Friday, May 9, 2008

                Conservative Republican Gresham Barrett of South Carolina and liberal Democratic Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts take different stances on the American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008.  Barrett opposes an amendment filed by Frank and says the bill would use taxpayers’ money to create a potential 300 billion dollar new program to “bailout” irresponsible housing lenders and borrowers.

Friday, May 9. 2008

                The president at Clemson University says Clemson will persevere in uncertain economic times with a mixture of optimism and realism.  James Barker told faculty and staff, “We are sensitive to the real hardships that families face because of a weakening economy and rising costs.  We know we face funding cuts and inflation in energy and other costs….”  Barker says internal re-allocations and cost-saving moves are helping Clemson operate efficiently.

Friday, May 9, 2008

                A delay of at least one week has been declared in an arraignment proceeding for the Seneca police chief.  The clerk for the Toccoa, Georgia Municipal Court told reporters that, at the request of Chief Stanley Sheriff’s Georgia lawyer, the court date will be re-scheduled. Chief Sheriff faces a charge of misdemeanor theft by shoplifting in an April incident at the Toccoa Wal-Mart.  But his supporters say Sheriff had suffered a stroke beforehand and has no memory of even being in the store that morning.     In the misdemeanor case before Judge Willie Woodruff, Sheriff is being represented by Toccoa attorney Tim Healy.  But yesterday a woman at Healy’s office said the lawyer was attending a seminar on Amelia Island, Florida.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

                During spring clean week, maintenance employees at the Oconee Department of Transportation joined colleagues from around the state to clear roadsides of litter. In Oconee, 42 employees scooped up more than 16 and a half thousand pounds of litter from alongside 50 miles of roadway. The statewide totals during the week April 14th thru the 18^th week were 434 thousand, 368 pounds from 2 thousand, 93 miles of highway.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

                Seneca Rotarians find out today about the new electronic way that local doctors share medical records.  The system is called “Community-Wide Health Information Exchange.”  Speaker for the Rotary meeting are Jay Hansen, Reba Cartee, and Dr. Jaymi Meyers.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

                Preliminary autopsy findings found no obvious disease or congenital abnormalities in the death yesterday of a two-month old infant in Seneca.  And there were no blunt or penetrating injuries.  But Coroner Karl Addis says further lab studies and toxicology are required before a final cause and manner of death is determined.  But, for now, according to the coroner, the preliminary cause of Zay Morris’s death is suffocation.  Addis says it is believed Zay’s airway became obstructed while he was in the crib at his daycare center.

                The caregiver who placed Zay into the crib reported she laid him down on his side in the crib; she said he was wrapped loosely in a baby blanket.  The crib was standard size; the padding, a foam material about three and a quarter inches thick.  The padding was covered by a crib sheet.  Around 3:10 to 3:15, before being placed in the crib, Zay reportedly was fed bottle.

                Around 3:45, the caregiver reported she found him unresponsive to voice; his eyes were closed and his color pale.  The supervisor was alerted.  That supervisor, the owner of All God’s Children Daycare, reported she saw Zay with “shallow breathing.”  The mother and grandmother were contacted, C-P-R was started, and at 4:03 pm EMS was called.

                Zay was taken to the Oconee Medical Center where he was declared dead at 5:07 p-m.

                The death remains under investigation by the coroner, the Seneca police, and DSS.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

                Oconee’s Republican Party is going to offer local contested candidates the chance to appear at a forum, where the voting public will get a chance to size up the candidates and evaluate their beliefs and positions. Chairman  Eddie Adams says the county party will be contacting the candidates for State House Two and Oconee County Council seats 2, 4, and 5 to arrange a date….and an announcement will be made once a date is set.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

