New Hope man builds tree-top perch
Page 3
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March 12,2008
Vol. 76, No. 11 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
News from Next Door*^
Police
on alert
women
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Local police are moni
toring parks and school ar
eas after a suspicious male
with a history of leering at
women and watching young
children was asked to leave
the local library.
Chief Dale Vanscoy of
the Hertford Police De
partment, said the 26-year-
old Edenton man was told
to leave the Perquimans
County Library Feb. 20 af
ter library staff said he was
watching one particular
woman and young child af
ter story time.
Library staff had been
monitoring the man’s ac
tions in the library for two
weeks and told police he
would come into the library
shortly before their weekly
story time for young chil
dren. He would get a news
paper and sit at a back cor
ner- table and pretend to
read the paper, police said.
Library staff, however,
watched and said the man
wasn’t actually reading
the paper, but was watch
ing the young mothers and
children instead. Staff
members also saw him peer
through a bookshelf at a
young mother, so staff then
approached the man and
told him he made others in
the library uncomfortable
and asked him to leave.
Police were called, but by
the time police arrived, the
man had already left.
By using his library card,
Vanscoy said the man’s
name and address were
obtained, and a check with
Edenton police revealed
that the man was weU
known in Chowan County
for reports of the same type
of incidents in that county
in parks and even fast food
restaurants. A police check
shows the man has been
arrested twice in Chowan
County for being a public
nuisance, Vanscoy said.
“As far as we know, he
hasn’t committed a crime
here,” Vanscoy pointed
out. “But, we are moni
toring area parks and the
school areas before and af
ter school, and no one has
reported seeing him here
since the library incident.
“The library staff did an
excellent job of handling
the situation there,” he add
ed. “If they had not picked
up on it as soon as they did,
chances are we would have
had a problem.”
The man, whose name
is known by police, is de
scribed as 5’5”, 130 pounds
26-year-old male with dark
hair who gives the appear
ance of being of Hispanic
origin. He wears round,
wire-rimmed glasses. A
picture obtained by police
shows a small dark goatee
and beard. However, a re
ported sighting of him at
an Edenton fast food restau
rant March 6 does not men
tion any facial hair.
If this male is spotted
acting suspiciously around
women or children, please
contact your local police.
ms III
READ ACROSS AMERICA AND Dr. Seuss's birthday were both
celebrated at Perquimans Central School last week with
lots of activities including eating green eggs and ham for
breakfast. Administrators and staff helped serve the themed
breakfast, donning Dr. Seuss hats to get into the spirit of the
observance.
-i
'T
County sets higher seasonal water rates
High-use
custom
ers will be
charged more
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
A higher seasonal water
conservation rate for coun
ty water customers wiU go
into effect with their May
water bUl.
County commissioners
last week approved a high
er rate for customers us
ing more than 8,000 gallons
of water a month between
May and October in an ef
fort to help promote water
conservation. The seasonal
rate wiU not apply to agri
cultural users or bulk cus
tomers like the Town of
WinfaU.
In the six months be
tween May 1 and October
1, the county wlU bill the
normal rate for the first
8,000 gallons of monthly
water use. After 8,000 gal
lons, however, county water
customers will be billed the
seasonal water conserva
tion rate of $8 per 1,000 gal
lons.
According to County
Manager Bobby Darden,
the average county water
customer uses about 4,000
gallons of water per month
and wiU see no difference
in their monthly bUl.
“Based on 2007 usage re
cords, less than 10 percent
of the customers wUl be im
pacted by the new seasonal
water conservation rates,”
said Darden.
The seasonal rates are
used to encourage county
residents to conserve water
during the months when
water demand peaks and
operational costs increase.
Darden explained that
the normal water rate is
$10 minimum for up to 1,000
gaUons of water and then $6
per 1,000 gaUons up to 8,000
gaUons. Usage over 8,000
gaUons in a month wiU be
bUled at the seasonal rate
of $8 per 1,000 gaUons.
