THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, September 19, 1995 TAG: 9509190051
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PAUL SOUTH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: MANTEO LENGTH: Medium: 80 lines
After almost two years of legal wrangling, Dellerva Collins has won a seat on the governing board of this Roanoke Island community.
Superior Court Judge William C. Griffin Jr. ordered Monday that Rocky Midgette step down immediately from a seat he has held for the past two years on the Manteo Board of Commissioners.
Both Collins and Midgette agreed to the order before Griffin ended the 22-month legal tussle with the stroke of a pen.
Collins will be officially sworn in at the Oct. 4 meeting of the board. She has two years remaining in her term.
``This definitely restores my faith in the judicial system,'' Collins said. ``It makes you feel good when you see something like this.''
``I'm just happy for Dell,'' said her attorney, Cressie H. Thigpen Jr. of Raleigh. ``She's battled through this whole process.''
Midgette said he decided to give up the fight for the seat after Griffin refused his request for a continuance to seek a new lawyer. Raleigh attorney Michael Crowell had represented Midgette throughout the election dispute, but removed himself from the case over a disagreement with Midgette on legal tactics.
``We disagreed over legal strategy,'' said Midgette. ``He understands more about the law than I do.''
Midgette said the court's refusal to allow another delay in order for him to obtain new counsel was the major reason for his decision to agree to the order. Local attorney Greg Wills stepped in and spoke for Midgette at the Monday hearing.
``I couldn't pretend to represent myself against a seasoned attorney like Mr. Thigpen,'' Midgette said. ``We've had to jump through all sorts of legal hoops in this case.''
Midgette said he will not mount another write-in effort to return to the council.
``What I had hoped to do through this case was achieve some kind of uniformity in the write-in process,'' said Midgette. ``We had also hoped to get a new election.''
Last December, the North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled that the North Carolina Board of Elections erred when it awarded 36 blank write-in ballots to Midgette in a four-candidate race for three seats on the Manteo Board of Commissioners. The appeals court ordered the state board not to count the 36 votes, which would make Collins the winner.
Forty-one write-in votes that did not fully identify Midgette were cast in the 1993 election. Five were listed under ``Rocky'' or ``Midgette.'' Since Midgette was the only candidate to mount a write-in effort, the state Board of Elections ruled that all write-in ballots were his.
However, a three-judge panel agreed with the Dare County Board of Elections, which said the 36 blank votes should not be counted.
That gave the seat to Collins, 185 votes to 167 for Midgette.
Collins, whose supporters have sold chicken and fish dinners to help defray the cost of the court challenge, said she has no regrets about going through the lengthy process.
``I would do it all over again,'' she said.
Concerning Midgette's decision to agree to the order, Collins said, ``I guess he saw that he couldn't go any farther.''
Collins, 59, would not say the exact cost of her legal battle.
``It cost plenty, but it was worth it,'' she said. ``I'm still going to have to sell chicken dinners.''
She added, ``It will feel great the first time I sit in that seat. I don't know what my first act will be, it depends on the agenda. But I'm going to do the best I can to serve all the people of Manteo.''
Collins, who filed qualifying papers for the Nov. 7 municipal election, said she will withdraw from the race since she's now on the board.
The next meeting of the Manteo Board of Commissioners is Oct. 4. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
Court battle won
DREW C. WILSON
Staff
Dellerva Collins says she is not sure what her first act will be
when she joins the Manteo Board of Commissioners.
by CNB