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eIceived
JUL 3 0 2008
July 30, 2008
Vol. 76, No. 31 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
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'News from Next Door C 35 cents
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Wmimr
Thursday
High: 91 Low: 74
Isolated Storms
Friday
High: 92 Low: 72
Partly Cloudy
Saturday
High: 91 Low: 71
Partly Cloudy
CATHY WILSON
staff Writer
Imagine a bustling riv
erfront area along Grubb
Street complete with ma
rina, boat slips, restaurant,
shops, and even a bed and
breakfast or a small hotel.
Out of the question?
Not according to stu
dents attending the Kenan-
Flagler Business School
at the University of North
Carolina-Chapel Hill. They
recently completed a study
to determine if it would be
feasible to develop a pub
lic marina and associated
businesses in the area from
where the Hertford town of
fice now stands to Missing
Mfil Park.
Nick Didow, professor at
the school, presented the
team’s findings recently to
members of Hertford Town
Council.
“This is an initial con
cept plan,” said Didow.
“Where you want to take it
is up to you. You have a long
list of advantages with this
riverfront.”
It could take up to 10
years to develop the area,
he added, but it would lead
Hertford into its next 250
years.
Council members took
no action on the study.
“It is a great plan,” said
Mayor Sid Eley. “If you
don’t start planning for the
future at some point, you
won’t have anything.”
The challenge of the
project, Didow said, is to
weave development of the
riverfront area with the ex
isting downtown business
district, which fronts the
courthouse rather than the
riverfront off Grubb Street.
Didow also said that it is
remarkable that the town’s
occupancy rate for the
downtown business district
is much higher than found
in most small downtown ar
eas in America.
CONTINUED on page 10
Band photos courtesy of DAVE SILVA
SUMMER MAY BE SIZZLING, but folks in Perquimans
know fall is on the way when the sounds of music fill
the air at PCHS during Marching Pirates Band Camp.
After a week of red-hot drills, the band gave a pre
view of the 2008 show on Saturday afternoon.
Dallas guilty of stealing, scrapping cars
6"*89076"47143
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
A Holiday Island man
was convicted last week of
stealing vehicles around
the county and selling them
in Chesapeake for scrap
metal.
A Perquimans County
jury found Christopher,
Allen Dallas, 47, guilty of
three felony larcenies and
one misdemeanor larceny
in superior court. Because
of his extensive criminal
record, Dallas was also de
termined to be a habitual
felon by Superior Court
Judge Thomas Haigwood,
thereby increasing the min
imum prison sentence on
each felony conviction.
Haigwood sentenced
Dallas to a minimum of 107
months and no more than
138 months on each of the
three felony convictions.
Two of the sentences will
run consecutively, and the
third is to run concurrent
ly.
Haigwood also sentenced
Dallas to an additional 120
days on the Class I misde
meanor conviction.
Dallas was ordered to
make restitution for the ve
hicles that were scrapped,
and he assessed for psycho
logical problems and re
ceive the appropriate coun
seling while incarcerated.
Assistant District Attor
ney Linda Shields, who lead
the prosecution, called Dal
las a “con artist who just
keeps breaking the law”
during her opening state
ment to the jury. Dallas,
she said, would wait for the
victims to leave home, then
haul the vehicles away and
sell them for scrap metal.
Representing Dallas was
Public Defender Thomas
Wood, who called the evi
dence in the case circum
stantial. He also questioned
whether the charges against
Dallas were actually felo
nies if the vehicles’ values
were each under $1,000.
Testimony in the case
showed Dallas would at
tempt to contact most own
ers of what he believed to be
broken down or inoperable
vehicles and offer to buy the
vehicle without a contract
or payment for the vehicle
ever being made. Testimo
ny also showed each vehicle
owner declined his offer.
Because he has no driv
er’s license, drivers with
wreckers or dollies would
drive for him and help him
transport and sell the vehi
cles in Chesapeake. Once at
the scrap yard, the licensed
driver accompanying Dal
las would sign the receipt
for junking the vehicle and
receive payment at approxi
mately 10 cents per pound.
A Holiday Island man
testified his 1993 Honda
Accord was parked in his
driveway Nov. 8 when he
left for work that morning.
When he returned after
work, the car was missing.
His neighbor testified he
saw Dallas that day stand
ing beside a flat bed truck
parked in Maclenan’s drive
way while another man op
erated the gears pulling the
Honda up on the flatbed
trailer. The wheels on the
Honda, he said, had been
removed.
