CHARGE ON: U.S. Attorney George Holding, saying he believes it is "outrageous" that the state overlooked laws requiring it to release 20 violent offenders with life sentences, said he will look for federal charges that could keep the inmates behind bars. (N&O)

NOT BORED: A year after losing re-election, former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole spends her days working through her foundation and caring for her ailing husband, former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole. (N&O)

AFFAIR TO REMEMBER? The head of the highway patrol, who is charged with ending a string of sexual misconduct cases involving troopers, had an extra-marital affair in 1987. Commander Randy Glover says he has paid his dues and corrected his 20-year-old mistakes. (N&O)

* A former state trooper wants his job back after being fired for having a drunken sexual encounter with another trooper's wife in the back seat of a car headed home from a Christmas party.

The woman's husband was in the front seat.

Timothy J. White of Salisbury was dismissed from the N.C. Highway Patrol on June 2 after he continued to contact the other trooper's wife, despite being told by his superiors to stay away from her, according to documents on file at the state Office of Administrative Hearings.

White, 39, was terminated for personal conduct unbecoming of an officer. He immediately filed an appeal on the grounds that he was being treated more harshly than other troopers accused of similar behavior.

Since 1998, state records show at least 27 cases of sexual misconduct by troopers either on or off duty. While some troopers were fired, several who had extramarital affairs or behaved inappropriately were given lesser punishments and later received promotions.

The incident that led to White's dismissal occurred after a Dec. 17 party at a bar in Mocksville, southwest of Winston-Salem. White, a patrol veteran who had been promoted to the rank of sergeant earlier that month, said he consumed about nine beers at the party. He then had a sexual encounter with the wife of Master Trooper Eric B. Perdue, according to the state report.

Perdue was White's subordinate and is listed as a witness to the incident. A third trooper was driving them home. (N&O)

* The director of the N.C. Division of Alcohol Law Enforcement announced his sudden retirement Monday, eight days after reports his agency bought all of its agents assault rifles and that two of the weapons were missing.

Bill Chandler's retirement was announced in an afternoon e-mail to the agency's employees from Reuben F. Young, the state secretary of the N.C. Department of Crime Control and Public Safety. Chandler, who was appointed to head ALE by former Gov. Mike Easley in November 2007, had worked at the agency 30 years as a field agent and supervisor.

Young said Chandler, 51, put in his retirement papers after the two had a private talk Monday morning. Though he would not discuss what specifically triggered the director's departure, the secretary said he was concerned by issues raised in a Sept. 13 article published in The News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer.

Chandler will be replaced by John Ledford, a former ALE agent who is currently the sheriff of Madison County. Ledford, 44, will take over the agency in November, according to Young.

Two former judges and a former U.S. senator have been named to investigate the disappearance of state Highway Patrol records pertaining to then Gov. Mike Easley's travels in 2005.

N.C. Crime Control Secretary Reuben Young said today that Willis Whichard, a former state Supreme Court justice and former Campbell University law school dean; Robert Morgan, a former U.S. senator, former SBI director and former state attorney general; and Ralph Walker, a former superior and court of appeals judge and former director of the Administrative Office of the Courts, will conduct the probe, reports Dan Kane.

"Governor Perdue and I are determined to do everything in our power to find the answers regarding the 2005 records," Young said in a statement. "These three are dedicated public servants and have a history of impartiality and fairness."

The missing records are part of wide-ranging state and federal investigations into perks provided to Easley and his family. The patrol's records have helped show that Easley received free air travel from fundraisers whom he appointed to important positions in state government.

Read more after the jump.

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Col. Randy Glover was sworn in as the 24th commander of the N.C. Highway Patrol this morning in a formal ceremony at the Old State Capitol.

Gov. Beverly Perdue praised Glover, 49, as a dedicated trooper she had watched rise through the ranks for years, from the time he was assigned in 1987 to patrol the roads around her hometown in New Bern, reports Michael Biesecker.

"He can lead by example," Perdue said. "The standard to be a state trooper is so high. I believe Randy Glover will maintain that high standard."

Glover is a 29 year veteran of the patrol, which has been beset in recent months with questions over trooper conduct and controversial personnel decisions. He has already ordered a review of the patrol’s management practices and new ethics training for all supervisors.

"I will not be swayed by special interest," Glover said. "I will not yield to personal agendas, private vices or political pressures. I will not embarrass the governor’s office, the department that I work for, or the citizens of this great state. My promise is to instill a sense of pride I hope will spread throughout this organization. If my flame dims and I am not capable … I will step aside and relinquish my position."

Glover replaces Col. Walter J. Wilson Jr., who announced his retirement in June after only one year in the top job.

Score one for former state trooper Monty Steven Poarch.

