The
ews
Journal
The 24th Issue of our 83rd year
RAEFORD, NORTH CAROLINA
25 CENTS
Wednesday, September 25,1991
Team formed to battle increasing child abuse in Hoke
Hoke’s Department of Social Services (DSS)
has put together a team to fight the county’s
rising child abuse problem.
The team will review cases which seem more
likely to merit criminal prosecution, according to
social worker Susan Moss.
The team will channel the resources of social
services into reported cases of child abuse, rather
than leaving them to the court system.
Social workers “will offer any input they may
have or knowledge they have about the family,’’
Moss said. Often, social workers—apart from
those who take reports of child abuse—know a
family involved in the alleged abuse and may be
able to suggest “services that they could offer to
the family.”
The team can also go to state and federal
agencies to get special help for families stricken
with a child abuse problem—help with housing,
transportation or parenting not normally available
through the county’s limited resources.
“As far as there being a lot of available re
sources for our families, there aren’t,” Moss said.
The increase in Hoke’s child abuse rate (Hoke
ranks 64th in the state in number of reports) has
been small this year, she said, but cases are
getting worse.
(See ABUSE, page 5)
Byrd: department
is settling down
Sheriff tacldes three controversies
> ♦ -HI
- .%
% K
\
These children enjoy the “Merri Mixer” at the Jaycee Fair held in conjunction with the N.C. Turkey Festival. Perhaps
the largest crowd ever attended the seventh testival last weekend. More photos page 10.
Festival owes its success
to volunteers, sponsors
Jean Hodges says she’s a hard
person to please.
But she had nothing but praise for
the sponsors and volunteers that made
the seventh North Carolina Turkey
Festival, held Thursday through Sat
urday, the “very best festival we’ve
had.”
President of a Fayetteville adver
tising agency which bears her name,
Hodges was chosen to lead this year’s
festival board of directors.
“Our board this year was an out
standing board,” she said. “Every
body did their job.”
“1 had person after person after
person telling me what a wonderful
festival it was...and to please encour
age the volunteers.”
‘The residents are really proud of
the festival,” said Hodges, a Raeford
resident herself. “I have not heard
one negative word about the festi
val.”
“1 had more fun in this festival
than a person should have when
(See FESTIVAL, page 4)
H oke County’s new sheriff is just now
getting a little breathing room as widely
published controversy, which has
dragged on since 1989, threatened to smother the
Sheriff’s Department.
Wayne Byrd, sheriff of Hoke County now for
just over a week, said his staff is getting used to
new ideas he is bringing into the department.
Byrd was sworn in to the office a week ago
Monday night.
“Friday, I felt like 1 had probably the largest
portion of the deputies and detectives that felt
good about what we’re doing,” he said.
“I think a hundred percent are willing to give it
a try,” he added.
“I never thought that it would be working as
smoothly as it’s working now,” he said.
But in many ways, Byrd’s first week as sheriff
was a bumpy one, as public controversy contin
ued to ride the depanment.
A question of conflict of interest arose Thursday
when two patrol cars were taken to a repair shop,
Byrd’s Alignment, which Byrd’s family owns.
County Manager Barry Reed ordered the
department not use the shop until the county gets
a definite opinion on whether there is a conflict
of interest.
As of Tuesday morning, Byrd still had not
gotten an opinion whether the shop could legally
service his department’s cars. The department
now has seven cars which need work, he said.
Byrd’s Alignment won a contract to work on
the department’s patrol cars in January, when
Alex Norton was sheriff.
Byrd said the issue had been blown out of
proportion and was hurting the county’s reputa
tion.
“1 think people have really decided that this
was the kind of thing that Hoke County didn’t
need and didn’t deserve,” Byrd said.
“And most of the people...said T wish they
would leave you as sheriff...alone and let you get
on with what needs to be done,”’ he said.
“The guys that work here need to be let alone
and be the professionals that they are,” he said.
Meanwhile, Byrd has been sorting members of
his staff, and is still looking for a few good officers.
But there, too, Byrd has run into controversy.
The first stirring of public concern came when
Byrd announced former Sheriff Alex Nonon,
who had been cast out of his job for misconduct.
“And most of the people. ..said 7
wish they would leave you as sher
iff...alone and let you get on with
what needs to he done,’” —Byrd
II Man shot at on way home
had rejoined the force as an unpaid auxiliary
deputy.
Then, disputes arose between Byrd and depu
ties whom Byrd did not re-swear into office.
Byrd had said there were some deputies with
whom he needed to speak before he could re-hire
them.
Dan Hardin, a sergeant under Alex Norton,
said though he went in for such a conference, he
never had a chance to be rehired. He said Byrd
didn’t ask him any questions, but only told
Hardin he wouldn’t be hired.
“He said I didn’t fit his program,” Hardin said.
“I ain’t got no harsh words to say to him,” he
added. “He’s the boss, he made his decision.”
Hardin said he had no idea why he was not re
hired.
Other former deputies, who did not wish to be
quoted, said there were discrepancies between
The News-Journal’s account of what happened
the night Byrd was sworn in and what they saw.
