It's been a long year and the Watauga County Sheriff's Department has felt the pressure. Sheriff Mark Shook has released his annual crime statistics report and the news is both good and bad. Crime is up, but so are arrests. Shook attributes most of the rise in county crime to the fact that Watauga County is No. 1 in the state in methamphetamine production. The county is also No. 1 in the state in meth lab busts and arrests, a fact he attributes to the hard work of his officers. [continues 726 words]
A little more than a week ago, the Watauga County Commissioners held their annual pre-budget retreat. The two day meeting addressed "budget drivers" and reports from a number of community organizations in preparation for the long and involved process of deciding how to best spend the taxpayers' dollars. Perhaps the two days of meetings addressed many of the items that would traditionally have come before the commissioners at a regular meeting. In any event, Monday's commissioners' meeting was quick and, within 35 minutes, they had moved through an agenda devoid of controversial issues. [continues 489 words]
The North Carolina Methamphetamine Summit has released its preliminary report and the findings and recommendations will be presented to the General Assembly for action. The summit, convened by N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper, was made up of more than 200 policymakers; business leaders; local, state and federal law enforcement representatives and instructors; non-profit, health and political figures. The report and findings will ask the General Assembly to take steps to stem the tide of a problem cresting in the mountains and rolling east to break on the beaches of the Outer Banks. [continues 881 words]
Watauga and Avery counties are in the early planning stages to establish a new court and treatment program to deal with drug and alcohol addicts who find themselves trapped by their addiction and facing the traditional court system. Kirstin Frescoln, Youth and Family Treatment Court Specialist with the N.C. Administrative Office of the Courts, said that a planning committee, under the direction of District Court Judge Alexander Lyerly, is discussing the establishment of a Drug Treatment Court (DTC). She said that the establishment of a drug treatment court requires the involvement and cooperation of the district and superior courts, the office of the district attorney, the criminal defense bar, the department of social services and any drug treatment operations in the county. [continues 347 words]
Superior Court Judge James Baker began his written order dismissing charges against 11 defendants with a quote: "It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is." The quote comes from a 200-year old U.S. Supreme Court case defining the authority and the duty of the newly established court. Whether or not Baker's dismissal order will be "what the law is" will be decided by N.C. appellate courts. Baker's order, signed Nov. 26, dismissed 15 charges of knowingly storing, manufacturing or possessing a weapon of mass destruction (WMD). The WMD charges against Frederick C. Alderson, Tamberlyn W. Alderson, Christina M. Cox, Gary Joseph Cox, Christopher Lee Greene, Michael F. Laird, Martin D. Miller, Pamela L. Osborne, Jessi B. Rash, Frankie Wayne Taylor and Richard Len Taylor, Sr. were linked to allegations that the charged individuals were in possession of the precursor chemicals for the manufacture of methamphetamine or had been involved in the manufacturing of methamphetamine. [continues 917 words]
Assistant District Attorney Charlie Byrd told a roomful of district attorneys and assistant district attorneys that the 24th Judicial District is working to unveil a new weapon in the war against the "cooking" of methamphetamine. District Attorney Jerry Wilson, pending appeal, has lost one weapon in the fight, but is reaching into the bag of charges to find another creative indictment tool to deal with meth manufacturing and meth cooks. A little more than a week ago eight defendants sat in orange, county-jail jumpsuits as Superior Court Judge James Baker dismissed charges of possession, manufacture or storage of weapons of mass destruction. The accused were also charged with possession or manufacturing of methamphetamine (meth) or the precursor chemicals for the manufacturing of meth. [continues 845 words]
Superior Court Judge James Baker was asked if the process of "cooking" methamphetamine created a weapon of mass destruction. Following two days of legal argument in a Watauga County courtroom, he decided that it did not. On Friday, Baker dismissed 15 charges against at least 10 accused charged with possessing, storing or manufacturing a weapon of mass destruction (WMD). The charges arose out of allegations of meth production and Baker said that he will follow his oral decision with written orders in each case. [continues 1187 words]
Does the "cooking" of methamphetamine create a weapon of mass destruction? On an emotional level, with the impact the drug has had on lives and families in Watauga County, many residents would answer "yes." Superior Court Judge James Baker has been asked to answer the question as a legal matter, not an emotional one, and the process of answering that question began late Thursday afternoon. District Attorney Jerry Wilson has charged a number of Watauga County residents with the manufacture, possession or storage of a weapon of mass destruction (WMD). [continues 1035 words]
North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper has called Watauga County "ground zero" in the statewide war on methamphetamine. Watauga County Sheriff Mark Shook and his investigators and deputies have led the way in busting more than 30 (of a statewide total of 130) of the clandestine labs manufacturing the lethal, toxic drug. The Watauga County jail was recently found to be "out of compliance" in an inspection of the facility. The reason, according to Shook, is the overcrowding of the facility based on arrests and the failure of a number of the inmates to make bail. [continues 387 words]
On his way to the community meeting at the Fairfield Inn on the growing methamphetamine problem in the state and county, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper sat down for an interview Tuesday afternoon to discuss "meth," financial identity fraud and the Do-not-call registry. Addressing the meth problem, Cooper said that Watauga County was "ground zero" in the problem. Asked why methamphetamine and why Watauga County, Cooper said, "We know that Watauga County is the hot spot in North Carolina. We have busted 116 of these secret drug labs, 24 of these have been in Watauga County. [continues 1154 words]
North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper said that Watauga County is at "ground zero" in the statewide battle against the manufacture and distribution of methamphetamine. He said that 116 meth labs had been discovered in the state and 24 of those were in Watauga County. The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) representative raised that number to 118 with two raids planned for later this week. If the county is the primary battleground, then the point of the spear in that battle was present at the Fairfield Inn Tuesday afternoon to discuss the situation and begin the planning for the battle strategy. They came armed with pictures of meth labs and examples of "cooking" equipment and supplies. [continues 1044 words]
Watauga County Sheriff Mark Shook will be getting one new officer and the funds to pay overtime and holiday pay to a number of detectives who have been busting methamphetamine labs. Shook appeared before the Watauga County Commissioners at their meeting Tuesday morning and requested an additional $172,766 for the Sheriff's budget to hire two new officers, outfit both the officers with a vehicle and necessary equipment and pay overtime and holiday pay to five current detectives. The commissioners approved $27,000 to hire a new transport deputy to move prisoners, perform patrol duties when available and transport individuals for mental commitments. A vehicle, benefits and equipment will more than double that amount. [continues 715 words]
