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Regional Briefs: Attorney for Mary Easley appeals firing
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Published: June 30, 2009
RALEIGH -- An attorney for former first lady Mary Easley says she is appealing N.C. State University's decision to fire her.
Marvin Schiller said in a letter the university released yesterday that Easley hasn't been provided a copy of the grievance procedures. He complained about the unclear grievance process and noted that it does not appear to apply to her situation.
Interim Chancellor James Woodward said in a statement that he terminated Easley's contract because funding problems forced the university to cut many of the programs she was operating. He said that Easley can pursue "pursue whatever grievance process or legal action she now deems appropriate."
Federal investigators have requested documents that detail Easley's hiring at N.C. State.
Jury selection to start in Yadkin suit
YADKINVILLE -- Jury selection is expected to start today in the case of a woman who sued the Jonesville Police Department and two of its officers, accusing them of failing to protect her and her children from her estranged husband.
In November 2002, Vernetta Cockerham filed a restraining order against Richard Ellerbee. He fatally stabbed her 17-year-old daughter, Candice, and then stabbed Cockerham before killing himself several days later.
Cockerham filed the lawsuit in 2004, saying that officers Scott Vestal and Tim Gwyn failed to enforce the restraining order after she told them that Ellerbee had violated it.
Attorneys in the case spent most of yesterday dealing with pretrial motions on what evidence will be excluded in the trial. Judge Edwin Wilson Jr. told potential jurors yesterday that the trial will last two to three weeks.
Couple given prison in son's death
TARBORO -- A husband and wife accused of killing their 13-year-old son by tying him to a tree have been sentenced to more than 10 years in prison.
Sandra McMillan entered an Alford plea to second-degree murder at a hearing yesterday. An Alford plea means that McMillan does not admit guilt but acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence to possibly win a conviction.
McMillan's husband, Brice McMillan, entered a similar plea earlier this month. The two were arrested in June 2008 after their son, Tyler, died of dehydration and heat stroke after being tied to a tree overnight as punishment.
Both were sentenced yesterday. Sandra McMillan was sentenced to 13 to 16 years in prison, and Brice McMillan was sentenced 10 to 13 years in prison.
Dead man called to jury duty twice
GREENSBORO -- A North Carolina man has been called for jury duty twice since he died in 1995.
The Greensboro News & Record reported yesterday that Irving Lecin received a jury summons last week at his home, where his daughter Robin Lecin now lives.
Irving Lecin first was called for jury duty two years after he died in 1995, and his children sent a copy of the death certificate to the court.
Robin Lecin and sister Sue Polinsky, both of Greensboro, say they're disappointed that their father's name still is on the jury rolls.
Perdue names Highway Patrol chief
RALEIGH -- The governor has named a new commander to lead the N.C. Highway Patrol after the current commander retires Aug. 1.
Yesterday, Gov. Bev Perdue named Lt. Col. Randy Glover to be the colonel of the patrol, replacing Col. Walter J. Wilson Jr.
Perdue also named Maj. Wellington Scott to fill the position of lieutenant colonel vacated by Glover.
Glover will be in charge of the state's 2,300 Highway Patrol employees, including 1,823 troopers who patrol more than 78,000 miles of highway. He is a native of Nashville and began his career in 1980 as a trooper assigned to Harnett County.
Cherokee museum nears money goal
CHEROKEE -- The Museum of the Cherokee Indian is well on its way to raising enough money for an expansion in the North Carolina mountains.
The Cherokee Preservation Foundation has raised nearly $2 million, the Asheville Citizen-Times reported yesterday. The Foundation will match any additional donations.
A planned public reading room and digital library will bring archives and research materials from the Smithsonian, the National Archives and other collections to the Cherokee museum.
Students, academics and tribe members will have easy access to material they now have to travel to Washington, D.C., to get. The facility will also include an 8,500-square-foot education and research wing.
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