The News
in Brief
Residents question safety of The Grove
Man sentenced to
death in killing of
supposed royalty
After a resident
at The Grove
Thai courts charged a man for
the murder of Phillip and Ashley
McRowan, sentencing him to
death on Jan. 18, marking the
one-year anniversary of their
deaths. The couple claimed to
be of royal Lao heritage, and
officials believed their murder
had to do with anti-Laos rebels.
Ashley McRowan was an
international studies major at
UNC Asheville, and the
McRowans are honored by a
commemerative oak tree on the
Mini Quad.
Apartments is
Td
held at gunpoint,
the complex
defends its
security measures
By Neal Brown
Staff W Rirni
Prehistoric shark
found off Japan
coast
A Japanese fisherman spotted
a frilled shark,, a species rarely
seen alive because they live
deeper than humans can go,
over 2,000 feet under water, off
the coast of Japan on Jan. 24.
Japanese scientists at
Awashima, who were able to get
what might be the first video
ever of the shark after they cap
tured it, said the animal was
probably sick and disoriented,
causing it to surface. The frilled
shark, considered prehistoric,
died after a few hours of cap
ture, according to officials at
Awashima Marine Park,, south
of Tokyo.
Charter schools
to open via Act
The Bush administration
plans on proposing new changes
to the No Child Left Behind
Act, including closing failing
schools, by the Act’s standards,
and reopening of charter
schools. Local superintendents
would also be able to transfer
teachers to poorly performing
schools, even if union contracts
banned such moves.
Gay sheep?
An armed robbery at The Grove
Apartments this month forced the
complex to address security issues
while some residents feared for
their safety.
Sarah Chase, junior Spanish stu
dent, said she felt “completely
bewildered” after the Jan. 14 inci
dent, which also involved her
roommate Amanda Guske, sopho
more Spanish student, and Guske’s
boyfriend Michael McCormick, an
Asheville resident.
“I thought it was a joke at first,”
Chase said.
The robbery occurred around 11
p.m. when Chase, Guske and
McCormick were watching a
movie in the women’s apartment.
Chase heard a knock at the door,
and, expecting her neighbor,
answered it, even though she saw
no one through the peephole.
According to Chase, three men
entered the apartment wearing face
masks, gloves and hoods.
While two of the men cornered
Chase, holding a gun in her face,
the other man ran into the living
room, where Guske and
McCormick sat, according to
Chase.
4 !
f i;
fi
99
I didn't 65$)ect anything
like this to h^pen at The
Grove.
Amanda Guske
Sophomore Spanish Student
Dr. Charles Roselli,
researcher at The University of
Oregon, has been wrongly criti
cized for his study of gay sheep,
according to RoselU.
Dr. Roselli, whose research is
supported by the National
Institutes of Health, insists that
he is not attempting to find a
cure for homosexuality.
The man locked eyes with
McCormick, and then the three
men ran from the apartment,
according to Guske.
“I don’t really know what their
intentions were,” Guske said. “I
didn’t expect anything like this to
happen at The Grove. We pay a lot
of money to live here.”
Chase, who spent one night in
her apartment since the incident,
said she does not associate with
violent people.
“No one would have motivation
to do this,” Chase said. “It was
either a random act of violence, or
a case of mistaken residence.”
The men did not take anything
from the apartment, and they did
not fire the weapon, according to
They Bouvier - Staff Photographer
Sarah Chase, sophomore Spanish student, stands outside her apartment, a couple weeks after three men
forced their way in and held her and her roommate at gunpoint. The men didn’t take anything, but Chase
worries about The Grove’s reaction to the incident,
the Asheville Police Department ed her and the situation.
investigation report.
When exiting the apartment, one
of the men struck Chase in the
head with the barrel of the gun,
according to Chase.
Both women said they continue
to fear for their safety and want to
see action taken by The Grove
management. Chase said she was
angry by the way The Grove treat-
“Our focus at The Grove
Apartments is to provide the safest
possible environment to our won
derful residents,” said Amanda
Wiles, UNC Asheville alumnus
and general manager at The Grove,
in a letter sent to all Grove resi
dents on Jan. 18.
The letter also said The Grove
performs in-depth background
checks.
“We do turn people down on a
daily basis,” Wiles said.
It took the apartment manage
ment too long to alert other resi
dents of the issue, according to
Chase and Guske, who both want
something done about the security
problem at The Grove.
The Grove has a 24-hour on-call
phone manned by staff members.
as well as an on-site resident
police officer from the Asheville
Police Department, according to
Wiles. All doors also have dead
bolts and peepholes, and Campus
Crest, which owns The Grove and
specializes in student housing,
spends hundreds of dollars on
lighting each month to ensure the
property is well lit, according to
Wiles.
