pie Of Our Communities Since 1 90 1
MADISON
COUNTY LIBRARY
general belivery
MARSHALL
lureday , May 7, 1967
25c
Rusher
Refuses
Audit
Probe
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
District Attorney J. Thomas
Rusher has refused to investigate
Madison County's past financial
practices, saying there is not enough
evidence of criminal activity to war
rant his office's involvement.
Rusher, after conferring last week
with the N.C. Local Government
Commission and the N.C. Attorney
General's Office, announced Tuesday
that the Madison County Board of
Commissioners should resolve itself
any problems revealed by a con
troversial audit report.
Rusher, district attorney for the
24th Judicial District, also reiterated
his policy of allowing governmental
bodies to decide if an investigation of
public officials is justified.
"It is my opinion that, short ?f cir
cumstances clearly suggesting a
violation of criminal law or short of a
specific request that there be a
criminal investigation, then I must
leave these matters to be solved by
the Madison County Board of Com
missioners," Rusher said in a
prepared statement.
That means unless the current
commissioners specifically ask for a
criminal investigation, allegations of
the possible misappropriation of
county funds will not be investigated.
Madison County commissioners
learned Jan. 12 that the number of
financial transactions involving coun
ty funds increased noticeably during
-Continued on back page
Chandler Supporters
Want Investigation
Of Social Services
BILL STUDENC PHOTO
Jerry Gonter of the Revere community asks Madison County
commissioners to Investigate the Department of Social Ser
vices.
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
Members of the Revere community
asked the Madison County Board of
Commissioners Monday night for a
thorough investigation of the county's
Department of Social Services.
The request is apparently the result
of the recent conviction of Andrew
"Junior" Chandler, a 29-year-old
resident of the Revere area, on 12
child sexual molestation charges.
Charges agaisnt Chandler and his
later conviction were due, in large
part, to an investigation by the
Department of Social Services of
complaints from the parents of abus
ed Madison County children.
Jerry Gunter, the Revere man who
spoke with the commissioners Mon
day night, is also behind a petition
drive calling for a re-investigation of
the 1986 child sexual abuse case
"I'm speakitig for most of the peo
ple in this courtroom," said Gunter, a
cousin of Chandler's wife, Debra
Lynn Chandler. "I want to introduce
the board to allegations concerning
the Department of Social Services. I
don't want to go into details about the
problems, but we want the board to
look into the problems."
The majority of the nearly 100 peo
ple at Monday 's meeting were from
the Revere community. Many of
those residents will be speaking
privately about their concerns with
commissioners, Gunter said.
"We are calling for a general,
thorough investigation of the depart
ment, how it's been run and its
employees," he said.
"The people here tonight, and a lot
of them who didn't make it tonight,
believe that one of the county's most
critical departments should be check
ed into. We think it's time to take ac
tion and we ask the board to look into
these problems and make the
necessary corrections. That's about
all I have to say," he said.
The courtroom broke out into
thunderous applause after Gunter's
comments.
The commissioners said nothing
about the call for an investigation,
and proceeded with the next item on
their agenda. That prompted Gunter
to rise and ask for an assurance that
-Continued on back page
School Daze
Board Of Education Faces Snow Day Problems; Teachers May Have To Work 1 Saturday
By ANNE KITCHELL
Staff Writer
The Madison County Boards of
Education learned Monday it may be
in violation of the state mandatory re
quirement governing the 180-school
day year - a problem which could
cost the county school system nearly
$150,000.
During the regular school board
meeting Monday night, Superinten
dent Bobby Edwards told board
members he had received informa
tion from the state Board of Educa
tion's budget director outlining the
hazardous weather policy.
The policy states that a school unit
must have missed 15 days, plus made
*n effort to make up the lost days,
before the state board will consider a
waiver of the mandatory number of
class days.
Madison County schools were clos
ed 12 days due to bad weather during
the current school year. The previous
school board agreed to waive one
day, while the new board waived one
day and requested the state board to
waive one day. Board members said
they believed this would be in com
pliance with the law.
But the state hazardous weather
policy requires each school unit to
make an effort to compensate for lost
class time by using Saturdays or
vacation time.
According to Edwards, Madison
County teachers have two mandated
work days left on the calendar, but
without a waiver from the state
Board of Education, students would
also have to have one more day of
classes.
If the county board does not adhere
to the state requirement of 180 days
(less two days allowed to local school
boards), the county stands to lose '
state funds amounting to nearly
$150,000 in salaries and operational
costs, Edwards said.
The school board should have
either called students back early
from Easter vacation or should have
made an effort to hold classes on
-Continued on back page
Mars Hill Board
Warned Of Hazard
By JUDY PITT1LL0
New* Record Correspondent
Hie Mars Hill Board of Aldermen
learned Monday night that propane
gas tanks in the downtown area could
be a disaster waiting to happen.
Bill Zink, assistant fire chief with
the Mars Hill Volunteer Fire Depart
ment, warned town officials of the
potential hazard posed by several
propane tanks located in the alley
behind Main Street.
"Propane tanks of this size can be
hurled a half a mile," Zink said dur
ing a presentation concerning the
water supply necessary to provide
adequate fire protection to the town.
"What we are worried about is the
big Are, and it is coming," he said.
Using a videotape of a propane gas
leak that occurred at the Magna vox
Corp. plant in Skyland, Zink said that
the amount of water needed to simply
disperse the highly explosive vapors
of a 500- gallon propane tank required
800 gallons of water per minute for
four hows, or a total of 198,0000
gallons of water during that four-hour
period.
