Slain teen’s grandmother files lawsuit

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Slain teen’s grandmother files lawsuit

By Michaela L. Duckett – October 3, 2011

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Good morning! It’s back to business Monday. Today the weatherman is calling for mostly sunny skies with a high near 70°.

Here’s what’s brewing in the news:

Family of Tiffany Wright is seeking closure

The murder of Tiffany Wright remains unsolved. In 2009, the pregnant teen was gunned down early one morning while waiting near her home in north Charlotte for a school bus. Her baby was delivered alive, but died within a week. Two years later, her family is still seeking answers about her death and hoping to find some closure.

Wright’s paternal grandmother Shirley Boston filed a lawsuit recently in the U.S. District Court in Charlotte seeking $600 million in damages, reports The Charlotte Observer. Unable to find an attorney that would take on her case, Boston filed the lawsuit without one. The suit claims that a police captain and two Gaston County social services workers failed to protect her grandchild.

At the time of her death, Wright was 15 years old and 8 months pregnant. She was living in foster care, and the police had been previously notified that Wright might have been the victim of statutory rape. Boston says that in 2008, she personally contacted the Gaston County Department of Social Services to inform them that her granddaughter had confided in her that she was being “physically, mentally and emotionally abused.” She says she also contacted the police with information that her adoptive brother Royce Mitchell was allegedly threatening Wright.

On the day of Wright’s death, Mitchell, now 38, was arrested and charged with statutory rape and indecent liberties with a minor. Those charges were later dropped after DNA evidence proved that he was not the father of her child. However, a judge determined that there was a preponderance of evidence to indicate that a sexual relationship occurred between Wright and Mitchell, violating Mitchell‘s probation. Thus, the judge ordered Mitchell back to prison for 2 ½ years. He is scheduled to be released next month.

In the meantime, Boston is still seeking answers to questions about the circumstances leading up to her granddaughter’s death. “We need some sort of closure,” she told the Observer.

Boston has traveled to Charlotte three or four times following Wright’s death. “I left there with nothing but a broken heart,” she said. “I think that was the worst time of my life.”

Police ask anyone with information about the case to call police or Crime Stoppers at (704) 304.1600.
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Eddie Long to accusers: Give me back my settlement money

It seems as though the Bishop Eddie Long sex scandal will never end. Now, Long apparently wants some of the settlement money back. Three of the five young men that have accused him of sexual coercion received a letter sent from Long’s attorneys stating that he intends to recover nearly $1 million from their financial settlement. The letter alleges that Jamal Parris, Spencer LeGrande and Centino Kemp violated terms of a confidentiality agreement outlined in the settlement with Long and New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. In addition to speaking to Atlanta media outlets, all three men named in the letter have announced plans to write a book. Financial terms of the settlement between Long and the men have not been disclosed but, based on the letter and the fact each of the young men were paid equitably, the total comes to at least $1.5 million. (Read more)
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Obama Fried Chicken

First, there was Colonel Sanders. Then came Flavor Flav. Now, according to several reports, the President of the U.S.A. is the mascot of a fried chicken fast food chain. This one is in Beijing, China and comes with a slogan written in Chinese that reads: “We’re so cool, aren’t we?” Some believe this is a direct response to the Obama administration’s complaint filed with the World Trade Organization about Chinese tariffs that have more than doubled the price of American chicken exports. Do you think there will be any OFC’s in the states any time soon?