Newspapers / The Daily Tar Heel. / Nov. 20, 2002, edition 1 / Page 1
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®l|p Sattu aar Uppl www.dailytarheel.com fmSjgN' Fort Bragg issues report on murders Lab! Theatre hosts Christmas play Look for more stories online. Volume 110, Issue 118 Police Seek Motive Behind Area Shooting Reason for dispute remains unclear By John Frank Assistant University Editor A day after gunfire ripped through a quiet Chapel Hill neighborhood, police still were looking for a motive behind the midday shooting that left one man dead. Officials and family members close to the case said the murder of James Earl Thompson, 34, resulted from a feud DTH(JESSICA FOSTER Ricky Calderon of Carolina Car Wash & Detail Inc. off Airport Road washes a customer's car Tuesday afternoon. The car wash was able to maintain business during the drought because of its access to well water, which it will continue to use except for indoor plumbing. Lifted Restrictions Aid Local Businesses Drought caused less business for some By David Allen Staff Writer The Orange Water and Sewer Authority lifted all water restrictions earlier this month, and as a result, local businesses are breathing a little more easily. Ed Kerwin, executive director of OWASA, said the businesses most direcdy affected by the restrictions were Lighting Tour on Campus Reveals Few Fresh Needs By Vanessa Capobianco Staff Writer ___ Few students and University officials showed up Tuesday for the usual semes ter lighting tour despite its reputation for keeping student safety in the spodight. Electric Systems, the section of the Division of Facilities Services that maintains the lighting throughout the University, has been sponsoring the walk for about 10 years. This semester’s tour focused heavi ly on North Campus lighting, and par ticipants noted only a few areas for improvement. The Next Chapter State officials move to dismiss lawsuit brought by municipalities asking for withheld money. See Page 4 between family members. Thompson, an employee of the UNC Housekeeping Services Department, was shot Monday by his father-in-law, Sherman Albert Tate Sr., 65, on Mitchell Lane off West Rosemary Street. Witnesses said Monday that the two men were arguing loudly in the door of Tate Realty & Construction Cos. at 342 W. Rosemary St. before Sherman Tate allegedly opened fire on Thompson. Chapel Hill police still are investigat ing the nature of the dispute, and those close to Sherman Tate wouldn’t go into detail about the subject of the argument landscapers, plant retailers and car washes. Although OWASA took these con cerns into consideration when re-eval uating the restrictions, Kerwin said it was important to make decisions based on what was best for the overall com munity. “We were aware of (the businesses’ concerns) and considered them, but we were primarily guided by making sure the community didn’t run out of water,” he said. Carolina Car Wash & Detail Inc. was able to handle the drought restrictions with relative ease thanks to its access to Typically, turnout of University offi cials on the lighting tour has been high er. But this year, only one employee of the Department of Public Safety attend ed. Several student government repre sentatives also were in attendance. Mary Fox, construction parking manager at DPS, said the lighting tours have been extremely effective in improving lighting on campus. Every semester when officials take the tour, they can see the new adjustments and lights that have stemmed from it. “No amount of light can make some See TOUR, Page 2 Serving the students and the University community since 1893 Wednesday, November 20, 2002 “This was a problem with family,” said Barry Winston, Tate’s attorney. Winston was at Sherman Tate’s first court appearance Monday, where he posted the secured bond of $25,000. Winston described Sherman Tate’s mood during the proceedings as somber. Travis Tate, Sherman Tate’s nephew, said he was with Sherman Tate when his uncle got a phone call and left abruptly. “I really don’t know myself what happened.” Julius Tate Sr.of Mebane said that his brother Sherman Tate is not a violent man and that he was justified in his actions. “(Sherman Tate) had a problem,” Julius a well. “We didn’t change things much,” said store manager Ricky Calderon. “We will stay with the well for a while and see what happens.” Calderon said that he thought OWASA handled the drought well and that he had no complaints about the restrictions. “They came and checked the well every week .and did everything they should have,” he said. Mike Dickinson, co-owner of Dickinson Garden Center, said his busi ness suffered quite a bit because of the drought restrictions. “It was absolutely %\ Sl c DTH/JOANIE TOBIN Phil Mazarick (right) of Electric Systems inspect a light fixture with several students and campus officials on Tuesday's lighting tour. ■ Business is other people's money. Delphine de Girardin Scarlet Fever Red-hot Tar Heels to face Rutgers at Smith Center. See Page 11 Tate said Tuesday night. “(Thompson) was the problem. And that’s that.” Detective George Sorrell, the lead investigator, said police still were investi gating a motive and it was “too early for me to put anything out there at this time.” But police did release more informa tion Tuesday about where Thompson was shot and evidence taken from