TV news error lends confusion

Who is Zoe Walker and when did he become a deputy? Well, as far as Alleghany County is concerned, he never was.

So when a story aired on WXII Channel 12 on Monday evening stating that an Alleghany County deputy had been charged with felony assault, many local residents were surprised and concerned. Many also picked up their telephones and called the sheriff's office concerning the report.

Sheriff's department spokesperson Nyla Duncan said she received numerous calls Monday night shortly after 5 p.m. when the errant story apparently first aired.

"We called and tried to get it straightened out as soon as we heard about it," said Duncan. "They announced it correctly on the 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. news."

As for the true story, Walker was indeed charged for shooting into an occupied vehicle and felony assault and he was a deputy. However, the news had nothing to do with this county. "It's really an unfortunate error," Duncan said. "We just hope everyone realizes that it wasn't one of our deputies here." Even though the department called to clear up the error, the website for the channel still listed a story stating that an Alleghany deputy was charged as of Tuesday morning. Duncan said the website was not corrected until around noon Tuesday when she called the station again to complain.

According to The Alamance News in Graham, the real incident occurred in Burlington on Aug. 27 and the former Alamance deputy was to appear in court Tuesday.

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