Atomic Blonde - Daisy Katlyn Conner

At some point in your life you've likely decided things just weren't working out the way you planned. At that point you started asking yourself what am I doing wrong? Wrong job, wrong boyfriend, wrong girlfriend, wrong life choices. 

Say hello to Miss Daisy Conner who maybe, should be asking the same questions after being arrested by MCSO on warrants for Extortion, Harassing Phone calls and Cyberstalking. She remains a "guest" of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff on a $15,000.00 Bond.

Photo Courtesy MCSO 9-3-2019 

Seems this is not Miss Conner's first rodeo. Daisy who is just 19 has priors in Carteret County for Felony B&E, where some judge boxcar'd her convictions at the age of 16 so she could serve 6 months before being paroled. Only to have her parole revoked shortly thereafter and found herself at NCCI for Women, a total of 2 years 7 months. 

She was released just March last year.

Cedar's Take: WTF?   

FOP National President Pat Yoe Seeks Input From CMPD Officers

It should come as no surprise that the liberal agenda, so desperate to unseat Donald Trump continues to work towards attracting votes from anyone including illegals and violent felons.  
Both New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Chicago Mayor Ron Emanuel and former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh have all taken a very strong anti-police stance.

The problem is not just a big city issue.
  
Charlotte Mecklenburg FOP Lodge #9 this week sent an email asking for input from Charlotte Officers that could be provided to the national board and in particular the president of FOP National Pat Yoes.

President Yoes request as follows: 

I am seeking your feedback on the items listed below. 

We have a growing concern about state and local appointed and elected officials impeding the enforcement of law and eroding the ability of law enforcement officers to keep their communities safe. 

The problem areas include, but are not limited to, the following: 

Refusal to prosecute statutes not to their liking.

Criticizing law enforcement officers in the media over individual incidents or confrontations without regard for the facts or the status of ongoing investigations. 

Creating a climate of fear in police management nationwide which makes them less willing to defend and support the officers they’re supposed to be leading and commanding. 

The consequences of these activities include: 

A reduction in public safety in growing areas in the U.S.

Erosion of respect for and cooperation with police officers nationwide - increased difficulty in police recruiting, higher attrition rates, and earlier retirement of seasoned officers.

I strongly believe that we need to sit down and compare experiences in this area with the goal of developing counter strategies to get the public behind us, curb the anti-police rhetoric, and reestablish respect for the rule of law. 

CMPD FOP Raises Concerns About CMS Book Study Selection "All American Boys"

The following letter was sent via email to all CMPD FOP Lodge members. The letter raises concerns about a reading selection included in a list of apparently CMS approved books for middle school students.

Early this week Lodge 9 learned of a book study Bailey Middle School 8th grade class had to participate in.

The book in question is titled All American Boys. The plot focuses on two high school students, “Rashad, [a black student] who is wrongfully accused of shoplifting and beaten by a local police officer, and Quinn, a white bystander who sees the beating and initially pretends he didn’t because of his close relationship to the police officer.”

Once we heard of this, the board and PIO- Kopp started making phone calls and writing letters to express our concerns with the book choice.

The letter read:

Dr. Matthew Hayes:

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police is requesting your immediate review and intervention of an 8th grade book study at Bailey Middle School.

The book in question is titled All American Boys.

The plot focuses on two high school students, “Rashad, [a black student] who is wrongfully accused of shoplifting and beaten by a local police officer, and Quinn, a white bystander who sees the beating and initially pretends he didn’t because of his close relationship to the police officer.” This book contains such explicit language in the first two chapters that the students will be skipping over this portion. The Bailey Middle School 8th Grade ELA Team told parents their child should purchase their own book on Amazon, supporting the cause. They plan to begin this book study in October.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg FOP absolutely condemns this book study. We agree it is important for students to discuss current social topics in order to develop their educational growth. However, it is reckless on their part to promote a book which highlights police brutality. The City of Charlotte experienced riots and civil unrest based on a justified use of force against an uncooperative armed suspect. Our officers were physically assaulted with rocks and bottles, some were even victims of attempted murder by protesters. Next week will mark the three-year anniversary of this event. We have worked extremely hard to rebuild this community’s relationship with police officers. This relationship starts with children at an early age to see police officers as a source of safety and not a cause of social injustice they can’t trust.

There are many social topics the school could have selected to achieve the same positive message, such as bullying or suicide awareness. Principal Chad Thomas informed us that no other topics or books were proposed prior to selecting this book. There are a number of great, bestselling adult fiction novels about teachers sexually assaulting students, a topic which is more frequent within CMS than police brutality is within Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

We are confident you can provide your leadership to these students’ education without damaging the image of law enforcement professionals in this community. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg FOP looks forward to your response in this matter.

