Another Buckingham official charged
BUCKINGHAM — Another Buckingham County elected official has found himself embroiled in controversy — and, this time, facing a misdemeanor charge.
Days after a member of the Board of Supervisors was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated, a member of the county’s School Board was charged with misdemeanor assault.
Thelma Llewellyn, the school system’s director of personnel and federal programs, sought the charge against School Board member Russell “Pete” Gowin in connection with an incident that followed the April 9 board meeting.
Llewellyn told authorities that Gowin bumped into her, knocking her into a chair.
She visited the Sheriff’s Office on Thursday to swear out a warrant against Gowin, who was first elected in November and is a former gym teacher and football coach at Buckingham County High School.
Gowin declined to comment on the incident Tuesday. He will appear in court Friday morning on the misdemeanor assault charge, which can carry a maximum penalty of up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine.
Llewellyn, a 14-year veteran of the county’s school system, also declined to comment. She did say, however, that she was not seriously injured.
The School Board’s vice chairman, H. Ed Wise, said he was informed about the incident Friday morning but did not know details of what happened or what sparked the dispute.
“I guess my statement would be that this is a distraction we don’t need,” Wise said.
Two nights before the School Board scuffle, another Buckingham County elected official found himself facing a criminal charge. Supervisor Joe N. Chambers, an elected board member since 1991, was pulled over by authorities on Route 20 and arrested on a DUI charge, according to court records. Chambers did not return a call for comment.
Chambers was the subject of a February investigation by The Daily Progress that found he owed Buckingham County more than four years’ worth of unpaid real estate and personal property taxes. In total, Chambers owed the county $4,500 in back taxes, according to documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.
Shortly after the story appeared, Chambers paid the county $75 and set up a payment plan.
Of 46 supervisors and city councilors in Central Virginia, only one other owed any unpaid real estate or property taxes at the time. That official, Danny Allen, is also a member of Buckingham’s Board of Supervisors.
Add it all up, said Tom England, owner of Lucky Convenience Stores in Dillwyn, and Buckingham comes out looking poorly.
“We as a county should be ashamed at what’s going on,” England said. “This is a screwed-up county.”
Of a dozen Buckingham County residents interviewed Tuesday morning, few were willing to speak on the record.
“You gotta keep your mouth shut around here. Everybody’s kin to everybody,” said one farmer who declined to give his name. “But I tell you, man, there’s some serious dirt in this county.”
Not everyone was ticked off.
“It’s a shame when people in leadership positions get in trouble, but that’s just life,” resident Peggy Davis said. “Getting a DUI? That can happen to anybody. That happened to me once, but I was 18. I’m 70 now.”
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Reader Reactions
Keep up the good work, somebody needs to let the hillbillies in Buckingham see what kind of people they elect to run the county. “Rev.,“ HAHA. The Daily Progress should do an article on the entire administration of Buckingham to see what else the “leaders” try to cover up.
It is really interesting how this reporter gets input from a person who has also had judgement against Joe Chambers. This does seem like a very biased report. Who is your little birdy in Buckingham? Sounds like the reporter has an informant in Buckingham who has a vendetta against Joe Chambers.
Mr. Chambers has also suffered some personal losses with the loss of a child (although I think two of his children are deceased)....have you reported on this? I think that we are all really tired of hearing about Joe Chambers’ debt. I am sure that by now he and his family as well as anyone who subscribes to the Progress are quite aware of who and what he owes. You wish to make public who and what debt you owe?
As far as the DUI issue, is the Progress going to begin posting all DUI offenses in your paper or just this incident? I am sure that there are a lot of folks all over the place, not just in Buckingham, that have had a few too many and have just not been caught.
There are good people in the county of Buckingham, in fact a lot of them. Your paper is making a mokery of Buckingham and I think the residents of the county should boycott your paper. Find something else or some other poor soul to report on, PLEASE.
THANK YOU CYNTHIA! You never see any “real” news in this paper anyway, they have a horrible Nation and World Section thats about a half of a page long. I ask that the Daily Progress make some changes in their reporting of local government.
I’m about sick of all the articles written about Rev. Joe Chambers. I am a life time resident of Buckingham County for 44 years, your paper seems like you have some kind of personal vendetta against him. You don’t write this much about anything or anyone who really do serious crimes or offenses. I have bought The Daily Progress paper all my life and even worked for them, but as of now I would not give you one cent for your bias paper. You really need to report real issues and not pick on one select person who owes taxes and have debt. I wonder how much debt your paper owes and taxes to the government. The community of Buckingham County and Church community is really sick of your articles that are out rightly trying to destroy a person. You never ask anyone in the community all the good Rev. Chambers has done for people; if they don’t want him they would not continue to vote for him. He has done a lot of good by people, good citizen people that would voice he has not done no more wrong then anyone else. In the case of owing taxes you don’t have enough paper to report all the people that owe back taxes. As for the DUI that has to be proven in the court of law so just report DUI’s in your usual public records. I have talk to a lot of people and we are planning to boycott against your paper for just out rightly trying to destroy a person. Readers would like to read about issues that has good news or awareness of things that has some value to it; not a minister or a board of supervisor who owes bills or taxes like every American citizen, which the whole country is in debt to the point of recession. Your paper don’t report that much on people who really have big positions like your President of the USA or the candidates running for President. You would think Buckingham County is the Capital of USA. I am at the point of contacting other newspaper to see if your reporting tactics are slandering or is proper to reporting news to destroy a person for no reason.
SICK OF YOUR PAPER, The Daily Progress
Cynthia Gough
Citizen of Buckingham County
As a person who owns property in Bucingham County I am appalled that Mr.Chambers and Mr. Gowin are still holding their positions. As for Mr. Chambers, if I was as behind on my real estate taxes as he is, my property would have been put up for auction years ago, it just goes to show you that the “good ole boy” system is still alive and well. The residents of Buckingham County need people on the board that have there best interest at heart. It seems that the only interest some board members have is how there position can better benefit themselves. In the long run its the resident of Buckingham County that pay the price.
DONT LOOK AT ME…..WE NEVER HEARD OF THIS WITH THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION-OR WAS IT JUST THE GOOD OLE BOY NETWORK THAT KEPT IT HIDDEN- IF DANNY WILLIAMS WAS STILL IN -THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN TAKEN CARE OF LONG AGO
I say, If the Show Fits…..
I personally would like that thank the Daily Progress for keeping the citizens of Buckingham aware of the “swept under the carpet” items that we would otherwise not be aware if not for their reporting. Our local papers seem to be part of that “Good Ole’ Boy” system and choose not to report the “bad Buckingham” items we have the right to know about when it comes to the people we choose to run our county.
These people need to be held accountable. If the rest of our local government will not hold them accountable, then the public needs to the next time we vote.
Cudos to the Daily Progress.
I really wish that this newspaper would leave Buckingham County alone. I could understand if you all reported on good things (which there are many going on in the County), but all I see is bad Buckingham. I bet if you dig into Charlottesville or Albermarle Officials a little you would find enough to keep you busy for a while. So, please go find someone else to pick on or something else to do. How about trying to improve the Nation Section of the newspaper???
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