The Charlotte Observer from Charlotte, North Carolina • 13

Cljc (Cl)iirlottc (Dbsmicr Mooresville I Dragnet locks down schools 2B Catawba Setback I Court rejects tribal video poker 2B UNC Future I Hearings in Charlotte and Hickory 3B SC Primary I Sen Biden in Rock Hill 3B wwwcharlottecom TUESDAY OCTOBER 2 2007 SECTION Mice: (Offieeir paddM time Whitlow arrested accused of taking pay for off-duty security work he perform Dannye Romine Powell Patrolman resigned last month had been on force since July 2005 charged Monday with felony obtaining property by false pretenses Whitlow who lesigned from the foice last month was booked into the Mecklenburg County jail and released on a written promise to appear in court Police Chief Dan cl Stephens said Whitlow' failed to report to an off-duty security job at a construction site but filled out a time report reflecting that he was thcie In January Officer Alan McGraw was arrested on the Whitlow who joined the force in July 2005 woiked as a patiol officer in the Eastway Division According to a police report lie is accused of lying about security work he was paid to do at the construction site of The Ivey an adult daycare center in south Chmlottc Whitlow declined to comment Monday unclear how long he did off-duty w'ork at the site but Stephens said the charges stem from one incident McGraw a 25-ycar veteran of SEE OFF-DUTY I 6B same chaigc accused of lying about secunty work been hired to do at a county paik Stephens said Monday he plans to review records and policies for the secondary employment piogiam to find ways to increase oversight I hope these are isolated cases they raise questions for me and others in the Stephens said have an obligation to cnsuic the pro-giam has sufficient controls and that offiecis follow the law and departmental After been on the force for a year Chailotte-Mecklen-burg police officers are allowed to wxnk off-duty They are paid by the company that hues them a minimum of $24 an hour for seem lty wxnk Officers aie not allowed to work moic than 14 hours a day including on- and off-duty hours By Mei issa Manware mmanware(a charlotteobserver com Foi the second time this year a Charlotte-Mccklenburg police officer has been arrested and accused of taking money for off-duty woik he do Jerome Whitlow 35 was Hiker helped save father son CONCORD Council orders halt to work on drag strip Zoning is changed to outlaw track on Smith speedway site DAVIE HINSHAW dhinshawia charlotteobserver com Greg Foust of Gastonia and his son 5 were apparently hiking near the Linwood Road access point departed from a trail and fell Foust was in fair condition at Carolinas Medical Center with a broken back His son was in serious condition with a fractured skull Duke chief offers model of a If there was a tide in the sorry affairs of the Duke lacrosse case Duke President Richard Biodhcad allowed it to flood right on by him Who knows if his will end in the and Shakespeare predicted for those of us who fail fo seize the moment when most needed But I must say that first public apology late though it was could serve as a model of how to say sorry At a conference at Duke Law School on Saturday the president expressed his rc-giets about how the university handled the case in which three students were falsely accused of raping an escort service dancer What finally motivated Likely it was a recent letter on alumni magazine Web site by Charlotte lawyer Jay Bilas The ESPN sports commentator and former Duke basketball player called for resignation citing lack of leadership in the lacrosse case Maybe the president was scrambling but his words were apt He said his biggest regret was failure to reach out to the lacrosse players and their families in this time of extraordinary Complex case say the state I imagine the students and their parents felt trapped in as the ugly case lumbered on a vortex of dread embarrassment exhaustion fury financial drain and bone-wearying sorrow Brodhcad went on to say this was a complex case and the communication right would never have been No question he tried harder at the time Still correct about this: fact is that w'e did not get it right causing the families to feel abandoned when they were most in need of Straightforward responsible cmpathctic And then: was a mistake I take responsibility for it and I I could take exception to the heftlcss word I prefer But Brodhcad neither hedges nor blames I called Charlotte psychotherapist Bryan Robinson for his thoughts on apology so clear taking Robinson says docs it without saying bad people or Neither does Brodhcad make one of the biggest gaffes in the art of apologizing He say you felt in extraordinary