DECKS
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Post by DECKS on Jul 24, 2008 14:26:46 GMT -5
From: Sidney Lowe <srlowe2@gw.fis.ncsu.edu> Subject: My family and I would like to personally apologize to anyone who was offended by previous statements that were attributed to us regarding North Carolina A&T. Moving away to college presents any students, on any campus, with new and unique challenges. The comments were intended to reflect our wish that my son could have stayed closer to home for school. We have the utmost respect for North Carolina A&T as an educational institution and meant no harm by the statements. Apology accepted. Case closed, let's move on! Dat boy a'int ever gone make it to the county farm. Sheriff has it in for him. Shouldn't have been sentenced there to begin with.
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Post by Aggie One on Jul 24, 2008 20:58:19 GMT -5
Apology accepted.
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Post by Bornthrilla on Jul 25, 2008 14:39:48 GMT -5
Sidney Lowe II: 'Oops,' goes the silver spoon alibi By Lorraine Ahearn Staff Writer Friday, July 25
Somebody, cut him a break. And this time, with a metal utensil.
Granted, Sidney Lowe II did get a private room at the county hotel, befitting the son of an N.C. State basketball coach. Still, he was “scared out of his mind,” his lawyers said.
So, it’s understandable why Lowe, 23, used a plastic spoon and metal scraps to fashion the knife that Greensboro jailers found in his cell, defense attorneys told News & Record court reporter Jennifer Fernandez this week.
This shocking development came one week after a judge sentenced Lowe to 15 months on the minimum-security county prison farm for a string of felonies including a drug-related shooting at UNCG, crimes Lowe blamed on the influence of the N.C. A&T campus, where he was enrolled.
Now, putting aside, for a moment, the question of how well the plastic spoon would work as a “shank” with which to “shiv” another inmate, as it’s known in jailhouse parlance, it’s fair to ask what comes next for this star-crossed victim of circumstance.
First, the defense conceded in testimony at Lowe’s sentencing, the parents made the misguided decision to send their sheltered son to a state university instead of a private school, where he might have felt more at home. (And where, presumably, there would be silver spoons.)
Instead, the Wolfpack coach’s son found himself at A&T, and everyone knows what a scary place that is. The marching band. Homecoming. The caf. Why, it’s enough to make a person ... well, you know. Take Ecstasy, deal marijuana, plan a home invasion and drive to a dorm at UNCG with an assault rifle.
The important thing was that Lowe, a first-time offender, took responsibility. Sort of like when George Washington chopped down the cherry tree.
Superior Court Judge Henry Frye Jr. therefore bowed to the Lowe family’s plea for leniency. Instead of the 23 years he could have received on the multiple felony counts, he got 11 years suspended and was ordered to serve an active term of 15 months at the prison farm in Gibsonville.
Unfortunately, there was a little stopover at the county detention center, where Sheriff BJ Barnes had Lowe housed in an individual cell because of his “notoriety,” as Barnes put it. And just as Lowe was frightened by the rough-and-tumble atmosphere of a large state university campus, he was scared. Scared enough to arm himself, though he didn’t have occasion to use it.
And once again, he told the truth.
“He did not try to hide (the knife) from the jailers,” his attorneys said in a written statement. “We are sure he will soon earn Sheriff Barnes’ confidence and will be sent to the county farm to finish serving his sentence.”
Barnes, unfairly it seems, was initially reluctant to house Lowe at the farm, seeing as minimum-security inmates there are typically serving sentences for such nonviolent offenses as drunken driving or failure to pay child support.
But the more important question is whether Lowe will feel at home at the farm, an 800-acre compound where inmates move about freely and sleep in dorms, as on a college campus.
What if, as Lowe said of the A&T campus, that’s more freedom than he’s ready for? What if he doesn’t fit in or make friends?
And there’s the whole security question. Lowe might not feel comfortable among the prison farm inmates. They probably eat off Styrofoam plates and have to do chores.
There are just so many unknowns, it doesn’t seem like a wise placement on the part of the court.
And if something goes awry, if Lowe can’t adjust to his surroundings and acts out as a result, we’ll only have society to blame.
Contact Lorraine Ahearn at 373-7334 or lorraine.ahearn@news-record.com
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DECKS
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Post by DECKS on Jul 25, 2008 17:16:46 GMT -5
Although she's aiming sarcasm at Lowe, she needs to leave A&T out of this crap!! N&R is full of S*#!
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Post by Aggie One on Jul 26, 2008 10:31:00 GMT -5
Actually it was classic journalistic sarcasm she was using in her article and that A&T played absolutely no role in Sidney "The Shank" just being plain ordinary ole thug.
