King of COMIC-CON? Tron, Harry Potter expected to be top draws at annual geek fest
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The Sanford Herald THURSDAY, JULY 15, 2010
SANFORDHERALD.COM • 50 CENTS
Lee County
Lost & Found
Crime rate falls by 7 percent County’s rate below the state average, but higher than surrounding counties By BILLY BALL
LEE COUNTY
bball@sanfordherald.com
WESLEY BEESON / The Sanford Herald
Andrew and Pam Ard of Pittsboro hold their dog, Katie, who went missing for seven months before being reunited with the family after their son’s fiancee found the dog on Petfinder.com.
REUNITED
Pittsboro couple finds its pet online after it went missing for 7 months (oh, and the dog is 20 years old) By ALEXA MILAN
amilan@sanfordherald.com
PITTSBORO — She’s been through a lot in her 20 years. About five years ago she was shot by a hunter, she went missing on Christmas and this month she was reunited with her family thanks to a few good Samaritans, the Internet and a little luck. If anyone can be called resilient, it’s a little dog named Katie. Pittsboro resident Pam Ard’s grandparents gave her Katie and her litter-mate Missy 20 years ago. The Ard fam-
QUICKREAD British Open
ily and the Chihuahua/Feist mixes had been inseparable until Katie disappeared on Christmas night 2009. The Ards let the dogs out to use the bathroom, and when they went to let them back inside, Katie was nowhere to be found. The family searched all over their farm and contacted neighbors, but no one could find her. “At the time, we thought she was so old that she’d gone away to die,” Ard said.
The locals are famous for saying that if it’s “nae rain and nae wind then it’s nae golf.” There was rain. And there was wind. There just wasn’t much golf being played Wednesday on the eve of the British Open. Full Story, Page 1B
TO INFORM, CHALLENGE AND CELEBRATE
Vol. 80, No. 165 Serving Lee, Chatham, Harnett and Moore counties in the heart of North Carolina
There are several steps you can take to keep your pets safe and home with you. o Make sure your animal is properly identified with a collar and ID tags. Include phone number. o Have your pet microchipped. Microchips are an implanted form of identification equipped with an individual scanning number. o Spay/neuter your pet. Studies have shown that sterilized animals are less likely to roam. o Leash your animal when outside. Keep them close to home and away from traffic, unfamiliar animals and those who may not have your pet’s best interests. Source: animalhumanesociety.org
See Reunited, Page 6A
Micropolitan list
Sanford falls in annual ranking Special to The Herald
EXPECT A WET, WILD DRAMATIC TOURNEY
KEEP YOUR PET SAFE
SANFORD — Sanford ranks 81st in economic strength among 576 small cities in the United States, dropping from its usual ranking in the 40s in recent years. The annual list is published by POLICOM, an independent economic research firm based in Palm City, Fla. This year’s position does place Sanford among the top 14 percent of the nation’s “micropolitan” areas, defined by the federal Office of Management and Budget as having a city of at least 10,000 but fewer than 50,000 residents.
Happening Today Bring your lawn chairs, blankets and picnic supper and “Function at the Junction” at Depot Park. This free outdoor family event starts at 7 p.m. and includes a variety of music throughout the summer. For more information, visit downtownsanford.com or call (919) 775-8332. CALENDAR, PAGE 2A
The city’s highest ranking was 34th in 2008. Formulas used by POLICOM to assess economic strength measure how the economy has actually performed in the previous year. They take into account the growth and size of the regional economy, changes in business sectors that typically show how much money is flowing into a community, and local trends in welfare and Medicare. “Given how important manufacturing is in our area and how hard that segment has been hit by the economy,
See List, Page 6A
SANFORD — Lee County crime rates followed the statewide trend and dipped last year, according to a report released Wednesday by the N.C. Department of Justice and state Attorney General Roy Cooper. Lee County’s rate, which dropped nearly 7 percent from 2008 to 2009, is coupled with an 8.8 percent decline in North Carolina, as well as marked decreases in violent crime. Violent crime, which includes murder, THIS WEEK rape, robbery The Herald and aggrawill report vated assault, on the City plunged 13.2 of Sanford’s crime statispercent in tics when they Lee and 12.5 are released percent stateby the state wide. this week “I’m pleased that the numbers are down, but I’m still concerned,” said Lee County Sheriff Tracy Carter. “... I’m very careful not to brag too much about crime numbers when they’re done, because you always have to remember that you have victims. As long as you have that, there’s really no reason to celebrate.” Wednesday’s report broke the data down at a county level, with additional statistics on city crime rates still to come. The scores factor in an area’s population to determine the rate of crimes per 100,000 people. Lee County’s 3,393.0 crime rate falls below the state’s 4,178.4 in 2009, somewhere in the mid-range of numbers across the state. The county number is lower than highs like 7,348.1 in Robeson County south of
Lee County’s crime rate dropped nearly 7 percent from 2008 to 2009, according to the N.C. Department of Justice. The scores factor in an area’s population to determine the rate of crimes per 100,000 people. The breakdown: YEAR Crime rate Violent Property
2008 3,646 294 3,352
2009 3,393 255 3,137
CHATHAM COUNTY YEAR Crime rate Violent Property
2008 2,694 267 2,427
2009 2,297 182 2,114
HARNETT COUNTY YEAR Crime rate Violent Property
2008 4,197 416 3,781
2009 3,064 285 2,779
MOORE COUNTY YEAR Crime rate Violent Property
2008 2,991 315 2,676
2009 2,743 231 2,511
....................................
COUNTY COMPARISON CRIME RATE Chatham 2,297 Cumberland 7,153 Harnett 3,064 Johnston 3,169 Lee 3,393 Moore 2,743 Orange 3,139 Randolph 3,381 Scotland 5,287 Wake 2,756
BEST Camden
826
WORST Robeson
7,348
Source: N.C. Dept. of Justice
See Crime, Page 6A
State’s 2009 crime rate was its lowest in past 25 years By MIKE BAKER
Associated Press Writer
RALEIGH — North Carolina’s crime rate fell to its lowest point in a quarter century last year, with violent crimes such as murders leading the way down, law enforcement officials said Wednesday.
High: 95 Low: 72
The overall crime rate dropped about 9 percent in 2009 while violent crime fell 12.5 percent, according to statistics released by the office of Attorney General Roy Cooper. The overall rate was the largest recorded decline since the state began collecting data in
See State, Page 6A
INDEX
More Weather, Page 12A
OBITUARIES
SCOTT MOONEYHAM
Sanford: Adrienne Lawrence; Gladys Thomas, 73; Marilyn Young, 46 Bear Creek: Mary Burke, 96 Broadway: Lois McArthur, 71
Would you feel sorry for him if Congress passed a tigter law to put him out of business?
Page 4A
Abby, Graham, Bridge, Sudoku............................. 6B Classifieds........................ 9B Comics, Crosswords........... 7B Community calendar........... 2A Horoscope......................... 6B Obituaries.......................... 5A Opinion............................. 4A Scoreboard........................ 4B