“We lake every internal measure
to ensure safety,” Wiles said.
Some amount of personal
responsibility is necessary when it
comes to safely, according to
Wiles.
“Our staff sends out monthly tips
to remind our residents of personal
measures one should take as an
individual to help ensure personal
safety,” Wiles said. “Keep in mind,
however, that all of these provi
sions do not guarantee your safe
ty”
Wiles said she urges residents to
keep an open line of communica
tion with management in order
ensure safety measures are not
flawed.
“The best plan for safety is using
common sense,” Wiles said. “The
number one prevention to home
invasion is a locked door.”
In Sept. 2006, an unknown indi
vidual or individuals stole an
Oldsmobile, belonging to Ben
Walsh, senior political science and
mass communication student.
“My initial reaction was that I
had forgotten where I parked it,”
Walsh said.
Walsh parked the vehicle some
where on Laser Circle, the upper
level of the parking lot near The
Grove Club House, on a Monday
night around 11 p.m., which was
the last time he saw it, he said.
After walking the entire property
looking for his vehicle and inking
sure The Grove did not tow it for a
parking violation, he found glass
in the empty parking spot and pre
sumed it stolen, according to
Walsh.
“I don’t blame (the theft) on The
Grove,” Walsh said. “But they
should have informed people that
it occurred. I did not want it to
happen to anybody else.”
The problem with The Grove
management is they are not openly
honest about the goings-on around
the complex, according to Walsh.
“It is a mismanagement and lack
of public relations,” Walsh said.
“There needs to be more open dia
logue with residents.”
Casey Roberts, senior APD
police officer and resident officer
at The Grove, lives at the complex
to resolve issues among the resi
dents. Roberts said safety is
(Wiles’) top priority.
“He, as well as other members
of the Asheville Police
SEE Grove page 31
Blue Echo re-launches, rocks on
By Aaron Dahlstrom
Staff W ritbi
Trey Bouvier - Staff Photographer
Alex Bowser, junior multimedia student and station manager of UNC AsheviUe’s online radio station, the
Blue Echo, sits in the Blue Echo office, located in the Highsmith Student Union. Bowser, along with the
Echo staff’ hope to provide the student body with fun competitions and interesting radio shows, and even
tually turn the online station into a broadcast station on FM radio.
Last semester’s re-launch of the
Blue Echo continues in 2007, with
many more reasons for listeners to
tune in and listen.
“This semester the Blue Echo
should be more accessible,” said
Alex Bowser, junior multimedia
arts and sciences student and sta
tion manager of UNC Asheville’s
Internet radio station.
The Blue Echo underwent many
changes to make it more rewarding
for listeners and disc jockeys alike.
Bowser said.
One reward the offers listeners
the to win concert tickets to local
Asheville music venues.
“The Grey Eagle has agreed to
give us tickets to every event, and
they will all be posted on the
Web,” Bowser said.
Listeners hoping to win these
tickets and other prizes will have
opportunities to call in throughout
the semester. Eventually, the Blue
Echo will sponsor concerts and
hold other special events. Bowser
said.
“We need student support,” said
Jonathon Czamy, an alumnus of
UNC Asheville and current mar-
• keting director for the Blue Echo.
‘The more listeners we get, the
more power we will have.”
Bowser and staff revamped the
Blue Echo from the inside to make
it more listener-friendly.
“We have show descriptions
with genre information, plus we
have a reorganized schedule,”
Bowser said. “Certain days carry
more of a certain genre than other
days of the week, so now back-to-
back DJs aren’t harsh genre
jumps.”
Bowser made the change due to
comments he received from listen
ers who turned off the station
because the style of music changed
too abruptly.
“I am more inclined to listen to
people I know,” said Shelia
Steelman, freshman student.
The fact that the Blue Echo
broadcasts online helps the station
reach listeners beyond the moun
tains, Steelman said.
“I know people at other colleges
who listen, too,” Steelman said.
As for DJs, they now have a
much more professional worksta
tion, according to Bowser.
“We have gotten new furniture to
help facilitate a more proper radio
environment,” Bowser said.
The new furniture comes as a
welcomed addition to DJs like
freshman student Alyssa Teat, who
said she is looking forward to a
more organized setting.
Clear Channel, which owns and
operates a radio station in
Asheville, donated some of its
equipment, which the station will
be implementing over time.
Bowser said.
The new environment should
positively affect the quality of the
station, according to freshmen DJs
Sam Griffin and Amber Davis.
SEE Blue Echo page 31
••