peril I We do have to wonder how much of what Brodhcad says matches how he feels A masterful crafting of words is not necessarily a mirror of in a heart Brodhcad let three students falsely accused dangle in peril as the administration some of the faculty and neatly all the media rushed to condemn before the facts were in Brodhcad is not the only one who owes these families a mea culpa He had plenty of company on the bandwagon If they choose to join him in apologizing hope they pick their words as well Dannye 704 358 5230 dpowelliacharlotteobserver com By Sharif Durhams sdurhams(acharlotteobserver com CONCORD While pledging loyalty to auto racing Concord City Council members voted unanimously Monday to halt construction on a drag strip being built at the Motor Speedway complex Concord bills itself and the surrounding area as the cradle of the motor-sports industry Mayor Scott Padgett noted Monday night that he has a NASCAR custom license place on his ear But residents who can already see construction for the drag strip fiom their backyards oiganized opposition during the past week telling council members they were worried about noise The Monday night session was a special meeting called by city officials who said they getting data fi om company Speedway Motor-sports to show how loud noise from the drag strip would be Speedway Motoi sports representatives provide noise data at the meeting however burden is on Padgett said He said council members SEE ZONING I 2B Directed rescuers to injured pair at Crowders Mountain Cell 3 towers CROWDERS MOUNTAIN STATE PARK By Kara I opp Special Correspondent A cries for a cell phone caught the ear of a passing hiker who alerted rescuers to the man and his 5-ycar-old son both injured Sunday in a fall at Crowders Mountain State Park Greg Foust 35 of Gastonia was in fair condition at Carolinas Medical Center on Monday with a broken back said his aunt Kathy Phillips of Fort Mill SC son Dylan was in serious condition with a fractured skull she said She said her nephew STAFF MAP ledge heard Foust yelling for a cell phone about 11:30 am and notified authorities said park superintendent Larry Hyde The two were apparently hiking near the I inwood Road access point W'herc rock climbing is allowed and departed from a maikcd trail before they fell about 20 feet and landed on the cliff ledge There is no age restriction for hikers but to rock climbing SEE CROWDERS I 4B Safety Tips Crowders Mountain State Park superintendent Larry Hyde offers these tips for a safe visit to the park Hike only on designated trails Read park signs carefully Carry a cell phone Decision 2007 Perdue enters race Decision 2007 I Charlotte City Council At-large Burgess makes roads schools growth priorities Lieutenant governor expected to face tough Democratic primary Meet the Candidates This week the Observer will profile the eight at-lai gc City Council candidates The stones will he archived thioughout the campaign on wwwcharlottecompoliUcs Monday Raphael Basisa Today: Susan Burgess Wednesday Jack Flynn Thursday Anthony Foxx Friday John Lassiter Saturday Edwin Peacock Sunday Dan Ramirez Monday David Romero By Vic toria Chi rich vcherrie(arhjiTottcobst rver om Democrat Susan Buigcss wants to finish wdiat she staited two years ago when she was elected to one of tour at-laige seats on the C'hailotte City Council Chailotte needs to its head out of the sand" when it comes to dealing with giowth and pioviding adequate roads and schools Buigess said Her campaign is reaching out to the young voters many who attended a voluntccr-iun party last week that she called "Buigess-Palooa Buigess (1 is the only woman among eight candidates seeking SEE CANDIDATE I 6B By Mark Johnson mohnson(aclwlotteobserver com Nf HI RN 1 1 Gov Bevctly Perdue officially launched her long-expected bid for the mansion Monday evening aiming to take office as the first female chief executive and setting up a bruising and expensive primary fight Perdue rallied supporters at an evening barbecue-and-chips event at the riverside convention center in her adopted hometown of New Bern the first capital Highlighting her woik as a schoolteacher and hospital administrator she declared her mission to establish first-rate education and acces CHUCK LIDDY (RALEIGH) NEWS OBSERVER Lt Gov Beverly Perdue wades into the crowd to greet supporters after she officially announced her candidacy for governor told the crowd of moi than 500 also the healthiest state in She faces a brawl for the SEE DECISION 2007 I 6B sible affordable health care in the state goal for Noith Carolina is not only to be the best educated state in Pei due LEARN MORE ABOUT HER 6B I Susan biography.