A woman who helped kill her husband in 1987 for insurance money is out of prison today. Read the news here. She was a legal clerk at the time. Maybe one of the defense lawyers here in town will hire her. If she wants the job, she shouldn’t show this letter of condemnation. During trial, [...]

My good friend and research guru, Mike McHugh, spent a few minutes searching MySpace and FaceBook looking for Mr. Burkhart. If you haven’t read that story yet, here it is. Read the press release from the Sheriff’s Department. On to the photos. Burkhart: Burkhart and alleged accomplice and their two children (one is Burkhart’s, one [...]

WITN’s Chelsea Donovan and Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown argue over who’s getting the top bunk:

Read this news story. Damn.

This Op/Ed piece ran in Tuesday’s Daily News. I like it because it has my name in it. Since the first cold-case squads were formally established back in the 1970s, criminal justice agencies nationwide have embraced the concept. Many branches of law enforcement have divisions that specialize in cases that remain unsolved. Others, hindered by [...]

The wife of a cold case homicide suspect is asking the public for donations to help bail him out of jail. Read news here. I know there are a lot of strong emotions in this case. I also know that bail is not supposed to be form a punishment. Bond amounts are to ensure a [...]

Good grief. And people think I have a contentious relationship with local law enforcement. Check this out about a North Carolina sheriff’s department spokesman taking out arrest warrants against a newspaper editor who is suing him. The crazy thing is that the sheriff’s spokesman runs his own news blog called Carolina Scoop. I couldn’t make this stuff [...]

Sometimes reporters are relieved when a big story breaks outside their coverage area. Lord knows we have enough on our plate on a daily basis. But sometimes a story is just so good reporters hate to see it pass with no local connection. Such was the case when the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today that a [...]

The following column appeared in this Sunday’s edition of The Daily News: The lives of three Jacksonville men tragically collided during the early morning hours on July 17 behind a popular nightclub in the city. The reason or purpose that brought each party to this fateful place is still being pieced together by law enforcement, [...]

A law enforcement agency in Arizona has asked the Onslow County Sheriff’s Department to help identify the body of a missing person found in that state because it is believed a close relative of the missing person lives in our area. Authorities are waiting on tests to confirm the identity of the body.

The newspaper has posted my Cold Case: Homicide article about Larry Toler. Read the news here. As I have posted on the blog many times, there are many different kinds of cold cases. Some have a lot of information in the public record, some have a lot of case file info not in the public [...]

When my brother became old enough to be interested in girls, he was explained the importance of not taking what the girl is not willing to give. A 20-year-old Jacksonville man obviously did not get that talk from his family… or maybe he had headphones on. Read news here. Theron Russell Inman joined the list [...]

WITN has a video package online of a special report recapping the Laurean case. WITN’s Jacksonville Bureau Chief Chelsea Donovan also talks with lawyers on both sides – District Attorney Dewey Hudson and public defender Dick McNeil - about the possibility of a plea bargain. Check it out.

Quiznos in Jacksonville is closed. Thomas Brock broke the news on Twitter yesterday. (Do we live in weird times or what?) I made calls last night and got nowhere and so tried again today. One of the restaurants’ managers – who was next door getting her nails did – told me on the phone that [...]

Worked all day on a story I can’t talk about just yet…

Yesterday was a busy day. I am just going to run it down before I run down. Amanda followed up on the double-homicide behind Northwoods Shopping Center with a video interview with Hooligans’ manager Aaron Flahardy. Wolfe says they have video of the suspected shooter being turned away from the club. ——————————————– Ernest Van Cooney tried to [...]

Spent all day at doctors office in waiting room with my kids. Nothing’s wrong, just back-to-school shots and check-ups. But it was a busy day on the old Freedom-paid-for cell phone…. #1 – Thomas Toms, was charged by the Craven County Sheriff’s Department with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill in connection to [...]

On the way home from Wilmington.

Today, the Onslow County Sheriff’s Department picked up a Havelock man who made four sales to a reliable informant. The odd part? He brought his kid with him. Read news here. As I told our city editor Timmi Toler after her blotter lesson, I’m all for someone making a living. However, don’t break laws and, [...]

This is easily obtainable public information. Nothing justifies homicide. That is not what I am saying. I just like to provide as much information as possible. Christopher Michael Watts had a court date in August for causing an affray and having marijuana. Minor stuff. But Gabriel Judah Ape has a long criminal history, including convictions [...]

The top cop for NCIS in North and South Carolina retired today. Read news here. I will miss Paul. He is intelligent, fair and slick. We sort of bumped heads during the early days of the Laurean thing, but in the months following we patched it up. Paul is from Rhode Island, same as my [...]

Sometimes, good things happen in Jacksonville. On Thursday afternoon, Plaza Manor had a block party to encourage community bonding and show kids there is more to life than crime. The JPD were there as well as Daily News photography Chuck Beckley. Check out these pics of the party. Click the thumbnails for larger images.           [...]

For the record, you know it’s going to be a long day if in the morning while rifling through warrants, you hear someone go “I heard there was a shooting at (a local bar) last night.” Well, damn. Lance Cpl. Jarrell Wilson, 22, was charged with 2 open counts of murder in the deaths of [...]

Amanda Hickey has news. Like I have said on Twitter, I believe this is the nail in the coffin in a secret abatement case the city has been building against Hooligans. I know the owner of the club, and this is nothing personal. I like him. He is a good businessman and tries really hard [...]

Police say this guy hit a woman with a shotgun, crashed into her car and then hit her again. Read news here. Didn’t have room to include his criminal record in the story like I normally do. Here is a run down of his convictions: – possession of stolen goods – larceny – cheat – [...]

