The gallery contains snapshots of the information he presented.

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The forum also included a discussion of gang activity in the region.

The charges reflect the wife, while a tax preparer, falsified a victim’s tax return and she and her husband reportedly used the refund for their own gain.

Roanoke Rapids Police Department Deputy Chief Andy Jackson said the fraudulent refund amount was $4,878.

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The couple, Shaunda Taylor Campbell, and her husband, Elliot Campbell, were charged following an investigation by Investigator Gorton Williams which was based on a report taken by Captain Bobby Martin on January 9.

The initial complaint filed by the victim indicated there were discrepancies on their 2016 tax return which included the addition of an unknown dependent child as well as tax loans which were obtained.

Mrs. Campbell, 37, was charged with six counts of identity theft which reflect she reportedly took tax loans on a prepaid card and used it herself. At the time she was employed with a nationally known tax preparer in the city, which the police department declined to name.

She received a $15,000 bond and March 7 court date.

Mr. Campbell, 43, was charged with five counts of identity theft involving the use of a prepaid card. He was not employed as a tax preparer.

He received a $12,500 bond and the same court date as is wife.

Dr. Courtney Aman will officially begin seeing patients at Southern Smiles Orthodontics on Monday. Today served as the grand opening and ribbon-cutting for the business located on Gregory Drive.

“Thank you,” Roanoke Rapids Mayor Pro tem Carl Ferebee told Aman. “We don’t always have the opportunity to have a new business come in. We appreciate this business, the new jobs and the opportunity. We appreciate one of our own coming back to invest in the city.”

Charles Guerry of the Roanoke Valley Chamber of Commerce told those gathered to celebrate the grand opening, “We want to welcome Courtney back.”

Halifax County Board of Commissioners Chairman Vernon Bryant told Aman, “Thank you for returning to the area. I know Scott and Renee are so proud of you and all you have accomplished. It behooves to support Courtney and Eric.”

(Southern Smiles will be open on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.)

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Aman told those gathered, “Many of you have followed this project’s progress from the start and I’d like to thank you for your continued interest and support. Having so many members of my community here means a great deal to me.”

Today’s event, she said, was a long time in the making. “Having spent a decade away from the Roanoke Valley while pursuing my education, it is with excitement that I can finally put my credentials to use and embark on my orthodontic career in this beautiful office.”

While her educational pursuit was long, the design and completion of the building was quick, beginning with an initial email to AR Chesson last March 13. Construction began after six months of design collaboration with Chesson and Atlanta Dental. Groundbreaking occurred in September “and here we are five months later. That’s 11 months during which we have seen this project from inception to completion.”

Chesson, she said, “Did an outstanding job of keeping pace and I would like to commend them for getting the job done quickly and for being patient with my last-minute changes and additions.”

She thanked the subcontractors involved in the process. “It is amazing to see the talents and skills of so many local businesses come together on a job like this.”

There was love and support of family and friends during the journey to reach her educational goals and becoming a business owner. “I would like to give a special thanks to my husband, Eric (Nicholson) as he put his career on hold while I pursued additional education. And as of the initiation of this project, he has spent many early mornings and late nights listening to my ideas and offering requested opinions.”

She thanked her parents, Scott and Renee. “Their love and encouragement has been unwavering. I must give extra thanks to my dad. His expertise in construction projects was quite an asset. I had a vision and he helped to see that vision become a reality.”

She expressed thanks to other members of her family and to Arthur & Nicholson Dentistry. “They shared their dental office with me as I awaited the completion of my building. Not only did they share their space, but also their knowledge of operating a successful and well-respected dental practice.’

She thanked her staff and talked about coming back to her hometown. “Eric and I have chosen to return to the community where I grew up and it is with purpose that we did so,” she said. “He and I had many choices when deciding where to settle, but ultimately chose to build our businesses and family life in the town that has served me so well. We both look forward to embracing all the positive aspects that a small, close-knit community has to offer and in turn giving back to our community.”

On January 1 around 11 a.m., the sheriff’s office and North Carolina State Highway Patrol responded to a motor vehicle collision on Arcola Road with an injury.

Trooper Preston Dennis began investigating the collision and later learned it may have been an intentional act of domestic violence assault.

Detective S. Bryant and Dennis continued their investigation which led to criminal charges for the driver of one of the vehicles, Yenetta Parker Purnell, 52, of Roanoke Rapids.

Purnell was arrested today by Bryant and charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury.

She was jailed without opportunity for bond and has a February 21 court date.

The victim is in stable condition and continues  to receive medical treatment at a nearby trauma center.

On Thursday around 4:30 p.m., Lieutenant Josh Langley observed three motorcycles traveling at a high rate of speed on Interstate 95 southbound near Highway 903.

Langley initiated a traffic stop and activated his blue lights and siren in an attempt to stop the motorcycles for the traffic violation.

Langley pursued the motorcycles on Highway 903. Speeds reached more than 115 miles per hour.