                Oconee County Coroner Karl Addis reports a second person has died in yesterday’s traffic light collision in Seneca.  Curtis Leroy Kimbrell, 77, of Taylors, driver of the 1996 Ford Econoline van died at 5:15 this morning in the trauma intensive unit at Greenville Memorial Hospital.  Kimbrell’s brother-in-law, Frankie Junior Spearman, 79, of Seneca died in yesterday morning’s crash at 123 and Radio Station Road in Seneca.  Spearman was a passenger in the van. The two occupants of the second vehicle are reported to have suffered minor injuries. The police yesterday sought the services of a translator to help them interview the Chinese-American occupants of the second vehicle, a food delivery truck.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

                State troopers kept busy investigating collisions in both Oconee and Pickens counties.  They are assisting the Seneca police in the fatal crash at 123 and Radio Station Road.  A trooper investigating a collision involving a car and a dump truck in front of the Keowee Key sales office was dispatched to a school bus-motorcycle accident in Pickens County. A 9:45 a-m crash in Seneca took the life of Frankie Junior Spearman.  The 79-year old Seneca man was a front seat passenger in the Ford Econo-line van.  Spearman’s brother-in-law, Curtis Leroy Kimbrell of Taylors, was eventually air-flighted to a Greenville hospital.  96.3/WGOG NEWS was unable yesterday afternoon to ascertain the condition of the 77-year old Kimbrell. Major John Covington of the Seneca Police Department said a translator was being sought for the purposes of helping the police to interview the two occupants of the other vehicle, a refrigerated truck.  Covington identified them as Chinese-Americans who were making food deliveries to local and area Chinese restaurants. Authorities say those two men suffered minor injuries.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Monday, May 5, 2008

                Members of the state patrol’s accident re-construction team are due in Seneca this afternoon to help the city police in the investigation of the fatal crash at 123 and Radio Station Road.  Coroner Karl Addis says a passenger in the van, a 79-year old Seneca man, died in the accident.  His name has been withheld, while next of kin are notified. Major John Covington of the Seneca Police says the driver of that van was in critical condition at the Oconee Medical Center.  In the meantime, the services of a translator have been requested to allow the police to question the occupants of the other vehicle in the collision---a            refrigerated truck.  Covington says the driver and passenger in that truck are Chinese-American who were making deliveries to local and area Chinese restaurants. The 9:45 a-m accident temporarily closed 123 east bound traffic between Wells Highway and Radio Station Road.  Covington says motorists can expect at least one lane in the vicinity of the scene to be closed again today, as the state troopers conduct their part of the investigation.

Monday, May 5, 2008

                A second set of ironworkers is to arrive in Seneca, for the final phase of the elevated water tank project.  The concrete support is in place and now, according to utilities superintendent Bob Faires, the next set of ironworkers will have the duty to set in place the one million gallon capacity tank.  The crew is due to arrive in about two weeks.

Monday, May 5, 2008

                If the decision of Oconee County Council is to keep the Capital Projects Commission intact, at least one commissioner no longer wishes to serve.  He’s Julian Stoudemire, who explained his position in a recent e-mail to county administrator Dale Surrett.

Council tomorrow night is expected to receive the Capital Projects Commission’s recommendation against placing a one percent proposition on this November’s ballot.  The commissioners believe 2010 is a better time for a referendum. Stoudemire, co-chairman of the commission, expressed his wish to no longer serve---after an earlier e-mail from Surrett. 

Friday, May 2, 2008

                The police say the car they sought in yesterday’s kidnapping case has been found abandoned in Seneca.  But their suspect remains at large.  Major of Operations John Covington says a man took the car and kidnapped the owner, as she tried to enter her home.  She was later released unharmed on highway 93 near Clemson.

Friday, May 2, 2008

                What did Westminster City Council talk about for one hour, 45 minutes behind closed doors?  They broke up their closed door meeting last night---without taking action.  And the city administrator told a reporter that, because of closed session rules, he can’t give details.  From one city official, 96.3/WGOG NEWS has learned the talk may have centered on a potential property deal.

