Wayne Week — July 28, 2024

N E W OL D NORT H M E DI A PR E SE N T S A W E E K LY N E WS M AGA Z I N E

Wayne

WEEK

GUILTY, YOUR HONOR At one time, they were two of the Wayne County Sheriff's Office's highest-ranking officials.

But now that former Maj. Christopher Worth has pleaded guilty to fraud, both he and former Drug Unit Chief Michael Cox are convicted felons.

by Ken Fine p. 18

J U LY 2 8, 2 024

N E WOL DNORT H .C OM

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. Wayne WEEK . newoldnorth.com

CONTENTS 4 WCPS makes change for projects JULY 28, 2024 Volume 1, Issue 50

NEWOLDNORT H .CO M

EDITORIAL EDITOR Ken Fine EDITOR Renee Carey DESIGN DIRECTOR Shan Stumpf PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Casey Mozingo

ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Hallie Hulse Evans ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Stephanie Lack ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Lara Landers

PUBLISHER

New Old North Media LLC

CONTACTS EDITORS

kfine@newoldnorth.com rcarey@newoldnorth.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

hevans@newoldnorth.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

llanders@newoldnorth.com

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

slack@newoldnorth.com

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A year ago, the son of the Wayne County Board of Education's longest-tenured member was awarded nearly $25,000 in Wayne County Public Schools landscaping contracts. This year, the board has vowed to weigh in should potential "conflicts of interest" emerge.

9 Best of the Boot voting ends soon More than 18,000 unique voters have cast ballots in the 2024 contest, and there are still a few days remaining to ensure your voice is heard — and local businesses know how much you care about what they are doing to make Wayne County a great place to eat, drink, shop, play, and live.

13 Pikeville mayor being minimized As local residents and commissioners continue to press Mayor Garrett Johnston to resign, they are also preparing to render him irrelevant should he refuse to do so.

16 Our take

Wayne County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Marc Whichard seems to be pointing the school district in the right direction, but because of lessons learned, it is still more necessary than ever to keep an eye on members of the Board of Education.

18 Cover story

Former Wayne County Sheriff's Office Maj. Christopher Worth told a federal judge Wednesday that he is, in fact, guilty of fraud — a crime the government said did local residents wrong. Now, both he and former WCSO Drug Unit Chief Michael Cox are convicted felons awaiting sentencing.

OFFICE 219 N. John Street Goldsboro, N.C. 27530 919-648-9905 COVER DESIGN BY SHAN STUMPF © 2024 NEW OLD NORTH MEDIA LLC All rights reserved. Material may not be reproduced without permission.

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NEWS +VIEWS

WCPS changes beautification hiring process

Last year, when nearly $25,000 was paid to the son of the Board of Education’s longest-tenured member to complete landscape work, teachers and local landscapers got angry. Now, the school district is advertising for the work on its website and vowed to bring bidders before the board if there is a perceived “conflict of interest.”

BY RENEE CAREY AND KEN FINE

S

ome want to restripe their parking lots.

Others are planning to purchase “seasonal” flags for the front of their buildings.

There are those looking to pay for basic upkeep of shrubs and sidewalks.

And a few say they need plants, mulch, and even new signage.

But unlike in 2023, when more than $100,000 was spent by Wayne County Public Schools principals beyond the gaze, and scrutiny, of the taxpayers footing the bill — and more than 20 percent of that sum was paid to the son of the Board of Education’s longest-tenured member — this year, the “WCPS Campus Improvement Plans” are public and a seemingly open bid process is underway.

The move represents a reversal from last summer, when the district defended nearly $25,000 being paid to Next Level Lawn & Landscaping, an unlicensed landscape company owned by district employee and board member Chris West’s son, Noah — and based, according to a company invoice obtained and published by Wayne Week last October, at the elder West’s residence.

This time around, according to WCPS spokesman Ken Derksen, any bids “which could create the appearance of a conflict of interest for a board member would require assessment by and the approval of the board.”

But when asked by Wayne Week last fall why the board failed to comply with its own nepotism policy during the campus beautification effort, the answer was far different.

According to board policy, before any immediate family member of a board member or central office staff administrator is employed by the district — “in any capacity as an employee, independent contractor, or otherwise” — two things must happen.

First, the board member or central office staff member must disclose the relationship to the board.

Then, the board must approve the contract in a “duly open session meeting.”

But when asked if — and if so, when — such a presentation or approval took place, 4

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Derksen said, “no such presentation occurred or was required for these projects.”

The idea, while seeming well-intentioned, to improve the appearance of WCPS schools, drew the ire of many teachers last fall — men and women who said they found it “outrageous” that hundreds of thousands of dollars were earmarked for power washing and mulching when they were being forced to post school supply wish lists on crowdsourcing platforms.

And members of the Spring Creek Elementary School PTA agreed — chastising the school for how it spent its money and the district for paying people to do work they said they would have, and ultimately did, volunteered to complete.

Local landscapers chimed in, too, with one telling Wayne Week that instead of allowing bigger companies to bid on several schools at a time — a process that would have required

bulk purchases and, as a result, saved the district money — officials, instead, in some cases, hired unlicensed businesses to perform the work.

Many of those same teachers said they are still “appalled” by what they see as misguided use of funds.

But the landscapers, many of whom said they plan on bidding on the work now that they have, unlike last year, been made aware jobs are available, said they are pleased “the superintendent seems to be trying to bring back transparency” — while, at the same time, vowing to ensure the public knows who received every contract.

The reason?

