One female sheriff among N.C. 100

ryanteaguebeckwith — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 13:51:03 -0500

North Carolina has only one female sheriff.

First elected in 2000, Currituck County Susan Johnson is the only woman of the state's 100 sheriffs, though she used to have more company.

As recently as 2006, there were three women, including Sheriff Barbara Pickens of Lincoln County and an appointee in Washington County.

Pickens was the state's first female sheriff when she was elected in 1994. She was re-elected to two more terms, retiring in 2006 after losing a bid for another term.

Eddie Caldwell, executive vice president of the N.C. Sheriffs' Association, said he did not know why there were not more women in the role.

"The decision about who to elect rests with the qualified voters of the individual counties," he said.

Though women were elected to a number of offices for the first time this year, several top positions in law enforcement remain nearly all male.

Doctor kept Kiser away from Wright vote

csmorris — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 11:57:15 -0400

Medical tests kept Rep. Joe Kiser from Thursday's special session.

Kiser, a Lincoln County Republican and former minority leader, said he had scheduled a CAT scan long before the session was announced, David Ingram of The Charlotte Observer reports.

"I didn't feel like I could cancel or postpone what they wanted to do here," he said by telephone. He said the tests went well and that he is feeling fine.

He also said he would have voted for expelling Thomas Wright and against only a censure.