&i
COMMISSIONER LANIER RAISES ISSUES ABOUT HIMSELF AS WELL AS OTHERS
By Jack Rider
Last Tuesday, July 19, North
Carolihalnsuranoe Commission
er Edwiii Lanier held a news
in Raleigh in which
he gave hut some most specific
figure# about fraudulent hail in
surance daims made over a 3
yeaf period in Eastern North
Carolina^
Lanier, however, mentioned
no names, and geheralized his
report by sweeping in all of
Eastern Carolina with the charg
es of fraud;
Among the allegations Lanier
made was that a total of $ 189,
844.20 had been paid out in
fraudulent claims in this per
iod; that this figure included 11
claims paid to farms on which
no tobacco is grown, amounting
to $101,463.12, claims amounting
to $34,347 on fictitious farms
SI three claims amounting to
072 paid out but not to the
actual farmer in whose name
the claims were filed.
Immediately all across East
ern North Carolina complaints
began to pour into Lanier’s of
fice over the manner in which
he had conducted the press con
ference, by mentioning specific
figures, but by jiot mentioning
any names.
This failure to mention names
cast a cloud of suspicion over
every farmer, every insurance
agent and every insurance ad
juster working in Eastern North
Carolina.
Obviously, the innocent resent
ed this unnecessary abuse and
it surely didn’t make the guilty
any more comfortable since they
know very well who they are,
whether Lanier publishes their
names or not.
Worse, perhaps than the im
mediate cloud of suspicion cast
by Lanier’s poor judgment was
the flood of rumors he set into
motion.
No doubt every county in which
flue-cured tobacco is grown in
Eastern North Carolina has had
people in it who immediately as
sumed that the whole conspiracy
took {dace in their county, and
in Lenoir County this is surely,
the chaff that is floating about.
Lanier Silent
In the July 19th press confer
ence Lanier said more news
would be issued and that the re
lease of that day was just a “pre
liminary report.”
Now more than a week has pass
ed. The rumors grow faster and
wilder. Lanier will not answer
his phone, nor return calls plac
ed by anyone in Kinston.
Lanier was appointed Insur
ance Commissioner July 5, 1962
on the death of Charlie Gold, so
if his statement of last week is
correct he and his staff have
known of these abuses for three
years.
And the only action taken so
far has been to permit increas
es in hail insurance rates suffic
ient to offset the losses by actual
hail or by fraud that have tak
en place in this 3-year period.
If rate is a yardstick in this
matter Lenoir County appears
to be a likely suspect since the
hail insurance rate per $100 in
Lenoir County is $6, while it is
$4.50 in neighboring Duplin
County, $5 in Greene apd just
$3 in Onslow.
The companies who have been
hit by the fraud apparently have
been more interested in getting
back the money they paid out
than in prosecuting those doing
doing the stealing.
The insurance commissioner,
having admitted that this is a
3-year affair, also leaves himself
open to charges for not having
acted more forcefully.
Among the rumors that per
sist is that a meeting was held
in 1963 in which all agents writ
ing hail insurance were warned
to “straighten up.” This, as with
the case now at hand, was a
gratuitous slap at those agents
who had been operating honest
ly and it was less than a slap
on the wrist to those who were
stealing.
One thing is obvious, Lanier
has permitted the honest farm
ers to repay the losses to the in
suring companies, and to this
injury Lanier is now permitting
those honest farmers to also suf
fer the slanders that are now
street comer gossip in every
part of Eastern North Carolina.
If Lanier knew fraud was com
mitted in 1963 and if he knew
who was doing it he is guilty of
failing to protect both the pub
lic and the honest insurance peo
ple, both of whom look to the
office of insurance commission
er for protection.
:THE JONES COUNTY
JOURNAL
NUMBER 13
TRENTON, N. C„ THURSDAY, JULY 28, 1966
VOLUME xvm
Three Get Medals,
Cash for Saving
Man's Life in Wreck
The Carnegie Foundation this
week announced making its
medals for heroism awards to
three local men, who also get a
cash donation,.of $750 each.
The three are The Reverend
J. C. Parker, former pastor of
Lane’s Methodist Chapel and the
Dover Methodist Church, Henry
Moore, a Kinston truck driver,
and Reid Joyner, a Dover route
1 farmer.
On July 1, 1964, Albert Wall
er of Kinston was knocked un
conscious in a wreck near Dov
er and the truck he was driv
ing brust into flames.
The trio receiving the awards
managed to fasten a chain to
the truck cab and pull it open
to remove the unconscious Wall
er.
Parker received burns about
the arms and Waller escaped
with minor burns, bruises and
a concussion.
Divorce Asked
Clerk of Court Walter P. Hend
erson filed one civil case in the
past week. Henry L. Darden
seeks a divorce from Frances
Brock Darden alleging their
marriage May, 1948 and their
separation July 30, 1954.
ONE ARREST
Sheriff Brown Yates reports
one arrest in the past week. Ric
hard Dail of Trenton is charg
ed with being publicly drunk.