“As impressive as Dr. Whichard has been in trying to right some wrongs, the board members are still his boss,” said the owner of a landscape company who asked for anonymity to ensure his business didn’t get “blacklisted”

by WCPS this year. “If West’s son — or any other family member of a board member or leader in that district — gets taxpayer money, everyone deserves to know.”

Last year, West’s son was paid to complete work on five campuses — Northeast Elementary, Tommy’s Road Elementary, Norwayne Middle, Greenwood Middle, and Charles B. Aycock High School — and was paid nearly $25,000 for the work.

A WCPS HVAC technician, the payments reflected more than 50 percent of his annual salary.

For work completed at Charles B. Aycock, he was paid $7,740.49.

Northeast cut him checks totaling $3,338.55.

Tommy’s Road paid $6,789.30.

Norwayne paid $4,398.10.

Greenwood kicked in another $1,585.23.

The grand total — $23,851.67.

And some of the work was done on a WCPS workday after the district approved leave so he could complete landscaping at CBA. Last October, Wayne Week noted that other than a Facebook page that, at the time, boasted 98 “likes” and 99 “followers,” reporters were unable to locate any other website for Next Level Lawn & Landscaping.

So, it was unclear how the principals of those schools — most, if not all, of whom, were appointed to their posts during the elder West’s tenure as chairman of the School Board — determined the company was best-suited for the projects at hand.

And Whichard, who was new to the job, had little to say beyond the following statement: “With regards to these funds, which were set aside prior to my arrival, each school was required to develop a plan for their campus revitalization efforts. Once approved, each school then selected local businesses, as applicable, to complete the campus improvements that were needed. It is important to note that if a WCPS employee working a part-time job outside of WCPS was involved with any campus revitalization work, it occurred outside of their regular work hours and/or during approved vacation time.”

Continued with graphic on page 6

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WCPS' PROPOSED PROJECTS — SCHOOL BY SCHOOL ROSEWOOD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Pressure washing the entire school • New wreaths, flags, and planters will be purchased for the front of the building • Rocks and border will be installed around all the current trees, beds, and marquee in front of the school • New outdoor mats will be purchased with the school logo

DILLARD MIDDLE SCHOOL

• A company will come in and do some landscaping. (Spray, trim, cut, etc.)

CARVER HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Initial cleanup and continuous maintenance of shrubs, sidewalks and garden area.

BROGDEN MIDDLE SCHOOL

• Restriping of staff/visitor parking lot • Bus lot/gym entrance sign at drive entrance • Staff/Visitor/Main Office sign at drive entrance • Replacing mulch with rock from the 300 building to the 800 building on the staff parking lot side • Campus mulch touchup (funds permitting) • Pressure washing of 300 building entrance, gym entrance and white fence in front of school (funds permitting)

NORTH DRIVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Pressure washing the entire exterior of the school building, including walls and windows • Sidewalk pressure washing • Installation of new, professionally designed signage featuring the school’s name and logo at prominent locations near the entrance and along the front grounds • Implementation of a modern digital marquee to display announcements, upcoming events, and important messages to the school community and passersby • Improvement of lawn areas with professional maintenance services including mowing, edging, and fertilizing • Installation of black mulch to define and enhance flower beds along the sidewalk • Planting green flowers and other suitable plants to create an attractive border along the sidewalks and near the building

EASTERN WAYNE HIGH SCHOOL

• Add shrubs and flowers to the front sidewalk area leading up to the building as well as add these to the “Memorial Area” in front parking lot once WCPS maintenance removes trees and bushes that have gotten out of control throughout the campus

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• Add rock to the front gym area around existing flower/bush beds • Add signage at the entrances of the school for directional purposes • Add EWHS logo window wrapping to the front doors of the main building and to the gym

MOUNT OLIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL

• Graphic design for the front entrance of

our main building • Graphic design for all the gym doors • Parking lot lines painted and directional arrows in both parking lots • White lettering for the following glass doors: front office, media center, cafeteria, administrator’s office • Signs for light poles • Big mats for front entrance w/ school name and updated mascot • Fresh mulch around bushes • Bushes trimmed • Flowers planted around main office and cafeteria

SPRING CREEK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Galvanized chain link fence with concrete

footings and bottom tension wire for a space approximately 395’ and 4’ tall • TripleShoot Ball Arena • Four-seater swing set posted with concrete footings and designed for commercial play • Fall zone with border and mulch around swing set

GRANTHAM MIDDLE SCHOOL

• Gate for athletic parking • Pressure washing • Shade structure • Mulch • Front flower bed along auditioning/gym wall • Restricted parking lot • Fencing along driveway • Remove side flower bed

• Landscape bed by B Wing • Remove weeds and unwanted vegetation

in outside eating area • Apply herbicide to outside eating area • Landscape bed by 3rd Grade Wing • Deliver and install mulch where the washout areas are from the gutters between wings • Deliver and install red mulch around the trees in various locations on campus • Pressure wash all the white fence around the front of the school • Remove all weeds from the cracks of the concrete on walkways and parking lot • Trim and edge all lawn areas around the school • Mow all lawn areas around the school excluding the ballfields

BROGDEN PRIMARY SCHOOL

• All parking lot signs need replacing • Signage on entrance doors of main building • Landscaping • Artwork and furniture for new office and

entrance space

• Replacing wooden benches in front of

the school

• Order tables to set up an outside learning

space between the two buildings

SPRING CREEK HIGH SCHOOL

• Pressure wash building, trailers and sidewalk • Paint handicap ramp sidewalk • Solar lights • Weed control on campus lawn • Landscaping in front of building, near

marquee and center island • Add ornamental trees down front of campus property • Update “No Parking” signs • Patching parking lot potholes • Front office furniture • Shampoo entrance rug

NORTHWEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Remove drift rose bushes and greenery bushes that are by the “One Way” sign • Remove bushes that are around the light pole • Remove existing mulch and unwanted vegetation around flower beds • Provide and install new landscape fabric in flower beds • Provide and plant 8 to 10 encore azaleas • Deliver and install new 2 to 4 inch tan river rock to the flower beds • Remove dead bush from front school sign • Deliver and install fresh pine straw around the sign • Clean up sticks, limbs, and pine cones • Landscape bed by office

NORTHEAST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Remove all mulch and rose bushes from landscaped beds in the back of the school between each breezeway • Pressure wash all white fencing at the front of the school and in parking lot • Repair broken and missing pieces of fencing • Add white fencing at the front office of the school • Replace the name decal on the marquee sign in the front of the school • Tint the front hallway windows to make it safer and help control building temperature

MEADOW LANE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Power washing the front of the building, including the white front columns and the front entryway • Purchase additional signage to provide direction to parents, staff, and community stakeholders • Deep cleaning the front office carpet

SPRING CREEK MIDDLE SCHOOL

• Remove five small dead trees in front

of the school cafeteria and fill in holes left from removal • Place metals borders around the concrete areas/sidewalks at the front entrance of the school and in front of Media Center where shrubbery is located to eliminate washout of mulch • Murals

FREMONT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

• Purchase of traffic cones to set car-rider barriers • Signage for grounds and buildings to provide directional pathways, buses only, no parking, do not enter, etc.

• Planters and flowers for the front entry ways • Seasonal flags for the grounds • Door hangers to welcome stakeholders • Décor for front office and vestibule area

SOUTHERN WAYNE HIGH SCHOOL

• Add some hardy colorful shrubs to the landscaping near the flagpole • Paint the upper part of the face of the old gym • Purchase and install a solar lantern for the front entrance • Restripe the parking lot lines in the front of the school

EASTERN WAYNE ELEMENTARY • Pressure wash building • Exchangeable insert signs • Parking lot striping • Landscaping • Pole covers for car line • Paint touch ups on the school

marquee sign

EDITOR'S NOTE: Several schools used their beautification funds last year and are, therefore, not reflected on this list.

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Best of the Boot voting about to end

Finalists will soon be surprised with their window stickers and then, our award-winning magazine will reveal the winners.

W

ho makes the best burger?

Who is the person to call if you find yourself in a legal bind?

Which teachers are making a lasting impact on their students’ lives?

Where is the place to find the perfect gift for the friend or loved one who is impossible to please?

Wayne County residents are well on their way to making their eat, drink, shop, play, and professional services recommendations in more than 100 categories.

That’s right.

New Old North’s 2024 Best of the Boot winners will soon be crowned.

And with, as of press time, a staggering 17,481 ballots cast from unique IP addresses, this year’s contest promises to be our biggest yet.

But there are a few things you need to know as we near the finish line. So, let’s get to it.

Papers ballots have been available to Wayne Week subscribers for several weeks

and several hundred have already been returned to the New Old North office on North John Street.

Those votes have been counted and will be added to the totals from our digital ballot, which has gone viral on Facebook and Instagram, and will remain active through July 31.

Finalist stickers — yes, the ones you have seen on business windows and front doors across Wayne County for the last several years — are currently in production and will be distributed to the Top 4 vote-getters (first through third place and honorable mention) in each category the first few weeks of August.

And as we surprise those folks, you will see photos of their celebrations on the New Old North Facebook and Instagram accounts, so if you are not already doing so, give us a “follow.”

Then, we will spend a few weeks building Continued on page 10 newoldnorth.com

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Continued from page 9

our Best of the Boot magazine — an oversized, full-color, free publication we consider a love letter to the people and places that make this community so special.

Inside its pages, you will find the winners of every category and, as has become tradition, thank-you advertisements from those finalists and nominees that want to share with their neighbors how humbled they are to be considered among the very best in their respective fields.

The Best of the Boot 2024 magazine will be distributed across the county, but first, finalists will get a chance to see how they fared at our magazine release event.

More details on that gathering will come soon, but if the past offers insight into what you can expect, great music, great food, great drinks, and plenty of fellowship will be on the menu.

And here’s the best part: Nobody is required to pay for anything.

The finalist stickers? Free.

The trophies? On us.

The magazines? Our gift to our neighbors.

So, while we encourage — and are happy to accept — advertising from the many who have made it a tradition to be a part of the publication, it’s up to you and has zero bearing on the outcome of the contest.

10

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If it brightens, even for a moment, the spirit of this community, we feel it's a contest worth preserving.

With all that said, here is something worth remembering if you haven’t yet taken the time to cast a ballot.

We created Best of the Boot in the middle of a global pandemic to inject life into the places our neighbors have worked so hard to keep open for all these years — small-town establishments that were pushed to the brink as COVID-19 disrupted our respective routines.

We hoped it would remind people just how lucky they are to have such incredible businesses — and people — right here in Wayne County, and to encourage them to “shop local.”

But we had no idea just how much getting a sticker or a trophy would mean to those who have, in the many years since, secured “The Boot.”

We have watched people literally break

down into tears when they were surprised with their finalist sticker.

We have heard stories about how the pandemic nearly broke them — and how something as simple as a Best of Boot nomination lifted their spirits on the dark days.

But what takes us aback every single year is how grateful they are to all of you — those who took the time not just to nominate and vote for them, but who spend hardearned dollars in stores instead of on the internet and inside mom-and-pops instead of superstores.

These men and women are well aware of, and humbled by, those who help ensure they can keep the lights on — and, perhaps, give them an opportunity to pass the torch to a new generation one day.