For example, if you use
4,000 gaUons of water, your
monthly water biU will re
main at $28. However, if you
use 10,000 gaUons of water
per month, your monthly
water bUl wUl increase
from $64 to $68.
Currently, the county
has 4,750 water customers
including several poiUtry
farmers who use a lot of wa
ter and who don’t qualify as
agricultural customers be
cause they don’t meet stan
dards of a “bona fide farm”
as written in the county’s
zoning ordinance.
Darden said county com
missioners actually ap
proved the new seasonal
water conservation rate
last March, but put it on
hold for a year after the lo
cal office of the North Caro
lina Farm Bureau voiced
concerns about the higher
rate on behalf of the local
poultry farmers.
“The board agreed to a
one year delay for the sea
sonal rate for large users,
giving the poultry farmers
time to dig weUs or take
some other action to pro
vide water,” Darden said.
In addition to delaving
the application Oi. »i ;
sonal rate last year, county
commissioners also de
creased the cost of water for
customers using more than
20,000 gallons per month to
$5 per 1,000 rather than $6.
That reduction will no lon
ger be in effect beginning
May 1.
The seasonal rate will be
reflected in the customer’s
May bill which will include
water used sometime in
April. If the customer has a
leak, and can provide proof
of the leak with a repair
bill or sign a statement say
ing the. leak was repaired,
the customer wiU be billed
at the normal rate and qual
ify for a biUing adjustment
under the county’s existing
leak policy.
Darden pointed out that
the county is instituting the
seasonal water rates to en
courage customers to con
serve water and actuaUy
lower their water bUl. Some
ways to conserve water us
age is to find and fix leaks;
replace toilets, faucets and
showerheads instaUed be
fore 1994 with new water
efficient models; and to use
smart water techniques for
landscaping and gardens
obtained from the foUowing
websites: www.p2pays.org/
water and www.ces.ncsu.
edu/publications/lawngar-
den.php.
Murder
charges
Mother, daughter
charged with death
of mother’s husband
SUSAN HARRIS
Editor & Publisher
A Bethel mother and
her daughter were arrested
Tuesday and charged with
the June 2007 murder of the
mother’s husband.
Jennie Lee White, 61,
and Katherine Ann W^ite,
43, both of 117 MUl Drive,
were charged by sheriff’s
deputies Tuesday after
noon with the first degree
murder of Thomas Wood-
row White, 58.
The two are being held
without bond at Albemar
le District Jail. They are
scheduled for their first
appearance before a judge
in Perquimans County Dis
trict Court on Wednesday.
Thomas White, of 117
Mill Drive, was apparently
shot and killed in his own
bed as he slept late on the
night of Friday, June 22 or
early on Saturday, June 23.
Sheriff Eric Tilley said
the sheriff’s department re
ceived new information last
week that led to the recov
ery of physical evidence in
the case. That evidence led
back to the Whites.
“It was the break that we
had been waiting for, which
CONTINUED on page 6
Locals netted
in Nip Tuck
Operation Nip Tuck, a re
gional drug sweep that net
ted 20 suspects on various
criminal charges, included
two men from Hertford.
According to an indict
ment handed down late Feb
ruary in U.S. District Court
in Raleigh, Michael Leon
ard Coston, 33 of Hertford,
faces a federal charge of
possession with intent to
distribute five grams of
more of crack cocaine on or
about Oct. 24, 2007. Coston
was not arrested during the
regional roundup by law en
forcement March 4. A check
with area law enforcement
officials could not deter
mine whether or not Coston
has been brought in since
then.
Also charged in the six-
month investigation was
James Knight, 45, of the
100 block of Kennedy Drive
in Hertford. According to
police, Knight is charged
with possession of crack
cocaine.
The investigation encom
passed the counties of Pas
quotank, Camden, Martin,
Perquimans, Currituck and
Dare and included 12 law
enforcement agencies.
WtaAim
Thursday
High: 70 Low: 52
Sunny
Friday
High: 73 Low: 51
Cloudy
Saturday
High: 70 Low: 46
Few Showers