After the brief pursuit, one of the motorcycles riders stopped on Three Bridges Road near Highway 903.

Langley arrested and charged Zequan Ramon Arrington, 26, of Roanoke Rapids, with flee to elude arrest, reckless driving to endanger, and expired registration.

Arrington received a $1,000 secured bond and February 21 court date.

On January 31 deputies responded to a larceny which occurred in the Ringwood area of Enfield. Through further investigation by detective R.B. Biggerstaff, warrants were obtained on Jamonte Green, 23, of Enfield.

Green was arrested Thursday and charged with larceny and possession of stolen goods.

He received a $2,000 bond and February 14 court date.

The investigation reveals a TV and electronics were stolen at the time of the theft. The items have been located.

On November 30, deputies responded to a residence in the Highway 48 area of Roanoke Rapids in response to a larceny of a check from a mailbox.

Through further investigation by Biggerstaff, warrants were obtained on Veronica Arrington, 46, of Roanoke Rapids.

Arrington was arrested January 29 and charged with forgery of endorsement, possession of stolen goods and obtaining property by false pretense.

She has a court date of February 14.

Halifax County Forest Service Ranger Adam Greene said the fires could have been worse had it not been for the quick response of Littleton and Rheasville fire departments.

The fires consumed about 3 acres of grass, brush and woodlands, Greene said.

A similar situation last February created about the same amount of damage in the Highway 158 area of Littleton.

February is the start of the spring fire season, which runs through April, Greene said.

The failed converter caused three fires in the Wright Road area; one at Five Points and one near the Green Store on Highway 48.

Two rangers and the volunteer fire departments fought the fires between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m.

There was no property damage. Greene said one house was threatened. “The fire departments did a good job of knocking them down.”

The Hollister native just earned the third place finish in December on season thirteen of NBC's "The Voice" contest. Simpson hosted a free meet and greet to her fans back in January in Hollister and announced she was planning a "Welcome Home" concert for her Roanoke Valley and surrounding fans.

Saturday night kicked off with forty to fifty fans, who purchased VIP ticket within ten minutes of the day ticket sales started, had a meet and greet while they posed for photos with Simpson. Simpson announced to the ones who didn't see oh her twitter page earlier in the morning that she released her second single 2 AM, the first that she had written and recorded herself.

Simpson's entertained the near thousand fans with twelve songs during her concert with songs as 2 AM, Beautiful, A Man's World, Wrecking Ball, Praying and crowd pleasing Amazing Grace to name a few.

Simpson stated after the show, "I'm exhausted, but so grateful to be able to do the "Welcome Home" concert and thankful to all the fans who came out. "Before I went up on the stage. I was really nervous just because it was a big show and in front of my hometown crowd, but once I went up there, it all went away and I was ready, stated Simpson. Simpson added. "I am so grateful for the community's support and that I'm proud of where I am from and hope to do more shows like this". 

If you missed the show, no worry, Simpson will be back close to the Valley coming up in Louisburg. The Louisburg NC Fire Department's 3rd annual MaudeFest will be held March 24th at The JPAC at Louisburg College - Seby B. Jones Performing Arts Center. The opening acts will be Franklin County's own Larry Frick & Willis Gupton! The headliner for the show this year is "Voice" contestant and Hollister, NC native, Brooke Simpson!! Tickets will be available for purchase in approximately a week. Cost is $25 for all seats. Keep check to Louisburg Fire Department's Facebook page for further updates!

Simpson also has one show in California and two shows booked in Tennessee during March. You can follow Simpson on Facebook, Instagram or twitter to keep up with all her latest news and music.

"Welcome Home" concert photos by Randy Wrenn

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Also here are a few video clips from Simpson:

Pray:  https://youtu.be/1tH9h_Ln34c

What is Beautiful:  https://youtu.be/r4OrIEXSHqY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAet_k4g8Y4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uE5YIhC6GE

Natural Woman:  https://youtu.be/C9KL010t6G0

https://youtu.be/k--1htdGXWM

Amazing Grace:  https://youtu.be/FaMCQlQRJcE

A jury was selected this evening and opening arguments are expected to begin in Halifax Tuesday morning before Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Cy A. Grant of Hertford County.

Whitmore’s decision to stand trial in the case came after discussions were held throughout the morning and afternoon.

Grant sent the potential jury pool out of the courtroom this afternoon to hear from Assistant District Attorney Keith Werner and Whitmore’s attorney, Tyrell Clemons.

With Whitmore in the courtroom, his hands cuffed, and wearing a blue suit, blue shirt and tie, Grant advised him of the differences between accepting a plea to aggravated death by motor vehicle in the case or to standing trial for all the charges lodged against him.

He will stand trial for second-degree murder, aggravated felony death by motor vehicle, multiple counts of assault with a deadly weapon and careless and reckless driving.

Grant told Whitmore a plea to aggravated felony death would mean a prison sentence of 8 to 10 years.

A guilty verdict on all counts against him would mean 50 to 60 years, the judge told him.