Thank you for your time and dedication to our youth.

Dr. Hayes cancelled the book study. He wanted us to express to the FOP, this book study was never intended to upset the law enforcement community. He immediately cancelled the book study after being able to see the issue through the eyes of a police officer.

The board learned the book was actually selected from the CMS approved book list. It has been used before in CMS schools (he did not know exactly which schools have used it). In order to avoid a game of whack-a-mole from school to school, we are looking to pursue the CMS review process to have this book added to the ban list for all schools.

After Dr. Hayes decision was made, CMS wrote the following:

Reading assignments for CMS students are designed to inspire thinking, create self-awareness, and understanding, all in an educational backdrop. Reading assignments spark conversations , dialogue and discussions regarding real life instances and circumstances which can promote understanding and positive behavior. The school did not receive any concerns from 8th grade parents who received communication about the assignment nor is the book on any ban list. Bailey Middle has invited officers to be a part of the conversation and looks forward to shared dialogue.

The school did receive three parent complaints, per Principal Thomas as of yesterday afternoon. The letter was sent to parents without any form of permission slip or signature needed to verify the parents even knew about the book study. The SRO at the school has an 8th grader there, and he did not know about it. Bailey Middle never invited officers to be a part of the conversation, per Cornelius Police and CMS Police.

September 11, 2001 One Man's Recollection

Re- Posted From September 11, 2015:

There are things that tie this nation together, Pearl Harbor, Challenger, and 9/11 as it has come to be known. But now 14 years on, many people not directly affected by the great loss of life or living in New York at the time may have forgotten the hours immediately after the first plane roared into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.

Certainly anyone over the age of 25 understands what happened that day, but still only a small number of Americans know what New York was like during the attack and in the first hours after.

CP was thankfully not in New York on September 11th having left the city two days prior. I watched the second plane impact the South Tower live on television. The rest of the day is a distant memory, except for the silence in the air that afternoon. Unknown to me one of my colleagues a fellow investment professional was at ground zero.

His story arrived 2 days later via fax at my office. The following images are of that fax that I've kept in my top desk drawer for the last 14 years. Today I'm sharing one man's story unedited (note you will have to click on each image to enlarge):

Cedar's Take: I'm still stunned at what happened that crystal clear Carolina morning in September and while I lost no friends or family in the attack the pain is just as if I had. 

My grandfather a Navy vet never hated the German's but he despised the "Japs". I never understood why until 9/11. It takes a pretty horrific event to make an entire group of people the most hated and despised of the world's population. Muslims have unfortunately accomplished just that. 

Judge Khalif Rhodes Mastermind Behind Charlotte's NO BAIL FAIL Resigns

Friday Morning local newsiers learned of a impromptu presser where Mecklenburg County Chief Magistrate was going to make an announcement. Not surprisingly he announced his already announced resignation. 

Just a couple of months ago Khalif Rhodes was named to Charlotte's 40 under 40 list.  Even then  Rhodes was under increasing pressure to step down as his NO BAIL FAIL policy continued to spread crime and death on the streets of Charlotte. 

Rhodes is The Chief Magistrate of the 26th Judicial District in Mecklenburg County, a position that gave him the authority to set bail guidelines that all Mecklenburg County Magistrates follow. Keep in mind that Rhodes served not an elected official rather in an appointed position.

Behind doors of Mecklenburg County Court System is a club of quid pro quo deals, jobs lobbied for and promises kept. Rhodes was no exception. Rhodes had run for a judgeship before and was soundly defeater by more conservative jurists. 

North Carolina's antiqued judicial system is filled with endless back scratching and back stabling.

Being appointed Chief Magistrate gave Rhode a chance to appease member of his own democratic party and the black political caucus which quickly rewarded his innovative bail program with the chairmanship.

The trouble is Rhodes policy freed more than 1000 of violent offenders many who continued their reign of crime and a few who committed homicides. 

Rhodes  announced his resignation on Friday, citing that he planned to join the private sector. Khalif Rhodes had served as a magistrate in the court system since 2015 and was named the Chief Magistrate in 2017. 

In recent months, the local court system has been under public scrutiny following repeat offenses involving criminals who had been released on bail from custody. Rhodes defended his position in the press conference, however, noting that there were other factors not related to a person’s release status which have contributed to a rise in violent crime. 