Friday, May 2, 2008

                The public defender has been appointed to represent a Westminster store keeper accused of disseminating obscenity to a minor. Assistant solicitor Lindsey Simmons said Judge Alex Macaulay yesterday in Oconee General Sessions Court directed Public Defender Derek Enderlin to represent defendant Champa Patel.  No trial date was set. The Westminster police in March said they had received complaints about the sale of obscene or pornographic materials. They carried out an under-cover sting operation and searched Jetco Food Store and seized materials.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

                Water pipe repair work is planned today at the Oconee Courthouse.  According to the county’s building and maintenance director, the discovery of some wet ceiling tiles led to a leak in the sprinkler fire protection system.  Lake Julian says the damage appears to be minor.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

                Oconee County employees may wind up getting a pay raise after all.  The county budget and finance committee yesterday designated 600 thousand dollars to be applied to employee raises for the new year starting July 1^st.  No word yet on the specific amounts that workers can expect

Thursday, May 1, 2008

                A retired Alabama television station executive speaks at today’s Seneca Rotary Club.  Hoyt Andres, now a resident of Highlands, North Carolina, is expected to talk about the change in the way we watch T-V today---said to be the biggest change since the advent of color television in the 1950’s.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

                A jury at Walhalla convicted an Oconee man of stealing appliances from an elderly woman.  And the judge handed down a sentence that requires Donald Pass, 48 years old, to spend two years in prison and pay 600 dollars to the victim. Defense attorney Danny Day appealed for no prison time for his client, but prosecutor David Wagner said ripping off old ladies doesn’t qualify for probation. In the one-day trial, the defense rested without calling the defendant.  But Day earlier told the jury his client never denied taking the appliances, but insisted he had the victim’s permission.

The victim, an 85-year old woman, testified she never gave Pass permission to take the items or clean-up at the trailer she used for storage purposes.         Pass was arrested in Stephens County, Georgia.  Two sheriff’s officers from that county testified for the prosecution.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

                When the board at Oconee Medical Center met privately Monday to talk with a consultant about what the hospital pays senior management, those in senior management were excused from the room.  A hospital spokesman says no action was taken.  The board routinely reviews the compensation paid its C-E-O/President and other management officials.  The board convened privately for one other matter Monday night:  to discuss the results of a survey of the medical staff.  Hunter Kome, director of marketing and customer relations, said the physicians took part in the survey with the understanding that their comments are confidential.

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

                Four persons were taken to hospitals from two Oconee County traffic collisions.  State troopers say three people were hurt shortly before 2:30 yesterday afternoon in a head-on crash on highway 76, three miles from Westminster.  Trooper Scott Edgeworth said the collision involved a pair of S-U-V’s.  A passenger from one of the sport utility vehicles was airlifted to Mission Memorial Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina and both drivers were sent to the Oconee Medical Center.  By late last night, troopers withheld the names of the injured.  Later near Seneca, troopers say, a Moped collided with an S-U-V on Wells Highway near the Singing Pines Road.  Trooper Edgeworth said the Moped operator, Jason Brown of Seneca, was taken to the Oconee Medical Center.  He said the S-U-V driver, Bradley Lewis of Seneca, was not injured.

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

                The board at Oconee Medical Center adjourned its open session to go into a private meeting last night with a consultant.  Before the closed-door meeting, hospital President/C-E-O Jeanne Ward told 96.3/WGOG NEWS that two subjects would be addressed:  a compensation study covering senior management at the hospital and the results of a survey of doctors.  Ward described the survey as a look at the attitudes of the physicians about practicing at the hospital.

Monday, April 28, 2008

                West Union is accepting applications for police officer.  Councilman Dan Cappelen says the town is on its way to re-establishing the police department abolished in a town council vote a year ago. 

Monday, April 28, 2008

                Eight members of the Oconee Special Rescue team took part in specialized training at the county fire burning building.  The training included rappelling, anchor systems, and a review of knots.  The team is always looking for members.  Experience not required.  For information, call Bob Kinder at 864/444-2524.