After asking the 29-year-old Whitmore his age, Grant said, “You want to talk to your lawyers some more? If you go for rejecting the plea agreement it means a maximum of 50 to 60 years in prison. With the plea agreement, the most you get is 11 years.”

After about a 15-minute session with his lawyer, Whitmore and Clemons returned to the courtroom. “After much discussion, we decided to move forward with a jury trial,” Clemons said.

Whitmore is currently serving a prison stretch which has a maximum term of two years and three months for drug charges lodged against him in the summer of 2016.

State Department of Public Safety records show he is eligible for release this coming May.

A grand jury in March of 2015 determined Whitmore caused Fishel’s death “while engaging in the offense of impaired driving. The impaired driving was the proximate cause of death.”

The indictment also notes Whitmore had a previous impaired driving conviction within seven years of the December 2014 offense, that conviction occurring in Virginia Beach in September of 2010.

A request for a search warrant filed at the time of the crash backs up statements made by Roanoke Rapids police, which say Whitmore was shot in the leg while in the parking lot of an East Tenth Street business. He was treated and released.

Investigator Frankie Griffin's search warrant affidavit says Whitmore then got into a Toyota Avalon to drive himself to the hospital and he approached the intersection of Tenth Street and Becker Drive “in a careless and reckless manner.”

His vehicle went into the path of multiple vehicles, coming to rest on its drivers side.

The document says Whitmore was carried to the hospital and at the time before Fishel's death later that evening, the case was considered an attempted murder.

Whitmore was arrested two days after the indictment.

Meetings between commissioners and the two other school systems in the county have been set as well.

“Our goal is to work together,” County Manager Tony Brown told the school board at the close of the meeting. “We’re now meeting with all three school systems to help get an understanding. We have to go the extra mile to know what the needs are in all three (school systems).”

Board of Education member Susie Lynch-Evans told commissioners the school system has put together a solid plan for the future and then asked the county’s governing board what ideas they had for future school improvements.

“How much money are you willing to increase taxes by?” Commissioner Rives Manning asked.

Responded Lynch-Evans: “We have to pay whatever’s necessary. I think our children in Halifax County deserve a shining building. They’re worth as much as any other child in Halifax County.”

Brown told Lynch-Evans, “We have weekly sessions to figure out the direction we need to go.”

Board of education Chair Claude Cooper said, “Every child in Halifax County deserves better than what I had and what you had.”

The meeting gave commissioners an idea of the direction the school system is headed under the leadership of Superintendent Eric Cunningham.

“We are passionate about living within our means,” Cunningham told the joint boards.

He said the school system has clean audits on the federal, state and local levels. “They’ve had no findings. We have internal controls.”

The value of buildings within the school system is $108,987,703 with an average age of 36 years.

Pittman Elementary is the oldest school, built in 1959. “It has served us very well,” the superintendent said.

In his review of capital needs within the school system, Cunningham explained Aurelian Springs Elementary, built in 1990, needs to replace its chiller system and sewage system.

A new chiller system, the superintendent said, would pay for itself over 10 years.

Hollister Elementary, he said, needs electrical service upgrades and the school’s foundation is beginning to fail.

Enfield Middle-Inborden Elementary is the newest school, completed in 2007. Its needs are grading, painting and athletic field improvements.

Northwest High School needs heating and cooling improvements, athletic field improvements and landscaping. The school system has already spent $164,000 on a new roof.

Pittman needs heating and cooling upgrades, roofing, sewer upgrades, painting, new windows and the foundation needs to be addressed.

Scotland Neck Primary needs parking lot improvements and heating and cooling upgrades. Cunningham said he would like to do away with mobile units. “I’d like to bring the kids all inside.”

Southeast Halifax is to be the future home of the system’s early college program. It needs roofing, parking lot upgrades, heating and air improvements and athletic field improvements.

Everetts Elementary-William R. Davie Middle needs heating and air work, a bus canopy and playground upgrades. “It has good bones,” Cunningham said. “We need to tweak the heating and air.”

The central office needs to be remodeled, the superintendent said.

In all, the school system has some $11,745,334 in big ticket needs, Cunningham said. He said with the new focus on creating a global environment within the school system, “We believe we’re going to grow again.”

He said the school system is studying consolidating Hollister and Pittman elementary schools.

The next meeting will be with the Roanoke Rapids school board at 6 p.m. on February 20 at the media center of Manning Elementary School.

Commissioners plan to meet with Weldon City Schools on March 13.

Notice of the meetings come after commissioners decided earlier this month to begin talks about possibly upgrading the current school improvement plan.

Sergeant F.A. Trueblood Jr., a former state Highway Patrol collision reconstructionist, told the court today in Halifax data pulled from the rental car Whitmore was driving on December 20 of 2014 showed no evidence of braking when he collided with Leslie Fishel at the intersection of East Tenth Street and Becker Drive.

