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WEDNESDAY - MARCH 11,2020
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NATIONAL WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH
Charges filed
in dirt bike
chase Mon.
THADD WHITE
Bertie Ledger-Advance
WINDSOR - A dirt bike
chase landed two men
behind bars Monday.
Windsor Police Chief
Justin Jackson said the
driver of the bike and a
bystander ended up in
jail after a short chase.
Windsor Police Offi
cer Jessie Mizelle was
patrolling on U.S. 13/17
near County Farm Road
when he observed a
male riding on a dirt
bike in the south bound
lane of the highway.
Officer Mizelle turned
around into the south
bound lane to attempt
to speak to the person
on the dirt bike, but
when he attempted to
stop the suspect, the
man sped off down
Bud’s Lane at a high
rate of speed.
The suspect took the
bike through people’s
yards and a wooded
area toward New Hope
Road. Officer Mizelle
made the circle back,
and was joined by Chief
Jackson.
After returning to
Bud’s Lane to find the
suspect. Officer Mizelle
See CHASE, 5
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/Huntington Ingalls Industries
Mabel Harris of Roxobel blazed a trail for women at Newport News Shipbuilding.
Roxobel resident was first female to County
be nuclear pipe welder at NNS prepared for
Coronavirus
THADD WHITE
Bertie Ledger-Advance
NEWPORT NEWS, VA. - Nearly one
year ago, Mabel Harris decided
to call it a career.
But, before she did, the Bertie
County woman blazed a trail at
the Newport News Shipbuild
ing.
During her long career, Har
ris became the first woman at
the shipyard to be qualified as
a nuclear pipe welder and the
first woman to be inducted into
the “Top Gun” welding club.
Component Fabrication and
Assembly’s most elite group of
welders.
Harris began her career short
ly after graduating, despite the
fact she hadn’t intended to do
so that quickly.
“I had just graduated from
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO / Huntington Ingalls industries
Mabel Harris was a welder by day and
a home-school teacher by night.
school and was looking forward
to spending downtime with
friends before beginning the
job search,” she told Yardlines,
a publication from the Newport
News Shipbuilding. “However,
my mother wanted me to apply
at the shipyard, so I did.”
Harris interviewed, and 24
hours later had a job.
She began as a shiftfitter be
fore being promoted to crane
operator. It was during her time
as a crane operator she became
interested in welding.
She told Yardlines, “Between
crane moves, I would watch the
welders below. The preciseness
and attention to detail really
sparked my interest. So, when
the department asked for vol
unteers interested in learning
how to weld, 1 was the first to
raise my hand.”
See HARRIS, 5
THADD WHITE
Bertie Ledger-Advance
WINDSOR - As North
Carolina Gov. Roy Coo
per announced the
state’s first Coronavirus
patient, Bertie County
offered its citizens as
surances.
Last week. Gov. Coo
per announced the first
confirmed case of the
Coronavirus (COVID-19)
was a Wake County per
son who had recently
traveled to the state of
Washington, and was
exposed at a long-term
care facility in which
there is an outbreak of
the virus.
“1 know that people
are worried about this
virus, and 1 want to as
sure North Carolinians
our state is prepared,”
Gov. Cooper said. “Our
task force and state
agencies are working
closely with local health
departments, health
care providers and oth
ers to quickly identify
and respond to cases
that might occur.”
Shortly thereafter,
Bertie County officials
See CORONAVIRUS, 5
Bertie schools 'on board' with justice partnership
BY AMANDA BUNCH
Bertie County Schoois
WINDSOR — According to
Sixth Judicial District Chief
Judge Brenda Branch, “This
MOU is a mindset.”
Judge Branch shared in
formation on the Judicial
District 6 School Justice
Partnership with the Bertie
County Board of Education
on Feb. 12.
The School Justice Part
nership (SJP) is a group of
community stakeholders
who work together to estab
lish specific guidelines for
school discipline in a way
that minimizes suspensions,
expulsions and school-based
referrals to court for minor
misconduct.
The main goal of the SJP
is to keep kids in school and
out of court for routine mis
conduct at school. SJPs are
being developed throughout
North Carolina as a result of
the state’s recently enact
ed “Raise the Age law.”
The said “mindset” of the
Memorandum of Under
standing (MOU) is to under
stand the “why” of a child’s
behavior — underlying is
sues and circumstances that
might influence a decision —
and “to not turn our children
into criminals just because
of one lapse in judgement,”
said Branch.
“We will ask, ‘What hap
pened? Why? and How can
we help? Before we bring in
the courts,”’ said Branch.
It is a problem-solving ap
proach, and one of the stipu
lations in the MOU states, “At
each level of intervention,
the person handling the in
tervention should consider
whether the student mis-
See PARTNERSHIP, 5
In this edition
C
▼
RELAY
FOR LIFE
Church & Faith 7
Classified 6
Obituaries 2
Opinion 4
Sports 8
Good Morning,
William Freeman
OF Merry Hill
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Volunne 122: No. 11
11711 35906 6
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