Cary Allred

Allred not done yet

bniolet — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 08:22:59 -0400

Former Rep. Cary Allred hasn't gone quietly.

In an interview with his hometown paper, the Burlington Times News, Allred had few kind words for anyone associated with the incidents that led to his decision to quit his seat in the House.

Allred's political career was upturned one night when he was pulled over by a state Trooper for driving more than 100 miles an hour on Interstate 40. At the time, Allred flashed his legislative ID and told the trooper he was racing to go vote in the General Assembly. The trooper let Allred go. Later when the stop became public, Allred was cited. He pleaded guilty to the speeding charge, but apparently still believes he was in the right.

Police and emergency workers "break the speed limit for the public good," he said. "What I was trying to do was for the public good."

Allred, a Republican, said the only reason he got a speeding ticket at all is because House Republican leader Paul Stam overheard Allred talking about the stop.

Allred said he got the speeding and reckless driving ticket only because House Republican Leader Paul Stam of Wake County overheard him tell Deputy GOP Whip Fred Steen II of Rowan County about the trooper stopping him on the way to the April 27 session. Stam, whom Allred called a "self-righteous hypocrite," then "directly or indirectly" told House Speaker Joe Hackney, D-Orange.

Allred pleads guilty to driving 102

bniolet — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:54:29 -0400

Former state Rep. Cary Allred has pleaded guilty to a speeding charge that contributed to the end of his career in the legislature.

Allred, an Alamance County Republican, pleaded guilty through his attorney Wednesday to driving 102 in a 60 mile-an-hour zone one evening in April.

When he was pulled over, Allred was on his way to the legislature. That night witnesses on the House floor say they smelled alcohol on his breath and saw him plant a hug and a kiss on a teenage paige.

The incident led to an ethics investigation and Allred eventually resigned.

Allred was initially let go by a Highway Patrolman after he displayed his legislative ID during the traffic stop. The Patrol cited him for speeding days later.

On Wednesday, Allred's attorney entered a guilty plea, said Judge Joe Buckner, the chief District Court judge for Orange and Chatham counties. In an agreement with prosecutors, Allred was fined $500 and will have to pay $130 in court costs.

The Department of Motor Vehicles suspends driving priviledges for convictions involving speeds of more than 55 miles per hour that are 15 miles over the limit. Allred may qualify for limited driving privileges, such as driving to work.

Foriest: We made hard choices

bkrueger — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 10:37:47 -0400

When Dan Ingle was selected to fill the vacancy created by Cary Allred's resignation from the state House in May, one of his first acts was to vote on the state budget.

Ingle, a Burlington Republican, voted against it. He said it was a bad time to increase taxes, according to an account in The Times News of Burlington.

"When I walk down the street in Alamance County, 12 out of every 100 people, they're not working right now," he said.

Democratic lawmakers from the area told the paper they had done the best the could in a difficult year.

"We had to step up and made some hard choices," said Sen. Tony Foriest. a Graham Democrat. "I think we did that."

Dome Memo: Polls, attacks and taxes

bniolet — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 10:15:30 -0400

UNPOPULAR POLS: Gov. Beverly Perdue's approval rating has slipped to a new low: 30 percent in one poll. Her solution: barnstorm the state calling for higher taxes for everyone. The good news for her is that she'd have a long way to fall before matching the unpopularity of former Gov. Mike Easley, who is apparently the target of a wide-ranging federal investigation. Meanwhile, former U.S. Sen. John Edwards declared to the Washington Post this week that he isn't paying attention to his reputation. We noticed.

COMMANDMENT 11: Now that the candidates to lead the state Republican party are finished beating the stuffing out of each other, the new chairman, Tom Fetzer, turned his attention to the real enemy — Democrats. Fetzer launched a broadside against a fundraising reception for Democratic lawmakers calling the event inappropriate. Democrats mostly ignored the attack, but it probably felt good for the GOP to go after the other guys for a change.

BUDGET: After a lengthy, public and at times painful budget debate in the House last week, the actual budget can now be written by the select few in the conference committee. Big changes, particularly to the House's proposed taxes, are in store.

IN OTHER NEWS: former state Rep. Cary Allred, wearing his pajamas, was stopped for reckless driving with the smell of alcohol on his breath six days after he quit the legislature. The state Revenue Department held up tax refunds for big families because it wants proof. Newly graduated teachers and lawyers are both having a hard time finding jobs.

Enough Allred-y

markjohnson — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 16:34:59 -0400

Former Rep. Cary Allred has had a bit of trouble with driving, the smell of alcohol and the law, once again.

An Alamance County Sheriff's deputy ticketed Allred for reckless driving on June 7, six days after he resigned from the legislature over his conduct at an April session of the House, the Burlington Times-News reports. The report filed by the sergeant from the sheriff's office recounts that he smelled alcohol when he spoke with Allred, who appeared to be wearing pajama pants at 6:45 p.m.

Back on April 27, Allred was stopped by a state trooper for driving 102 mph en route to that evening's House session. He was later ticketed. A report by the House sergeant-at-arms of that evening's session included the accounts of several Republican legislators who said they smelled alcohol on Allred's breath and saw him give an inappropriately long hug to a teenage page from his district. He resigned after the report was released.