The only factor which slowed Whitmore’s vehicle was the approximately 69 miles per hour impact with Fishel’s vehicle, an impact which ejected the woman from her car and onto the pavement, Trueblood testified.

There has been no testimony presented thus far to suggest Whitmore was being chased by the man who shot him in the lower leg, the matter which prompted him to leave the parking area of Forest Hills Shopping Center.

Jacobi Harvey, the man who shot Whitmore outside Tight Edge Barber Shop, told the court, “I never chased Marquis Whitmore with a vehicle.”

Harvey said, “I didn’t want to shoot him in the first place. I didn’t want to kill him.”

Harvey said he and Whitmore have had run-ins in the past. “For some reason he didn’t like me.”

The two had an altercation inside the barbershop which led to Whitmore leaving, walking past Harvey.

Assistant District Attorney Keith Werner said in his opening arguments, “Mr. Harvey was worried Mr. Whitmore was going to get his weapon.”

Harvey told the court, “I didn’t want any problems with him … He walked past me and headed out the door. I just … shot him in the leg when he walked out.”

That’s when Whitmore got in the black Toyota Avalon and sped away down East Tenth Street, apparently to go to the hospital.

As this was happening, Fishel was headed to get items for a family Christmas party. “Mr. Whitmore was traveling at least 70 miles per hour. The speed limit is 35,” Werner said.

Fishel had a green light at the intersection where the crash occurred, Werner told the court. “Mr. Whitmore steers the vehicle beyond the turning lane where six or seven cars are sitting at the traffic light. He swings out. That light is clearly red, people are watching in slow motion. Leslie has the green light and begins to turn, is almost through.”

That’s when Whitmore slammed into Fishel’s vehicle “so hard, so fast, Ms. Fishel was thrown out through the window.”

Fishel was hurt so badly she had to be flown Greenville, Werner said. Surgeons at Vidant told her mother, Patricia Coons, there was nothing which could be done to save her.

Coons told the court, “Her injuries were too intense. There was nothing they could do. They kept her alive (on the helicopter). She had heart attacks, so many things I couldn’t understand. They said her liver had been severed. We never got to speak to her anymore.”

Werner introduced as evidence a photo of Fishel about four days before the crash that her mother held close to her heart while on the stand.

Werner said evidence in the case would show opiates, cocaine, marijuana and alcohol were in Whitmore’s system during the time of the crash.

While none of the employees of the barbershop testified they could smell marijuana or alcohol on Whitmore, Roanoke Rapids Police Department Deputy Chief Andy Jackson told the court when he talked with the defendant at the hospital he detected the faint odor of alcohol and the stronger smell of marijuana on him. He passed the information onto Roanoke Rapids Investigator Jeff Davis, who has yet to testify.

Describing the crash scene, Jackson said, Whitmore’s car didn’t look as bad as Fishel’s. He described a debris field stretching for 75 to 100 yards.

Roanoke Rapids Officer Matt hunsucker described the crash site as “chaos everywhere.”

Tyrell Clemons, who is representing Whitmore, said in his opening arguments December 20, 2014, was a tragic day. “There’s no denying December 20, 2014 was a tragic day. There’s nothing to make you forget about it. The evidence will show a young lady lost her life.”

But, Clemons said, “What happened that day was not intentional. There’s no evidence that will even … prove Mr. Whitmore intended to cause that tragedy. The evidence will show it was an accident.”
Said Clemons, “It was an emergency situation more than an accident.”

He said Whitmore didn’t have a gun. “None of this would have happened if someone else didn’t fire a shot. The evidence will show this was an accident.”

A verbal commitment from city council to allocate $50,000 means the potential for $400,000 for the project should the city be awarded money from Kate B. Reynolds Foundation and the Parks and  Recreation Trust Fund Grant, Parks and Recreation Director John Simeon told the panel Tuesday night. “That is a very good investment on taxpayer dollars to get $4 for every $1 spent.”

The city wouldn’t officially allocate the money until the next budget year, City Manager Joseph Scherer said.

Simeon told council the department will apply for $150,000 from Reynolds and $200,000 from the trust fund. The deadline for the Reynolds application is February 13 and the deadline for the trust fund grant is May 1. “Both grant representatives are very supportive of this project and have recommended that the city of Roanoke Rapids fund $50,000 towards this project. This will show our support and commitment when preparing these grants.”

Councilman Carl Ferebee made the motion for the verbal commitment and Carol Cowen cast the second. It passed unanimously.

Improvement plans include a splash pad and spray park for the center, which became the top priority following a stakeholder meeting in October and after council in August determined its funding options for a new pool at Chaloner were all but exhausted.

Part of the plan includes removing the failing pool at the recreation center and replacing it with a splash pad.

Preliminary conceptual plans for the park include a new playground away from a flood-prone creek, a new shelter near the recreation center, a new shelter near where the splash pad would be and new parking.

The Highway 158 masterplan also targets eventual improvements at Wheeler Park and Martin Luther King Park.