So yes, it’s just a contest.

In the grand scheme of things, there is a whole lot more to worry about as we navigate our lives.

But if it brightens, even for a moment, the spirit of this community, we feel it’s a contest worth preserving.

And seeing that we are well on our way to another record-breaking vote count, the fact that so many of you seem to agree is another piece of proof of just how lucky we are to call this little slice of Eastern North Carolina home.n

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★ All Wayne County residents vote for the At-Large Candidate!

FOR BOARD OF EDUCATION AT-L ARGE No candidate or candidate’s committee is responsible for the content of this advertisement. Paid for by Mark and Lauren Metzler.

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Pikeville mayor is being “minimized” as residents turn up the heat Garrett Johnston refuses to resign, but residents, employees, and even some commissioners are content, until he does, to ignore him.

BY KEN FINE

M

ore than 100 people cheered when he asked if they would “respect” him “for just walking away.”

Petitions — one of them, published on change.org — are circulating and gaining signatures.

Yard signs demanding his resignation are popping up in front of houses across town — including the home of Town Manager Tim Biggerstaff.

And now, the Board of Commissioners is scaling back plans he boasted about after the town received a $1 million allocation from the state budget, courtesy of House Majority Leader John Bell.

Less than a month after the contents of a four-hour audio recording taken during a January conversation between Pikeville Mayor Garrett Johnston and two town residents were published in Wayne Week, residents are ratcheting up pressure on him to step down.

But the “immediate removal” many are demanding has not yet happened.

In fact, Johnston passed on an opportunity to apologize

for his comments, opting instead to question the existence of the recording — despite the fact that Police Chief Rodney Jarman said he, too, has listened to it in full — and chastise the person who made it.

But what transpired inside the Pikeville-Pleasant Grove Volunteer Fire Department July 8 only energized those who believe the mayor is “a disgrace.”

“We, the people of Pikeville, demand accountability from our appointed & elected officials of the Town of Pikeville Board of Commissioners. We, the people of Pikeville, require the Mayor & Board of Commissioners to abide by their paths to their respective offices and conduct themselves in business that best promotes the best interest of the Town of Pikeville and the members & residents of its community,” one of the petitions reads.

“We, the undersigned, petition the Town of Pikeville Board of Commissioners & Mayor demanding the resignation of Mayor Garrett Johnston from his office in violation of his office and unethical conduct and behavior. Mr. Johnston Continued on page 13

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. Wayne WEEK . 13

Continued from page 13

does not represent this community, its values, or its people. We, the undersigned, issue a vote of no confidence in Mr. Johnston and demand his immediate removal as the Mayor of the Town of Pikeville.”

Some believe what they have characterized as “unethical behavior” — from Johnston allegedly accepting gifts from his daughter’s college soccer coach, a man he planned to hire in what would be a violation of North Carolina General Statute, to allegedly lying about having support from Bell, the Local Government Commission, and League of Municipalities to change the form of government in the town — are enough to disqualify Johnston from continuing as mayor.

Others are worried about potential lawsuits from the many current and former Pikeville employees Johnston spoke about during the recorded conversation — particularly because his comments included discussion about their job performance, personal lives, and, in two cases, their medical history.

And there are even those who question how the government can function properly now that, after he excoriated Jarman and the rest of the Pikeville PD, the police chief said he would no longer recognize Johnston as the mayor.

“The damage has been done with your

What should have happened was a public hearing on how we were going to spend that money. And how future money will be spent. ...

What is it you want to see? That should have always been, and should be as we move forward, what matters.

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words and your actions. In four hours of recorded audio, all of which I have listened to in-depth, you undermined the hard work of so many for the selfishness of one,” he said. “I stand before the board, town staff, residents, and the community as a whole, not only to identify a problem but to provide a solution.

I will continue to protect you as a citizen, but I cannot serve you as a mayor. I respect the seat in which you sit, but not the person who sits in it. I will always do and stand for what is right in this department and this community and therefore, in unity with them, I stand and demand your resignation.”

As for his ability to operate in his role, Johnston has faced additional hurdles since that July 8 meeting.

Wednesday, during a board work session, board members signaled their intention to walk away from the mayor’s plans to spend the bulk of the $1 million allocation on a $400,000 soccer complex and a series of cross-country trails.

Biggerstaff said Johnston called the consensus “short-sighted,” but that did not change the majority’s outlook.

The money will now be spent on more “practical” items — things including those the town manager said are desperately needed related to the town’s sewer system.

And a baseball field, playground equipment, and other draws for “young families” might be

on the table, too.

But more important than the “what” is how it will be determined.

Before the recording published, town officials said Johnston alone came up with a list of projects that would be funded using the $1 million — and “rammed it down people’s throats” claiming Bell championed his visions of “going big.”

But now that hundreds within the town have turned on the mayor, commissioners are moving toward a process that includes input from employees and residents — the way “it should have been done to begin with,” Biggerstaff said.

“What should have happened was a public hearing on how we were going to spend that money,” he said. “And how future money will be spent.”

And he hopes that conversation — that has already begun behind the scenes between passionate residents and the men who currently represent them — will continue in a more public way during the board’s next special-called meeting.

“We want to hear from them,” Biggerstaff said. “What is it that you want to see? That should have always been, and should be as we move forward, what matters.”

Complete coverage of that meeting will appear in the Aug. 4 edition of Wayne Week.n

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{ our TAKE }

FINDING THEIR WAY

I

f we have said it once, we have said it a thousand times.

The key to Wayne County’s future prosperity can be found on Royall Avenue.

