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AUVEdT-
Member
North Carolina
Press Association
— Since 1889 —
KINGS MOUNTAIN, NORTH CAROLINA
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1987
City Board Splits 4-2
On Bids, Draining Issue
budgeted the item and that
meter readers came under
his (Chappell’s) supervision.
Commissioner Houston made
After voting unanimously
on 31 items of business of a
long city board session that
ended at 12:15 Tuesday night
IEE Cee
sit [Sim
David McDaniel, fourth grader at Grover
School and son of Beth and Randy McDaniel
of the Dixon Community, was discharged
from Charlotte Orthopedic Hospital Tues-
day and was getting the royal treatment
from his younger brother, John, and enjoy-
ing visits from friends and kin.
The 9-year-old luckily escaped disabling
injury Friday afternoon when a 410 gauge
shotgun when off while he was dove hunting
on his grandfather's farm and the ‘blast
went through both hands.
David went through a seven hour opera-
tion at Charlotte Orhtopedic Hospital. With
both hands in Splines Tuesday he was
reading his books looking over an excellent
report card and his homework assignments.
" He was counting the days when he could go
back to school, take piano lessons from
Peggy Ramey and hunt with his grand-
father, Jack Hughes.
His grandparents, Jack and Clara
Hughes, aren't optimistic about hunting ex-
cursions since the freak accident and are
still looking back with gratitude to what
happened just after the accident and thank-
ing God for what didn't happen.
Dr. David Baker, David's surgeon, has
told the family that David will have some
HOME FROM THE HOSPITAL—David McDaniel, 9 year old son of Beth and Randy
McDaniel, was glad to get home from the hospital Tuesday. He is pictured with is
brother, John, surrounded by balloons and get-well cards and messages.
David’s Home, Doing Fine
After Dove Hunting Accident
tenderness in his left finger but that his
wounded hands will heal. The family is
grateful for the ‘‘good samaritans'’ of
Cleveland County who eased their pain and
the Shelby Police and Auxiliary Firemen
who took Clara Hughes and David to the
hospital while other ‘‘good samaritans’
helped Jack repair a blown radiator hose in
the Hughes car which broke down at the
Buffalo Creek bridge as the Hugheses sped
to the hospital.
The chain of events began around 3 p.m.
Friday while Hughes was dove hunting on
his farm with his two grandchildren, David
and 7% year-old John McDaniel. Beth
Hughes was at work and her husband was at
‘home getting ready to pick her up at the of:
tice for their (rip to Ridgecrest. Apparently’
David dropped the gun while sitting on a
four wheel farm hay wagon and the ham-
mer of the gun struck or bumped the steel
tongue of the wagon, causing the weapon to
discharge. : ; ;
Hughes and his wife, Clara, who was go-
ing out the front door about that time to
drive to Gaffney, S.C., gathered the wound-
ed boy into their car and headed toward
Cleveland Memorial Hospital. The car blew
Turn To Page 8-A
Attack Fatal T o Ruth Ruff
and after two executive ses- United Way | the motion to buy the meters,
sions, the board split 4-2 on 1 saying, ‘‘we need to forget
two issues. /2-Way Home | these personality
The disagreement came on Page 12-A differences.’
the awarding of bid (4-2) for
1,000 electric meters after re-
jecting 4-2 motion to table the
whole matter by Commis-
sioner Norman King, second-
ed by Commissioner Corbet
Nicholson.
Item 35 on the agenda, con-
sideration of receiving prices
for Hawthorne Drainage im-
provements, also resulted in
a split vote. This time, Com-
missioner Humes Houston
sided with Commissioner
Norman King in voting ‘‘no.”
Commissioners Irvin Allen,
Humes Houston, Harold
Phillips and Fred Finger
voted not to table Item 31 on
the agenda and approved the
low bid of Shealey Electric of
$28,840.00 for 1,000 electric
meters for a meter exchange
program.
Commissioner King ob-
jected to the request for the
meters coming from city
meter reader Dan Hughes,
who works under the supervi-
sion of City Clerk Marvin
Chappell, instead of from
Utility Director Jimmy
Maney. ? ;
‘Maney,’ whe was present
forthe meeting, said Le was
not consulted in the matter
and his department did not
authorize the purchase of
new meters to replace digital
type meters. Maney said he
had no objections to the board
acting on the request,
however.
At one point in lengthy
discussion, Commissioner
Library Fund
Nears Goal
Page 12-A
Finger asked if he should
withdraw his motion and
questioned Clerk Marvin
Chappell as to why Maney
was not consulted in the mat-
ter of purchasing electric
meters for his department.
Chappell said that probably
he should have consulted
Maney but that the board had
KM Men Sentenced
In Jay Murder Case
Steven Foy Crawford, 24,
and Charles Hubert Adams,
24, both of Kings Mountain,
pled guilty to second degree
murder in the Oct. 31, 1983
shooting death of Kings
Mountain Bluebird Mobile
Home dealer Clarence David
Jay in Cleveland County
Superior Court Monday mor-
ning.
Crawford also pled guilty to
assault with a deadly weapon
inflicting serious injury in
connection with the shooting
i price for Hawthorne Road
Item 35 on the agenda was
consideration of receiving
drainage improvements, and
also resulted in a 4-2 split.
