CONWAY - An Horry County grand jury indicted a 13-year Loris councilman Monday on 14 counts of criminal drug charges. Now the governor's office will consider whether he should remain on the council while he faces those charges. The grand jury issued the seven two-count indictments Monday against 57-year-old James Russell Herring related to the sale and possession of narcotics at his downtown business, according to court documents. Horry County police conducted a three-month investigation that culminated with Herring's arrest July 5. [continues 306 words]
Chief says Nora, Lucy will be instrumental in department's search for illegal drugs Nora's enthusiasm for her new police job shows every time Officer Jeff Gore looks her way. The 2-1/2 -year-old Belgium Malinois wags her tail and prances her front paws in a dance-like gesture when Gore speaks a command to her. Nora, a nationally certified narcotics detection dog, is the newest officer with the Loris Police Department. And her Feb. 10 arrival makes Gore happy to again have a four-legged partner by his side. [continues 457 words]
'This Town Deserves The Best Police Protection They Can Get.' Chief Herbert Blake LORIS - Nora's enthusiasm for her new police job shows every time Officer Jeff Gore looks her way. The 21/2-year-old Belgium Malinois wags her tail and prances her front paws in a dancelike gesture when Gore speaks a command to her. Nora, a nationally certified narcotics detection dog, is the newest officer with the Loris Police Department. And her Feb. 10 arrival makes Gore happy to once again have a four-legged partner by his side. [continues 479 words]
FLORENCE - Federal prosecutors can add another name to the list of witnesses who could testify against Dr. D. Michael Woodward and four other Myrtle Beach doctors charged with illegally distributing narcotics to patients. Thomas P. Delvin, 61, pleaded guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to distribute controlled narcotics and money laundering as part of a deal to dismiss more serious charges. Woodward, 45, and the four others are scheduled for a federal trial Jan. 7 in Florence. Delvin, who worked with Woodward for a total of 15 months, beginning in October 1998, at the defunct Myrtle Beach Comprehensive Care & Pain Management Clinic, was considered third in the chain of doctors charged with Woodward. [continues 362 words]
Federal grants will provide more than $19,000 to three local police departments to purchase bulletproof vests for officers without them or replace outdated ones, state officials announced Tuesday. Locally, Horry County police can expect $12,756; Conway police, $3,721 and Andrews police $3,000 to buy the equipment, according to a news release. The money comes from the U.S. Justice Department's Drug Control and System Improvement program, which gave $408,136 to the governor's office for distribution. [continues 70 words]
COLUMBIA - When the S.C. Supreme Court decides if a Conway woman should serve out her 12-year prison sentence, it also could determine if the state should continue to prosecute pregnant women who use drugs. Attorneys for Regina Denise McKnight petitioned the court Wednesday to reverse her May 2001 conviction for homicide by child abuse. The 25-year-old was convicted of killing her baby girl by using cocaine during her pregnancy. In 1997, justices ruled a viable fetus should be protected under child abuse laws, making South Carolina the only state to recognize a fetus as a person. [continues 389 words]
The S.C. Supreme Court's decision on a Conway woman's appeal of her 12-year prison sentence could change the way pregnant women who use drugs are treated in the state. The court will hear arguments from Regina Denise McKnight of Conway on Wednesday in Columbia. In May 2001, an Horry County jury convicted McKnight of homicide by child abuse for using crack cocaine while she was pregnant. Her stillborn baby girl, delivered May 15, 1999, had a byproduct of cocaine in her blood. Prosecutors determined McKnight, who had a history of drug use, had smoked crack cocaine while pregnant. [continues 461 words]
More than two dozen arrests in Columbus County, N.C., for Medicaid fraud Wednesday, which stemmed from OxyContin dealing, are expected to impact Horry County, an official said. "We feel sure that some went over into Horry County," Columbus County Sheriff Jimmy Ferguson said. "We tracked it all over the state, which probably means it went over into South Carolina." In the roundup, the suspects "lived between Tabor City and the Brunswick County line on the state line," Ferguson said. On Wednesday, in what officials have said may be the first-of-its-kind raid, 53 warrants for Medicaid fraud were issued for 32 people in Columbus County, Ferguson said. The fraud came when the Medicaid recipients sold their monthly Medicaid cards to drug dealers, who purchased OxyContin, a painkiller, and other prescription narcotics. [continues 230 words]
LORIS -- Her tea-colored eyes stare intently at the white object in Jeff Gore's hand, slightly tucked behind his right leg. As her eyes follow his hand, she doesn't flinch a muscle when he waves the bone over her head. Gore tossed the bone into the air and Dixie, an 18-month-old black Labrador and the newest member of the Loris Police Department, leapt to catch it. Her wagging tail fanned a breeze outside the department's brick building as she lunged at Gore and tossed the bone between his feet. She returned to her alert position ready for the game of fetch to begin again. The playful dog doesn't indicate her abilities to track fleeing felons or sniff out narcotics and weapons. Dixie was recently certified to find marijuana and crack cocaine, said Gore, the dog's handler. "She sits for drugs and will lay down for guns," Gore said. "There's been word from some of the bad guys that she wouldn't find a bag of flour. [continues 361 words]
