For the last couple of nights, some asshat has decided to try a little evening target practice somewhere in the woods behind my house. Thursday night, Friday night, and early this morning we were treated to the sound of six to fifteen rounds fired from what sounds like a rifle. The shots seem to come from the area where the Cheviot Hills golf course meets the train track near our house. My guess is someone’s helping himself to some deer.

While I won’t particularly miss the deer, I do take offense with someone slinging lead near a neighborhood full of kids. It’s also not particularly fun to be roused at 1 AM when the bullets start flying. While I haven’t seen any signs of bullets or damage, it may be only a matter of time.

Raleigh PD has been very helpful in investigating. Friday night, I hopped in my car after seeing an officer racing towards Capital Boulevard. When I got there, I saw four RPD officers leaving the property of the golf course. The cop I talked to this morning told me the golf course is outside the city limits, which might explain why they left empty-handed.

The county thing could also complicate prosecution. While there is a city ordinance against firing a weapon within the city limits, I don’t know if a similar law exists for the county (my guess is no). So its possible the only thing the Wake sheriff’s deputies might bust him with is trespassing. If he can be caught, that is. For the third straight night that has proven to be a challenge.

In the meantime, keep your heads low and tuck your antlers under your hat!

It was once said that Pedro’s fire works, but that may no longer be the case. Ibiblio’s Keeper Of The Chicken Paul Jones is on the story that the monument to roadside kitch, South of the Border, appears to be closing up shop.

To add a story to the legend of South of the Border, a onetime neighbor of ours once played basketball at the University of South Carolina. Coach Frank McGuire was friends with owner Alan Schafer and would bus the team there each season for a basketball clinic. Schafer feted the team during their stay, offering outrageous gifts. He would treat them like absolute kings.

Its said that Schafer basically owned Dillon county, and allegedly had the sheriff’s department on his payroll. Schafer was allegedly tight with the mob, too, enough so that when Interstate 95 was being planned, the route got moved closer to Schafer’s property. At least, so says the rumor. If you look at a map, you can see a little jog in the route right around Pedro’s house.

Boy, I-95 will be pretty dull without South of the Border around. Never thought I’d say it, but I’ll miss those tacky billboards. What other tourist trap could possibly take its place?

As my earlier post suggested, the evidence of rape in the investigation of the Duke Lacrosse team appears to be dwindling every day. The N&O noted the same doubts are now appearing in the Crimestoppers reports:

In an April 3 news release offering cash rewards for information, CrimeStoppers coordinator Cpl. David Addison wrote, “The victim was sodomized, raped, assaulted and robbed. This horrific crime sent shock waves throughout our community.”

Tuesday at 11:16 a.m., Addison e-mailed the same release, but modified the first sentence to read: “The victim alleges that she was sodomized, raped, assaulted and robbed.” The second sentence calling the incident a “horrific crime” was deleted.

Eighteen minutes later, an amended CrimeStoppers release was sent. The only change was that “the victim” was now referred to as “the complainant.”

Mike Nifong, are you listening?

I admit I don’t know all the facts in the case of the alleged rape that took place at a Duke Lacrosse team’s party. What I do know, however, raises enough questions that I’m skeptical there’s a case here.

First and foremost, DNA testing was done on samples taken from the suspects and turned up negative. If a rape did take place, it’s a given that there will be DNA evidence. Fingernails, hair, fluid – something. It’s highly suspicious that no evidence of rape was found if it occured the way the alleged victim claims.

Lawyers for the suspects claim to have pictures showing the alleged victim arrived with cuts and bruises. If true, that would torpedo the case right there.

The thing that really got me wondering was the 911 call preceding the alleged attack. An anonymous caller (allegedly the second dancer) called 911 to report that someone used a racial epithet. Say what? There are a lot of reasons to call 911 but a racial epithet isn’t one of them. What did the caller want – the cops to cordon off the block and question everyone? Put someone in jail for using the N word?

Or … maybe the caller was trying to set the suspects up, perhaps to make this a racial thing.