Harry Clubb, who hauls
cars and junk for a living,
said he has worked with
Dallas for the past four to
five years.
“Chris told me he had
bought a Honda, paid $50
for it,” Clubb testified.
He accompanied Dallas
to the scene around 8 a.m.
where they stripped the
car and hauled it onto the
trailer, he said. They took
the Honda to the recycler
in Chesapeake, Clubb said,
where he saw it chipped
up during the crushing
process. They were paid 10
cents per pound for the car.
“It averages between
$300—$500 per vehicle, de
pending on the weight,”
Clubb testified. “1 always
take two cars on the trailer
when I go to save on gas.”
Others had similar sto
ries, including a woman
who returned from a trip
to find two vans stolen from
her yard.
A New Hope woman said
not only did she believe
Dallas had taken her car,
but he had threatened her
after she called the sheriffs
department about her miss
ing vehicle.
Dallas took the witness
stand against the advice
of his attorney. He testified
that he is on disability due
to a mental condition. He
also testified that he has
worked in tree service, and
now buys and sells cars for
junk or car parts.
“I do 100-200 transac
tions a year,” he testified. “I
work together with Clubb
to save gas. I can only haul
one car with a dolly where
Clubb could haul two on his
trailer.”
He said he and his wife
would knock on doors,
seeking to buy cars seen
out in the yard. Sometimes
he would get a receipt for
buying and selling a car,
sometimes he would not.
Whatever he made selling
the vehicles, he would split
with Clubb, he said.
James Rushing worked
with him as well.
Dallas said he pulled a
groin muscle on Oct. 28, just
a few days before the cars
in question were reported
ly stolen. Because of his in
jury, he could not work, or
even stand or sit for any pe
riod of time without being
in pain. He couldn’t work
for two weeks, he added.
He said Clubb and Rush
ing were the ones who con
nected the vehicles to the
trailer or dolly, that he nev
er had any association with
it, and that their trailers
never came on his property.
On cross examination.
Shields pointed out that
Dallas’s prior criminal re
cord included convictions
of forgery, multiple counts
of obtaining property by
false pretense, larceny, com
municating threats, pos
session of drug parapher
nalia, and driving while
impaired.
Schools look
for ways to
save money
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
and
SUSAN HARRIS
The tough economy isn’t
just hitting taxpayers and
consumers. It’s causing the
school system to look for
ways to save money as well.
So far, no downsizing of
overall staff has occurred.
However, some employees
have been transferred. Also,
as grants expire, positions
funded by those grants are
being absorbed by other
funding sources, or the em
ployee is offered another
position. ,
The system cut back this
summer with no summer
school or daycare offered.
“For the past six years,
programs for after school
activities and daycare had
been funded through the
21st Century grant,” ex
plained Lassiter. “The lo
cal school system applied
for and received the 21st
Century grant (a three-year
grant) for two consecutive
terms. Those funds are no
longer available for the
school system.”
A new assistant princi
pal position has actually
been created this year to
serve both Central and
Hertford Grammar schools.
That position will focus on
discipline of students, eval
uation of teachers and cur
riculum.
School officials also plan
to save money by consoli
dating bus routes.
In response to prob
lems on buses and sched-
illing about 10 years ago,
the system assigned a fleet
of buses to each school to
transport only the students
in that school. At that time,
officials said the cost of
providing site-based trans
portation was not signifi
cantly higher than a more
traditional approach.
But that was before the
system’s fuel costs surged
to $4.40 per gallon.
“With fuel allocation by
the state at $3.23 per gal
lon, schools will have to be
creative when it comes to
transporting students dai
ly,” Lassiter said. “Practic
es and procedures for field
trips and athletic events
will also be considered with
the rising cost of fuel.”
Transportation Direc
tor Donald Hurdle led an
efficiency study of bus
transportation. Based on
that information, officials
have decided to transport
students at Central and
Hertford Grammar schools
on the same buses this com
ing school year.
Benefits include shorter
bus routes, savings on fuel,
older children on the bus
caring for younger children
and fewer buses traveling
thie same roads.
At this time, the system
win not combine middle
and high school students.
The system wfil host
an information session on
Monday, Aug. 11 at 5 p.m. at
the central office to discuss
parental questions and con
cerns about buses. Bus as
signments and pick-up and
drop-off times will also be
available at the meeting.