A beloved Union County sergeant was killed in a freak accident that unfolded in a matter of seconds Wednesday morning.

Flags are flying at half-staff as the Union County Sheriff’s Office waits for answers about what happened.

Sgt. Jeffrey Greene is the first Union County deputy to ever die while on the job.

“Jeff Greene was a personal friend, a family man and a valuable member of our Sheriff’s Office family,” said Sheriff Eddie Cathey in a statement. “His loss is a tragedy, not only to his family and friends, but to the citizens of Union County. His orientation of service to the community was a quality that should be embraced and emulated by us all. He will be missed.”

JACKSONVILLE, ONSLOW COUNTY – Now that Onslow County voters have elected a new Sheriff, a transition phase will begin.

Republican Hans Miller won the Onslow County Sheriff race with 73% of votes against his Democrat opponent Scott Himes.

Miller will be replacing current Sheriff Ed Brown who has been in office for 24 years.

Newly elected Sheriff Miller will not have a cakewalk transition into the sheriff seat. In fact, there are 115 things that have to be done before he takes that seat on December 1st.

Miller has to complete a checklist is issued by the North Carolina Administrative Code.

He says becoming Sheriff means he will have many constitutional responsibilities. Miller will have to make sure things like evidence are properly safe guarded, that taxpayer funds are being properly used, and that all serialized equipment like firearms are accounted for.

Then Miller will attend a North Carolina Sheriffs Association one week training course in Durham.

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WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) – Wilmington’s LINC (Leading into New Communities) organization and Coastal Horizons Center are teaming up to provide a new service to women getting out of jail.

The new program is expected to be funded by a $600,000 federal grant.

The program specifically targets women who are getting out of jail and might need help overcoming drug abuse or a mental illness, according to Dale Willetts, Director of the North Carolina TASC Training Institute at Coastal Horizons.

Willetts said the organizations will now be able to go into the jails and seek out women who may need help. When they get out of jail, the Coastal Horizons Center will be able to help them overcome drug abuse or any mental health disorders. The LINC organization will then give them a place to live and help them find a job.

Willetts said mental health disorders and substance abuse issues can make it very hard for women to get back on their feet after serving time.

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WENTWORTH — Early Tuesday morning, a patrol deputy was in the right place at the right time to thwart disaster.

At about 4:30 a.m., Tuesday, Oct. 28, Patrol Sgt. Jon Peters was responding to a report of a suspicious car in the area of Hunters Glenn Road in Summerfield. When he passed by 173 Hunters Glenn Road, he saw that the house was on fire and sprang into action.

“Sgt. Peters is a hero,” Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page said. “I mean, he always does a great job but I believe that this morning, he saved three lives. That’s what it’s all about and I am very proud of him.”

Peters was able to wake the sleeping adult residence of the home and carried a 4-year-old child out of the house to safety himself, according to a news release.

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When Jennifer Talton’s friend posted a link on her Facebook page about a retreat for law enforcement officers in the mountains of North Carolina, Jennifer was immediately intrigued.

“I knew as soon as I read about it that we had to be there,” she said.

Recently, she and her husband, Chuck, and their two boys have faced one storm after another—from finances to relationships to medical emergencies.

“Finances alone can destroy a marriage,” Chuck said. “We probably have five or six issues we’re juggling.”
National Law Enforcement RetreatThe Billy Graham Rapid Response Team’s first National Law Enforcement Retreat took place Oct. 13-15 at The Cove in Asheville, North Carolina.
“It’s a miracle from God we’re still married,” Jennifer said. “We’ve had significant marriage issues that we’ve been working on for the past two years.”

Some of those issues are directly related to Chuck’s job. As a police officer, he faces unique stresses and dangers that affect the whole family.

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WILMINGTON, N.C. — When someone calls local 911 and can’t speak English, help is literally one button away.

Nestled in the corner of dispatchers’ screens, among buttons that say EMS, Fire, School and Law, is one that says “Language.” All the dispatcher needs to do when someone who doesn’t speak English calls is click that button and a translator is on the other end of the line because of a service called LanguageLine.

Used in Brunswick and New Hanover counties, LanguageLine connects a dispatcher with someone who, if necessary, can determine what language is being spoken and from there transfer the call to a translator.

Deborah Cottle, New Hanover County’s 911 manager, said the county uses the service nearly every day.