Wayne County Public Schools are a critical piece in setting a course for not only attracting new business and investment, but also for giving our children and grandchildren the incentive they need to come back home when it’s time to raise a family of their own.

And without good schools and the graduation rates and test scores that support that evaluation, we cannot keep one of the most important investments this community has, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.

But for too long, we have not had the leadership we needed to make that happen.

Poor financial decisions combined with a plethora of bad hires and even worse board leadership have resulted in exactly what you would expect: schools that simply did not make the grade.

Students weren’t achieving and the good teachers who had the option were leaving or retiring — in droves.

And after narrowly avoiding a financial catastrophe, one that was brought about, in part, by one of those bad hires — and a board that not only missed the signs that there was a problem, but that also signed that same bad hire to a new contract — 16

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there was a promise that the district was headed in a new, more responsible, more accountable direction.

And then that same board shot itself in the foot again.

After being told that expensive consultants and attorneys’ fees were a major part of the problem, under the leadership of the longest-serving board member and the then-board chairman, they signed yet another contract with an expensive out-of-town attorney.

And then that same board turned its head and explained away a decision to award a $24,000 contract to the same board member’s son.

Not a good look.

Not a sign that anything had changed.

And all of this while those important performance numbers came in — unacceptable and frightening.

Too many students just weren’t making the grade, and the officials at Seymour Johnson were not only aware of the problem, but letting school and county officials know that without a change, dire consequences were not just possible, but likely.

Sounds like a prologue to a disaster, another horrible year and no end in sight to the problems that put Wayne County schools in a bad circumstance in the first place.

But along the way something changed.

The board made a change — and chose a new board chairman, jettisoning the power play of the former board chairman who promised fiscal responsibility, but who delivered a $5 million deficit and was busy worrying about his own connections and political future instead of setting a new course.

And there was a new superintendent — one who promised to set a standard and to hold students and staff to it.

Dr. Marc Whichard started out slowly, as any new leader has to, but he made some major changes.

Some of those bad hires are now gone.

There are new rules and accountability standards.

And he even made some gusty — and unpopular — decisions to save money so he could demand more funding from the county.

In our view, Whichard hasn’t always made the right decisions, or lived up to being the “open book” he promised.

But if we’re being fair, some of that is because he wasn’t quite ready to challenge all the bad decisions of the past — specifically the board that hired him and who made many of the calls that got WCPS in this mess.

You really can’t buck your boss. We get that.

But we are pleased to say that it seems Whichard is actually making a difference — and so is the new board chairman, one

who has quietly been leading the district in a new direction.

And while we still believe Wayne County Public Schools needs a major board shift — and we hope that that is coming soon — there is hope.

Fresh faces are running for office and some of the board’s newest members are fighting for staff and students.

New perspectives. New ideas. New standards. And, yes, accountability.

Sounds like a win to us.

But there is still a lot to talk about.

Student standards need to be set and met.

Test scores and graduation rates — they need to see a steady incline.

There can be no more excuses, and some hard decisions have to be made.

Discipline is an issue — and so, too, is the lack of parental involvement.

We have some administrators who have no business leading any school.

So yes, despite the aforementioned positives, the discussion must continue.

There are going to be things nobody wants to hear — hard things.

We have already said a lot of them.

It’s our way of demonstrating that we will never stop expecting more and making sure we give our children and grandchildren the chance they need to make lives of their own.

So, we have to talk about money, what kind of funding we need to get the district back on track.

Good schools don’t come cheap and better personnel, accountable personnel, they don’t come where there is no commitment to change or support for those who are doing the work.

We have to keep telling the board there can be no more nepotism — and no more pulling strings because of “who you know.”

We cannot afford that anymore.

But on that front, we just received some more hopeful news.

Another good sign.

There is going to be another investment in the beautification of the county’s public schools.

Whichard says the way a student’s school looks matters — that a well-kept property sends a message about value.

We aren’t sure whether this is the best place to put money — Wayne County teachers are still putting up wish lists on Amazon because they need supplies for their classrooms in the coming year — but we admire the sentiment.

And we also laud the superintendent for this: Last year, no one looked at those landscaping projects and most businesses did not even know they were up for bid.

Then, surprise, a board member’s son got nearly $25,000.

Well, this year, the game has been changed.

The details of each improvement project have been published on the district’s website.

A call to local businesses to bid on the work has gone out.

And, WCPS spokesman Ken Derksen told Wayne Week that if there is even a semblance of a conflict of interest, the contracts will go before the board.

Quite the turnaround.

The promise is that money is being spent more responsibly — and that those who have not lived up to the standards that are necessary for the county schools to succeed are being thwarted.

We hope that is true.

The people of Wayne County deserve a quality school district.

This is a proud, hard-working community worthy of the best.

And if Whichard continues to live up to the promises he has made, the county commissioners need to step up to ensure the best is what we have.

Because, you see, there is plenty of blame to go around for how we got here.

No responsible businessowner would allow the deterioration of the brick and mortar that represent a family name and generations of hard work. And those same businessowners know how important it is to attract and to keep quality personnel.

So, county commissioners should have that same standard for anything that represents the community they are supposed to be serving — including the schools — even if it is not their direct responsibility.

Because, after all, those board members are charged with doing what is best for this place we all love.

And we simply cannot move forward without quality schools.

Do the commissioners have a right to demand accountability? Absolutely.

But when we see signs of progress on Royall Avenue, they need to acknowledge it, too.

So, it is time to bury the hatchet, stop the shade, and get to work.

And it’s time for Wayne County voters to step up, too.

We need to hold those who got us here accountable.

Our teachers and the students they serve deserve better, and so do we.

Americans are tired of know-it-alls who think they know better than the community.

