SERVING THE PEOPLE OF MADISON COUNTY Slhoii
82nd Year No. 35
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE COUNTY SEAT AT MARSHALL, N.C,
ORD
5 >
WEDNESDAY
<er 7, 1983
15' Per Copy
LABOR DAY WAS CELEBRATED throughout
Madison County on Monday. In the photo above,
Roger Worley, and Clayton and Jennifer Cook
lead their wagon down Grapevine.
Jury Convicts Bowens
After hearing two days of
testimony, it took a Madison
County Superior Court jury
less than an hour of delibera
tion to find Eddie McClain
Bowens guilty of
manslaughter last week. The
panel of eight women and four
men also found the defendant
guilty of charges of driving
under the influence and driv
ing with a permanently revok
ed license.
The case was the first in a
special session of Superior
Court called to clear up a
backlog of cases. The trial's
scheduled start on Aug. 29 was
postponed for one day when an
insufficient number of pro
spective jurors reported for
duty. :V
Following the verdict,
Superior Court Judge Charles
C. Lamm, Jr. sentenced
Bowens to six years in prison
for the manslaughter convic
tion and an additional two
years for the DUI and driving
with revoked license convic
tions.
The charges against Bowens
stemmed from the Jan. 1
death of Ella Norton Brown, a
passenger in a Ford Bronco
owned by Bowens' wife. She
was killed when the truck ran
off a bridge on East Fork.
Bowens denied he was driving
the vehicle at the time of the
accident. Bowens was defend
ed by Marshall attorney A.E.
Leake.
In the only other trial heard
during the special session, a
jury of eight men and four
women took less than 20
minutes to acquit both Mark
Kent and Ronnie Kent of Mar
shall on charges of felonious
breaking and entering and a
misdemeanor charge of
larceny. The pair was charged
with stealing a tape player
and speaker from a Jeep
belonging to Cody Motor Sales
in Marshall
Presented with a tape
player Sheriff E.V. Ponder
found at the home of Coy
Rollins, Kermit Cody, Jr. told
the court the player was
similar to that which was in
the Jeep prior to the Feb. 1st
theft. He could not positively
identify the state's evidence
as the tape player stolen from
the vehicle.
The state's chief witness,
Floyd Rollins, told the court
he was with the Rents on the
night the theft took place and
that the pair returned from
Marshall with a tape player
and recorder. The defendants
did not testify.
In his summation, defense
attorney Joe Huff discounted
the testimony of the younbger
Rollins, calling him a "con
victed thief."
Court was dismissed follow
ing the Thursday afternoon
trial. The regularly scheduled
session of Superior Court was
to convene Tuesday morning
in Marshall. When the court
returns following the Labor
Day recess, it is expected to
hear murder charges against
Clayton Gosnell
Mars Hill Board Meets
The Mars Hill Board of
Aldermen heard a proposal
for a subdivision consisting of
permanent double-wide
trailers at their Monday night
meeting. Mars Hill
businessman J.F. Robinson
introduced a plan to place 14 of
the trailers on a piece of pro
perty he owns behind the In
gles Shopping Center.
According to the plan detail
ed Monday night, the subdivi
sion would consist of 14 lots on
property currently owned by
Robinson. The lots would
range in size from one acre to
four-tenths of an acre, with the
average lot being just under
an acre in size. Robinson told
the board that all the homes in
the proposed subdivision
would be permanently placed
double-wide trailers.
Robinson told the board he
has not yet decided if he will
go forward with the proposal
but wanted to introduce the
plan should he decide to go
ahead.
None of the board members
disapproved of the proposal,
but referred the project to the
town zoning board for con
sideration. Board member Art
Wood told Robinson, "I see no
problem with it, but I think we
should go through the zoning
board before giving
approval."
On Tuesday morning,
Robinson told The News
Record that he is abandoning
his plan for the proposed
development. Robinson said
that he decided to halt the pro
posed project after meeting
with members of the town
planning board.
Mayor Bill Powell told the
board that the Municipal
Board of Elections has cer
tified the results of last
month's sewer bond referen
dum. The board found the
resolution to finance the
town's sewer project passed
by a margin of 251-56. The
aldermen approved a resolu
tion accepting the Municipal
Board's findings.
Town. Manager Dahryl
Boone reported that planning
work tor the sewer project is
proceeding on schedule.
Board member Gordon Ran
dolph reported that the town
should take possession of a
new fire truck sometime in
November.
The aldermen discussed
purchasing a used backhoe
from Bobby Ballard, but put
off a final decision until board
member Dr. W O. Duck
returned from a vacation trip
to Europe.
The board also discussed
possible extension of sewer
lines to both Madison Manor
and the adjacent Madison
County Housing Authority pro
ject, but took no action.
The board also approved a
resolution calling for the Land
of the Sky Regional Council to
study the town's water billing
system. Dahryl Boone
reported that the town will
soon need to replace the cur
rent billing machine. Land of
the Sky will conduct a
feasibility study concerning
the town's purchase of a com
puter to handle future billing.
