Sometimes
Too Secret
For an agency whose high
est duty is to uphold the law,
the Department of Justice is
playing a strange role in the
( Oliver North case, which
grew out of the sale of arms to
the Iranians and the diver
sion of profits to the Contra
forces in Nicaragua.
There was in effect at the
time an embargo on the sale of
arms to either of the warring
nations in the Middle East;
and there was a statutory pro
) vision, enacted by Congress,
which prohibited aid to the
Contras, both of which were
violated by North and com
pany.
North, who was on active
duty with the U.S. Marines at
the time, claims in his own
defense that he was acting
under orders of his superiors,
l including Adm. John Poin
' dexter, director of the Nat
ional Security Council, Wil
liam Casey, director of the
CIA, and the President of the
United States, who was Ron
ald Reagan at the time.
The case against North
and others is being pushed by
a special prosecutor, who is
^ seeking conviction on in
dictments returned by a fed
eral grand jury. The problem
is that he is having to move
against the Department of
Justice almost as much as
against the defendants. To
establish the chain of com
mand, it is necessary for
North to establish a paper trail
|p leading to his superiors; yet
almost every time he seeks to
introduce such documents the
attorney objects on the
grounds that classified in
formation damaging to the
national security is involved.
In at least one instance the
attorney general objected to
the introduction of material
already in the public domain.
Under the law, a govern
ment agency may withhold
information consisting of
CIA records or that is "in the
interest of national defense or
foreign policy," an all-em
bracing, vague provision that
can be invoked to deny the
public use of almost any doc
Ek ument.
Now, anyone who has ever
been cleared to receive clas
sified information knows that
not everything in those jack
ets ought to be there. Be
ginning with the lowest level,
which is "Restricted," and
going all the way up through
jr "Secret" and "Top Secret"
* will be such things as news
paper clippings, maps from
various sources, letters and
telegrams.
But it is all "classified"
information and cannot be
released, which provides a
convenient way to put almost
anything the classifiers want
beyond the reach of the public.
® But the use of such a dodge in
the North case raises the
Continued On Page 8
Precincts
Meet Again
Two Democratic Party
precincts have had to
reschedule their meetings due
to low turnout. The Chowan
Democrats j held precinct
meetings last Thursday
evening.
The West Edenton and
Rocky Hock Precincts will
meet Thursday, March 16
® (tonight) at 7:30 p.m. West
Edenton voters should go to the
New Rescue Squad Building,
and Rocky Hock voters to the
Rocky Hock Rescue Squad
Building.
All Democrats in these twc
precincts are urged to come
out and participate at thii
$ time.
i
l
Published In The Most Beautiful Little City On The North Carolina Coast
Volume LLV • No. 11
Edenton, North Carolina, Thursday, March 16,1989
Single Copies 25 Cents
Occupancy Tax
Receives OK
Chowan County Commis
sioners and the Edenton
Town Council have joined
forces in calling for a three
per cent occupancy tax at local
motels. The proceeds would be
used to promote increased
tourism here. The area's leg
islative delegation has been
asked to sponsor enabling
legislation in the current ses
sion of the General Assembly.
County Manager Cliff
Copeland explained this week
that the room tax should bring
in about $27,000 to be used
solely for an "Edenton-Cho
wan Tourism Development
Authority."
Funds generated would
provide advertising of this
area's attractions in the out
of-state and in-state media,
provide welcome signs on the
hijghway, allow attendance of
area leaders at travel shows
and provide updated signs for
the historic walking tour.
The authority would be re
sponsible for "promoting
travel, tourism and conven
tions in Chowan County,
sponsor tourism-related e
vents in the county and fi
nance tourism-related capital
projects in the comity."
The county manager point
ed out that the town and county
cannot pin all their hopes on
free publicity such as the
Southern Living magazine
article on Edenton that ap
pears in this month's issue.
Copeland explained, "We
would want to do a profes
sional job with it." The first
thing envisioned is the hiring
of a consultant to aid in plan
ning. "A lot of our problem is
we don’t know what to pro
mote.” He mentioned small
conventions of professional
groups as one example.
The authority will develop
a promotional budget and the
county will serve as fiscal
agent. Room taxes would be
remitted to the county tax of
fice monthly with motels re
taining three per cent to offset
costs incurred in collection.
Commissioners passed the
resolution at their meeting
last week while town council
ratified the proposal at its
Tuesday night meeting.