So, let’s clean out the hangers-on and the power-obsessed and put people in who really have this community’s best interests — not their own political fortunes — at heart.

That’s how we will win.

That’s how we will grow.

And that is how we take back our decisions and our future.

It is something to think about as another election season — and school year — roll around.n

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GUILTY, YOUR HONOR At one time, they were two of the Wayne County Sheriff's Office's highest-ranking officials.

But now that former Maj. Christopher Worth has pleaded guilty to fraud, both he and former Drug Unit Chief Michael Cox are convicted felons.

By Ken Fine

F

lanked by members of his family, Christopher Worth watched, for nearly two hours, as alleged criminals dressed in prison jumpsuits became convicted felons after confessing to committing a variety of crimes inside the Alton Lennon Federal Building and Courthouse’s Courtroom No. 1.

One pleaded guilty to possession with the intent to distribute crack, methamphetamine, and fentanyl.

Another admitted to stealing hundreds of checks out of mailboxes, changing the names of the recipients, and ultimately pocketing the funds.

A third told Chief United States District Court Judge Richard Myers II that he was, in fact, a gang member and had, in fact, possessed — and flashed on social media — a gun despite being a convicted felon prohibited from carrying a firearm.

None of them knew that the final guilty plea of Myers’ morning session was coming from a man who, less than a year ago, was one of the highest-ranking deputies in a nearby county sheriff’s office.

But it did.

And when, just before noon Wednesday, Worth made his way toward the defendant’s table, while it looked far different than it had for those who had come before him, the results were the same.

He was wearing a navy blue suit — a result of his ability to wait out the legal process from the comfort of his home.

He had nearly a dozen supporters on hand.

And as he walked toward the same seat the others had occupied before they were remanded to the custody of U.S. Marshals, he stopped briefly to clench his hands and look skyward.

But what came next was essentially a repeat of what Worth had been witnessing since just after 10 a.m.

Myers asked him a series of questions to determine if he was, in fact, competent enough to plead guilty to a federal charge.

He gave him the opportunity to say he didn’t do the things he was accused of and move forward with a jury trial.

He detailed the crime — “bid-rigging,” Myers said at one point.

And finally, he asked him, “Did you do it?”

“Yes sir,” Worth replied.

Myers asked again.

“Then you now admit you are guilty as charged?” the judge said.

“Yes sir,” Worth responded.

Moments later, he, too, was a convicted felon — just like the men who had, in that same courtroom, pleaded guilty to crimes Worth once swore to protect his community from.

• •• Worth’s journey to a guilty plea began in August 2023 when a grand jury handed down a sprawling indictment and the deputy — and former WCSO Drug Unit Chief Michael Cox — were taken into custody by federal agents.

And while Cox’s charges would include drug-related offenses, the shared counts were in connection to what prosecutors characterized as the two men “defrauding the people of Wayne County” via a bid-rigging scheme designed to enrich themselves.

By entering into a plea agreement with the government, many of those charges are expected to be dismissed when Worth is sentenced this fall.

But he will, after admitting guilt to Myers Wednesday, forever be tied to “Count Two,” mail and wire fraud the judge told him carried with it a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Here is what Worth admitted to in open court: Note: The following allegations were pulled directly from the indictment and have not been edited for spelling, grammar, or punctuation.

COUNT TWO

“Beginning no later than on or about February 1, 2016, and continuing until at least on or about September 21, 2021, in the Eastern District of North Carolina and elsewhere, defendants, Michael Kenneth Cox and Christopher C. Worth, and others known and unknown to the Grand Jury, did knowingly and willfully combine, conspire, confederate, and agree with one or more persons to commit the following: (a) Mail Fraud, that is, to knowingly devise and intend to devise a scheme and artifice to defraud and to obtain money and property by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises, and for the purposes of executing and attempting to execute the scheme and artifice, to knowingly place and cause to be placed in any post office or authorized depository for mail matter, any matter and thing whatever to be sent or delivered by the United States Postal Service, and to take and receive therefrom, any such matter and thing, and to knowingly cause to be delivered by mail and such carrier, according the direction thereon, and at the place at which it is directed to be delivered by the person to whom it is addressed, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1341; and (b) Wire Fraud, that is to knowingly devise and intend to devise a scheme and artifice to defraud and for obtaining money or property by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises, for which one or more conspirators transmitted and caused to be transmitted by means of wire

communications in interstate commerce certain writings, signs, signals, pictures, and sounds, for the purposes of executing the scheme and artifice, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343.”

2016 — Worth was promoted to Captain in charge of Support Services and became responsible for coordinating and vetting bids from vendors on various WCSO contracts. In this position of trust, Worth was required to comply with the procurement requirements set forth … to ensure that county business was conducted ... with fairness and dignity and to demand honesty and truth in buying and selling.

As to law enforcement vehicles, Worth was required to submit documentation to County Purchasing for approval of the purchase of new vehicles and the cost of having the new vehicles “upfit” for law enforcement work. “Upfit” refers to the process of installing aftermarket equipment to customize a newly-purchased vehicle for law enforcement work. The type of equipment typically installed includes, without limitation, lights, sirens, radios, other communication equipment, law enforcement agency decals, various brackets to hold computers and other equipment, partitions, push bumpers, and customized front center consoles/ adjustable arm rests.

Although Worth was obligated to promote Wayne County’s financial interest over his own, he was given discretion to select vendors for jobs costing less than $1,000. In this category, a vendor’s invoice was sent by WCSO to County Finance, which mailed the check directly to the vendor.

