news-record.com

High Point police will hold the Officer of the Year ceremony on Wednesday at 2 p.m. in the City Council chambers on the third floor of the municipal building at 211 S. Hamilton St.

Chief Jim Fealy will present the Officer of the Year, Civilian Employee of the Year and Reserve Officer of the Year awards. The event is open to the public.
 

While Sheriff BJ Barnes is gearing up for another election, he's also preparing drivers for heavy Labor Day traffic.

“I would remind all motorists to practice the Golden Rule when driving," Barnes said in a statement. "Be courteous and tolerant of other drivers. Please don’t get angry with bad drivers or reckless ones – just get out of their way."

Here a few other safety tips:

• SCAN THE ROADS. Always shift your attention every few seconds, constantly scanning the road ahead and behind you. Never blankly stare ahead or fix your gaze on one point on the road.
• PASS WITH CARE. You should get into the opposite lane of traffic when passing while you are still well behind the car. This should give you some time and space to build up speed and will enable you to pull back into your own lane should the need arise. Never cut abruptly out of your lane into the opposite lane when passing.
• GIVE 'EM A SIGN. Always signal your intentions with your brake lights, turn signals, horn and/or headlights so that other drivers will see you well before you change course.
• AIM HIGH IN STEERING. That is, you should glance frequently at points well ahead of you. Not only will this help your steering, but it will also help you check the position of vehicles in front of you as well as on-coming ones.
• DON'T FOLLOW TOO CLOSELY. Remember that, as your speed increases, it takes you substantially longer to stop. Also remember that it’s good to have an extra cushion of space in front of you if you’re being tail-gated, on a slippery road, or in low visibility conditions.

Here's my tip – drive at your own risk.

We received the final dollar amount for police to cover Saturday's meeting of the National Socialist Movement and a counter protest held downtown.

Taxpayers footed a $44,400 bill for the security efforts.

More about the police take on both events here.

This probably comes as a surprise to no one, but Sheriff BJ Barnes said he intends to run for re-election next year.

I long suspected BJ woudn't fight for the jail as hard as he did and simply walk away from the ball game. I also got a look at the jail blueprints in a sit-down interview at his office Monday morning. It looks like it will be pretty impressive. We'll write more about the new jail closer to when it looks to open (tentatively November 2011).

Also, an interesting point about the new jail is that it will be built from the top down. Detention officers will be hitting the ground running, learning the layout and technology on the eighth floor even before the building is complete. That way they will waste no time in preparing for opening day.

Back to the elections... any potential candidates out there pondering a run for sheriff? I'd love to hear from you.

Also, readers -- do you think there is anyone in Guilford County who could legitimately give the sheriff a run for his money? 

I suppose it's never too early to start thinking about next year's elections.

From our site:

GREENSBORO — Guilford County Sheriff BJ Barnes said Monday that he intends to run for re-election in 2010 with the hope of overseeing a smooth transition to the new downtown jail.

“I plan on running and seeing the jail finished if the citizens will give me that honor,” Barnes said.

“It’s something that's going to be very important to the community, and I owe it to the men and women who have done so much for the sheriff’s office and the citizens to see this through.”

The new jail, tentatively scheduled to open in November 2011, will hold 1,032 inmates and is expected to cost $114.6 million. It will be adjacent to the current jail on West Sycamore Street.

Once the eight-story structure is complete, a massive one-year renovation of the old jail will be conducted to enable inmates to be housed there again as well.

The new jail should be in line with inmate population growth through 2025, according to inmate growth estimates.

Barnes has served as Guilford County Sheriff since 1994 and has more than 30 years in law enforcement.