Boone told board members
that he will soon meet with
Weaverville town officials
who currently operate the
town's billing on computer to
see if a similar system could
be used in Mars Hill.
Boone also told the board
that the town's zoning board
had approved guidelines
regarding the operation of flfea
markets in Mars Hill and fruit
and vegetable stands along
the town highways. The zoning
board agreed that fruit stands
should be allowed to operate,
but decided to ban flea
markets and auto junk yards.
One-day family flea markets
and those conducted by
charitable organizations
would not be affected by the
ban.
Annual Livestock Show Planned
The annual western North
Carolina Junior Livestock
Show and Sale, featuring both
beef animals and sheep, will
be held on Friday and Satur
day, at the Western North
Cartina Agricultural Cento
near the AshevUle Airport.
The opening of the event will
be immediately preceded by
the dedication of the new O K
million lives tock/hor > arena
uthfr Agricultural Cantar. ?
A market iamb show a
ciMyiuled for 7 p.m on Fri
day, to br folio ?d br an auc
ion sale of 0 priied animals
at 8:30 p.m. This will be the
first year for this event.
A total of 70-75 prize beef
steeri and heifers from
several 'western counties will
be exhibited by rural youth of
the area on Saturday. the
show will start at 9 a.m.,
followed by an auction sale of
the fed steers at S p.m.
The event is being spon
sored by the N.C. Agricultural
Extension Service, vocational
agriculture teachers and the
beef cattle commission of the
Western North Carolina
i.
Awards, trophies and rib
bons will be presented to win
ners in both the cattle and
lamb shows. These are being
provided by the beef cattle
commission in cooperation
with area business firms.
Commission members raised
nearly tt.000 from an auction
sale at a recent m< > img anct
individual donations to help on
show expenses. Area
far iniii virta&n)
at halter will
amount to $230.00 and the
same for the Iambi. Fitting
and showing awards Cor the
steers, heifers and lambs will
total $240.00, with first through
fifth ptacings in each. Heifers
commission at a recognition
luncheon on Saturday at noon.
Charge tar all others will be
$1.00 each.
Gay Snelson and Brace
Sheison of Leicester will be
the auctioneers far the event
G.E BWdix Jr.. Buncombe
| Report Criticizes
t Tax Collector
The operation of Madison
County Tax Collector Harold
Wallm's office was criticized
at a Friday night meeting of
the county commissioners.
The criticism came in a report
to the commissioners
delivered by James Skidmore
of the accounting firm of
Green, Skidmore and Smith.
The county commissioners
had hired the firm to audit the
operations of the county tax
collector as they prepare to
crack down on delinquent tax
payers.
Skidmore told the commis
sioners his Arm had identified
4,06? delinquent taxpayers
dating back to 1973.
Statements were mailed to all
the delinquents on Aug. 24. Ad
ditional statements to tax
payers delinquent for personal
property taxes were mailed
out on Aug. 31.
The accountant told the
commissioners that in addi
tion to preparing the tax
statements, his firm has
prepared a year-by-year list of
delinquent taxpayers and a se
cond alphabetized list of delin
quents. Skidmore told the
commissioners that his firm
has identified <711,949 05 in
taxes and interest penalties
owed the county.
In summing up the work his
firm has done, Skidmore said,
"We've now built a foundation
on which you can follow up."
Concerning the operation of
the tax collector's office, Skid
more said, "Some of these
duties have not been perform
ed and these omissions have
contributed significantly to
the problem of delinquent
taxes. As a result of this lack
of compliance, the county has
a substantial amount of un
collected taxes and has writ
ten off an uncollected average
of over $16,000 each year for
the past four years."
Skidmore cited North
Carolina General Statute
105-349 which calls for the tax
collector to make a settlement
each year of all uncollected
taxes. The statute, according
to Skidmore, requires the tax
collector to foreclose on pro
perty owned by delinquent
taxpayers.
Contacted on Saturday,
Wallin defended his actions
saying, "I've made a settle
ment every year by listing the
delinquents.
Skidmore also said the law
requires the tax collector to
sign a statement each year
testifying that he has collected
all taxes to the best of his abili
ty. In his report to the com
missioners, the accountant
said he did not find any such
statement available. On
Saturday, Wallin said he had
signed such a statement each
year.
The accountant recom
mended that Wallin make a
settlement of all delinquent
accounts no later than Dec. 31.
In completing his report,
Skidmore told the commis
sioners that his office has
presented Wallin with a copy
of the revised Machinery Act
of North Carolina. The act
covers "laws governing the
listing, appraisal and assess
ment of property and the col
lection of taxes on property "
Skidmore cited the act in
telling the commissioners that
they are empowered to ap
point a tax collector to oversee
the collection of overdue
taxes.
The collector of delinquent
taxes, Skidmore said, would
serve under the direction of
the county commissioners. In
urging the commissioners to
appoint such a tax collector,
the accountant added that he
"should be familiar with
foreclosure law, probably an
attorney."