PLANT A TREE-Dee Phillips, tree committee chairwoman, presented each council member
with a River Birch at Tuesday night's meeting. The Town of Edenton has received its tenth
consecutive Tree City USA award from the National Arbor Day Foundation. Sixty-five trees will
be planted at D.F. Walker School Friday.
Tenth Consecutive Year
Town Given Tree Award
For the tenth consecutive
year, Edenton has been rec
ognized as a "Tree City USA"
community. Only four other
cities, Brevard, Farmville,
Laurinburg and Wake Forest
share this distinction. Thirty
two communities in the state
Funds Earmarked For New Building
Chowan Hospital may soon
have a sparkling new psychi
atric unit if current funding
in Governor James Martin's
budget holds up in the General
Assembly.
County Manager Cliff
Copeland told the County
Board of Commissioners at
their regular monthly meet
ing last week that the gover
nor had included funds in the
'budget for the facility.
The hospital had been
planning to renovate the for
mer Unit B for the psychiatric
unit at a cost of $150,000. The
$2.8 million for mental health
Dp. R. Gene Puckett
Puckett
To Speak
Dr. R. Gene Puckett, editor
of the Biblical Recorder, will
be guest speaker at Edenton
Baptist Church during the 11
a.m. worship service on Sun
day, March 19.
A native of Kentucky, Dr.
Puckett is a graduate of
Western Kentucky Univer
sity and Southern Baptist The
ological 'Seminary. He held
several pastorates before be
coming affiliated with Baptist
newspapers.
In 1982, he assumed the
reins of the Biblical Recorder
which is the journal of the
Baptist State Convention of
North Carolina.
Puckett's denominational
activities have included ser
vice as president of Southern
Baptist Press Assoc., trustee of
Midwestern Baptist Theolog
ical Seminary and guest pro
fessor at Southeastern Baptist
Theological Seminary.
The public is invited to at
tend the service. A nursery
will be provided for children,
three-years-old and younger.
needs for this region ear
marked by the governor
would provide an alcohol and
drug detoxification center at
Albemarle Hospital and new
construction on Chowan Hos
pital's grounds.
Copeland, Charles Frank
lin, mental health director,
Johnny Bryan, hospital ad
ministrator, and George
Jones met recently with state
Human Resources Secretary
David Flaherty and enlisted
the secretary's support.
Copeland said that if mon
ey for the unit were kicked out
of the budget, a secondary
funding source has been pro
posed, an $85 million state
bond fund, financed by a two
per cent sales increase on beer
and wine. The mental health
fund would be available to
counties on an 80-20 match
basis (counties providing the
20 per cent match.)
"Based on conversations
with the secretary and our
legislators, we can't help but
be confident.," Copeland
said.
On a separate issue, com
missioners have requested
area legislators to file special
legislation that would exempt
Chowan Hospital Board mem
bers from the state Conflict of
Interest law. The law pro
vides exemption for elected
and appointed officials when
there is no city in the county
that exceeds 7,500 population.
This exemption applies to
boards of commissioners, so
cial services board members,
planning board members as
well as others, but not hospital
board members.
Several of the hospital
board members are town bus
inessmen that, under current
law, may not sell goods or
services to the hospital.
Board of Commissioners
Chairman Alton Elmore, a
member of the hospital board
and himself a town busi
nessman, is exempt due to his
status on the county board. "If
it's fair for me, (the exemp
tion) the same thing should
apply to them," he said.
Murder Case Is Continued
By JACK GROVE
Judge Thomas S. Watts
heard lengthy testimony ir
Chowan Superior Court last
Thursday during a hearing
on a motion by the defense to
quash evidence in a murder
trial.
The motion was the latest
development in the case of
Randall Julian Powell,
charged with first degree
murder in the death on Octo
ber 3,1988 of Donald Meeler at
Meeler's mobile home in Cape
Colony,
Powell was in a room at the
Travel Host Inn with two
other men when authorities
arrived at 4 a.m. on Oct. 5.
SBI Special Agent Dwight
Ransom, Sheriff Fred Spruill
and Dep. Victor Lamb took the
three to the sheriffs depart
ment after finding cocaine, a
mirror with a white powdery
residue on it and a straw.
Ransom testified that he
told Powell that they were
conducting a homicide in
vestigation and asked if Pow
ell would accompany them to
Spruill's office to answer
some questions. Ransom said
that Powell freely agreed to go
with them.
