An attorney representing former Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit said his client will appeal a recent decision by Superior Court Judge William T. Stetzer that bars Hoxit from returning to office.

Superior Court Judge William T. Stetzer has ruled that former Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit will not return to his former office. 

In his order, Stetzer determined that Hoxit engaged in “willful misconduct and maladministration.” 

Superior Court Judge William T. Stetzer has ruled that former Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit will not return to his former office.

In his order, Stetzer determined that Hoxit engaged in “willful misconduct and maladministration.”

There was no shortage of gray-haired attorneys in Graham County Superior Court last week. Some represented witnesses; others were just curious to watch a proceeding not seen in modern history. 

Maintaining faith in the justice system and protecting law enforcement were the themes of the four-day hearing held last week in Robbinsville to determine whether Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit — now suspended amid allegations of misconduct tied to an investigation of the ex-husband of his current wife — would be officially barred from returning to office.

A Graham County man recently pleaded guilty to felony littering of hazardous waste for throwing used needles on the ground in a local park, District Attorney Ashley Hornsby Welch announced.

Jeffery Charles Heid, 53, of Robbinsville, also pleaded guilty to assault on a law enforcement officer and communicating threats. 

On the morning of Monday, Jan. 12, a group from Cherokee Historical Association visited the Stecoah Valley Center in Robbinsville.

Both CHA and SVC are nonprofits dedicated to the preservation of history and culture. Thus, the CHA representatives’ focus was on how Cherokee history and culture was being presented at SVC. 

Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit has been suspended from office following allegations of abuse of power and misconduct related to an insurance investigation into a county commissioner. 

Under North Carolina law, an elected sheriff can be suspended and then removed only through a judicial process. The first step in the process is for a district attorney or county attorney or at least five voting residents in the county to file a petition to the court. 

With the late afternoon sunshine piercing through the tree canopy above the road leading into the Tsali Recreation Area on the Graham/Swain County line, the sounds of “One Alone Together” by F.J. McMahon echoed out of the truck speakers, windows rolled down with a cool fall breeze swirling around me.  

As the federal government shutdown continues, North Carolina residents may be left with a patchwork of closures, service limitations and uncertainty across the region’s parks, forests and federal agencies. While some federal programs will continue without interruption, others have scaled back operations, leaving communities in the state’s westernmost counties to rely on a mix of official websites and local offices for updates.

There’s a certain feeling you get when you cross over the Graham County line. For most “outsiders,” whether it be nearby East Tennessee or origin points from any incoming direction, it’s a sense of genuine curiosity and wonder, where you don’t know what to expect around the next curve. And that’s half the fun, you dig?