This time, Commissioners
Humes Houston and Norman
King voted against an expen-
diture of $10,868.50 to
Carolina Concrete Co. for
pipe and the other four com-
missioners approved. King
called attention to the fact
that ‘“‘not in 22 years on the
board have I seen the city
pass on quotations from three |°
firms, instead of bids’ and
asked Department Head Karl
Moss for an explanation.
Moss said that the board had
authorized the bids sometime
ago but the city purchasing
Turn To Page 5-A
of Jay’s father, Clarence
Porter Jay.
Judge John Gardner
sentenced Crawford to life
imprisonment plus 10 years
to run concurrently. He
sentenced Adams to life im-
prisonment.
Both men could be eligible
for parole in 10 years.
Gardner dismissed all
other charges against the
two, including a charge of
robbery with a dangerous
weapon.
Two Former KM Cops Sue
City Because
Funeral services for Mrs.
Ruth Ruff, 58, of 805 Boyce
St., who died suddenly Sun-
day of a heart attack, were
held Tuesday at 4 p.m. from
Temple Baptist Church of
which she was a member.
Rev. Eugene Hardin and
Rev. Roy Ruff officiated at
the rites and interment was
in Mountain Rest Cemetery.
Mrs. Ruff was a native of
Cleveland County, widow of
Robert Ruff and daughter of
Mrs. Elaree Peterson who
survives. Also surviving are
three sons, Charles Ruff and
Keith Ruff, both of Shelby,
and Pete Ruff of Kings Moun-
tain; her daughter, Mrs.
Angela Dotson of Shelby;
eight grandchildren; and her
brother, Clyde Harrelson of
Kings Mountain.
A veteran employee of
Roses’ ‘Stores who started
work as a sales clerk at the
old Roses Store in downtown
‘Mrs. Ruff became Operations
Manager of the Shelby Roses
Store when it opened in 1982.
She died at the Shelby store
shortly after reporting to
work Sunday afternoon and
was pronounced dead on ar-
rival at Cleveland Memorial
Hospital. She was a past
president of Unit 155,
American Legion Auxiliary,
and immediate past District
93 president of the Auxiliary
and served a two year term.
She also served on a state
Two former city policemen
- Don Johnson and Gary Sale
| fired by the city for their
connection. to separate in-
cidents, each filed $500,000
civil suits against the city in
U.S. Federal Court in
Charlotte through their
# | Gastonia attorney Lester
% Broussard.
Johnson and Sale are suing
the City of Kings Mountain,
Mayor John Henry Moss,
Retired Chief of Police
Jackie Dean Barrett, Assis-
Of Firing
tant Chief Bobby G. Hayes,
and City Commissioners Cor-
bet Nicholson, Irvin Allen,
Jr., Humes Houston, Harold
J. Phillips, W. Norman King
and Fred Finger, Jr.
The lawsuits also seek
reinstatement of their jobs at
KMPD, back pay, full
benefits and regaining of
original seniority at the time
of termination.
Johnson was fired March
Turn To Page 2-A
the late Jewel Harrelson and
Kings Mountain 29 years ago,
committee for the Auxiliary.
RUTH RUFF
PROUD TO BE AMERICAN—Bouapha (Ted) Silapheth, Jr. stands proudly
with the
flag of the United States. The Laotian born Silapheth will become a naturalized U.S.
citizen Friday. Pictured with Silapheth is his Sunday School teacher, Micki Padgett.
By ELIZABETH STEWART
News Editor
Bouapha Silapheth, Jr., 39, becomes an
American citizen Friday and he never plans
to stop thanking God for freedom.
Silapheth, who also gets a new first name,
Ted, which is shorter and easier to pro-
nounce than his given Laotian name, will be
sworn as a naturalized citizen at 10:30 a.m.
ceremonies at Western District Court,
among 50 other people who will be just as
proud as he is the moment Thomas J.
McGraw presents certificate of naturaliza-
‘tion.
“I thank God for my new land and my
new home and for bringing my. family and
me to America’, said Silapheth who said
that First Baptist Church sponsored his
family in America. ‘Ted’ is one of the 24
Laotians who are active in a Laotian Sun-
day School Class at First Baptist taught by
Micki Padgett and Cindi Wood.
Reciting the pledge of Allegiance to the
flag of the United States has special mean-
Bouapha ‘Ted’ Silapheth
Proud To Be An American
2
ing to Silapheth, who escaped the Com-
munists in Laos in December 1980 after ob-
taining a ‘‘phony permit’, went into hiding
and was able to get his wife and family out
of that country along with the ‘boat people’
to a small village for safety until they could
get to Thailand. Ted's wife, who was six
months pregnant at the time, lost the baby
five days after they made it out of South
Laos and to a refugee camp in Thailand.
Silapheth’s job as a mechanic with the
USAF, working on C47's and DC3's, was a
big factor, he says, in the family getting to
American soon after escape. The Silapheth
family escaped from South Laos in
December 1980 and Sept. 26, 19¢1 was their
first day on U.S.A. soil. Ted and Chanthone
Silapheth and their five childr:n came to
Kings Mountain, Oct. 5, 1981 ard reside on
Grover Road in the Macedonia church com-
munity. Their daughter, Seng 13, is an
honor student at Central School; son,
Turn To Page 4-A
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