Ridealong shows area challenges
Friday the 13th could have been a fatal day.
A motorist crashed head-on with a tractor-trailer before striking two other vehicles Friday afternoon, resulting in only minor injuries.
“That doesn’t happen often,” N.C. Highway Patrol Trooper Murico Stephens said. “They dodged a big one.”
Cherokee County law enforcement officials hit the streets in full force Friday afternoon in anticipation of having a busy night.
“Fridays and Saturdays are busier than other days, but you never know,” Cherokee County Sheriff Derrick Palmer said. “It could break loose at any time. Weather plays a part and moon phases, too.”
Martins Creek patrol
The afternoon began with a patrol through Martins Creek, where officials say a lot of criminal activity happens. Law enforcement personnel have been investigating various parts of Martins Creek for nearly a year after receiving numerous complaints about drug deals, stolen property and vehicles without tags driving through neighborhoods.
“Martins Creek is no different from other places in the county that have drug houses and stolen property, but it just seems like it all got concentrated out here for a little while,” Palmer said. “It’s a little better now than it was in January, but there’s still a lot more activity than there should be out here.”
As he pointed out various properties that deputies have raided in recent years, Palmer talked about the revolving door of crime and what motivates some people to continue down a path of criminal behavior after repeated arrests.
“It has become a way of life for some of these people,” he said. “It’s not a hobby or a novelty. It’s what they do for a living. Some people become mechanics, other people sell dope and steal property for a living.”
The Cherokee Scout’s stolen delivery van was found damaged beyond repair in Martins Creek two months ago.
Reducing recidivism
Palmer believes that helping young people develop workforce skills that don’t require them to sit in a
college classroom over four years can help reduce recidivism. He once arrested a man who expressed concern over not being able to leave the criminal lifestyle.
“We found dope in his house, and he sat on the floor and cried,” Palmer recalled. “He said, ‘I don’t know how to do anything else. I have no skills to work anywhere else.’ It’s kind of sad that that’s all they know.”
Additionally, society is faced with the fact that criminal activity can pay more than honest work.
“The real problem is that financially it’s more profitable for them to sell dope than it is to get a job and hold it down,” Palmer said. “They can work at Lowe’s for $13 an hour and maybe get a $500 paycheck after the government takes a third of it. But they can sell an ounce of dope and maybe make $3,000 in five minutes.”
About an hour into the Cherokee Scout’s ridealong, first responders were dispatched to Topton to help victims of a four-vehicle accident on U.S. 19. Officials say Kristin Strebe, 39, of Robbinsville, was driving eastbound around 4:30 p.m. when she crossed the center line to pass other vehicles and collided head-on with a tractor-trailer.
Scene of accident
“The car was in my lane,” the tractor-trailer driver told the Scout at the scene.
After crashing into the commercial vehicle, Strebe’s car hit two other vehicles that were traveling westbound. Strebe and a passenger in her car were taken to Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital in Peachtree for treatment of minor injuries.
All four vehicles sustained significant damage. However, no other injuries were reported.
Strebe was charged with driving while impaired, reckless driving, open container of alcohol and illegal passing. It could have been much worse.
“She’s lucky they didn’t get killed by hitting an 18-wheeler head on, and she’s lucky that no one in these cars got killed,” Palmer said after assessing the wreckage.
Andrews and Marble
As the sheriff concluded his shift with a patrol through Andrews and Marble, he talked about the progress his deputies have made in Andrews since he took over the town’s police department in July following the resignation of former chief Michael Hobgood.
He said criminal activity
has declined over the last four months as a result of being visible and conducting regular investigations.
“Things have gotten a lot better in Andrews,” he said. “Before [I took over], there were burglaries every night. There are still burglaries, but it’s not at the magnitude as before.”
He said a couple of the main drug players who have been arrested for trafficking over the years recently died from an overdose. Plus, one of the prominent dealers in Andrews moved out of town, as a result of intense surveillance and additional investigation.
“We turned up the heat and he actually packed up and moved to a different county about two weeks ago,” Palmer said. “We finally got to a place where we are putting a lot of pressure on these people.”
His detectives have realized that the real problem in Andrews revolves around drug users, as opposed to the town having a lot of drug dealers.
“Based on what we can tell at this point, those who are addicted to drugs are the ones who seem to be causing all the problems in Andrews,” he said. “Probably 90-95 percent of the drug houses we have in Cherokee County are not dealing houses, they’re places where users gather. People come over, hang out and use drugs, which is a nuisance to the neighborhood.
“We have about three places in Andrews where we feel like quantities of drugs are being stored, but it’s sporadic. It’s not like they’re there every day, all the time. There may be no activity happening for two or three weeks, then all of a sudden there’s 50 vehicles at the house.”
Between Friday and Sunday, the sheriff’s office and Andrews Police Department received a combined total of 239 calls for service, which includes extra patrols, security checks and emergency 911 responses. During that same time, the county as a whole received a total of 420 calls for service, which includes police, fire and medical responses in Murphy.