Without officially appoin
ting him as delinquent tax col
lector. the commissioner had
earlier asked county attorney
Larry Leake to "take any and
all actions necessary to collect
delinquent taxes "
In commenting on the
report, commission chairman
James Ledford said, "It's
caused a lot of questions. It's
not fair for some people to pay
their taxes while other don't."
Although statements have
been mailed to all delinquent
taxpayers, not every delin
quent taxpayer has received
notice. Postal employee Ray
mond Stines, who was in the
audience, told the commis
sioners, "We've done
everything we can to deliver
the notices, but we must've
returned a hundred of them to
day."
Ralph Rice also addressed
(Continued on Page 5)
Marshall Owes Most Taxes
According to figures releas
ed in a Madison County Tax
Collector's office accounting
repert; Marshall has the
largest number of tax delin
quents with 602.
Marshall delinquents owe
the county $84,122.04.
Mars Hill ha^i total of 434
delinquents, owing the county
$44,695.81.
Laurel township has 395
delinquents and owes a total of
173,939 45.
The Petersburg township
accounts for 342 delinquents,
owing a total of $58,809.16.
Beech Glen has 410 delin
quent taxpayers, owing a total
of $58,272.03.
Walnut's 276 delinquents
owe a total of $65,082.83 while
Hot Springs has 372 delin
quents and a tax bill of
$40,003.45.
Wolf Laurel has the fewest
delinquents with 183 and owes
the county a total of $40,003.45.
Spring Creek has the
smallest amount of debt with
only $35,765.26 owed by 220
delinquents.
Business and utilites also
account for a large portion of -
the tax debt with 295 accounts
owing $123,714.60.
All the above figures include
advertising cost and interest
penalties.
Clarke Opposes Paraquat
In a telegram to the White
House, 11th District Con
gressman James McCiure
Clarke expressed opposition to
the Administration's plans for
aerial spraying of paraquat on
marijuana fields in North
Carolina and 39 other states.
"I strongly object to any
possible aerial spraying of
paraquat in Western North
Carolina," Clarke said in his
telegram. "I request adequate
prior public notice and further
consideration of less
dangerous, less expensive
forms of marijuana eradica
tion."
On Aug. 12, the Drug En
forcement Administration
(DEA) sprayed the highly tox
ic herbicide from two
helicopters on marijuana
fields in Georgia's Chat
tahoochie National Forest.
Their purpose was two-fold ; to
test their aerial spraying
system to destroy marijuana
fields on federal lands and to
film the test to persuade Col
ombia to use paraquat on their
own marijuana fields. Colom
bia produces about 80 percent
of the marijuana sold in the
U.S.
"It seems to me that the
spraying of paraquat has been
done by the Drug Enforce
ment Administration to en
courage Latin American coun
tries, like Colombia, to use
paraquat down there. I don't
think this is a good enough
reason to spray a dangerous
herbicide near campgrounds
and tourist facilities," Clarke
said.
"We certainly ought to do all
we can to stop the illegal grow
ing of marijuana. But it ap
pears that the
Administration's present
methods are very expensive
and extremely dangerous We
need to explore cheaper and
safer ways to stop this pro
blem without risking the
health and safety of innocent
people."
Survey Results Compiled
i ?
Although reader survey
forms continue to filter in, we
have compiled findings based
on those . forms received
before Aug. 19. Readers are
encouraged to fill out the form
and send it along.
During the five weeks we
conducted our survey, 104
readers completed and return
ed the survey form. Two com
pleted forms, obviously the
work of pranksters, were
discarded.
Asked how often they read
The News Record, 96% of our
respondents reported they
read the paper each week.
Three percent reported they
read the paper occasionally,
and the remaining one percent
said they almost never read it.
Of those who read it every
week, 71% reported that they
are subscribers while 25%
purchase the paper at one of
our rack locations. The re
maining four percent report
they read a friend's copy, in
gles on the Marshall Bypass,
Big D's Fast Stop and Lay's
Discount Mart in Mars Hill
were the rack locations most
often cited. One respondent,
Mrs. Ralph Chandler,
reported that she has
subscribed to The News
Record since 1887.
News Record editorials,
the society page and 62% con
sult the Church News page
each week. 59% of
respondents report they read
recipes and 55% read Steve
Ferguson, Dot Shupe's, "Just
A Woman's Observations and
the sports page. Walnut Notes
is read by 48% of our readers.
Those responding to the
survey overwhelmingly
reported they wanted The
News Record to report more
farming news. 41% wanted
more farming news, and we're
doing our best to comply with
your wishes 25% asked that
we publish an advice column
and 32% asked for? #?""
crossward puzzle* Four last
m: nite surveys from the
Hough family in Mars Hill
zle total. 19% wanted us to pre
chasing the publishing rights
to comic strips is prohibitive,
we'll try to comply with as
many of your requests as
possible.
Regarding our editorials,
83% reported they believe
News Record editorials are
fair. Another 7% said they
thought they were unfair. Hie
remaining 10% described our
editorial positions as "bland,"
"stupid," and "biased."
Several others said they were
sometimes fair and other
times not.
Asked how much they
believe. 17%
th^y believe