Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009

Police | Missing N.Y. teen featured in People magazine

Police

MYRTLE BEACH

Saga of missing teen in People periodical

The Nov. 11 edition of People magazine features Britanee Drexel in "Vanished Without A Trace" as one of six young people who went missing in 2009.

Drexel, of Rochester, N.Y., was last seen April 25 leaving the Blue Water Hotel on Ocean Boulevard, and investigators remain puzzled as to the now-18-year-old's whereabouts.

The issue highlights Drexel and several others in light of the reuniting of a missing California girl, Jaycee Dugard, who was found in late August, 18 years after she was taken from a bus stop in 1991.

MYRTLE BEACH

Ex-mayoral hopeful in dispute

Police were called to the scene of a local restaurant after a former mayoral candidate was involved in an altercation with a videographer from Lexington.

Bill Howard, owner of The Fish House, located at 6401 N. Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach, said he was meeting with mayoral candidate Mark McBride in the restaurant when Michael Green walked in with a video camera and began saying some "pretty brutal stuff" to him and McBride.

As things escalated, Howard said he asked Green to leave, and when Green did, he left behind his camera.

Green said Howard escorted him to the door and grabbed his arm and pulled his camera out of his hand.

CONWAY

Photo of former VP on jail Web site

A photo of former Vice President Al Gore has been removed from Horry County's jail Web site, after it was inadvertently posted there for almost 24 hours, according to Tom Fox, director of J. Reuben Long Detention Center.

Fox said Friday that a training representative from Motorola imported the photo under the name Test, Test on Wednesday and used the file during a training session at the detention center.

The trainer, while training members of the North Myrtle Beach Department of Public Safety in the Offendertrak system, accidentally downloaded the file to the detention center Web site, Fox said.

He said jail staff removed the photo on Thursday immediately after being notified of the error by one caller, not someone associated with the former vice president.

It is not uncommon for trainers to use celebrity photographs in a training environment and the photograph Gore was not intended to be transferred to a live site, Fox said.

Local

SOCASTEE

Agencies provide free food today

A mass food distribution to provide free food to 400 Horry County families will be held beginning at 1 p.m. today at the Socastee United Methodist Church.

The distribution is open to any family in need in Horry County - one per family. Only the first 400 families will be served.

Churches Assisting People and Helping Hand of Myrtle Beach are hosting the event.

It is made possible through the stimulus program.

The United Way of Horry County has coordinated a portion of the grant money to buy food for the distribution.

GEORGETOWN

Teacher on leave after accusations

A Georgetown County school teacher has been placed on administrative leave after allegations of having an inappriopriate relationship with a student.

The Georgetown County School District has declined to released further details, including the name of the school where the teacher works, the nature of the inappriopriate behavior, dates and the age of the student, because the internal investigation is still pending.