Byrd did not ask all deputies who had not been
sworn in to come speak with him the next morn
ing, they said.
Those former deputies said they got their
answer when Byrd pointed to them in the hallway
where they stood among other deputies and told
them they would not be re-swom.
Byrd disagrees. During the swearing in, depu
ties “were told that if you see someone that is not
in here, tell them to come in the morning,” he
said.
Byrd attributed some miscommunication to the
“utter confusion” caused by the legal necessity to
swear in immediately at least enough deputies
and jailers to get through Monday night and
Tuesday morning.
“It was not so much an intention not to swear
them in,” he said.
But he is certain now that Hardin, Det. Weaver
Patterson, former Chief Deputy Jimmy Riley, and
Deputy Johnny Rile % will not return to the depart-
(See v^HERlFF, page 3)
Around Town
Evacuation
TTie 66 residents of Autumn Care Nursing Home were evacuated and taken
to the National Guard Armory after the home received a bomb threat
Monday. A team of explosives experts from Fort Bragg used dogs to search
the building but found nothing. The residents were ferried by ambulances
and buses, and the home adminstrator said the efforts of volunteers and
Hoke s emergency personnel maae the evacuation run smoothly.
A Parkton man was shot at and his
UTick damaged as he drove home from
work Sunday morning.
Duncan Bunnell, an employee of
House of Raeford Farms, fnc., reported
he was driving home from work along
N.C. 20about 6:30a.m. when he saw an
Indian man near a white pickup truck
parked along the highway, according to
a sheriff s report. The man had a gun,
Bunnell reported.
As Bunnell passed, the man pointed
the gun and shot at him, damaging his
vehicle, a 1985 Dodge pickup.
Bunnell continued to Joshua Hayes’
residence, where he phoned the Sheriffs
Department.
Man accused
of robbing employer
A Raeford man was charged Satur
day with stealing merchandise from his
employer’s stockmom.
Jonathan Leon Jones, a 21-year old
employee of Jones Store #39 on S. Main
Street, was charged with one count of
felonious larceny by employee after
Raeford police recovered smien gtxids.
Jones Store otficials reported over
SI, 100 worth of goods stolen at first,
said Police Chief James Murd(x;k. But
police recovered almost twice that
value—$2,144.09—in stolen goods.
The arrest followed a confidential
tip, Murdock said.
Motorcycle chase
ends in ditch
A high speed chase ended in a wreck
Monday; luckily, no one was hurt.
Hoke County Sheriffs Det. Greg
Beard reported he saw two motorcycles
speeding on Scurlock Road.
When he gave chase, one motor
cycle’s driver pulled to the side of the
road; the lead motorcycle, carrying two
riders, failedtosiop, according to Beard’s
report.
Beard, driving a sheriff s department
cruiser, followed the motorcycle onto
Hillcrest Drive, then across a field.
The chase ended when the motor
cyclist tried to cross a ditch; he failed
and the motorcycle fell over.
Beard swerved into the ditch to avoid
mnning over the two motorcyclists, tlam-
aging tfie Iront end of his car.
(Sec CRIME, page 5)
By Sam C. Morris
The fall weathcrcame in several days
before the time on the calendar. The
official arrival of fall was Monday, but it
was cold on Friday, Saturday and Sun
day. The lows at night during these days
were in the 4()s. The rain last Thursday
night didn’t interfere with the Turkey
Festival. Most of the reports stated that
about two inches of rain fell during the
night.
The forecast for Wednesday through
Saturday calls for the highs to be in the
10$ and the lows will be in the 50s. There
is a good chance of rain on Wednesday.
I would say that from this forecast the
fall season is with us.
* * «
The Hoke High School Bucks upset
the Seventy-First football team last Fri
day night, nte Bucks’ record for the
season is 2 wins and 1 loss. The team
plays here this weekend.
* * *
The Turkey Festival had perfect
weather this year and the attendance
should havesetarecord. All events were
well attended and the events were well
received.
The committee should be congratu-
latcdtoi die i^iuidid job they didduiing
the week. Now they can start preparing
for next year.
* * *
Don‘t forget to sign up for the Hos
pice Golf Tournament that will be played
at the Arabia Golf Club on Friday, Octo
ber 4. Tee times will be 8a.m. and 1 p.m.
So call the Arabia Golf Club - 875-
3524 or Raz Autry - 875-3787 if you
want more information.
* ♦ *
Last week 1 ran an article in this
column written by W.T. Covington, Jr.
of Charlotte on the Covington Hou^
located on West Donaldson Avenue.
Mr. Covington is a native of Hoke County
and now resides in Charlotte, where he
is a senior member of a large law firm.
This week the article on the Covington
Farm, located in Blue Springs Township
appears in this column. 1 want to take
this space to thank Mr. Covington for
taking the lime to write these two ar
ticles. They are both interesting and very
informative and add to the historical
facts that many of us have on file. Thanks
again William.
The Fami
The Covington Farm - consisting of
about 8(X) acres — is located about two
(Sec AROUND, page 9)