In the more recent incident, Allred was observed speeding and weaving off the road and across the center line in a 1955, or 1957 depending on whose description is correct, red Ford Thunderbird. The sheriff's deputy wrote that he recognized Allred from his "political champagne signs."

Dome Memo: Easley, McCrory, Burr

ryanteaguebeckwith — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 10:01:56 -0400

N.C.'S STATE: Something was rotten at N.C. State. After a series of articles in the N&O revealed the involvement of former Gov. Mike Easley in the hiring of his wife, the provost and the chancellor resigned and Mary Easley was fired. (The chairman of the board of trustees had already left.) Though an interim chancellor has already been named, the university is not out of the woods yet. Expect further turmoil.

CONVENTIONAL WISDOM: The N.C. Republican Party met in Raleigh to plan a comeback. Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory was scheduled to outline his path to victory this morning, while delegates debated whether candidates should pledge loyalty to the state platform, whether primaries should be closed and — in what's turned out to be the nastiest race in years — who should be the party's new chairman.

SENATE BUZZ: U.S. Sen. Richard Burr says he's not thinking about which Democrat might run against him next year. He's the only one, apparently. The chattering classes spent more time this week wondering whether Secretary of State Elaine Marshall or U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre might make another run for it, while Iraq veteran Cal Cunningham and Obama fundraiser Kenneth Lewis kept trying to build buzz.

IN OTHER NEWS: The fight over the state budget continued, with House Democratic budget writers calling for $784 million in new taxes. ... A House committee passed a bill to allow billboard companies to cut down more trees. ... Elon University police detective Dan Ingle was chosen by Alamance County Republicans to replace former Rep. Cary Allred.

Ingle to replace Allred

ryanteaguebeckwith — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 10:13:32 -0400

A county commissioner will replace former state Rep. Cary Allred in the North Carolina House.

Alamance County Republican leaders chose Dan Ingle as Allred's successor over two other candidates, the Associated Press reports.

Ingle is an Elon University police detective who received 17 of the 24 votes cast by the Alamance County's GOP executive committee. Ingle was ultimately approved by acclamation.

His nomination will be formally approved by Gov. Beverly Perdue.

Leaving early from the legislature

ryanteaguebeckwith — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:31:40 -0400

A number of legislators have left this session.

Below, a running list of state lawmakers who have resigned, died, switched chambers or plan to leave before session's end:

Rep. Linda Coleman, Wake County Democrat: Resigned Jan. 11 after being appointed by Gov. Beverly Perdue to head the Office of State Personnel.

Sen. Vern Malone, Wake County Democrat: Died on April 18.

Rep. Dan Blue, Wake County Democrat: Resigned May 19 after being appointed to Malone's seat in the state Senate.

Rep. Cary Allred, Alamance County Republican: Resigned June 1 after allegations of impropriety with a teen-aged page and a speeding ticket.

Rep. Bonner Stiller, Brunswick County Republican: Announced he will resign June 15 to spend more time with his family and run his law firm.

Who will take Allred's seat?

ryanteaguebeckwith — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 11:41:56 -0400

Who will replace Rep. Cary Allred in the House?

So far, "a bunch of folks" have said they're interested in the job, according to Alamance County Republican Party head Robert Simpson.

The most notable are County Commissioner Dan Ingle and former state Sen. Hugh Webster.

Also considering the post are attorney Keith Whited of Burlington, retired banker Steve Carter of Burlington, postal worker Kenneth Kruger of Graham.

Former secretary of state candidate Jack Sawyer was interested, but he does not live in the district, and Alamance GOP vice chairman Dennis Riddell took himself out of the running.

The party's 25-member executive committee will meet June 11 at the Alamance County Courthouse to choose among the candidates.

Gov. Beverly Perdue will then officially appoint their selection.

Allred to resign Monday

ryanteaguebeckwith — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:05:34 -0400

Embattled state Rep. Cary Allred will resign.

The Alamance County Republican submitted a letter to House clerk Denise Weeks after noon today saying he will leave the legislature effective 2 p.m. on Monday.

It has been my honor and privilege to serve the people of Alamance County and the 64th District in the House of Representatives.
As General Douglas MacArthur said, "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away."
With that, I bid thee farewell.

Calls to Allred's home and cell phone were not answered Friday.

Allred, who faced ethics questions after inappropriately hugging a teen-aged page, said Thursday that he might step down in September, but also hinted he might resign as early as Monday.

He had previously changed his mind about leaving the Republican Party, however, so some observers, such as Greensboro News-Record reporter Mark Binker, were skeptical.

State Republican chairwoman Linda Daves called on Allred to resign earlier this month.

Update: "It's for the good of the House," said Rep. Paul Stam, an Apex Republican and House minority leader. "Everybody needs to remember he had a 30 year career and I hope everybody won’t judge him on one or two events. He did a lot of good."

The resignation would end the ethics inquiries against Allred.

"If he's not a member of the House there's no reason to go forward with it," said Bill Holmes, a spokesman for House Speaker Joe Hackney.

Update: Hackney issued a statement on the resignation.

"I appreciate Rep. Allred's years of service to this state and will remember him as a staunch advocate for the people of Alamance County. I wish him well in his retirement," Hackney said.