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Post by Tee-Sharp on Jul 28, 2008 18:11:26 GMT -5
I wonder if Sydney's relatives believe the environment at NC State led this boy to the thug life. www.wral.com/news/local/story/3288095/Student, two others charged in shooting on N.C. State campus Posted: Today at 6:04 a.m. Updated: 10 minutes ago Raleigh, N.C. — Three people have been charged with attempted murder in an overnight shooting on North Carolina State University's campus. Ryan Alexander Barnes, 20, Leroy Barnes Jr., 19, and Terrell Maurice Grimes, 16, also face two charges of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury. University police said that Ryan Barnes in a sophomore at N.C. State, and other two suspects, as well as the two victims, are not affiliated with the university. Police said the shooting was not random and deliberately targeted the victims, a man and woman who were sitting underneath a gazebo on Gorman Street, near the student apartments of Wolf Village. Just after midnight, a gunman approached and fired at them, police said. The man was hit in the stomach, and the woman in the foot. Both were taken to WakeMed, where their conditions were unknown Monday. Police initially thought the shooting was a random attack, but later Monday altered their conclusion and said they believe the man was the target of the shooting. Officers declined to identify the victims, saying they feared retaliation. The suspects also tried to break into a building on campus Friday night, police said. They were ordered to stay off campus after that incident and were charged with trespassing after police said they violated that order. Barnwell said that campus police would increase patrols in the area. During the course of the investigation, police also arrested another N.C. State sophomore, Whitney Shanice Blakeney, 19. Blakeney faces charges of maintaining a dwelling for the manufacture, sale and distribution of a marijuana.
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Post by Aggie One on Jul 28, 2008 18:15:56 GMT -5
He's now in the environment he needs to be in and not on anyone's college campus.
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Post by aggiejazz on Aug 2, 2008 7:00:49 GMT -5
Let me get this straight, Sidney Lowe supposedly answered a email with an apology and someone posted it on this site. Is that it? Is that enough? Lowe never made a public apology? I know Dooms feel he shouldn't have to make one. Obama is making public apologies all the time even when you wonder why is he apologizing.
Obama's apologies does seem to only go to the white community at large. Some of us, black fathers, are still waiting on that apology for his Father's Day gaffe (in my opinion it was a day to celebrate the fathers who hold it down). Oh well. Does A&T has to be considered a white institution and its alumni predominately white before we can get a public apology.
Oh dang, there I go with race. It does seem like if you are black and you are looking for an apology from a black public figure you will be waiting forever.
I don't want to see a public protest against "Moonhead" Lowe but tell me how can any of you accept an apology that wasn't made to you in private or in public?
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Post by aahhbigboy on Aug 2, 2008 21:06:59 GMT -5
Let me get this straight, Sidney Lowe supposedly answered a email with an apology and someone posted it on this site. Is that it? Is that enough? Lowe never made a public apology? I know Dooms feel he shouldn't have to make one. Obama is making public apologies all the time even when you wonder why is he apologizing. Obama's apologies does seem to only go to the white community at large. Some of us, black fathers, are still waiting on that apology for his Father's Day gaffe (in my opinion it was a day to celebrate the fathers who hold it down). Oh well. Does A&T has to be considered a white institution and its alumni predominately white before we can get a public apology. Oh dang, there I go with race. It does seem like if you are black and you are looking for an apology from a black public figure you will be waiting forever. I don't want to see a public protest against "Moonhead" Lowe but tell me how can any of you accept an apology that wasn't made to you in private or in public?You really need to find a way to occupy your time Jazz. He owes no one an apology. Stop feeling and acting like a victim and move forward. That's good advice for anyone that feels oppressed or wronged in any way. Lord Have Mercy.