“I’m glad to hear some good news,” Mayor Emery Doughtie said following the audit presentation Tuesday night by Gregory Redman, a Tarboro CPA.

Redman presented the city an unmodified audit which contained no exceptions or material weaknesses in the city’s internal controls. The report, which covered the fiscal year ending last June, identified no significant deficiencies, Redman said.

There were no weaknesses, exceptions or noncompliant financial statements in accounting for state programs, he said.

Redman commended the city for its 98.99 percent tax collection rate. “That’s how the town operates by these collections.”

The city exceeded its liabilities at the close of the fiscal year by $4,928,888, according to the management discussion and analysis portion of the audit. “As of close of the fiscal year, the (city’s) governmental funds reported combined ending fund balances of $5,106,884 with a net decrease of $2,495,234 in fund balance.”

Approximately 75 percent of the total amount — $3,86,501 is available for spending at the government’s discretion. “At the end of the current fiscal year, unreserved fund balance for the general fund was $3,731,531 or 24 percent of total general fund expenditures budgeted for the 2018 fiscal year.”

The audit accounts for money the city set aside for the refinancing of its theater debt.

City Manager Joseph Scherer said the fourth straight clean audit is a testament to the work of Finance Director Leah Etheridge and her staff.

Said Doughtie: “I think we as a city and department heads do a very good job with the services we do and the revenues we have. A lot of volunteers and businesses help us. I think we do a good job with (the revenues) we have to work with.”

Interstate 95-Highway 158 improvements

In another matter Tuesday, council passed a resolution in support of improvements at the I-95 and Highway 158 intersection by the state Department of Transportation.

Public Works Director Larry Chalker told council the work at the 173 exit would create two turning lanes on Highway 158 to the northbound lane of I-95, an area which experiences backups under the current configuration. The project would also include sidewalks.

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Police department

Chief Chuck Hasty recognized Officer Daniel Hundley for being awarded the Advanced Law Enforcement Certificate from the North Carolina Training and Standards Commission.

He also recognized Captain Bobby Martin with a certificate for going above and beyond the call of duty to help a Governor’s Crime Commission employee who became ill when traveling for work in the area.

Tim Hinnant, deputy director of the commission, told council Martin not only helped the employee but kept him and family informed of the situation. “Captain Martin is an ambassador of Roanoke Rapids.”

Leah Brewer, owner of Elle, a therapy dog, presented the police department with a photo collage commemorating the bond and relationship between her, her dog and the police department.

Assistant District Attorney Keith Werner told Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Cy A. Grant of Hertford County he will argue in his closing there is an impairment side and a reckless indifference to human life side.

Werner made his comments to Grant outside the presence of the jury, which was released early today.

The state has another witness to call Thursday morning, when the trial resumes at 9:30, Werner told Grant.

Whitmore’s attorney, Tyrell Clemons, did not state to Grant what his intention would be.

He stated in his opening arguments Tuesday Whitmore did not intend to kill Leslie Fishel, 25, but that the December 20, 2014, crash which left her with injuries she would succumb to, was an accident.

In questioning Sergeant Craig Johnson, supervisor of the state Highway Patrol Cary Reconstruction Unit, today, Werner asked him about his response to the Roanoke Rapids crash site at East Tenth Street and Becker Drive the evening of the collision.

Johnson came from his home in Youngsville, which is about 62 miles from Roanoke Rapids. He ran blue lights and siren but said, “I stopped, I yielded for my safety and the safety of others. That’s what we’re required to do — firefighters, EMS, law enforcement.”

Clemons asked Johnson whether he had ever been shot, a reference to his defense of Whitmore and that the Roanoke Rapids man was rushing to the hospital after he was shot in the leg outside a barbershop at Forest Hills Shopping Center.

Johnson replied in the negative and in response to an earlier question from Werner, said Whitmore would be able to see the state Department of Transportation sign designating a 35 mile per hour speed limit on East Tenth Street.

The sergeant said he conducted an initial investigation of what he described as a “hot scene” when he arrived. “I assessed the scene, did a walkthrough and retrieved my camera so I could take photos of the scene.”
Johnson explained the scene and the vehicles which were involved in the crash.

Johnson’s testimony coincides with an initial report taken by the Roanoke Rapids Police Department at the time.

Others involved in the crash were Eboni Burgess of Roanoke Rapids who was driving a 2013 Toyota and Howard Shearin of Roanoke Rapids who was driving a 2014 Toyota.

The narrative says Whitmore was traveling south on Highway 125 — Tenth Street — “at an extremely high rate of speed in the left turn lane.”

Fishel, who had been running errands that evening, had the green light and was proceeding through the intersection east when Whitmore entered the intersection against a red light, striking her vehicle. Whitmore's vehicle flipped on its side and crashed into Burgess's vehicle which was sitting at the red light in lane 2 heading north.

Shearin, according to the report, was coming to the light north in lane 1 and was struck by Whitmore on the driver's side. Fishel was ejected.