A similar problem exists with the
propane tanks in Mars Hill, Zink said.
Mars Hill Fire Chief Eddie Fox told
the board that he has determined the
propane tanks to be a hazard, and has
proposed that downtown businesses
which have propane tanks con
solidate into one large tank.
The large tank would then be
buried in the ground, and fcparate
meters provided for each business,
Fox said.
The buildings are old, the
pipelines in poor condition and the
alley too narrow, he said. In addition,
there is also a hedge located nearby,
and that also constitutes a fire
hazard, he said.
"Hie propane tank hazard highlights
the general problem the town has in
meeting requirements of the In
surance Services Office, Zink said.
The Insurance Services Office
establishes the rates for fire in
surance, and this ISO rate is re
evaluated every IS years, be said.
-Continued on back page
} L . 7 | ? ; ? ? , ;V
Madison, Haywood
Proposal Dropped
By RICHARD SHUMATE
The Mountaineer
Democratic leaders to Madison
County want to secede from their
Judicial district, but a suggestion that
they Jofn Haywood County's district
has been dropped after drawing
strong opposition. > ? 7
The Idea of putting Madiaon,
Haywood, Yancey and Jackaon coun
ties in a new Judicial district was first
ApK* by state San. Dennis Win
ner, D-Buncombe, at a meeting last
week with Sen. Charles Hipps.
D-Waynesville and Sen H P "Bo"
and Thomas r
1 County in the Senate, and
"J think we've discussed every op
tion, and there's no amettus," Win
ner said, who characterised what he
discussed with Hipps and Thomas as
"ideas" rather than formal proposals
or suggestions. "AS far as I'm con
cerned, that's the eftd of it."
Thomas said, at Tuesday's
meeting, Winner also suggested >n
alternate plan, which would have
taken Madison and Yancey away
from their current district and added
them to the 2Sth District, which now
AAnaidta ft/f n >a! 1 r?.-tL ? 1
consists oi iiiciwwrii, ruimenora
Polk, Henderson and Transylvania
hot_spri ngs
Health resort since
1800. Name changed
from Warm Springs,
1886. Internment camp
for Germans in Work!
War I was here.
This way to Hot Spring*, scene of this weekend's
homecoming festivities.
Hot Springs Gears
or Homecoming
By ANNE KITCHEI.L
Staff Writer
If you're not planning on atten
ding the Hot Springs Homecoming
Celebration this weekend, you'll
miss out on what may well be the
most fun available in this part of
the state.
Traditional mountain music,
clogging and crafts, free rafting
trips on the French Broad River,
hot air balloon rides and enough
food to make you forget all about
your diet are just some of the at
tractions at the festivities
Karen Bloom qulst, Miss North
Carolina, will be on band. So will
U.S. Congressman James Mc
Clure Clarke and George Olsen of
the U.S. Forest Service.
Hot Springs is shifting into high
gear to welcome folks from all
over to what homecoming
organizers believe will become an
annual event.
5 "Since we got the idea for the
homecoming, the committee has
met over 20 times to organize and
pool ideas," said homecoming
Continued on back page
5 Million Steps
Men Walk Trail On Its Anniversary
By ANNE KITCHELL
Surr Writer
One of Western North Carina'*
moat treasured attractions is the Ap
palachian Trail Stretching MSO
miles from Georgia to Maine, the
trail follows the route of the early set
tlers and migrating in. tribe*
passing through the town of Hot Spr
T<
will
Oonyers, Ga.
and Hen Thotapeon of
| at The Ian in
Sal ly afternoon one month after
n Ga The two expect to com
! hike Sept. U
aaked about their ex
??riem ? s on the tri
he noted h.
Mor<p Sex Abuse
Charges Are Filed
A 25-year-old Marshall man has
been charged with sexually molesting
three children, aged 4, 5 and 6, in
cluding one girl involved in a
previous child sexual abuse case.
The Madison County Sheriff's
Department has charged Ricky
Chandler of Skyway Drive, Marshall,
with three counts of first-degree sex
ual offense and three counts of taking
indecent liberties with a minor.
CMbndler was being held Tuesday
on $150,000 bond following a bond
hearing in Madison County District
Court.
He has been charged with sexually
abusing the children between June
20-22 last year, according to
authorities.
One of those girls is one of seven
Marshall Day Care Cento* students
involved in the recently completed
trial of Andrew "Junior" Chandler,
29, a former van driver with the
Madison County Transportation
Authority.
Junior Chandler was convicted of
12 child abuse charges and received
two consecutive life terms in prison,
plus 21 additional years.
A charge of first-degree sexual of
fense carries a life sentence.
Jim Baker, assistant district at
-Continued on baek page
North Buncombe
To Host Prison
From Staff Reports
A year of controversy came to an end Tuesday when the Council of State ap
proved a 309-acre tract in North Buncombe County as the site for a replace
ment for crumbling Craggy Prison.
After postponing the decision for nearly a month, the council, in an M vote,
accepted the recommendation of the State Budget Office and selected land
owned by Asheville developer W.C. Johnson and located in a horseshoe brad
of the French Broad River.
That decision came despite intense opposition to the site from nearby
residents of the North Buncombe area. Landowners complained that the loca
tion of ? prison near their neighborhood would decrease property values in the
area.
But state officials said they ran into opposition at almost every other site
they looked at - including land in Madison County and a tract near Weaver
ville.
.-i'rtar.- .-5 ?