RANGER
Report in on patrol wreck
More details have emerged in a May 27 three-car accident involving a N.C. Highway Patrol car.
An accident report posted on the N.C. Department of Public Safety website shows the accident was caused by Trooper Kenneth Dwayne Hyde of Marble running a red light in the eastbound lane of U.S. 64 at the intersection with U.S. 19, when a 2013 Ford driven by Patricia Farmer Stalcup of Murphy turned left through the intersection heading southbound on U.S. 19.
The two vehicles collided with Hyde’s cruiser striking the right side of the vehicle, causing substantial damage to both, the report says. The impact caused Stalcup’s Ford to clip the front end of a 2009 Buick driven by Margaret Beaver Mann of Murphy.
The cruiser came to rest on the shoulder of the eastbound lane, just west of the intersection. Several agencies responded to the accident including the Ranger Volunteer Fire Department, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, Cherokee County Emergency Medical Services and N.C. Highway Patrol.
Traffic in the eastbound lane was backed up for close to an hour as crews worked to clear the highway. The cruiser adds to a substantial tally of law enforcement vehicles wrecked in Cherokee County in the recent past, including two Andrews Police Department patrol cars and a handful of Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office vehicles involved in multiple high-speed chases.
MURPHY
Woman faces drug charges
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Sheriff Derrick Palmer announced the June 2 arrest of 31-year-old Ashley Wickline Ray for charges stemming for violations of the N.C. Controlled Substances statutes.
On June 2, Detectives with Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle being driven by Ray, according to a release. During the traffic stop, the sheriff’s office’s K-9 Bane alerted, and a subsequent search of the vehicle located trafficking amounts of Schedule I controlled substances along with cocaine and meth-amphetamine.
Ray was arrested and charged with for two counts of trafficking Schedule I controlled substance, possession with intent to manufacture sell and deliver Schedule I controlled substance, four counts of possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver Schedule II controlled substance, possession of cocaine, possession of methamphetamine, felony possession of Schedule II controlled substance and simple possession of Schedule II controlled substance.
She is incarcerated in the Cherokee County Detention Center under a $250.000 secure bond.
Ray is expected to be in Cherokee County District Court at 9 a.m. Thursday.
“Great job by one and all, including our K-9, who is proving his worth every day,” Palmer said in the release. “As always, we appreciate the help of the community and ask for their continued cooperation.”
To report suspicious activity and suspect violations of the law, call 828-837-1344 or submit a tip via email at crime.tips@cherokeecounty-nc.gov.
From staff reports.