​December 31, 2019

The Honorable Rick Ramsey Mayor, Town of Murphy 5 Wofford Street Murphy, NC 28906

Dear Mayor Ramsey:

On behalf of the North Carolina Department of Commerce, I am pleased to announce that Murphy has been selected to participate in the Downtown Associate Community Program, coordinated under the NC Main Street and Rural Planning Center at the North Carolina Department of Commerce. As you are aware, this was a competitive application process and your community was selected as one of six communities that will receive services over the next 12 months. The NC Main Street and Rural Planning Center staff believes that your interest in improving the downtown along with the existing business mix and building stock, make Murphy an excellent candidate for this program.

There were many strong applications to consider during this selection process. Due to limited staff and resources, we have determined the most efficient way to move forward is to take communities in on a staggered basis. We will begin work with Murphy and Graham in early 2020.

We look forward to working with you and your community leaders to develop a sustainable downtown organization that will position your downtown for economic growth and development. We believe that your community’s participation in this program will lead to designation as a North Carolina Main Street community in the next three years.

The NC Main Street and Rural Planning Center staff will be in contact with your town staff to set up an initial kickoff visit. We anticipate that visit will take place in late January or early February 2020.

Congratulations on your acceptance into the Downtown Associate Community program and thank you for your ongoing commitment to improve the vitality of your downtown. If you have any questions, please contact Liz Parham, Director of the NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center at 919-814-4658.

PRESS RELEASE

​On Monday, December 30, 2019, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte published a list of several clergy the diocese found to have been “credibly accused” of child sexual abuse since the diocese’s creation in 1972. Of these clergy members, two worked in the 43rd Prosecutorial District in the 1970s and 1980s. ​

According to the diocese, Adelbert “Del” Holmes was “credibly accused” of committing child molestation against three minors in Murphy, North Carolina, in 1976 while he was a clergy member. The Catholic church became aware of the allegations against Holmes in 1988. Holmes was removed from the ministry in 1991. He died in 2013. Holmes was a clergy member at the St. William Catholic Church in Murphy and the Immaculate Conception Catholic Mission in Hayesville. There is no recorded documentation that the Catholic church notified local law enforcement nor the District Attorney’s Office of these allegations when the church was notified in 1988. Unfortunately, the lack of notification by the Catholic church to law enforcement authorities during that time period is not surprising. Holmes died in 2013, and his death prevents the District Attorney’s Office from being able to prosecute him for crimes he is alleged to have committed in 1976.

Clergy member Al Behm was “credibly accused” of child sexual offenses in Kentucky during the 1970s. Behm went on to serve as the first campus minister at Western Carolina University in the 1980s. According to the diocese, Behm has not been accused of committing crimes while at Western Carolina. Behm left the ministry in 1993.

There is not a statute of limitations for felonies in North Carolina. If you have been a victim of child sexual abuse, wish to make a report, and explore the possibility of prosecution, please contact your local law enforcement agency. Last year, the District Attorney’s Office successfully prosecuted a former Episcopal priest for crimes he committed on children in Waynesville over 20 years ago. “If you have been a victim of child sexual abuse, we are committed to seeking justice for you. North Carolina does not have a statute of limitations on these atrocious crimes which means we are able to prosecute individuals when there is probable cause even decades after the crime.”

District Attorney Ashley Hornsby Welch

​Murphy, N.C. – Internal medicine physician Dr. Brian Mitchell and physician assistant Samantha Thompson will join the Erlanger Medical Group in January 2020. Dr. Mitchell will begin seeing patients on February 3, 2020, at his new office – Erlanger Primary Care Peachtree, located at 125 Medical Park Lane, Suite H, on the Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital campus.
 
Current patients of Dr. Mitchell may begin scheduling appointments by calling his practice manager, Medra Palmer, at 828-837-8275. Medical records can be mailed to the new Erlanger clinic address, or patients can bring them to their appointments.
 
Dr. Mitchell is a board-certified internal medicine physician who has been serving patients of western North Carolina for almost 45 years. He attended the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and completed an internal medicine residency at Boston City Hospital. He is a member of the Western North Carolina Medical Society and serves as a clinical assistant professor at UNC School of Medicine.
 
Samantha Thompson, PA-C, has worked alongside Dr. Mitchell for seven years. She received her Master of Health Sciences and Physician Assistant Certification from Duke University.
 
Joining the new practice in April will be Stephen Rubendall Jr., MD, a board-certified family medicine physician. An open house to meet all three practitioners will be announced soon.
 
For more information about Erlanger Medical Group, visit erlanger.org/docs.