Butcher Makes Widow Happy by Returning Lost Money
'jv't
Lewi* Newcomb, an employee in the meat cutting department at the Kinston . A & P store
last Thursday made Mrs. Vivian Faison of 309-B Richard Greene Apartments mighty happy, and
1966 has net been a happy year for her up until then. On January 20th Mrs. Faison's husband,
Ira, died after a long illness and on March 31st a daughter, Mrs. Iris Braddock, died after a brief
Illness. Last week Mrs. Faison was making the rounds, buying groceries and paying bills with
insurance money collected after the death of her daughter. She lost an envelope with no mark
ings on it containing one $100 bill, two $20 bills and three $5 bills. Finally her luck began to im
prove. She asked Newsman Jack Rider to announce h«- loss on one of his radio programs. He
did without
discovery to
m.— ,Snr» {Hr
re Tm wore tor
M
much hope of helping her. But NMveomb found the envelope, reported the
r John Williams, who called Rider, who called Mrs. Faison, brought her
. reunion with her money. Newcomb, who is a lay minister, accepted a
Faison, who wanted to give him half of the money, bince as she said, "Half
Newcomb assured her$20 etas enough and wished her well and
profusely. ' '■ '
she
. . .
Recorder's Court Clears 26 Cases
In Past Week; Traffic Takes Most
Junes vsuuiuy ivecoraer s uourt
cleared 26 cases in the past
week.
Ten people were tried for
speeding: Samuel Griffin of
Trenton Route 2 was found not
guilty and the case was dismiss
ed at the close of State’s evi
dence. In the cases against Vin
cent Joseph Chilla Jr. of Home
stead, Fla. Gaston Kelly of
Brooklyn, New York, the state
took a nol pros with leave. Jul
ian Drewry Duncan Jr. of Ports
mouth, Va., Robert Carl O’Bryan
of Pollocksville, Arthur D. Car
lisle of Camp Lejeune, Joe Wil
lie Cancer of Camp Lejeune,
Charlie Harris of Fort Eustis,
Va., Richard Loveland of Mid
way Park, each paid a $26 fine.
Mary Bailey Barnwell of New
Bern had entered a prayer for
judgment continued on payment
of the costs.
The state dismissed the cases
against Vinnie Coombs of Route
2, Trenton, and George Phillips
charged with slander.
Hilton Mundine, no address
listed, pled guilty to assault on
a female, and was taxed with
the costs. The plaintiff withdrew
the warrant against Anthony
Smith of Pollocksville for as
saulting a female, and was tax
ed with the costs.
The plaintiff withdrew the
warrant against Franklin Bryant
of Trenton who was charged
with being drunk, disorderly
and assaulting a female.
The state nol prossed the case
against G. C. Arnold of Louis
burg, charged with passing a
worthless <iheck.
James;/Earl Thigpen of Pink
Hill Route 2 paid $26 for care
less and reckless driving. Mack
Wickerson of Maysville pled
guilty to driving without a lic
ense and-was ordered to pay a
$10 fine and the court’s costs.
James Williams Jr. of Pollocks
ville Route 1 paid $26 for al
lowing an unlicensed person to
drive his car.
Patricia Ann Jarman of Pol
locksville Route 1 paid $26 for
driving without license.
Essley Sutton Quinn of Tren
ton Route 2 was found not guil
ty of drunken driving. Johnny
Marchal Cox of Route 2 Green
ville paid $13 for improper pass
ing. Roosevelt Cuffee of Camp
Lejeune paid $13 for driving on
the wrong side of the road. Mar
ilyn L. Gardner of Wilson charg
ed with driving without a license
presented a valid one.
Billy Ray Woolard of Wash
ington Route 4 pled guilty to
improper registration and driv
ing drunk, and was taxed with
the court’s costs.
Kinston Firm Gets
$749,715 Work
In Tuesday Bidding
Barrus Construction Company
of Kinston was low - bidder
Thursday on road work totalling
$749,715.95. The local firm was
low bidder on six of 66 projects
let for bidding by the highway
commission Thursday.
The jobs and low bids of Bar
rus were for 54.30 miles of re
surfacing in Beaufort, Craven,
and Pitt counties totaling $230,
074.50.
For 31.60 miles of resurfac
ing in Carteret, Craven and
Jones counties $252,272.75.
For 40.8 miles of resurfacing
in Lenoir and Greene counties
$93,089.
For 21.2 miles of resurfacing
in Greene, Pitt and Craven coun
ties $74,288.60.
For 10.391 miles of resurfac
ing in Greene, Lenoir and Jones
counties $71,288.60.
For 4.025 miles of work in
Pitt County $27,578.60.
Captain Howard is
Running Viet Nam
Guerrilla School
Captain Malcolm Howard of
U>eep Run has been assigned to
operate a highly specialized
guerrilla and ambush school for
the 25th Infantry Division in
Viet Nam.
Viet Nam Commander Gener
al Williams Westmoreland, in
announcing Howard’s assign
ment, said the purpose of the
school is “to teach our boys how
to out-guerrilla the guerrillas and
how to out-ambush the ambush
ers”
Horse Show
The Griffon Little League As
sociation is sponsoring a horse
show on Saturday and Sunday
of this week. The Tobacco Fes
tival show will be held at River
field Farm at Griffon and will
include a full listing of all type
horse show events. The show
gets underway at 10 Saturday
morning, contihues at 1 Satur
day afternoon, at 7 Saturday
night and the final contests be
gin at 1 Sunday afternoon. All
profits from the two day event
will help sponsor Little League
Baseball in Griffon.