ews
J ournal
If it hapi>ened, it's new:»to ua
504
No.34VoL99
EiORD & Hoke County h.c
Wednesday, November 10,2004
Barefoot recaptured in Gastonia
Two week manhunt for Hoke County escapee ends with no injuries
liv ViriORI ANA SUMME-RS
Staff writer
Fugitive William Glenn Bare
foot, who escaped fiom Hoke
County Jail 16 days ago, was
captured - armed with two
loaded pistols - after resisting
arrest in Gastonia around 3 p.m.
yesterday.
No officers were injured in
BarefotM’s apprehension, and he
did not sustainany injuries after a
two-week pursu it from Raeford to
Aberdeen, Hope Mills,and west-
“We are relieved,
and I am sure that
even Mr. Barefoot
is relieved that it is
over.”
— US Marshal
Charles Reavis
ward to Gastonia. He became a
nat ionwide fugit ive on “America’s
Most Wanted” TV program after
over|X)wering two female jail
ers and escaping froEii the Hoke
County Jail on October 25.
U.S. Marshal Charles Reavis,
of the eastern North Carolina
district, held a press conference
in Fayetteville at the Cumberland
County Sheriff’s Office la.st eve
ning. Reavis said Barefoot faces
additional charges from kidnap-
Third graders learn
about cotton
page lb
Porter sells
Hoke possibilities
page3A
Schools get
‘fine’audit
page 5A
Warriors, Titans
Parks & Rec champs
pigt 7A
Births 3B
Calendar 2B
Classifieds 7-8B
Deaths 8A
Editorials 2A
Legals 5-6B
Public Record 6A
Religion 4B
Schools 3B
Socials 3B
Sports 7 A
We’re on the web at
www.thenews-journal.com
ping to assault on two government
officials.
Reavis commended Hoke
Sheriff Hubert Peterkin, Cum
berland County’s Sheriff M{K)se
Butler, and the Ga.stonia Police
Departmentfor being instrumen
tal in the capture of Barefoot.
Barefoot was coiwicted of the
first-degree attempted murder
of a Scotland County deputy.
Major Dan Skampeile, in 2(K)I
at Parks Grocery near McCain
by District Attorney Kri.sty M.
Newton. He was serving 84 years
in state prison. Transported to
Hoke on October 24, Barefoot
was scheduled to attend a heari ng.
answeri ng to more felony chai ges
that were pending.
Baref(H)t now faces an array of
federal charges and other felony
counts that will be levied by the
Hoke SheEiffs Office, Cumber
land Sheriff’s Office, arid the
Gastonia Police DepartEiiCEit. He
will be returEied toCeEitral Prison
in Raleigh on maximum security
status until all the charges can be
sorted out, accordiEig to Reavis.
Capture
AttCEiipting to elude a law
enfoEceEiKMit task force. Baref(X)t
was iVaEitically chased oei f(X)t by
U.S. MaEshals, Ga.stonia police
aEid other law officers when he
was sjxrtted in a small resideEitial
coEnmunity in the city.
Reavis said it wels shades of
Eric Rudolph, accused bomber
of the U.S. Olympics in Atlanta,
when the feds pursued Barefoot
into a heavily wotxled area. Rea
vis said it reminded him of Ru
(See BAREFOOT, page 5A)
V
Barefoot is taken into custody by authorities in Gastonia. (Photo by the Gaston Gazette)
Peterkin at news conference
Peterkin
credits
teamwork
By Vktoriana Summe-rs
Staff writer
Fugitive William Glenn Bare
foot, who escaped froEn Hoke
County Jail barely two weeks
ago, is back in cu.stody, and he
(See TEAMWORK, page 5A)
Peterkin fires jailer in aftermath of jaUbreak
Bv Vktoriana StiMMiiRS
Staff writer
After an internal investigation
was completed on Friday, Sheriff
Hubert Peterk i n revealed on Tues
day that one of the two feniiEle
jailers at the Hoke County Jail
iEiiplicated in the recent escape of
fugitive William Glenn Barefoot
has been liied.
This resolution came just prior
to the capture of Barefixvt yester-
da) in Gastonia.
“I Enerely told her that I no
loEiger needed her services,” Pe
terkin flatly said. “We are doing
everythiEEg to make this situation
right so our citizens in Hoke
County will be protected froEii
our inEiiates.
“We will be exercising more
discipl i nary actions for violations
that we found.”
Peterkin said he adEiiinistered
the di.sciplinary action even
though a State Bureau of Investi-
gationcritninal probe has .still not
been completed. Di.strict Attorney
Kristy M. Newton requested the
SBl to intercede with an inquiry,
which is standard protocol, after
thejailbreak incident occurred on
(ktober 25.
(See JAILER, page 4A)
Turkey Festival - Christmas parade set for Saturday
John Mims, this year’s marshal.
Bv P vi Al 1 I N Wll .SON
Editor
SepteEiiber's loss is November’s
gain.
With rain expected from Hur-
riciine Ivan, the 2()th annual North
Carolina Turkey b’estival paradethat
was to take place in mid-September
was rescheduled for this coming
SaturdiEy. In addition to the tall and
famous — make that infamous
— turkey that walks the parade
route, there will be the jolly old
man himself
Melissa Tuel, chairperson of the
parade, .says Santa Claus will be on
the tail end of the parade as it moves
down Main Street.
The first entry will be the grarid
marshal, John Mims. Mims’ choice
was an appropriate one as t h i s nat ion
is again iit war. He is a survivor of
the Bataan Death March and spent
four years under the tyranny of his
Japanese captors in prisoner of w;ir
camps. A resident of west Hoke, he
is now 81 and one of a handful of
survivors of the death tnarch.
Tuel says there will be close to
100 entries in the parade. “We lost a
(See PARADE, page BA)
l'OY ,
L
lUntfeM
Last year’s parade, which too was postponed due to weather.
Director of juvenile crime program blames politics for his ousting
By VicroRiANA Summi-.rs
Staff writer
George Cooke was ousted on
Friday as the program director
for the Juvenile Crime Preven
tion Council after a three-year
career devoted to turning around
juveniles facing disciplinary
problems or charged with crimi
nal offenses.
Cooke is described bv some
of his supporters as gifted and
tireless in his efforts to help re
form juvenile delinquents. Hoke
commissioners indicated Cooke’s
contract was cancel led because of
plans for the cou nty to rest ruct u re
the position and seek bids for the Cooke’s removal as coordinator,
contract in the future. however.
Chairperson Rogina Deese of Cooke said he was not .sur-
“It was basically a decision based on dirty
politics and a personal vendetta of James Leach’s
because 1 supported an underdogin the election.”
— Cooke
“1 think George Cooke was a disgrace to the
county commissioners. He was itsing his position
we were paying him for to try and tear us down.”
— Leach
the JCPC disEnis.sed Cooke on a
directive from the county. The
JCPC members did not vote on
prised, attributing his requested
departure to his political ties
during the election.
“Unfortunately, the ones who
may suffer after my being let go
are the children of Hoke County,”
Cooke said. “1 was very commit
ted to helping them.”
A DeimKrat, Ccxvke recently
lan unsuccessfully for a posi
tion on the Hoke Soil and Water
Conservation board. C(X)ke also
served as the caEnpaign manager
for Libertarian candidate Pete
CaiEEp, a COE EEEEiissEOEier oppoEient
who lost to Commission Chair
man Bobby Wright and Coeii-
Eiiissioner JaEiies A. I^ach in the
race. Wright and Leach are both
Democrats.
“1 was fired by Rogina Deese,
but I know .she did not want to
(See OUSTED, imgebA)
Chaplain George Cooke