P The
ERQUIMANS
WEEKLY
"Neivs front Next Door”
DECEMBER 7, 2011 - DECEMBER 13, 2011
See more
photos
from
Saturday’s
Christmas
parade,
P.IO
50 cents
Attempted murder, rape trial begins
By WILLIAM F. WEST
Staff Writer
Jury selection continued
Tuesday morning in Per
quimans County Superior
Court for a man accused
of attempted first-degree
murder of a woman in the
New Hope area more than
a year ago.
Herbert Anthony Wil
son, 29, of the 3200 block
of New Hope Road, also is
charged
with first-
degree
rape, first-
degree
sexual of
fense, as
sault with
a deadly
Wilson
weapon
and first-
degree burglary in the
case.
The woman, who was 30
years old at the time, re
portedly was left for dead
in the early morning hours
of Aug. 28,2010.
According to authori
ties, Wilson stopped at
a house about 4:30 a.m.,
knocked on the door and
asked for a piece of gum.
Wilson’s claim was he was
concerned about encoun
tering a traffic stop in the
vicinity.
The woman, who knew
Wilson through a prior
acquaintance, opened the
door, but when she turned
to get the gum, Wilson al
legedly ran in the house
and allegedly began attack
ing her, authorities said.
The woman was alleg
edly raped and then alleg
edly strangled and also lost
consciousness at one point
whUe trying to fight off
Wilson, authorities said.
Authorities also said
that Wilson allegedly tried
to contaminate the crime
scene, covered the woman
with a sheet, stole her cel
lular phone and ripped
telephone cords from the
wall before fleeing the
house.
Authorities said the
woman, after playing
dead, managed to walk to a
neighbor’s house to call for
help. Officers took her to a
hospital.
Wilson was later arrest
ed at his home. He has been
held in lieu of $1.46 million
secured bond at Albemarle
District Jail.
Judge Richard Dough-
ton of AUeghany County
is presiding in court this
week. Assistant District
Attorneys Nancy Lamb
and Josh Quidley are rep
resenting the state. Chief
See WILSON, 11
Santa Mives; Town Illuminates
The Christmas
season is here!
By CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
C hristmas of
ficially arrived
in Hertford last
week.
The well-attended
Grand Illumination lit
up the town from the
riverfront through
out Church Street
Thursday evening. On
Satiarday, a large crowd
watched over 60 units
ranging from dogs and
horses to decorated
floats and marching
bands parade through
town bringing Christ
mas cheer.
Chamber Direc
tor Sid Eley said the
parade was one of the
longest held in several
years. He expressed
thanks to the many
people who helped
make it possible.
“People think when
they see a parade, it
just happens,” Eley •
said, “but there is a
lot of work behind the
scenes. We appreci
ate all who had a part
in putting this year’s
parade together...espe
cially those who took
part in the parade.”
Local volunteer
Steve Burkett was the
parade’s grand mar
shall this year. Burkett
is known for helping
local organizations
with website creation
and design free of
charge.
Also participating in
the parade were state
Representative Annie
Mobley and Senator Ed
Jones.
Three bands partici
pated this year includ
ing the Perquimans
County High School
Marching Pirates, the
Perquimans County
See PARADE, 11
If
X.
f f
hi’
D1
STAFF PHOTO BY CATHYWILSON
Santa arrives during Saturday’s annual Christmas parade in Hertford. Santa stayed around to take photos with children at Inteliport.
\ STAFF PHOTO
BYBRErTA.ClARK
Members
of the
Perquimans
County High
I School Band
perform Christ
mas music dur
ing the'Hertford
Grand lllumina-
I tion, Thursday.
See more photos from
Hertford’s Christmas
parade online at
DailyAdvance.Com.
STAFF PHOTO
BY CATHYWILSON
Area school children,
like these from
Hertford Elementary,
brought their holiday
greetings to Satur
day’s parade.
HERTFORD ORMHAR SCHOOL
Audit:
By CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Despite a tough econo
my, Perquimans County
remains in stable financial
condition.
Monday night, county
commissioners learned
that the county’s general
fund balance of unassigned
funds totaled $3,088,081 for
the fiscal year that ended
June 30.
Auditor Donna Win-
borne of the firm Douglas
A. HoUoweU, PC. said the
county’s general fund bal
ance, which now includes
tourism development as
well as economic develop
ment funds, increased by
$21,478. The amount of
unassigned general fund
balance is 25 percent of
general fund expenditures,
weU above the 8 percent
minimum required by the
state’s Local Government
Commission.
Winborne also said the
county’s water and solid
waste budgets remain in
good shape. The water fufid
ended with an increase of
just over $400,000 whill the
solid waste budget ended
the fiscal year with an ad
ditional $101,089.
Interim County Manag
er Frank Heath said coun
ty tax collections last year
was up. The county’s tax
rate, which increaseC^hy
2 cents last year, also pro
duced additional revenue.
Also Monday night, Ben
Hobbs and Janice Cole
were re-elected as chair
man and vice-chairwoman
of the board of commis
sioners for another year.
The leadership duo was
unanimously elected.
County’s Tier 2
status unchanged
From staff reports
Perquimans County’s
Tier 2 designation wiU re
main the same in 2012. Two
other county designations
in the region changed.
Chowan County’s desig
nation dropped from Tier
2 to 1 while Gates County’s
rose from Tier 1 to 2. Else
where in the region, Pas
quotank and Currituck
remained Tier 2 counties
while Camden remained a
89076 47144
Tier 1 county.
According to the North
Carolina Department of
Commerce, the designa
tions, which are mandated
by state law, determine a
variety of state funding
opportunities to assist in
economic development.
“Our goal is to encour
age economic development
statewide so all of our resi
dents can find good jobs re
gardless of their location
in our state,” N.C. Com
merce Secretary Keith
Crisco said. “These tier
rankings provide impor
tant tools that help attract
See STATUS, 11
f
Donahue opens law firm in Hertford
By CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Most kids spend their
summers on a baU field
or in a swimming pool.
Daniel Donahue spent his
youthful summers inside
a courtroom.
The 34-year-old Eliza
beth City native loved be
ing inside a courtroom
while spending summers
with an uncle who was a
state’s attorney in Mary
land. He feu in love with
opening arguments, ju
ries, testimony, and clos
ing statements. Donahue
continues that love affair
today as a criminal de
fense attorney who recent
ly opened his law practice
in Hertford.
“I never remember
*«Te>,
STAFF PHOTO BY CATHY WILSON
Attorney Daniel Donahue has opened the Donahue Law Firm
PLLC on Market Street.
thinking there .was any
thing else I wanted to do
other than become a law
yer,” said Donahue. “I love
it. If! could do it for free, I
would. That’s how much I
love the law.”
He doesn’t practice law
y
for free, but he does like
the smaU-town warmth
and atmosphere that
comes with hanging out
his shingle on Market
Street.
“I envision myself as
a kind of a country boy,”
he said. “There is a sense
of community here. Be
ing able to wake up and
walk to work or walk my
dog over the historic S-
bridge...these things you
just can’t put a price on.
It’s wonderful.”
He is married to the
former MicheUe Nixon of
Hertford. They have cho
sen to come back home to
be closer to famUy. In fact,
Donahue says he picked
out the budding in which
See DONAHUE, 11