“It is very easy,” Cottle said.

The service is overwhelmingly used for Spanish callers in both counties, officials said.

In September, for instance, New Hanover used the service 54 times for Spanish speakers. Other languages included one call each of French, Japanese and Korean. That kind of breakdown is typical for the last year, according to data provided by New Hanover County Emergency Management, with non-Spanish languages rarely having more than one call in a month.

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On Sept. 24, Anson County Jail Administrator Capt. Freddie Paxton was recognized and awarded the Jail Administrator of the Year for 2014 by the North Carolina Jail Administrators’ Association.

The presentation was made at their annual training conference in Greensboro. The Jail Administrators’ Association is made up of the 100-plus county jail administrators and senior jail staff across North Carolina. The association recognizes one of their own each year who has been nominated by their jail staff and recommended by their sheriff for “meritorious service and major accomplishments that enhances the overall operations of their county facility.”

Anson County Sheriff Tommy Allen, who attended the evening ceremony, said that he was most pleased with Paxton’s recognition by his peers.

“Capt. Paxton has been my jail administrator since 2006,” Allen said. “He has improved every aspect of our jail operations and continues to meet all local, state and federal standards for a facility this age and size. He has implemented all new policy and procedures in the jail; overseen a complete renovation of the main control room and holding cell area; updated medical and sick call procedures; implemented a “cashless” bookkeeping system; set up a new food service contractor and upgraded the jail’s computer and security camera systems. Those are all complicated tasks. The county could not ask for a more loyal, dedicated, hard-working and well informed employee. I’m fortunate to have someone of his caliber.”

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RALEIGH, N.C. — The arrival of the fall season not only means dropping temperatures and leaves, but also an increase in the chances of a collision with a deer across North Carolina. Between 2011 and 2013, nearly half of the more than 61,000 animal-related crashes took place in October through December.  About 90 percent of those involved deer.

A N.C. Department of Transportation study shows that in 2013, there were 20,308 animal-related crashes, a slight increase over the 2012 figure, but still well below the numbers reported in 2010 and 2011.

Over the past three years, animal-related crashes claimed 18 lives, injured more than 3,400 drivers and passengers, and caused more than $149 million in damages.

“Drivers need to be careful on the roads all the time, but even more so over the next few months,” said NCDOT Director of Mobility and Safety Kevin Lacy.  “Increased deer activity and decreasing daylight hours mean vigilance by motorists needs to increase for their own safety and the safety of others.”

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RALEIGH, N.C. — The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission’s Home From The Hunt™ safety campaign is reminding hunters to follow blaze orange requirements and making safety recommendations to others who spend time outdoors.

In North Carolina, hunters are required to wear a cap, hat or an outer garment in blaze orange that is visible from all sides when hunting bear, feral hogs, deer, rabbit, squirrel, grouse, pheasant or quail with a firearm. Anyone hunting deer during a deer firearms season, regardless of method, must wear blaze orange. Hunters also are required to wear blaze orange while hunting with a bow on Sunday during the black powder and gun seasons.

“Wearing blaze orange is an easy and effective step for safety,” said Travis Casper, the state Hunter Education Program coordinator. “Blaze orange, also known as hunter orange, isn’t a color found in nature, making it instantly recognizable as a human presence. It is instantly recognizable and signals caution to the viewer. Going a step farther, in low-light conditions hunters should consider using a flashlight when changing locations.”

The Home From The Hunt™ campaign recommends everyone wear blaze orange when outdoors in areas shared with hunters. Blaze orange clothing stands out against an outdoor background and studies have proven it increases visibility of the wearer in low-light situations. Blaze orange also can be helpful in locating someone lost or injured.

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Raleigh, N.C. — The State Bureau of Investigation released its annual report Wednesday that shows overall crime in North Carolina decreased in 2013 by 7 percent from the previous year.

The drop continues a six-year downward trend and marks the state’s lowest crime rate since 1974.

The 2013 Uniform Crime Report, which is based on information compiled from law enforcement agencies across the state, also shows the state’s violent crime rate fell by 5.4 percent in 2013. Rape decreased by 10.2 percent; robbery dropped by 1.9 percent; homicide dropped by 3.8 percent; and aggravated assault went down 6.4 percent.

The state’s overall crime rate is down 24.4 percent compared with a decade ago, while violent crime is down 26.3 percent, according to the report.

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