DA considering death in Bailey murder case

Orange-Chatham District Attorney Jim Woodall plans to announce Oct. 28 whether he'll pursue the death penalty against six young men accused of murdering 20-year-old Josh Bailey.

Authorities say Matt Johnson, 21, shot Bailey in the head with a 9 mm pistol after the group had already begun to dig a shallow grave. Johnson, Brian Minton, 18, Jacob Maxwell, 18, Jack Johnson II, 19, Ryan Ladar Davis Lee, 20, and Brandon Greene, 26, are being held without bail on charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping.

Woodall also plans to announce that day whether he'll pursue the death penalty against Kenneth White, 40, who is accused of shooting 20-year-old Ebony Robinson, who was eight months pregnant with his child, and Randall Standifer, 50, charged with killing his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend on Christmas Day.

In Chatham County, Barbara Clark, 42, avoided a capital trial last week by pleading guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and submitting to two consecutive life sentences for the beating deaths of two elderly women.

Already Woodall's office is pursing capital cases against Demario Atwater, accused of shooting UNC Student Body President Eve Carson; Bobby Person, accused of stabbing his mother to death in Chatham county; and Louis Wilson, accused of raping and killing Tracy Baldwin after she confronted him about stolen money.

Atwater's alleged accomplice, Laurence Lovette, is not eligible for the death penalty because he was not at least 18 at the time of the crime.

Staff Writer Jesse James DeConto

Ex-DA Nifong's guitars auctioned for cash

The perfect instruments for picking the wrongfully prosecuted blues hit the auction block Sunday at a court-ordered sale of former Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong's guitars.

The disbarred prosecutor's three guitars fetched a total of $5,100 in less than half an hour of bidding at an auction house overlooked by a giant statue of Daniel Boone.

Before the auction, some speculated that Nifong's friends would buy the guitars to return to him on permanent loan. Others expected a bidding war between Nifong's supporters and detractors.

Mike Rawlins, an online dealer from Winston-Salem, said the Paul Reed Smith Custom 24 electric guitar he picked up was worth the $2,000 he paid -- maybe more, thanks to the history of its owner.

"I didn't buy it for that reason, but I'll use that when I sell it," he said.

The federal judge presiding over Nifong's bankruptcy case ordered the public auction.

Nifong filed for bankruptcy Jan. 15, the day he was to respond to a lawsuit by three former Duke lacrosse players, accusing him, Durham police and others of malicious prosecution stemming from gang-rape allegations against them that were ultimately found to be false.

Nifong's attorneys have claimed the three guitars make up most of his total assets, listed at about $250,000 in court filings. His home is worth $235,000, but homes are typically not touched in bankruptcy cases.

Staff writers Marti Maguire and Anne Blythe

UNC

Campus forum seeks a stronger university

Students, faculty and staff are invited to share ideas about how to strengthen UNC at a campus forum Thursday, Oct. 30.

The forum, free and open to anyone, will be held at 2 p.m. in Gerrard Hall.

Attendees will join UNC Trustees J.J. Raynor, also student body president, and John Ellison of Greensboro for a discussion focused on "Carolina: The Best Place to Teach, Learn and Discover."

At the request of Board of Trustees Chairman Roger Perry and Chancellor Holden Thorp, Raynor and Ellison recently launched a broad discussion about the university's future. Their goal is to develop recommendations about ways to make UNC an even stronger institution than it is today. They plan to report back to the trustees and the chancellor next spring.

For more information about "Carolina: The Best Place to Teach, Learn and Discover," see the Web site, http://bestcarolina.unc.edu/ The site includes an online form to submit messages to Raynor and Ellison about the initiative.

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