Dr. James Fletcher of the department of emergency medicine at Vidant in Greenville said he saw Fishel after she was brought in by helicopter. She had critical injuries and lost vital signs.

The trauma team, Fletcher said, did a heart massage and she recovered vital signs.

Dr. Nathaniel Poulin, a trauma surgeon, said Fishel’s heart was beating but her abdominal cavity was full of blood. “We clamped her aorta to circulate blood to her heart and brain.”

The surgical team, however, found a large tear in her liver and there was nothing the team could do to control the bleeding.

Roanoke Rapids police Investigator Jeff Davis’ testimony supported a search warrant in the case in which the following was found in Whitmore’s vehicle:

A black cellphone

A pack of Cigarillos

A 375 ml bottle of Seagram's Vodka

Another black cell phone

A pack of miscellaneous papers

An empty pack of Cigarillos

A partially smoked blunt

A spent projectile

Davis said when he talked with Whitmore at the hospital his speech was slurred and his eyes were glassy. “His appearance today is normal.”

In response to questioning from Clemons, Davis said he couldn’t answer whether Whitmore, who was treated and released for the gunshot wound, was medicated. “He was talking about being in pain and hurting.”

A grand jury in March of 2015 determined Whitmore caused the death of the Fishel “while engaging in the offense of impaired driving. The impaired driving was the proximate cause of death.”

The indictment also notes Whitmore had a previous impaired driving conviction within seven years of the 2014 offense, that conviction occurring in Virginia Beach in September of 2010.

Trooper T.D. “Bo” Forsht of the state Highway Patrol said Larry Mitchell, 66, was traveling north on Highway 301 shortly after 1 p.m.

Forsht said the man was a approximately a half-mile north of Enfield when he partially traveled off the right side of the roadway in his vehicle. He overcorrected the vehicle, came back on the roadway and his vehicle overturned, colliding with a bridge on the west side of Highway 301. The vehicle struck the concrete bridge rails.

The trooper said there was no evidence of excessive speed or driver inattention. The preliminary investigation does show Mitchell was not wearing a seatbelt.

Forsht said the main contributing factor was running off the road, overcorrecting and the vehicle overturning.

He said he is still investigating to determine whether the man had a preexisting medical condition.

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Captain A.M. Harris of the City County Drug Task Force said it hasn’t been determined who was to get the drop, which Abel Geberwhit Zeratsion allegedly threw into the prison yard around 8 this morning.

Harris said a call on the matter to Halifax County Central Communications was generated by prison staff and two staff members gave a description of the vehicle.

In a statement Harris said the staff members followed Zeratsion at a safe distance and gave his location.

Harris noticed the vehicle on Highway 561 approaching Highway 301 in Halifax and initiated a traffic stop.  

Zeratsion was identified by his suspended North Carolina driver’s license.

Lieutenant C. Boden, Detective Sergeant T. Clark and Corporal P. Moyer of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office and North Carolina State Highway Patrol troopers D. Edwards and C. Wheeler assisted.

Prison staff turned over the plastic bag thrown over the fence to Harris.

The plastic bag contained two vacuumed sealed items which had more than a pound of smoking tobacco, 10 cell phones with chargers, seven packages of K2 synthetic marijuana, 23 suboxone strips, 22 Acetaminophen Codeine  dosage units and 13 other dosage units for sexual dysfunction. The sexual dysfunction medication is called Buspirone, Harris said. While it is not a controlled substance it is a prescription medication.

Zeratsion, who, according to state Department of Public Safety records, is currently on three years probation in Forsyth County, was arrested and transported to the sheriff’s office.

He was processed and charged with driving while license revoked, possession of a controlled substance at prison/jail premises, attempt to furnish tobacco products or mobile phones to inmate, and two counts of possession with intent to sell and deliver schedule III controlled substance.

He was jailed on $75,000 secured bond and has a February 21 court date.

Chief Chuck Hasty said two men entered the store. Investigators believe at least one of them was armed.

The clerk complied with their demands and the suspects left the store on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash.

There were no further details available as of this report.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call Crimestoppers at 252-583-4444 or Investigator Gorton Williams at 252-533-2821.

The foreman of the jury confirmed the information to Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Cy A. Grant of Hertford County when they were summoned because of a question which they needed answered.

The verdict was not discussed and Grant did not ask the jurors what charge it involved or whether it was a guilty or innocent verdict.

As the jurors are working with three verdict sheets they will continue deliberations Friday to reach a conclusion on Whitmore’s fate in the December 20, 2014 traffic death of 25-year-old Leslie Fishel at the intersection of East Tenth Street and Becker Drive.

The question jurors had dealt with a lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter and the element of impairment.

The judge explained to the jurors impairment only applied to substances such as alcohol, cocaine, marijuana or opiates — not about impairment which could have come with the defendant being shot.

The question came after the jury had been deliberating for about two hours. They continued deliberating until around 5:30.

