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Bertie
Ledger-Advance
^ WEDNESDAY • MAY 31,2017
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■ ■ ' WiLLiAMSTON NC 2789^307
pact with
Chowan
Sports I B1
Arrests made for drugs, prostitution
Windsor police have busy holiday weekend
BYTHADD WHITE
Bertie Ledger-Advance
WINDSOR - The Windsor Po
lice Department had a busy
Memorial Day weekend.
Officers made arrests for
a breaking and entering,
drugs, prostitution and a
stolen dog.
The incidents began Fri
day, when officers respond
ed to the Tobacco Shop on
Granville Street to investi
gate the theft of a dog.
Cpl. Frank Ratzlaff and Po
lice Officer A.J. Lanier took
a report in which the vic
tim stated he had a dog in a
friend’s vehicle near the To
bacco Shop. The victim said
he witnessed Sierra Stokes
pulling the animal by its col
lar in the direction of her
residence on King Street.
The officers went to the
suspect’s residence, and
were able to recover the
dog.,
Stokes, of 121 South King
St. in Windsor, was charged
with felony breaking and en
tering a motor vehicle, felo
ny larceny and misdemeanor
cruelty to animals.
She was confined to Bertie-
Martin Regional Jail under a
$2,000 secured bond. Her
first appearance in Bertie
County District Court will be
today (Wednesday).
A day later, Cpl. Ratzlaff and
Officers Jessie Mizelle and
Lloyd Smithwick responded
See POLICE, A5
BJRP
nets
$150K
BY LESLIE BEACHBOARD
Bertie Ledger-Advance
INDIAN WOODS - Grant
awarded.
The Kate B. Reynolds
Trust announced last
week a grant of $ 150,000
awarded to Bertie Coun
ty’s Blue Jay Recre
ation Park in the Indian
Woods community.
The award was an
nounced at the Bertie
County Commissioners
meeting that was held
at the Blue Jay Fire De
partment last week.
The grant is for the
construction of a paved
walking trail and facility
improvements.
Vice Chairman Er
nestine Bazemore and
Commissioner Ronald
Wesson provided the
project coordination
with the Blue Jay Com
mittee.
The project was ac
celerated last year
when the commission
ers approved a thirty-
year lease of the park’s
property and a commit
ment to provide facility
improvements.
“The Kate B. Reynolds
Charitable Trust Health
Care Division promotes
See GRANT, A3
SAGE FESTIVAL
HCLA director
says case was
investigated
There will be food of all kinds at the fifth annual Sage Festival, which is planned for
this weekend in Windsor. Learn all about it with a special insert in today’s edition.
BY THADD WHITE
Bertie Ledger-Advance
WINDSOR - The leader
ship of Heritage Colle
giate Leadership Acad
emy says an incident
involving a former stu
dent has been investi
gated by the school.
HCLA Executive Direc
tor Dr. Kashi Bazemore-
Hall said the school is
cooperating with an on
going investigation by
the Windsor Police De
partment, but is certain
the police investigation
will find the same as
that of the school.
Last week, the Wind
sor Police Department
confirmed an investiga
tion is being conducted
after a complaint was
filed that a student was
slapped at the school.
“We have fully coop
erated with law enforce
ment in this matter,’’ Dr.
Bazemore-Hall said. “I
have determined that
reasonable force was
used to protect this
child from injuring our
school official, bus
driver, the student and
other students on the
bus.”
Dr. Bazemore-Hall
said it was not the first
incident involving the
student in question.
“The child has a pat
tern of hitting school
officials,” she said. “He
See INVESTIGATED, A5
Manager proposes half-cent tax cut
Sauer's recommendation comes in budget message
BY LESLIE BEACHBDARD
Bertie Ledger-Advance
WINDSOR - Bertie County’s
proposed budget would give
citizens a one-half cent prop
erty tax break.
The North Carolina Gov
ernment Budget and Fiscal
Control Act requires that the
budget officer present a bal
anced budget and fiscal plan,
and in order to satisfy this
requirement, the following
budget proposal has been
prepared for the governing
body’s consideration for the
2017-2018 fiscal year.
“Bertie County families,
businesses and entire neigh
borhoods were devastated
by two flood events in Sept,
and Oct. of 2016.” Said Bertie
County Manager Scott Sauer.
“For county government ser
vices, our staff has respond
ed with courage and forti
tude with these challenges
including the loss of a public
library, the cooperative ex
tension and the primary am
bulance base (EMS Station
One) in Windsor.”
According to Sauer, many
new projects, programs and
initiatives planned for the
county have been deferred
as the county refocuses its
attention to the painstaking
process of recovery, hazard
mitigation and resiliency
See CUT, A3
Tlllmon could face maximum of life in prison
BY LANCE MARTIN
rrspin.com
Antonio Tillmon
could receive a maxi
mum sentence of life
in prison after a federal
jury found him guilty
on drug trafficking and
In this edition
bribery counts last
week.
Tillmon, a former
Windsor police officer,
was the only one of the
so-called Rockfish 15 to
enter a not guilty plea
in the corruption case.
A spokesman for the
United States Eastern
District Attorneys Of
fice of North Carolina
confirmed the possible
maximum sentence late
last week.
His sentencing was
originally scheduled in
August, but on Tuesday
Senior Judge Malcolm J.
Howard continued it un
til Sept. 12 in Greenville.
A text order filed in the
court record said the
continuance was ap
proved “to ensure that
the US Probation Of
fice has adequate time
to prepare the Presen
tence Report in this
matter.”
The jury verdict sheet
contained in the federal
court record shows the
panel found him guilty
of the following;
■ Count 1 — Conspir
acy with intent to pos
sess and distribute 1 ki
logram or more heroin
from November 2013 to
April 2015;
■ Count 2 — Conspir-
See TILLMDN, A5
Obituaries A2
Opinion A4
Sports B1
Life & Style 02
Church & Faith 03
Festival Preview D1
Good Morning,
Margaret Knight
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