February 12, 2010

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FILM: The Herald’s Neil Morris gives his take on ‘The Wolfman’ • Page 11A

The Sanford Herald FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2010

QUICKREAD

SANFORDHERALD.COM • 50 CENTS

LEE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Lawsuit claims man was beaten, tased by deputies

SPORTS

GRACE OPENS POSTSEASON IN PLAY-IN GAME AT HOME The Crusaders face off against Salem Baptist in first game of the NCCSA 3-A state playoffs Thursday night Page 1B

NATION

PRES. BILL CLINTON HAS HEART STENTS IMPLANTED Former President Bill Clinton had two stents inserted Thursday to prop open a clogged heart artery after being hospitalized with chest pains, an adviser said

Sanford man, 35, also claims civil rights violations; Sheriff says force warranted By GORDON ANDERSON

than three days without allowing him to post bond. “The Lee County Sheriff’s Department acted recklessly and clearly used excessive force on Thomas,

Some of the allegations made by Steven Wayne Thomas of Sanford and his lawyers: o “While numerous defendants simply stood by and watched ... Thomas was pinned to the ground, immobile, face down and prone, was beaten and tased mercilessly by no less than five Lee County Sheriffs deputies.” o “ ... Thomas ... was tased at least 11 times in less than 15 minutes, repeatedly pummeled with fists, pepper sprayed and kneed in the face multiple times, resulting in a fractured jaw. Damage to Thomas’ jaw was such that it required surgery to repair.” o “Once in custody, Thomas was the victim of numerous violations of his civil rights .... never being advised of his constitutional rights; denial of a phone call ...; denial of the opportunity to make bail; denial of prescribed medical care ... of a brace required to immobilize Thomas’ fractured jaw ...”

See Suit, Page 6A

Source: Lawsuit filed by Shanahan Law Group of Raleigh

SHERIFF’S STATEMENT

anderson@sanfordherald.com

SANFORD — A local man has filed a lawsuit in federal court against the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, claiming deputies used excessive force against him during an arrest in April. Steven Wayne Thomas, 35, claims deputies broke his jaw and used a taser on him 11 times during the course of an arrest for damaging a woman’s fence in April. Thomas’ suit seeks $3 million in compensatory damages and unspecified punitive damages. The 72-page lawsuit also claims that deputies held Thomas in the Lee County Jail and Central Prison in Raleigh for more

THE ALLEGATIONS

“The officers responded to a situation where they knew (Thomas) was being combative, and I feel like they used a reasonable amount of force” — Tracy Carter

LEE COUNTY SCHOOLS

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ECONOMY

Molody Hamilton checks out one of the engineering stations at SanLee Middle School on Thursday after a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the STEM program.

REPORT: NATION TO ADD 95K JOBS PER MONTH The United States is likely to add an average of 95,900 more jobs each month this year, while personal savings will remain high as credit remains tight, according to a White House report Page 9A

ASHLEY GARNER/ The Sanford Herald

WEATHER D.C. MAYOR UNDER FIRE FOR SNOW REMOVAL The mayor of the nation’s capital and other politicians are feeling the heat for not moving faster to clear the streets of snow after the historic back-toback blizzards that slammed the East Coast Page 8A

STATE TESTIMONY IN INNOCENCE TRIAL CHALLENGED Defense attorneys for a man hoping to be the first inmate released from prison in North Carolina through the work of an innocence commission continued hammering at old evidence Thursday, calling experts in blood and DNA analysis and a dog trainer to contradict trial testimony Page 7A

Vol. 80, No. 34 Serving Lee, Chatham, Harnett and Moore counties in the heart of North Carolina

Ahead of the curve Officials, parents and teachers celebrate opening of STEM lab at SanLee By CAITLIN MULLEN cmullen@sanfordherald.com

SANFORD — The night started off smoking. After a small classroom fire brought the Sanford Fire Department to SanLee Middle School Thursday afternoon, the grand opening of SanLee and Southern Lee High School’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics lab kicked off as planned. “We did have to add a little more excitement,” LCS Superintendent Jeff Moss joked to the crowd of more than 100 local elected officials, parents and STEM teachers were on hand

HAPPENING SATURDAY n The sixth annual President’s Day Freedom Run will begin at 10 a.m. at 3204 Keller-Andrews Road, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints meeting house. For more information, call Stephanie Larsen at (919) 718-1437. CALENDAR, PAGE 2A

INSIDE n More on the fire emergency at SanLee middle School during the ceremony Page 3A n Partnership officials speak to business leaders at C-100 luncheon Page 6A

to celebrate the expansion Lee County Schools’ partnership with Paxton-Patterson and tour the middle school’s new lab. State Superintendent June Atkinson and State Board of Education Chairman Bill Harrison also attended the grand opening

See STEM, Page 6A

ASHLEY GARNER/The Sanford Herald

North Carolina State Superintendent June Atkinson speaks at SanLee Middle School on Thursday.

High: 45 Low: 28

INDEX

More Weather, Page 12A

OBITUARIES

JOHN HOOD

Sanford: Ruth McLear, 82; Gwendolyn Newby; Charles Riddle, 84 Broadway: James Griffin, 67 Carthage: Ruth Brooks, 79

The columnist claims he has no problem with being called a “worst person in the world”

Page 4A

Abby, Graham, Bridge, Sudoku............................. 6B Classifieds ....................... 8B Comics, Crosswords.......... 7B Community calendar .......... 2A Horoscope ........................ 6B Obituaries......................... 5A Opinion ............................ 4A Scoreboard ....................... 4B


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February 12, 2010 by The Sanford Herald - Issuu