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Aggie77
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Post by Aggie77 on Aug 5, 2008 12:05:03 GMT -5
www.triangletribune.com/index.php?cid=118218&src=news&refno=1006&cate#Triangle Tribune Lowe family comments out of bounds Published Wednesday, July 30, 2008 by Bonitta Best Before you read this, a disclaimer must be made: As of today, I am no longer responsible for my actions. See, I've come to the conclusion that being around all those white people while I was a student at Towson State University (now Towson), made me what I am today. I was once a shy, introverted, naïve young woman who had no clue how mean people could be. Then I became one. But it's not my fault, TSU made me this way. What, don't believe me? Hey, if Sidney Lowe II can use that defense, why can't I? True, being mean is not a criminal offense, although I could make a list of folks who would like to see me locked up. Frankly, I wouldn't mind seeing N.C. State men's basketball coach Sidney Lowe and his uncle, Michael Grace, behind bars for a few weeks after the dirt they threw on N.C. A&T State two weeks ago. Lowe Sr. and Grace had the unmitigated gall to insinuate at Lowe II's sentencing hearing in Greensboro that the latter committed a battery of crimes because - gulp - he attended A&T, a historically black university. "He wanted to dumb down and thug up when he went to school," Grace reportedly told FOX8 News. "He wanted to be accepted...to drop his britches around his butt and show his underwear." So it wasn't bad or neglectful parenting, or being a spoiled rich kid, or just making bad choices that made Lowe II commit robbery with a dangerous weapon and kidnapping, possession of a weapon on educational property, possession with intent to sell or deliver marijuana and possession of ecstasy, and a host of other criminal activity I don't have time to write. No, it was hanging around all those black folks in Greensboro that turned him into a thug. According to Fox8 News, coach Lowe said A&T wasn't his first school choice for his son. So what? He wasn't NC State's first choice either. Or second. Or third. Some would say he got the job by default. But wait, I still haven't told you the kicker: In order to get the job at NCSU, Lowe had to complete nine hours of a business administration degree. And where did he go to get it? (Drum roll please) Online via Saint Paul's College, a small, private, historically black college in Lawrenceville, Va. The horror! "That was disappointing, that he would lay the blame at our feet as opposed to pointing to his son and saying he should have made better decisions," said George A. Gray IV, a 1994 A&T alumnus. "He [Lowe II] could have chose to go right or left. Everybody at A&T is not robbing folks or smoking drugs. I was there and we didn't do it. He made some poor decisions." After a barrage of letters and e-mails from alumni, Lowe responded in an e-mail to alum Jason Rouse, with a carbon copy to NCSU President James Oblinger that The Tribune received: "My family and I would like to personally apologize to anyone who was offended by previous statements that were attributed to us regarding N.C. A&T. Moving away to college presents any students, on any campus, with new and unique challenges. The comments were intended to reflect our wish that my son could have stayed closer to home for school. We have the utmost respect for N.C. A&T as an educational institution and meant no harm by the statements." Not good enough if you ask me, and apparently not for some alumni. As Wesley L. Boykin wrote: "This apology should be submitted via the same vehicle that made this a public case in the beginning." Indeed. Lowe and his uncle used one of the worst racial stereotypes imaginable. Not only should he be made to go on TV and apologize, he should have to take out full-page ads listing all the outstanding A&T alumni who have made significant contributions to this country. He'd better make nice. If State loses to Carolina one too many times, he might have to ask one of them for a job.
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DECKS
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Post by DECKS on Aug 15, 2008 8:20:36 GMT -5
www.wral.com/news/local/video/1250297/Not to keep rehashing this issue but I just saw a news report on WRAL that said Lowe II was a former UNCG student who transferred to A&T. If Lowe Sr did not specifically mention the name of A&T is it possible he may not have been speaking about us? I think I'd like to see a copy of transcript.
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Post by Aggie One on Aug 15, 2008 9:13:38 GMT -5
The TV people down here might have gotten it right for once but the print media has been frantically trying to clean up their act in reporting this debacle and help save Lowe's public image at the same time because they got a lot of hate mail from hundreds of very angry A&T alums and other HBCU grads (a lot of NCCU folks in that group) about his comments.
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Post by Bornthrilla on Aug 15, 2008 12:08:46 GMT -5
Has A&T made an offical statement about this yet?
This would be a good time for Mable Scott to inform people that Mr. Criminal first enrolled at UNG before coming to A&T (if that's in fact the case) and that all this craziness happened on the campus of UNCG, not A&T.
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Post by aahhbigboy on Aug 15, 2008 12:56:17 GMT -5
I haven't heard anything out of the Lowe's in a while. Wonder who is keeping this alive? I havent' heard one peep out of UNCG. They seem to be handling this maturely.
And Mable Scott would probably wish to work on something that was actually important.
Gracious.
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Post by Aggie One on Aug 15, 2008 13:00:54 GMT -5
Don't hold your breath on that one. As a PR move, its best to let Lowe and NC State take all the attention and the heat. Our reacting to Lowe would be like qualifying his comments about our school and thereby giving this story new life and giving our enemies comfort in the public eye. Their logic is "well they came out denying everything so where there's smoke there's fire."
Just let him keep explaining and apologizing all he's worth about his statement about A&T. He becomes a parody of himself every time he forced to address the issue and continues to embarrasses not only himself by his employer as well.
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