Defending the release of certain offenders, Rhodes explained how, ‘we have a decision-making framework (when it comes to who gets released)’ and discussed how that framework considered the risk of each offender of not returning to court before any decision was made. 

In short Rhodes dismissed any notion that his departure was related to the recent cascade of violence that has swept across Charlotte and the surrounds areas.

In closing, Rhodes thanked the District Attorney, Sheriff McFadden and CMPD Chief Putney for their insights and discussions with him during his tenure.

Cedar's Take:

Keep in mind that the cash bail system has been under fire for years, as being racially unjust. 

The "NO BAIL FAIL" blame doesn't just stop with Rhodes, county and city elected officials and the 6th district Chief Judge all share the blame. Like it or not this is a race issue. An over reach to correct the perceived years of injustice as the pendulum swings from lock them all up to free them all. The intent was clear to gain some form of reparations could not have been more evident.

With 77 Homicides in Charlotte this year, 53 of which there has been an arrest, 33 of those arrested had priors for weapons charges many of them for shooting someone or at an occupied car or home. All of those 33 where African Americans. 

The Murder of Kimberly Annette Kohne

Few things have trpubled me like the murder of Kimberly Kohne.

Kimberly Kohne was a PDQ Pizza delivery driver in Matthews who just was just a month shy of her 21st birthday, when she was shot and killed for tailgating. PDQ was a pizza delivery business a predecessor to what is now Domionos in Matthews.

Sadly the night of her murder I had driven past Kohne and her assilant just momnets before she was shot and killed in the parking lot of the Matthews, North Carolina Post Office. 

My black Mercedes 300 D was one of a dozen tips that was turned up during the following investigation. I was targeted by police who were surprised when I called to say I might know something about the murder of Kim Kohne. The Matthews cops quickly realized I was a better witness than a suspect. I didn't see the killer shoot her or even realize he had a gun. I just saw a jerk raging on some pizza delivery girl in a Honda Prelude.

I would spend the better part of 2 hours with Matthews Police Sgt. Sutton and a Charlotte homicide detective trying to remember the car the shooter was driving. I was little help. We even drove to a Nissan dealer on Independence Blvd in hopes I could recall the car or even the color. The more I thought about the car the more uncertian I was that it was even a Nissan. I was in fact a terrible witness. Worse I was a terrible person for not recognizing what was happening or even slowing down. 

From the Charlotte Observer:

Police say a man who surrendered to authorities told them he waved over Matthews pizza driver Kimberly Annette Kohne, stood in front of her car and waved his .357 Magnum. 

Police say he told them the gun fired accidentally, shooting her in the face.

``He didn't have any idea who she was,' said Matthews police Sgt. B.L. Sutton. 

``He didn't even know if she was a man or a woman."

Robert Calvin Craig Jr., 27, turned himself in to police Monday. 

He is charged with murder in the death of Kohne and is in the Mecklenburg County Jail under a suicide watch. 

Family members say Craig, an unemployed construction worker, surrendered two days after his mother died of cancer. They described him as a devoted son who sat by her bedside for most of a year. ``This is so sad,' said his aunt, Charlotte Kriete. ``It just leaves me with an empty feeling.' 

But family members also say he had a drug and alcohol problem. And his ex-wife says he had a violent temper - that he beat her and once pointed a loaded gun in her face. 

She filed assault charges against him twice, but both times dropped them. ``It's senseless and I hate that it had to come to this for someone to realize how violent this man is,' said Anita Craig, 24, who divorced Craig last July. 

Craig cried Monday when he turned himself in to Matthews police. At first, he claimed someone else in the car killed Kohne, police said. Later he changed his story, Sutton said. Craig told police that he and his two sons, ages 7 and 5, were riding in the back seat of a white Nissan Maxima Feb. 2 at about 8 p.m. 

A female friend was driving the car, with her boyfriend sitting beside her. Police declined to identify the couple. 

Police believe this is what happened: At about 8 p.m., the car was heading west on Old Monroe Road from Union County toward Matthews when Kohne's Honda Prelude tried to pass. Kohne was returning from her last pizza delivery of the night. Unable to pass because of an oncoming car, she pulled in behind the Nissan. 

Craig told police he was drunk and became angry because he thought she was tailgating. 

The driver of the Nissan turned right into the parking lot of the Matthews Post Office to let Kohne's car pass. But Craig motioned for Kohne to follow, which she did, pulling in behind the Nissan. 

After the shot was fired, Craig looked in the driver's side window. He jumped back in the Maxima and ordered the driver to flee. 

Craig told investigators that he didn't realize anyone had been killed until reading an article in the next day's Charlotte Observer. 