the scene. According to the medical examiner’s report, Thompson was shot twice - once in the torso and once in the back. Thompson was killed by the first bullet, which went through his left arm before it entered his torso, piercing his lung and his awful how slow things got around here.” In the midst of those hard times, Dickinson said, one blessing emerged in that the restrictions encouraged Dickinson to repair the company’s well. “Out of all this, there’s been a benefit." Dickinson Garden Center continues to use its well in spite of the lifted restrictions to county water. The only OWASA water the company uses is the indoor plumbing system of the store itself, Dickinson said. Rodney White, manager of Southern See DROUGHT, Page 2 K2| ■ Police are looking for the cause of Sherman Albert Tate Sr.'s alleged shooting of area resident James Earl Thompson. Tate was arrested and charged with first-degree murder Monday. heart The second bullet grazed his back. Some witnesses said Monday that they heard three shots, and police still are looking into those claims. Smith Center to Operate in Red Venue has turned a profit once in 17 years By Rob Leichner Staff Writer Despite excitement over an improved men’s basketball team that annihilated Penn State by 30 points Monday night, officials say the Smith Center - the team’s home court - still is on track to lose money this year. Rising competition from other con cert venues and a lack of revenue from non-basketball events have kept the center in the red for years, officials say. “We’ve cut everywhere we can, but it is a very expensive building to run,” said Angie Bitting, the Smith Center’s managing director. It has been reported that total operating expenses for the last fiscal year totaled more than $1.3 mil lion while total revenue was less than $500,000. State funds generally cover most of the losses, but last year some of the money came from the budget of the Department of Athletics, Bitting said. She added that the Smith Center has only made a profit once, in 1988, since opening 17 years ago. “There is a portion (of the deficit) the athletic department pays, and there is a portion the state pays,” Bitting said. “We know we are going to lose money every year,” she said. “We bud get to operate at a loss.” Steve Kirschner, associate athletic director for communications, said the Smith Center will receive nearly $1 mil lion in state funding this year despite earlier fears that the state budget deficit would cause the money to be withheld. When the Smith Center opened in Elkin Hills Residents Seek BOT's Attention By Will Arey Staff Writer Area residents are hoping for anoth er chance to appeal to the University’s governing body today about a move they say will disrupt their neighbor hood. Several members of the Elkin Hills community are planning to attend a Board of Trustees committee meeting today to protest the location of the Campus Services Support Facilities pro ject. The project in question will move the existing Printing, Ground, and Environment, Health and Safety build ings from their location on Finley Golf Course Road to the Giles Homey lot in the Elkin Hills area. Members of the BOT already have approved the location of the building and expect to discuss the architectural design at the BOT Buildings and Weather Today: Partly Cloudy; H 61, L 40 Thursday: P.M. Showers; H 58, L 39 Friday: Partly Cloudy; H 51, L 30 www.dailytarheel.com “He was hit twice, but we haven’t determined the number of shots,” said police spokeswoman Jane Cousins. Police recovered a five-shot, .38-caliber revolver from the Tate Realty office that they believed was used by Sherman Tate in die shooting. They also found a .22-cal iber revolver in Thompson’s right front coat pocket Police said ballistics tests have not been completed, but so far there is no evidence that Thompson’s gun was fired. Police also confiscated an unloaded shotgun from the back of a GMC Envoy, See SHOOTING, Page 2 JH DTH FILE PHOTO Steven Page of Barenaked Ladies performs in the Smith Center's last concert about two years ago. 1986, the state promised to help fund it if it would serve as a facility benefiting the entire state, Kirschner said. Some of the events the center holds for the pub lic’s benefit include blood drives, job fairs, the state high school basketball tournament and UNC’s winter Commencement and fall convocation. But these public service events do not raise sufficient funds to ran the Smith Center, Kirschner said. The center used to hold concerts to bring in money, but the interest from See DEAN DOME, Page 2 Grounds Committee meeting at 3:30 p.m. But Elkin Hills resident Kathleen Kearns said community members strongly believe the approved location of the facilities is not appropriate. “The planned location of the facilities is incompatible with a residential neigh borhood,” Kearns said. “We are con cerned about the noise of the new facil ities, local flooding and storm water and traffic.” Kearns said Elkin Hills leaders also are frustrated by other issues in the pro posal. “Almost every part of the proposal has been specifically prohibited by zon ing,” she said. “And we’re worried about light pollution and environmental degradation as well.” Kearns said that although she does not expect community members to be See BOT, Page 2
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