A recent report from the Institute of Medicine says that the Department of Defense and VA should begin the process of making the U.S. military tobacco free. Read the news here. When I first saw this report, I about laughed. As far as I’m concerned, no one should be able to tell America’s military how [...]

Be extra careful where you get your drugs from in Iredell County. During a recent drug buy, the buyer and the seller were both undercover. The buyers - Statesville city cops - hooked up the seller – an Iredell deputy sheriff – before it all got straitened out.   I know a couple of undercover cops and [...]

I have reported a lot on a Marine who recently pleaded guilty to taking nude photos of a teenage girl while she was passed out drunk. The Marine’s wife has been implicated by law enforcement in the crime. I received an e-mail from her I believe to be authentic because of the address. In the [...]

Read news here. The Daily News does not usually identify the alleged victims of sexual assault (a long-standing policy I do not totally agree with). But in this case, the wife had an interview with a New Jersey newspaper which identified her as the wife and then had an interview with her father. The newspaper [...]

Stars & Strips has a really interesting article on its Web site about Nazis in the military and quotes a Camp Lejeune Marine sergeant. Check it out. This screenshot shows a page from New Saxon, a white supremist Web site: I believe in free speech, but does this cross the line for an active duty Marine? [...]

I know, I know. Y’all don’t care about comic books. You come here for crime news. But if I don’t post something about this, I will explode! Ever since the Silver Age Green Lantern, Hal Jordan returned from the dead a few years ago in a graphic novel written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Ethan [...]

Bob Coxe is such a nice man. Long before I got this reputation as a bulldog (I don’t know whether that’s good or bad), and certain people in certain circles realized they had to play nice with me, Mr. Coxe was always friendly and polite. I hate to see so much trouble roll his way, but [...]

I know I am behind on this one, but I got tired of hearing my editors ask me when I was going to turn in a story “because (so-and-so) has it on Twitter already.” OK. I give up. I signed up for Twitter early this morning with the user name 1lindell. I will be posting [...]

A (maybe former) Camp Lejeune Marine staff sergeant pleaded guilty Thursday to taking photos of a teenage girl he and his wife got drunk with rum and vodka. Read news here. During his sentence hearing Dustin Cosper was crying about what will happen to him in prison when word spreads about what he did (AND WHO HE DID IT [...]

The man charged with shooting his friend during a handgun game was discharged from the Marine Corps today for an unrelated matter. Read news. They were playing around with a 9mm pistol, I have been able to learn.

D.A. Dewey Hudson is pretty pissed off at Judge Ben Alford right now. Alford came into Dewey’s district for just a week and tosses a homicide victim’s sister in jail for five days, leaving Onslow County the bad rap. Read news here.

The deal won’t close for 30 days, but RE/MAX has someone under contract to buy Cesar Laurean’s home. Read news here. And a nod to WITN’s Chelsea Donovan for beating me to the story… this time. ———————————————- Mike McHugh sent me these photos of Chelsea and I at 103 Meadow Trail when the house was [...]

I have read on this blog and heard it elsewhere that Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown was laughing at the horrible smell coming from a Deerfield home last week where a woman was charged with allowing her children and animals to live in the same area.   I have something to say about this and [...]

Here’s a good example of interstate law enforcement cooperation: Police in Kentucky have arrested a North Carolina man on charges he dumped a body in West Virginia. Straight from Carteret County Sheriff’s Department press release: Police Officers in Bardstown, Kentucky arrested 39-year-old Erick Deickman on Wednesday afternoon in connection with the death of Andrew Mulvany [...]

Overheard downtown today by two workers at the new Onslow County Jail: “Let’s take a break.” “Ok.” “I’m gonna get some water.” “Ok. I’m going to go turn myself in to the sheriff.” Read news here. From what I understand, the alleged burglarers had ball bats as part of their “burglary tools.”

An animal rescue worker has filed a lawsuit against the woman accused of allowing her kids and dogs to live in the same space. Read news here. Here are a few photos a neighbor snapped the day the woman was arrested:

An out-of-state woman, the sister of a murder victim, is in jail for contempt of court after she argued with a judge. Read news here. I feel bad for the family in this situation – to travel four hours to see justice done in your brother’s death and then end up in jail is crazy. [...]

The Sneads Ferry resident who shot a man authorities said was trying to break into his home Monday will not be charged. Read news here. This case is a good example of how the defense law in North Carolina works. In some states, residents have to retreat or have to wait until someone is inside [...]

The full story is not out on this one yet, but it is clear, a handful of unarmed, alleged burglars are no match for a homeowner with a 12 gauge. Read news here. I hope to follow up on it tomorrow…

I really believed Anthony Wiggins in court today when he said he didn’t know Casey Tyler would shoot a man with his shotgun when he lent it to him. Read news here. However, Wiggins should have been more careful with who he gave his illegally shortened sawed-off shotgun too. Tyler may still have killed Timothy [...]

The wife of a Marine who is in jail, accused of shooting their good friend during a game talked to me today about the pain of losing a friend so close she called him “little brother,” the pain of losing her husband to the legal system and the pain of being ostracized by the community. Read the [...]

My mother would roll over in her grave if she saw the conditions two Onslow County kids were living in until authorities seized them Thursday afternoon. Read story here. The photo below was taken by an animal rescue person. The newspaper would not run it Thursday because the editors were unsure of the legality of [...]

A Camp Lejeune Marine is accused of shooting his roommate during a deadly, drunken game of “trust me,” where participants took turns pointing a handgun at each other. Read the news here. This family was not well liked in their neighborhood. Every neighbor I spoke to said they were troublemakers, but it is sad for something like this [...]

As promised earlier this week, here is the compilation of your pet peeves. If ya didn’t submit them earlier, feel free to do so on this one. But while you guys read and ponder what irritates you at the beach, I will be enjoying the sunshine and sand. HAVE A GREAT FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND! [...]