Craig's arrest brought some peace to some of Kohne's family and friends. ``I'm glad that there is a little bit of finality to it. 

I am glad that they found the killer,' said Joe Todd, a PDQ pizza restaurant manager who was to marry Kohne Oct. 5. 

`It almost makes it more tragic that it was just a random-type thing.'

Cedar Follow-Up:

Nearly two weeks after the shooting Craig turned himself in. 

Robert Calvin Craig pled guilty to 2nd Degree Murder and was given a life sentence on July 19, 1991. After serving 20 years he was paroled on August 2, 2011 under the "Fair Felons" act, and ordered to begin a period of indefinate parole. He was released from parole on July 31, 2016. 

Since that cold February night I've made a point of being more aware, realizing that just noticing things and being alert is not enough. I could have saved Ms. Kohne's life had I been just a little more alert or aware.

Kimberly Annette Kohne was born March 4, 1970 in Calhoun Alabama, she died alone on a cold winter night in 1991 and I've been troubled by her murder all these years. 

David Wooten - Idiot Among Us Kills 3 People In Charlotte

Last Friday night David Robin Wooten apparently decided that riding his Yamaha motorcycle at more than 100 miles an hour on Charlotte's Wilkinson Boulevard would be a good idea.

In the darkness Wooten and his Yamaha sport bike screamed westbound at more than three times the 45 mph speed limit. At the same time heading in the opposite direction were a young couple Dylan Briggs 22 and Jasmine Belush 21. 

The couple were out with their friends, Dylan was driving Jamine's car when they found themselves in a unfamiliar surroundings, the voice on Jasmine's iPhone likely keep urging them to make a U-turn as WAZE often does in a rather insistent manner. 

For whatever reason Dylan Briggs decided to make a U-turn near Alleghany Street.

Watching several cars pass, Briggs may have seen the motorcycle approaching but didn't realize that the bike ridden by Wooten was traveling at an estimated 183.33 feet per second. or more than 125 miles per hour.

Wooten's motorcycle struck the right rear passenger door of Jasmine's car. Despite wearing a helmet, he was killed instantly when his head impacted the roof and D-pillar. His motorcycle would continue through the car killing passengers Benjamin Vasques 24, Hanna Brotherton, 22 and Claudia Gray, 27.

CMPD Officers arriving on the scene were confronted with a horrific accident and assumed that there was a second car or truck fleeing the area. The unrecognizable carnage provided few clues. The impact was so violent it took officer several minutes just to understand what had happened to the car.

Leann Gray who was sitting in the right rear seat against the door was killed instantly. The public information officer and EMT for Midland Fire and Rescue was only 27, and the mother to an 8-year old son.

Leann Gray

Hanna Brotherton sitting next to her, was also killed instantly as the motorcycle continued through the car. She was born in Concord and graduated from Jesse C. Carson High School, and was the daughter of Michael Wayne Brotherton and Trena Marcum Brotherton.

Hanna Brotherton

After graduating from high school Hanna received her associate degree from Rowan -Cabarrus Community College and continued into the orthodontics program at Lake Norman Dental Assisting School. She was attending the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Benjamin Vasquez a soldier in the United States Army, was seated next to Brotherton, had just returned from a deployment in Kuwait.

US Army Pvt. Benjamin Vasquez

Vasquez survived for a short time but was deceased by the time first responders arrived.

In the front seat and separated by just inches Briggs and Belush somehow managed to escape with only minor injuries. They were both taken to CMC Main treated and released.

Cedar's Take: It is impossible to grasp that had Briggs turned only seconds either side of the impact, a second later or sooner, this accident this would not have happened. 

In the long chain of events that led up to this accident, any small deviation, light change or hesitation would have changed the time line by only seconds and this tragedy would not occured.

But the true cause of this accident is nothing short of massive stupidity. David Wooten died an moron and a murder. Beyond being reckless and self centric Wooten is a symptom of lawless behavior by of a group of idiots who believe the rules apply only to other people. A generational defect caused by helicopter parents and participation trophies. The result of lax courts and judges.

You will hear people who think it wasn't all his fault that the driver Briggs is equally at fault for not seeing the Yamaha sport bike traveling the distance of one football field every 1.2 seconds. Yet Wilkinson as most city streets does not have the line of sight or grade of an interstate highway and the street has a 45 mph speed limit for a reason, safety. 

Two days after the accident Olivia Carper in Huntersville decided Wooten needed a "Go Fund Me" Memorial page. Equally disturbing there is no mention of 3 people Wooten murdered. Even in death Wooten was a selfish thug.