For items costing between $1,000 and $2,499, Worth was required to obtain three independent quotes and award the contract to the lowest bidder. Although the three quotes were not required to be submitted to County Finance, Worth was required to keep copies on file in the event County Finance or County Purchasing wished to review them. Checks for such invoices were processed by County Finance and mailed directly to the vendors.

For equipment costing $2,500 or more, Worth was not allowed to award a job until a “Purchase Order” was approved and signed

by County Purchasing and County Finance. To commence this process, Worth was required to obtain three independent quotes from vendors — taking care to ensure that each quote was “on the same item or specifications.” Once three independent quotes were obtained, Worth was required to prepare a one-page “Memorandum of Award” providing a description of the item to be purchased, the identity of the three vendors, and a list the three quotes (starting with the lowest quote). Worth was then required to submit the Memorandum of Award, the three itemized quotes, and a requisition coversheet to County Purchasing. Because of the volume of purchasing packages received on a daily basis, County Purchasing did not have the resources to do a detailed review of each package or to call vendors to confirm the validity of the quotes provided. Instead, County Purchasing relied on the honesty and integrity of various departments and offices that submit the documentation, including WCSO. Cox began operating Eastern Emergency Equipment in 2003, and Worth worked for EEE from 2006 to at least mid2021. Historically, EEE obtained equipment used to perform “upfit” installations from West Chatham Warning Devices. West Chatham, which has branches in a number of cities, was based in Savannah, Georgia. West Chatham provided “upfit” installation to large law enforcement entities (often involving hundreds of cars per contract) and also sold “upfit” equipment to small retail operations such as EEE. A West Chatham’s sales representative was assigned the EEE account and worked the account for more than a decade.

Continued on page 20 newoldnorth.com

. Wayne WEEK . 19

Continued from page 19

May 2017 — Worth emailed the following to

COX, “Need you to resend the bill for your Tahoe. Each bill needs to be under $2,500.”

By splitting the bill in this manner, Worth was able to avoid having to obtain a purchase order, which would have required submitting three quotes to County Purchasing. Later that same day, Cox submitted split EEE invoices for the “upfit” of his assigned WCSO Tahoe. Pursuant to Worth’s instructions, Cox split the $4,613.28 charge into two invoices for less than $2,500. The split invoices were received by WCSO on May 5, 2017, but WCSO backdated the approval dates to match EEE’s backdated invoice dates (April 17 and April 26, 2017).

Now that both Worth and Cox have pleaded guilty to "Count Two," both await sentencing for their admitted roles in the crime.

April 2021 — In order to recoup the price of

January 2019 — Cox installed a “Truck

Vault” on the WCSO Sheriffs 2019 Chevrolet Tahoe. A Truck Vault is a secure storage unit for the back of a vehicle, either in the trunk or back of an SUV. The total charge by EEE was $2,147.92. Because the amount in issue exceeded $1,000, the Manual required three independent quotes be obtained by WCSO for such a contract. To avoid triggering the threequote requirement, Cox split the cost into two $1,073.36 invoices and then applied a 10% discount to bring each invoice to $972.96. In order to help Worth conceal the fact that the split invoices actually related to only one truck vault, Cox used different invoice numbers and dates. He dated invoice number 3318 as January 3, 2019, while invoice number 3202 was dated January 9, 2019. Worth approved both invoices and backdated his approvals to match the dates on Cox’s invoices (January 3 and 9, 2019). Payment of the invoices was included in a larger check written to EEE in the sum of $3,450.31. This check, which was numbered 360750, was mailed by County Finance to EEE on or about January 17, 2019.

September 2019 — Cox requested that the

West Chatham Sales Rep provide him with a fictitious “upfit” quote for use by EEE in obtaining WCSO’s “upfit” contracts. The Sales Rep agreed to prepare the fictitious quote in order to curry favor with Cox, who she considered a friend and one of her valued retail clients. Cox assured her that he was guaranteed to get the contract but stated that WCSO needed more than one quote.

Cox provided the Sales Rep with a copy of EEE’s quote in order to assist the Sales Rep in preparing a higher West Chatham’s quote.

As a result, the Sales Rep was able to inflate the fictitious quote to ensure EEE’s quote would win the contract. On September 16, 2019, the Sales Rep transmitted the fictitious quote from her work email account at West Chatham in Georgia, to Cox’s email account 20

. Wayne WEEK . newoldnorth.com

for a Dodge Charger, the upfit awards were for nine Dodge Durangos and two Chevy Tahoes.

The following is a summary of the manner in which Wayne County paid the invoices: (a) Nine Dodge Durangos upfits - Wayne County paid EEE the sum of $40,735.32 by mailing Wayne County check number 14360 to EEE on or about October 31, 2020. (b) One Chevy Tahoe upfit - Wayne County paid EEE the sum of $4,396.96 by mailing EEE Wayne County check number 15484 to EEE on or about December 7, 2020. (c) One Chevy Tahoe upfit - Wayne County paid EEE the sum of $4,526.15 by mailing Wayne County check number 21789 to EEE on or about May 11, 2021.

in the Eastern District of North Carolina.

The bid, which was completely fictitious, provided an “upfit” quote of $5,063.35 per vehicle, including $1,000 for labor and $125 for freight. Although the fictitious bid was addressed to “Wayne Co Sheriff Office,” the Sales Rep sent the bid to COX at EEE, rather than to WCSO. West Chatham never had direct contact with WCSO in connection with the fictitious quote. Because the Sales Rep was asked to provide a fictitious quote for a Dodge Charger, she prepared the quote to include prices for the following parts specific t~ Dodge Chargers: (a) “TAIL LIGHT FLASHER DODGE CHARGER”; (b) “VS-2500-CHGR-1 Console 25” 11-19 Charger (pol pkg)”; and (c) “STINGER DS LED W/DC CHARGER.”