After 39 minutes of ques
tioning, concerning his
activities on the night of Oct. 2
and early morning of Oct. 3,
the agent said that Powell
volunteered that he had struck
Meeler in the head with a
hammer. At that time, Ran
som testified that he told him
to stop talking and then for
mally advised him of his Mi
randa rights to an attorney
and that he did not have to say
anything further.
Ransom said that Powell
then waived his right to have
an attorney present and pro
ceeded to write out a detailed
statement of the murder and
answered further question
ing. He said that at 6:30 a.m.
Powell was advised that he
was under arrest for murder
and that he might be charged
with possession of cocaine.'
Defense attorney Lloyd
Smith of Windsor contended
that his client's statement
during the first 39 minutes of
questioning in the sheriffs
office was not admissible as
evidence since Powell was not
initially advised of his Mi
randa rights. He said that
Powell was under "custodial
interrogation" during the en
tire time authorities talked to
him.
Assistant District Attorney
Nancy B. Lamb elicited from
Ransom on the witness stand
that the officer had specifi
cally told Powell that he was
free to go, that he did not have
to make any statement and
that he was not under arrest.
Smith called his client to
the stand where he testified
that Ransom had told him on
Continued On Page 8
Anniversary Celebrated
Members of Edenton's
American Legion Post 40 at
their March meeting en
dorsed a strongly worded res
olution that calls for an all
out war on illegal drugs in the
town and county.
Adoption of the resolution
commits the local veterans or
ganization to an all-out cam
paign aimed at uniting the
community in a successful
battle to fight back against
drug dealers.
The document says "the
community must rally and
demand the city council and
county commissioners to pro
vide dynamic leadership,
ample funding and no less
than 100 per cent commitment
in ordei1 to successfully rid the
community of illegal drugs."
It continues, 'This effort
requires courage because the
local drug dealers are well
financed, armed and capable
of undermining any plan that
might cut into their profits or
put them behind prison
walls."
Plans call for beginning
the battle with a public aware
ness campaign to promote in
terest and to bring the entire
community into the effort.
The American Legion is
currently celebrating its 70th
anniversary, March 15-17.
The Edenton post sponsors
the Chowan County Fair,
Truck and Tractor Pull, Ro
deo, Cub and Boy Scouts, Boys
and Girls State and the Law
Enforcement Appreciation
Banquet.
Also, American Legion
Baseball, Little League Base
ball, Sons of the American
Legion and the Oratorical
Contest.
have been recognized this
year for their outstanding ur
ban forestry programs.
To qualify, a city must
have a tree ordinance, create
a legal tree governing body
and implement an active tree
management program and
observance of Arbor Day.
Edenton’s tree committee
consists of Dee Phillips,
chairwoman, Stephen Karl,
Gil Burroughs, Frances In
glis and Ruth Spencer with
Councilman Livy Goodman
as council’s representative.
When the award, a special
flag and new roadside signs
were presented at the council
meeting Tuesday night, May
or John Dowd commented,
"These tree committee mem
bers and those of the past are
the reason that we got this
award.”
A tree planting ceremony
will be conducted at D.F.
Walker School Friday,
March 17 at 12:30 p.m. A total
of 65 trees of mixed species
will be planted at the school,
Mrs. Phillips said. At the
meeting, she presented each
member of council with a pot
ted River Birch.
Anne-Marie Kelly, Town
Manager, told council that
she, Mayor John Dowd and
Councilman Willis Privott
met with county representa
tives on a proposed motel oc
cupancy tax. The proceeds
would be used to promote
tourism.
Dowd said, "We're going
to do this in a joint manner.”
He said that none of the pro
ceeds would go into the gen
eral fund of the town or county
but would go to a tourism au
thority. He also pointed out,
"It's a type of tax that will not
Continued On Page 8
! Voting Gets
Underway
The nominating process
for the 1989 Pride of Eden ton
and Chowan County cam
paign has now come to an
end, and included with this
week's edition is a special
section featuring pho
tographs and profiles of the
nominees.
The section is being
sponsored by a number of
area businesses who wished
to recognize these outstand
ing citizens for their service
to the community.
A ballot appears on Page
15-A of this week's paper so
that readers of The Chowan
Herald may nominate their
top three choices for the
award. All ballots must be
returned to the Herald office
by 5 p.m. on Thursday,
March 30.
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