Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
What’s in the news, WLOSer-style:
Bryant search
WLOSer Terrie Foster said there’s “new information” in the case of John Bryant of Henderson County who went missing last year, new information that is leading police back into the woods of north Georgia in search of his body.
Bryant and his wife Irene went for a hike in Pisgah National Forest last October and didn’t return. Searchers found Irene Bryant dead of blows to the head. The suspect in the case is Gary Hilton, who police say killed a young woman and left her body in a north Georgia forest.
Foster said searchers will also look around Ducktown, Tenn., where police think Hilton tried to use a n ATM card of the Bryants. Police from six agencies will use manpower and two helicopters to search today and tomorrow.
Shooting victim remembered
Students who returned to East McDowell Junior High School after a couple of days off remembered classmate Chelsea Gregory, one of three people shot and killed in a home in Nebo. Police have arrested the girl’s father in the shooting.
Groper at the theater
Charu said a woman said a dude tried to grope her in a theater at the Carmike Cinemas. It’s the second time in the last three months this has happened, Charu said.
The woman, who asked not to be identified so Charu blurred her fact, said she was watching The Golden Compass when a guy sat down beside her and tried to reach under her coat. The woman got up and moved and the guy bolted. The woman then chased after the guy.
Why these women don’t stand up and scream bloody hell is beyond me. It was the same thing the first time around – the woman got up and walked to get management or something. Look – if some stranger tries to feel you up, scream your damn head off and let’s catch this guy, OK?
In other news…
Johnny Harrison, on of former Buncombe County Sheriff Bobby Medford’s co-defendants in a federal illegal gambling case, was released from jail in Caldwell County Wednesday. He’s at a home in Buncombe County ahead of his trial, just like Medford… A car hit a bus carrying kids from Fairview Elementary Wednesday afternoon on Old Fairview Road. The car driver was charged with crossing the center line… Asheville City Council on Tuesday reduced building height limits from 150 feet to 100 feet for some urban developments like the Horizon, which is being planned along Merrimon Avenue… Waynesville wants to build a skate park at Vance Street Park and wants to hear from skaters about design… There was a water line break on Pearson Bridge Road. It was fixed by 2 p.m…. The state handed out a bunch of cash to prevent kids from dropping out of school. The YWCA got $90,000 of taxpayers’ money for a program, and Buncombe County schools got $150,000 for another. Money also went to McDowell, Mitchell and Swain counties.
In still other news…
The Thomas Wolfe House needs volunteers to conduct tours… Grammy-winner Jewel stopped by KISS-FM to pimp a new album she has out. But the best part of this story happened back at the anchor desk, when Diva Darcel joked that Larry Blunt does a pretty good Kermit-the-Frog after Jewel said she thought she sounded like Kermit in her hit song, “Save your Soul.” So then Larry said “Our own Kermit is in the weather center. Mike, can you do a Kerm-eee?” A dour Mike Cuevas dropped a hard “No,” then proceeded to deliver the news in his Kermit-the-Frog like voice. Ouch!
Bush parody
John Le went to West Fourth Street in Marion and the home of Carol Yancey to do a story about a display on her front porch. The display shows a George W. Bush look-alike dummy dressed in an orange jump suit and strapped to what appears to be an electric chair.
Yancey, wearing a “Hillary 2008” T-shirt, said the dummy went on the porch over Halloween and has stayed up because she’s gotten so much support. She says the Iraq war is immoral. She says there will be an “electrocution” of Bush when he goes out of office.
In other other news…
A water line repair in Jackson County is exhausting a statewide fund devoted to emergency repairs. The Jackson County line will cost $740,000 and serve four people… The drought means some nuclear plants may have to shut down some this summer because cooling lakes are so low… And we heard Tammy Watford off camera talking about Beyonce. Tammy said “Beyonce’s got those long ol’ legs….” Indeed, she does.
KP, wasn’t it, though!
Miss D, i believe WLOS did name the woman charged in the wreck. but if you want to know, just go down to the Asheville Police Department and look through the traffic reports that police file. they’ll help you find it.
Some woman hit a school bus in Fairview and was cited for the accident, but not on the news and not in the Citizen Times do they name the person. I wish someone would find out whose wife or daughter it was and share the name. Enqiring minds want to know.
Yeah, Tammy talking about Beyonce and the LEGS was pretty good…..