2019 — The third bid used by Worth to justify WCSO’s award of 14 “upfit” contracts to Cox was taken from the secure website of Performance Automotive, the car dealership that provided WCSO with many ofits new vehicles. Worth obtained Performance Automotive’s quote from a passwordprotected website and made a practice of sharing this information with Cox. Worth obtained a one-page printout of a quote from Performance Automotive for the “upfit” of a 2019 Dodge Charger and used it throughout the year, whether the “upfit” contract was for a Dodge Charger or another type of vehicle.

With prior knowledge of the competing quotes that would be submitted to County Purchasing, Cox was able to ensure that EEE’s quote was the lowest. If Cox needed to reduce EEE’s quote, he would often do so by only bidding on a subset of the parts necessary for a complete “upfit” or by reducing EEE’s charge for labor. Worth and Cox would then arrange for EEE to be paid for such parts and labor in follow-up invoices ofless than $1,000.

2019 — Worth used the West Chatham and Performance Automotive quotes to justify the award of 14 “upfit” contracts to EEE. Although the quotes covered parts specific to a Dodge Charger, the awards related to four Dodge Trucks and two Chevy Tahoes. The following is a summary of the manner in which Wayne County paid the invoices: (a) Four Dodge Truck upfits - Wayne County paid EEE the sum of $17,587.83 by mailing Wayne County check number 374717 to EEE on or about November 21, 2019. (b) Eight Dodge Charger upfits - Wayne County paid EEE the sum of $35,175.66 by mailing Wayne County check number 376372 to EEE on or about.December 31, 2019. (c) Two Chevy Tahoe upfits- Wayne County paid EEE the sum of $8,782.44 by mailing Wayne County check number 379451 to EEE on or about March 5, 2020.

April 2020 — Worth texted Cox and directed

him to prepare a false invoice by stating as follows, “[m]e and Brian got a phone holder each. Will you bill as a pair of shoes.”

September 2020 — Cox sent the West Chatham Sales Rep a copy of EEE’s competing bid for the 2020-2021 WCSO “upfit” contracts.

The Sales Rep used this information to ensure that the fictitious West Chatham quote was higher than EEE’s bid. At 9:07 a.m., a copy of the fictitious quote was emailed from the Sales Rep in Georgia, to Cox’s email account in the Eastern District of North Carolina. At 10:44 p.m. on that same day, Cox forwarded the fictitious West Chatham quote from his Yahoo email account to Worth’s WCSO email account. 2020 A ward of 11 “Upfit” Contracts to EEE. Cox and Worth corruptly used the West Chatham and Performance Automotive quotes to justify the award of 11 “upfit” contracts to EEE in 20202021. Although the quotes were based on parts

the armrest installations that Cox had removed from EEE’s quote on the nine Dodge Durangos in 2020, EEE submitted an invoice in the sum of $968.22 for nine “HAV-C-ARM-103 -- Adjustable Flip Armrest.” The charge before tax was $968.22, which allowed Worth to avoid having to document three quotes. On the same date, Cox sought payment for the labor involved in connection with the decals on the nine Durangos.

To avoid documentation requirements, Cox split the cost of the decal-related expenses into $900 and $450 invoices. Payment of the armrests and decal installment invoices were made by Wayne Count check number 21562, which was mailed to EEE on April 30, 2021.

• •• Now that both Worth and Cox have pleaded guilty to “Count Two,” both await sentencing for their admitted roles in the crime.

But because Cox also pleaded guilty March 27 to conspiracy to distribute and possess cocaine, methamphetamine, and oxycodone, the former Drug Unit chief remains in federal custody while Worth will continue on in the supervised release program.

It is unclear what terms both men must meet as part of their plea agreements — conditions that must be satisfied in order to ensure the other charges against them are dismissed — because Myers has sealed those documents pursuant to Standing Order 22-SO-1.

And while federal legal experts close to the case told Wayne Week on background that the agreements could mean several things, including a potential scenario in which Cox and Worth have agreed to cooperate with the government in ongoing or future investigations, they were quick to note that it is also possible that a guilty plea from the former deputies on some of the charges — and, as a result, guaranteed convictions — could represent enough of a victory for the government to make dropping some of the charges and reducing its sentencing request “in exchange for the win” viable.n

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If the Goldsboro City Council adopts the 2024-25 budget recommended by Interim City Manager Matthew Livington, local residents will be forced to absorb a 15-cent property tax increase and a 7-percent water and sewer rate hike, as leaders look for a way to finance police and fire raises.

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A unanimous decision to move Goldsboro High School to a new building has drawn the ire of community leaders, former students, and teachers who fear the school will soon close for good.

SPECIES? ENDANGERED

Dozens have graduated from the University of Mount Olive’s Master's in Counseling Psychology program, but because it is still not accredited, most are unable to find employment as therapists in North Carolina.

BY KEN FINE p. 1 4

Budget Buffet

BY KEN FINE

/ p. 14

BY K E N F I N E / p. 12

NEWS: Court documents filed last week seem to indicate former WCSO deputy has reached a plea deal . p.6

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Local leaders say it’s time to fight back after community was “blindsided” by news of cuts coming to 4th Fighter Wing. / by KEN FINE p. 16

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M AY 12, 2024

THE PROBLEM WITHIN

Two Wayne County public school teachers have been charged with taking indecent liberties with students since Gov. Roy Cooper signed a harsher set of penalties for the crime into law in late 2023.

But those two individuals are only part of a problem the local education community has been dealing with for the last several years.

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