The first of the three verdict sheets the jurors are working from is tied to the major crime of second-degree murder with the element of impairment as well as the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter.

The second sheet is tied to the crime of second-degree murder with the element of serious traffic infractions. It also includes the lesser charges of involuntary manslaughter and misdemeanor death by motor vehicle.

The final verdict sheet is tied to the crime of aggravated felony death by motor vehicle.

In his closing arguments, Assistant District Attorney Keith Werner told the jury a second-degree murder charge against Whitmore could be found two different ways — impairment or careless and reckless driving with malice.

“Malice is a state of mind, a bit of mischief, a state of mind that allows you to do bad things,” he said.

Malice describes people “who disrespect, don’t care about the laws of North Carolina. Without laws people get killed and hurt, people minding their own business get their car smashed to an unrecognizable hunk of metal. Some people get hurt, one person is killed. That is malice,” Werner said.

From the time he was shot, Whitmore disregarded the laws of North Carolina, driving 70 miles per hour in a 35 zone, running red lights and driving in the turn lane. One witness, Werner said, thought he was a law enforcement officer at first, but then thought law enforcement officers and other first responders are required by law to slow down.

The state Highway Patrol sergeant who came to reconstruct the crash scene ran his lights and siren when he departed from Youngsville. “He stopped at every red light. The law doesn’t permit law enforcement, EMS and firefighters to run red lights,” the assistant prosecutor said. “Some might not hear the siren or see the blue lights.”

Werner said Whitmore’s defense team noted he put his flashers on. “Leslie couldn’t see the flashers. She’ll never see anything again. All that is malice.”

That Whitmore already had two previous impaired driving convictions is an aggravating factor, Werner said. “Somebody has to stop this person from doing whatever he feels like doing … I’m asking you to find him guilty of both theories to stop him today.”

Whitmore’s attorney, Tyrell Clemons, said, “There’s one word you’ve heard multiple times.”

He said that word is accident.

“December 20 was a sad day, a tragic day. No one wants to minimize what a sad day that was,” he said. “It was an accident. Mr. Whitmore didn’t wake up planning to get shot. It was an accident.”

The defense attorney said Whitmore did “not intend to end her life. It was an accident.”
Clemons said the state wants the jury to believe when a person gets shot the reasonable thing to do is call 911. “If you get shot you’re going to do what you’ve got to do. If you’re in pain you might drive a little faster and find a way to get rid of the pain.”

The state, Clemons said, “Wants you to believe he was super reckless. He put his flashers on to indicate something was going on.”

Clemons said, “I know it’s sad. No parent wants to bury their child. My client did not have malice … this was not malicious.”

Battalion Chief Richard Cook of the Roanoke Rapids Fire Department said the kitchen was “pretty much destroyed” but the fire was contained quickly. The rest of the house was spared, he said.

Firefighters received the call shortly before 3 p.m. Cook said they witnessed smoke showing through the outside of the house from the ridge vents and overhang.

Firefighters entered through the front door and found fire in the kitchen, which was extinguished within about 10 minutes.

The stove was on when the fire occurred, Cook said. Firefighters are ruling it accidental, he said.

Ten firefighters comprised of stations 1 and 2, as well as off-duty personnel, responded. No one was injured.

The robbery occurred at New Dixie Mart around 7:30 p.m., Roanoke Rapids Police Chief Chuck Hasty said in a statement.

A store employee told investigating officers two men entered the store and one of them fired a shot into the ceiling. No one was injured.

One of the men demanded money and the employee complied.

The men left the store with an undisclosed amount of money and were last seen headed south.

The man who reportedly fired the shot was described as light-skinned and wearing a gray sweatshirt and red bandanna. The second suspect was wearing all black with a gray face covering.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call Crimestoppers at 252-583-4444 or Investigator Gorton Williams at 252-533-2821.

The count of involuntary manslaughter the jury found him guilty of was arrested because a defendant can only be convicted of the higher class of felony.

The jury found itself hopelessly deadlocked on a third count against the 29-year-old Whitmore, its foreman confirmed to Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Cy A. Grant of Hertford County.

Two jurors outside the courthouse following the proceedings declined comment.

Apology and judge’s lecture

Before sentencing Whitmore addressed the court, saying, “I apologize to the family. I’m sorry it happened. I was just trying to save my life. I had never been shot before.”

Whitmore was shot after he got into an argument with Jacobi Harvey at a Roanoke Rapids barbershop and then fled, traveling at a high rate of speed down East Tenth Street where he crashed into the vehicle Fishel was driving.

Grant gave Whitmore a stern lecture. “It appears to me you weren’t concerned for anybody’s life except your life.”

Replied Whitmore: “I was out of my mind. I lost consciousness.”

Said the judge: “I don’t buy that. That’s just lawyer talk.”
Grant told Whitmore the reason his lawyers didn’t call him to stand was because “they didn’t want the jury to hear how bad of a criminal you are. This is what you can expect to happen.”

