hell he's waiting
on."
Rusher, in a statement released
last week, said he had found insuffi
cient evidence of any criminal wrong
doing to warrant an investigation of
past financial practices in Madison
County government.
Rusher, district attorney for the
24th Judicial District, also said that
. .short of a specific request that
there be a criminal law investigation,
then I must leave these matters to be
solved by the Madison County Board
of Commissioners."
The commissioners are expected to
discuss the situation at a special call
ed meeting Wednesday, and may
decide whether to give Rusher that
specific request, or simply drop the
matter.
"We'll mention this Wednesday,"
Capps said "I'll ask them
both (the other commissioners) how
they feel. If they want to pursue it
anymore or ask Rusher to go into it,
then I'm with them."
All three commissioners agreed
that they would like to put the con
troversial audit report behind them.
"If there was any wrong-doing, I'd
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Area Merchants Discuss Formation Of A Countywide Chamber
By ANNE KITCHELL
Staff Writer
Once again, Madison County
residents and concerned merchants
are joining forces, this time to
establish a countywide chamber of
commerce.
The group, headed by interim
chairman Jeanne Hoffman, met last
week to organize and discuss the
goals and objectives of a Madison
County Chamber of Commerce.
Hoffman explained the purpose of
county chamber to a group of about 20
area business people. She told the
group that an organization serving
the entire county would include
members from a more diverse cross
section of the county, including civic,
church and social clubs as well as
businesses.
Marshall real estate agent Frank S.
Roberts said he believes that a coun
tywide chamber of commerce will
deal effectively with the problems
facing an economically depressed
area -and with the area's potential to
solve those problems.
"The merchants' associations will
deal with each town individually, but
the chamber will work for the good of
all areas of the county," Roberts
said. "Each merchants' association
has its own set of unique problems
that don't directly involve other
towns. The chamber will deal with a
broader range of problems."
Marshall merchants recently form
ed an association, and Hot Springs
has its own chamber. Mars Hill mer
chants had discussed forming a
chamber, but decided to concentrate
on a countywide organization.
Members of the county group
agreed there is a need for an
organization centered on a spirit of
cooperation. They agreed to hold
meetings at Madison High School
because of its central location.
Roberts told the group that a main
concern of the chamber should be to
find the right kind of industry for the
area.
"We're looking for industry without
smokestacks," said Roberts. "We
don't want to spoil the beauty of the
county."
Longtime Madison County activist
Jerry Plemmons said there are three
areas that need to be explored: plac
ing an industry in the vacant Dayco
Corp. plant in Hot Springs; comple
tion of U.S. 23 to the Tennessee line;
and, reviving the potential of the Hot
Springs resort community.
Plemmons said the chamber must
also protect the interests of existing
industries and businesses.
The group also discussed how other
counties have utilized their chambers
to promote their members.
"People will go to the chaftiber
because they have a list of all the
businesses in the area and will see
what is available in the county at one
time," said Hot Springs businessman
Jerry Parker.
Organizers of a countywide
chamber will meet again June 2 at
Madison High School.
Marshall Residents
Want Pool Opened
By BILL 8TVDENC
Editor
Several Madison County residents
presented the Marshall Board of
Aldermen with a handful of petitions
Monday containing some 1,400
signatures asking that the town pool
be opened this summer.
Town officials had previously ex
pressed doubt that the pool could be
used this year because of ongoing
one of the few recreational facilities
we have for the youth of Madison
County, and it should not be taken
from them."
Simpson and Sherry McKinney,
along with several other residents -
including a number of teen-agers -
presented the board with a stack of
petitions.
"I think it'a a aad fact that we put
the youth of the county on the low
level of priorities," Simpson said.
"We condemn them for running up
and down the road, but wt provide
Mars Hill Seniors
Receive Diplomas
Mars Hill College's president. Dr.
Fred B. Bentiey, presented diplomas
to 2K graduates Sunday afternoon as
the Baptist-related school brought to
a close its lSUt academic year.
Bentiey then iwvWI the weekend's
activities by telling the graduates
that he hoped as una passes, the
bond that tiea them to Mars Hill will
only become stronger
The primary speaker for the com
goad college education.
The first point is the accumulation
of knowledge to gain expertise for
Jobs and a vocational interests. The
second is the development of skills
that will allow the presentation of
that knowledge effectively. Grayson
stressed the need for "good thought
sequences which allows accuracy,
clarity and brevity."
His third petal was the adoptfc?of
"certain moral and ethical standards