• While walking, remember to always travel with a friend.  Two heads are better than one, especially if there’s an emergency.
• A stranger is anyone you or your parents don’t know well.
• You or your friend must never take candy, money, medicine or anything else from a stranger.
• If a stranger in a car asks you questions, don’t get close to the car (you could get pulled in) – and never get in the car.
• Strangers can be very tricky – they can ask you to walk with them to “show” them something; they can offer to pay for your video game, or ask you to help them find a lost dog or cat.  Don’t be fooled!
• Don’t tell anyone your name or address when you’re walking and don’t think that because someone knows your name that they know you – they may just be looking at your name printed on your lunch box, school bag or T-shirt.
• If you think you’re in any danger, yell, and run to the nearest store or “safe house” or back to school.
• Always tell your parents or teacher if a stranger has approached you.
  

Charlotte police have an extremely interesting case on their hands involving the killing of a 15-year-old boy by a 76-year-old man who - along with his wife - was tied up in a home invasion robbery.

The man managed to get free and chased down his alleged attackers and ended up killing one of the teens, thinking the boy was armed.

No charges have been filed yet. If they are - and this case goes to trial - it will make for an interesting debate on the right of self defense.

So I ask, what would you have done placed in the man's situation? Based on what is known, do you think the shooting is justified or not? and why?

Here's the story from The Associated Press: 

CHARLOTTE (AP) — Police are unraveling a home invasion and burglary that began at an elderly couple's home and ended with a 15-year-old suspect shot to death on a nearby street.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said robbery and homicide investigative units are working to sort out the Saturday incident that began when four young men pushed into the upscale brick home that C.L. McClure, 76, shares with his wife in northeast Charlotte's Newell community.

"I'm not in any condition to talk" about the incident, McClure, a retired building fireproofer, told The Charlotte Observer on Tuesday.

Police said four teens entered McClure's home Saturday. McClure was bound with duct tape and his wife held at gunpoint. The robbers left with some jewelry and a wallet.

McClure's son, Larry, who lives next door, said his father broke free and after checking that his wife was OK guessed at the robbers' route out of his neighborhood. C.L. McClure grabbed a pistol, got into his dark green van and pursued the crooks, Larry McClure said.

"He thought they might have been driving, and he wanted to get a tag number," Larry McClure said.

Larry McClure said his father told him he was in his van when he saw one of the suspected robbers and thought he was armed. C.L. McClure fired his pistol when the teen turned toward him, his son said.

Marcus Fluker, 15, died later at Carolinas Medical Center. Police said they didn't recover a gun from near his body.

Officers took C.L. McClure to headquarters for questioning but released him without charges.

Police charged the other three teens with robbery and burglary. Police identified them as Joseph Graves, 17, Matthew Everett Morgan, 17, and Tahjaue Wiley, 18.

Police said they want to prevent any possible retribution against McClure and have assigned an officer to keep an eye on the residence.

"I think there's a concern. They just want to be extra careful. It's extra upsetting to have a 15-year-old shot and killed," said Capt. Mike Smathers, who command's the department's robbery unit. "I don't care who you are; that's terrible. They're just trying to make sure peace is maintained."

___

I got an e-mail last night from a reader questioning our thought on running the address of a crime suspect arrested recently by the sheriff’s office on a sex charge.

Her concern? Embarrassment that running such information would cause the man’s wife, who she said is an outstanding citizen and mother. 

I understand where she is coming from. Putting someone’s home address in a story associated with a criminal activity is not something we take lightly.

However, in line with our crime reporting policy, we run the full name of adult suspects, their age, specific address and city when the information is available.

The reason is simply to avoid cases of mistaken identity.

For example, opening the phone book you’ll find nine people named George Smith in Greensboro, seven in Winston-Salem and I’m sure there are dozens more across the state and thousands across the country.

I’m sure some of those men are around the same age as well.

Simply reporting that "George Smith" was arrested on charges of robbery with a dangerous weapon  is likely to make all the innocent George Smiths out there pretty angry and subject to odd looks at work or at church.

However, throw in his age, address and city and that narrows the pool tremendously.

It helps, but it’s not a fool proof method by any means.

Just ask the other  Melissa Huckaby that lives near Tracy, Calif.

High Point police will unveil its Memorial Guardian statue on 2 p.m. Aug. 28. It honors those "who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their community," a press release states.