The judge told Whitmore he was the one who provoked Harvey. “You’ve had run-ins with him before. When you go for bad this is what happens.”

Grant then sentenced Whitmore to 129 to 166 months for the crime of felony death by motor vehicle.

DA statement

District Attorney Valerie Asbell said in a statement, “I am glad the criminal portion of this ordeal is over for the family of Leslie Fishel and the other victims of this terrible crash. I know the emotional toil these trials take on the families and I appreciate so many family members and friends being in the courtroom during this difficult time.  We certainly respect the jury’s decision and for their willingness to serve in this capacity. We will continue to pray for the families affected by this tragedy.”  

Asbell said she was grateful for the of assistant district attorneys Keith Werner and Kim Scott in the case. “I want to commend the Roanoke Rapids Police Department for a job well done in the investigation of this case. I also want to thank the  North Carolina State Highway Patrol Reconstruction Unit for assisting to establish the speed and other factors that caused the crash. Working together, these two departments did an excellent and thorough investigation.”

Asbell said she will continue to prosecute these vehicular homicide cases to the fullest extent of the law. “These are horrible cases with horrific consequences because of the reckless disregard people like Mr. Whitmore have for the lives of others.

“When you compound the reckless disregard with drugs and alcohol, it is senseless. A young woman lost her life because of decisions intentionally made by this defendant to drive a vehicle in a reckless manner and with impairing substances in his system.”

Said Asbell: “We should, as a community, be able to drive on the roads and feel safe. This active sentence of 10 to 13 years that Whitmore received in this case and this jury verdict shows that our citizens have had enough and that they will hold people who drive in this fashion accountable for their actions.”

Reactions

Fishel’s stepfather, Ray Rook, said following the proceedings, “If it were life it still wouldn’t have brought my stepdaughter back.”

Fishel’s mother, Pat Coons, said, “I’m pleased with the results and when it all comes to the end of the day God has the final say so in judging this, not us here on earth.”

As the jury deliberated this morning, Coons went over to talk with Whitmore’s mother. “I felt led to tell her I don’t hold anything with her what her son did. I don’t hate him, that it was the lifestyle he has chose and there is help out there, that Leslie’s gotten help before, our church supports people that need help and can reach out to a new Launchpad in Wilmington. I told her that I hold nothing against her. I didn’t hate her, never knew her and that her son, it’s the choices that he made, the choices of the individuals he chose to hang out with is what created this whole problem.”

Coons said she was in “110 percent” agreement with what Grant told Whitmore from the stand.

As far as closure, Coons said, “The closure I got was after I was able to testify in front of people and the jurors. I felt a peace from that sense on about this.”

She said she still terribly misses her daughter. “We worked side by side. She was my child. She was my little clone.”

Whitmore on Monday ended up opting to stand trial in the case rather than accepting a plea deal.

His attorney,Tyrell Clemons of Greenville, said afterward, “Technically, the plea offer he had would have been a little more. It was a gamble he took and I understand why he took the gamble. He didn’t make a crazy decision and when your life's on the line and you realize you are guaranteed to go to prison sometimes people will take the chance, especially when they think the situation occurred because of a mistake, because of an accident. I understand why he did what he did.”

Asked whether Whitmore, who has an extensive criminal record, might learn something from his latest court appearance, Clemons said, “The unfortunate reality with these cases and with this situation is when a person who has a history of committing crimes has a situation in which they didn’t really do anything as they have in the past, the things he’s been accused of were intentional acts.

“I think this one was more so of an unintentional act compared to his prior offenses. I think this was one he doesn’t understand as much, but I tell people all the time that sometimes — I don’t want to say you reap what you sow — but if you have a history of doing things sometimes the things that are not as intended will have a much more harsh consequence and I think that is what he is kind of learning right now.

“He’s learning from the fact right now his past will catch up with you and I think that’s the reality he has right now — the things he’s done in the past are definitely catching up with him.”

Clemons said he believed the jury understood this was not an intentional act. “I think the verdict speaks to the fact they don’t think it was intentional. The death itself was not an intentional act but I think they’re leaving a message that despite the fact you didn’t intend it that when someone dies there has to be something for punishment. I think the verdict reflected there had to be some type of punishment and that’s kind of where we are.”

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On Thursday around 4:59 p.m., officers received a call to Rick's Country Market about people who left the store without paying for an undisclosed amount of meat.

The people already left the store when officers arrived.

Sergeant L. Melton obtained photos of the suspects from the store’s security system.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Melton at 252-536-3136 or Crimestoppers at 252-583-4444.

On Thursday around 11:21 a.m., Officer N. Coles assisted the United States Marshals Service in the arrest of a fugitive from Richmond.

Coles arrested Myra Marie Boyd, 39, of Weldon, on an outstanding warrant for attempted murder and use of a firearm in commission of a felony.

She was taken into custody without trouble and received a $500,000 bond and February 14 court date.

Avens said Boyd had apparently been living in Weldon after the crimes she was wanted for took place.

Avens assisted.