I certainly don’t condone sexual assault. If the kids are found guilty then they need to go to prison. But the kids haven’t been proven guilty of anything and the strongest evidence – the DNA – backs them up.

Let’s see what Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong can prove. He should either get this case quickly to court or drop the charges. Until then, I’ll be inclined to believe both the alleged victim and Durham’s grandstanding DA are playing the people of Durham for suckers.

I’ve been really saddened by the story of Sean Paddock, the 4 year old Smithfield kid who apparently was fatally abused by his adoptive mother, Lynn Paddock. There is evidence that this mother tied him up, beat him, withheld food from him, and other sick things.

The kid had a tough life. According to the Wake County Child Protective Services statement, Sean was born into a family of domestic violence. He and his three siblings lived in a filthy, often unheated home. Sean’s father was accused of sexual abuse of one of his siblings. Occasionally they would have to stay with relatives, moving in with Sean’s uncle’s family in January 2003.
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Raleigh’s offering a two-for-one deal on mulch loads with this coupon. For people like me who are itching to get their yards into shape, this is a pretty good deal.

Here are the details:

From March 15 to April 29 while supplies last, the city’s Yard Waste Center is offering customers coupons to receive a free pickup-load size of mulch or leaf mulch if they purchase a load for $12. The coupons will be available at the Yard Waste Center and in kiosks at the City’s six recycling drop-off centers (locations listed below). The coupons also are scheduled to appear in advertisements in the March 13 editions of The News and Observer and The Carolinian and in the March 14 edition of La Conexion.

The Yard Waste Center is located at 900 N. New Hope Road off of Highway 64 East. It is open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call the Yard Waste Center at 250-2728.

DROP-OFF RECYCLING CENTERS

The City’s six drop-off recycling centers, where the mulch coupons will be made available, are located at:

• Jaycee Park at 2405 Wade Avenue
• North Boulevard Plaza at Mini City on Capital Boulevard – behind the Taco Bell, adjacent to Food Lion
• Solid Waste Services Administrative Office at 400 W. Peace Street ( 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday only, mulch coupons will be available inside the office)
• Plaza West Shopping Center at the intersection of Western Boulevard and Jones Franklin Road
• Brennan Station Shopping Center at the intersection of Creedmoor and Strickland Roads. The drop-off recycling center is behind the shopping center off of Brennan Drive . Follow the large white water tower
• City of Raleigh Yard Waste Center at 900 N. New Hope Road (open Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. only).

Fellow TriLUGger Jeff Tickle has some fun dissecting blogger spam. Give it a read.

The paper brought news this morning about the America’s Sail event which is coming to Beaufort, NC at the end of June. It’s a race of tall sailing ships as well as a celebration of the rich maritime history of North Carolina.

Speaking of rich, some of the sponsors are from the high end. Quotes in the article like “It’s on the scale of the U.S. Open” make me wonder if how many dubloons we’ll need if we decide to go.

Still, those tall ships should be fun to watch, even from the cheap seats. This sounds like one event I just can’t resist.

N&O reporter Ryan Teague Beckwith wrote the article Sunday I’ve been meaning to write for years now. It was a look back to the days Raleigh was trolley town. From the 1880’s to 1930’s, tracks ran throughout downtown, serving Cameron Park, Glenwood Avenue, and other destinations.

Problems Beckwith cite with the service include it being too hot or cold at times. Well, duh! It’s not like your horse-drawn buggy had a heater in it, either. People made do.

I also don’t like how Beckwith blames the trolley for feeding segregationist policies. While segregation is wrong, I think the blame lies on the segregationists, rather than the trolley. The trolley did far too much good.

In 1933, the tracks were shut down and public transportation gained all the charm of “taking the bus.” City development changed drastically as a result. Think of how people-friendly the city would be if we still had those tracks.

I first became interested in the old trolley system when working on my shrine to the old Raleigh Municipal Airport. I found the old pictures of trolleys I found in the N.C. State Archives and History to be captivating. Perhaps one day I’ll create a page about the trolleys similar to my RaleighMuni pages.