Poarch, who has been fighting to regain his job with the state Highway Patrol, was acquitted in Buncombe County Superior Court last week of charges stemming from a dispute over a parking space at an Asheville restaurant, Steve Riley reports.

The daughter of a Durham assistant district attorney was standing in the space, attempting to hold it for her boyfriend's car, when Poarch slowly drove into the space, forcing her out.

Poarch had been found guilty of a misdemeanor assault charge in district court, but appealed to Superior Court. His attorney, Sean Devereux of Asheville, said that after a two-day trial, the jury found Poarch not guilty after only 25 minutes of deliberation.

"At a time when the state is cutting many vital services, it seems odd to take up three days of Superior Court time over a parking lot squabble," Devereux said.

Poarch, however, had much more on the line than a misdemeanor conviction. He has sued to return to the Highway Patrol after he was fired in 2003 for having sex with a woman in his cruiser and at a patrol station.

An administrative judge found that he should be reinstated because other troopers caught in similar or worse behavior had been allowed to remain on the patrol. The decision made public numerous cases of trooper misconduct over the past decade and created a major embarrassment for the agency.

The patrol and the State Personnel Commission rejected the law judge's finding, and Poarch is now trying to win that case in state Superior Court.

The N.C. Highway Patrol on Tuesday put a new policy into effect to keep records of the governor's and lieutenant governor's travel when they are accompanied by state troopers.

The new system is a result of questions raised about former Gov. Mike Easley's travel. Easley made several trips on private airplanes while in office, and the travel was not reported as either a gift or a campaign contribution. The News & Observer was able to track the flights through records of state troopers from the executive protection detail who accompanied him. Easley refused to release those records while in office, but Gov. Beverly Perdue has made them available. The former head of Easley's security detail is scheduled to appear before a federal grand jury tomorrow.

"This new protocol will provide clear direction," Perdue said in a statement today, "for how the State Highway Patrol executive security detail collects and retains travel records."

The Highway Patrol will keep detailed records of any trip the governor takes outside Wake County when she or he is accompanied by troopers. The patrol will keep the records for four years after the governor leaves office and then turn them over to the state archives.

State Highway Patrol Capt. Alan Melvin headed up the special protection detail for Gov. Mike Easley for years, but is now assigned to an information technology job at the patrol.

That's why a reporter was curious to see Melvin show up earlier this year at the Raleigh home of Easley.

The date was Feb. 18 — a Wednesday — and Melvin pulled up around 2 p.m. He carried a package to the door with him. He left without it, reports Andy Curliss.

That date was the same day that the state Highway Patrol informed The News & Observer that it would begin providing flight records relating to Easley, saying some would be available the next day.

The newspaper had long sought the records and one result of their release was a two-part series published Saturday and Sunday. The report showed, in part, that the Highway Patrol has gaps in its records. For example, there are no records from 2005.

Back in February, at the time of Melvin's visit to the Easley home, the paper immediately wanted to talk with Melvin. Through a spokesman, Capt. Everett Clendenin, Melvin declined to speak numerous times. But at the request of the paper, Clendenin asked Melvin about his visit. Melvin denied being at the Easley home that day, according to Clendenin.

The schedule shows Melvin was on duty that day from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. It is not clear when he took lunch.

The N&O then asked the commander of the patrol, Col. Walter Wilson, about the visit.

Wilson inquired and later reported back that Melvin said he had been there — and he was there to drop off some "personal items."

Last week, The N&O asked Wilson about the discrepancy in Melvin's stories. Patrol policy requires a member to be "truthful and complete in all written and oral communications, reports, and testimony."

Wilson said he didn't know why there was a difference. Moments later, Clendenin phoned the newspaper and put Melvin on the line.

Excerpts from the exchange, after the jump.

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Gov. Beverly Perdue declared a state of emergency today as a winter storm dumped nearly a half-foot of snow across the state, more in some spots, shuttering schools and turning roads into slushy skid zones.

The order enables Perdue to deploy additional resources to help the state cope with the storm. The state’s emergency operations center in Raleigh was activated this morning to aid local governments, reports Mark Johnson.

“The storm’s largest impact this morning is primarily to North Carolina’s roads,” Perdue said in a prepared statement, “and I urge citizens who do not have to drive to stay at home today.”

The N.C. Highway Patrol reported dozens of accidents, particularly in the Triangle and Triad areas. Additional troopers were called in today. Many highways are partly covered in snow, and secondary roads are covered, officials warned.

The N.C. Department of Transportation trucks dumped tons of salt on roads that were sprayed with anti-icing solution the night before.

“Our preparations are working,” Perdue said, “but motorists need to do their part, too.”

Snowfall began before dawn, and as the powder piled up, government meetings were cancelled and stores closed. Division of Motor Vehicles offices planned a 2 p.m. closing and, on Wednesday, a 10 a.m. opening.