Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
Rape case
WLOSers are staying on top of the sick rape trial in Buncombe County, where a guy is charged with running into the home of an 87-year-old woman with nothing more than a stocking over his head and raping her.
The prosecution offered up more testimony from experts who worked with the woman after the incident. They described how the 86-year-old woman had been hit in the face and they noted some blood evidence. In earlier testimony, WLOSers showed us the woman’s shaky hands as she recounted her attack and said she fought back, ripping the mask off the rapist’s head so she could see i.d. him.
The sleazy defense lawyer was jumping on the woman’s age, questioning her memory and eyesight, according to WLOSers.
The whole thing just makes us sick.
Kayaker dies
In a bizarre accident, a top adventure athlete was hit by a train and killed on Tuesday, according to Cherub Charu.
Daniel DeLavergne (sp?) was named one of the world’s top paddlers by National Geographic last year. He traveled the world over looking for the nastiest whitewater rapids he could find, then conquered them.
Charu told us that the kayaker was apparently camping in a short railroad tunnel when he was hit. Weird for a world-class daredevil to be done in by a lumbering train.
Saint in sin city
WLOSer Susan Mundy followed the Rev. Billy Graham and his son Franklin down to New Orleans this week as the two evangelists plan to hold a revival later this week. Susan, with properly mussed hair to really make it look like she’s reporting from a disaster zone, told us how everything is still a wreck. She brought us some up close video of Rev. Graham, who looks extremely old and brittle. I think he’s 86 or 87 now.
In other news…
The Asheville High graduate who fell out of a third-story dorm window at UNC Chapel Hill is expected to make a full recovery. WLOSers brought us some audio tape of his dad talking about his injuries.
At 5, WLOSers told us not to worry about our mulch. Apparently there are Internet rumors flying that some big home improvement stores used Hurricane Katrina debris for mulch and that debris could include the vicious Formosan termite, a hungry little bugger who can’t be eradicated. But it’s all just Internet rumor-mongering.
Finally, CandyCanes, why are you still here? We thought you’d said you’re goodbyes and were outta here? What’s going on?
candice said goodbye on the weekend desk..she still has to work out her contract..her last day is march 17th.
Julie Wunder deserves some kind of award. Not only is she apparently on call for any and all TV schedules, she single-handedly anchors the Saturday morning news, weather, sports – the whole damn show.
And what’s the thanks she gets? Wednesday night at 6, less than 5 minutes after she teased the weather, Ol’ Blunt turns in his chair, the camera pans back to include the weather set where Wunderful is waiting, and Ol’ Lar intones: "What’s it like out there, Mike?"
Only Mike was off. The Wunder Kid was standing there, and played it off like a champ. She’s probably too nice to be thinking "Jesus holy crap, you frigging toad-sized idiot, do you eyes only work if they’re looking at the teleprompter."
– Bulldog
Why has no one – newspaper or television – apparently gotten an answer to the most important question in the UNC dormitory story? "What the hell were you guys doing? How do you run through a third-floor window into space?"
– Bulldog