Monday, April 28, 2008

                A Walhalla Boy Scout has won a state champion of the environment award.  Seth Mangan of Troop 45 was recognized for his “Storm Drain Action” project.  He’s one of 10 grant winners and has the chance this week to be selected one of three overall champions.

Friday, April 25, 2008

                West Union’s town council may be asked as early as next month to re-establish the town police department. A former councilman, Ernest Oliver, tells 96.3/WGOG NEWS he is helping former police chief Dawson Alexander circulate petitions that not only call for the town to re-start the department, but to re-hire Alexander as chief.  We’ve left a message for Alexander to call.  In his failed bid to land a council seat last month, Alexander made it clear he’d like his old job back. The town’s one-officer department was abolished 11 months ago, in a cost-cutting move.  The vote was 3-0.  But those who cast that vote did not offer for re-election last month, and the town has a full four member council not in office a year ago and a mayor who was elected to her first, full term this past April 1^st.

Friday, April 25, 2008

                Seneca has chosen a Greenville company to undertake a transportation study that is expected to cover the potential for expanding bus service to other parts of Oconee County.  A state grant, along with contributions from other government agencies, will finance the work to be undertaken by the company U-R-S. Seneca will also investigate the idea of buying a county museum in which the county no longer has interest.  City administrator Greg Dietterick last night announced he has been in touch with a grandson of the Lunney family who is interested in conveying the South First Street museum to the city.  An appraisal values at the property at 228 thousand dollars, but Dietterick says the grandson would accept 90 thousand dollars or less.  Councilman Ernest Riley said he’s not sure he could expect city taxpayers to approve such an acquisition.

Friday, April 25, 2008

                Police Major John Covington says a day does not pass without the Seneca police receiving complaints about illegal activity in the vicinity of Norton-Thompson Park.  96.3/WGOG NEWS has learned some of those complaints deal with suspicions of drug activity at the spot the city is spending thousands of dollars for a community park. Last night city administrator Greg Dietterick presented the mayor and council cost figures on installing a high-quality video cameras, for the purpose of keeping watch when a policeman is not available. Dietterick says some of the crime there includes the theft of toilet paper, clogging toilets, and breaking them.  But the cameras will not be installed in the bathrooms---rather outside high enough, it’s hoped, that no one will be able to break them with a baseball bat.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

                A public-private group that seeks economic development is getting hundreds of thousands of dollars in state money, but will be required to account for it.  The group is the Upstate Alliance, of which Oconee County government is a dues-paying member.  The Alliance has announced that, as part of the General Appropriations Act of 2007, the state Department of Commerce and the state legislature have granted 450 thousand dollars.  A proviso requires that each dollar of the state funds be matched with one dollar of private funds.  And Upstate Alliance will be required to make reports on the progress of projects and a summary of how the money is spent.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

                The coroner has ruled accidental death in the case of a two-month old Walhalla infant.  Coroner Karl Addis says an autopsy determined the cause of death of Charles Kason Emanuel Linart was “positional asphyxiation.”  The mother reported she was nursing her infant son around 10:30 am and fell asleep.  Upon awakening, according to Addis, she found her infant basically in the same position and lifeless. Around 1:00 Tuesday afternoon, E-M-S was called to 11-10 West South Broad Street near Walhalla for a pediatric cardiac arrest.  E-M-S found the infant at a nearby separate address, where the parents had gone for help.  E-M-S found no signs of life and called for the coroner. The child’s parents are Stacey Singleton and Caleb Linart

Thursday, April 24, 2008

                Free backpacks will be made available this summer to every public elementary school child in Oconee County. Every student in grades Kindergarten-thru 5 is invited to pick up a backpack Saturday, July 26^th from 9 a-m until 5 p-m in the Bi-Lo Parking lot at the Keowee Village Shopping Center.  The giveaway is sponsored by the Joe and Kristina Crosby Foundation, as part of the Crosbys intent to make a difference. Each backpack is to be filled with basic school supplies.         The giveaway is to take place before the tax-free weekend, and the Crosbys hope it gives parents a chance to stretch their back-to-school budget further.