Home Articles Media Contact

My Recent Work

The Charlotte Observer •

What we know about a Charlotte-area business customers say pocketed tens of thousands

Dozens of customers across the country say they’re out tens of thousands of dollars following the abrupt closure of a Charlotte-area company in January.

The business, American Log Homes and Cabins, sold discounted log home kits to would-be homeowners, charging between $14,500 and more than $25,000 for the home shells.

Customers who paid for kits but haven’t received them have been told they will receive little, if any, of their money back, since the company has few assets.

Here’s what we know...
Charlotte Observer •

Pattern of sexual assault allegations follows Gaston gynecologist

A Gaston gynecologist is facing a second lawsuit by another former patient accusing him of sexual assault.

The suit, filed May 5, accuses former CaroMont Women’s Health physician Sean Michael Lynch of inserting his fingers in the woman’s vagina after a nurse left the room following a pelvic exam during a June 30, 2023 appointment. Lynch left his fingers there for over five minutes without explanation, according to the lawsuit, which identifies the patient as Jane Doe.

Staff at the Ashley Clini...
Charlotte Observer •

Catawba County shelter gets warning for waiting to give care to dog that died

The Catawba County Animal Shelter’s failure to get a dog medical care led to the animal’s death, according to a warning letter issued in late April by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The dog, named Lainey, was impounded Dec. 14 as a stray. She had a fever and a large mass on her left shoulder, intake documents indicated. Outside medical care recommended by the shelter’s veterinarian was not provided despite an escalating fever between Dec. 14 and Dec. 29 and...
Charlotte Observer •

Ballantyne surgeon’s medical license suspended following $17M fraud scheme

A Charlotte-based hair restoration surgeon cannot reapply for his North Carolina medical license until at least 2027, the state medical board announced Thursday.

The board indefinitely suspended the license of Dr. Bruce Howard Marko following his role in a $17 million, multi-state bank fraud scheme that began in 2018. Marko, now 67, conspired with three other men to defraud at least 17 banks, participating directly in at least five fraudulent loans to obtain over $2.8 million, according to the...
Charlotte Observer •

Have a tip about health fraud, abuse or poor patient care? Let us know.

On any given day in North Carolina, tens of thousands of residents are cared for in state-regulated health care facilities.

And all of us, in one way or another, interact with the health care system. As evidenced by The Charlotte Observer’s recent investigation into a Charlotte-area surgeon who has continued practicing despite settling a string of wrongful death and malpractice lawsuits, cracks in the system can allow what patients characterize as bad or dangerous care to continue.

The vulnera...
Charlotte Observer •

Catawba’s humane society fired its director. Some fear her replacement is worse.

The Humane Society of Catawba County has a new director and an old problem: Residents don’t trust the person in charge of protecting the county’s animals.

The shelter’s former director, Jane Bowers, was fired last year after an investigation into whistleblower complaints that she led a toxic and abusive workplace. The humane society’s board of directors recently announced they’d found her replacement: a longtime Colorado humane society director, Doug Rae.

Dozens on social media and several in...
Charlotte Observer •

We investigated a Charlotte-area surgeon. Here’s what we learned.

Six former patients or their families have accused Charlotte-area surgeon Dr. Timothy Ryan Heider of wrongful death or malpractice in lawsuits over the past 15 years, with four settled out of court with cash payments.. That’s an unusually high number for surgeons across any specialty, data shows.

Two of the doctor’s patients died within days of weight-loss operations that typically carry a death rate of less than 0.1%, according to experts Others said they faced serious complications, includin...
Charlotte Observer •

Here’s how to vet North Carolina doctors and hospitals

When on the hunt for a new doctor or considering a major surgery, it’s quick and easy to turn to online reviews to see other patients’ experiences. While those can be valuable, there’s a lot they might not reveal about a physician. That includes any disciplinary history, medical malpractice payouts or sanctions by the state medical board.

Some of that information isn’t available to the public — firings and other disciplinary actions by employers, for instance, are confidential. But there are re...
The Charlotte Observer •

Records show CATS bans don’t keep dangerous riders away from buses and trains

When Oscar Solorzano stabbed another passenger aboard the Charlotte Area Transit System’s LYNX Blue Line train in December, he wasn’t supposed to be on the train at all. He’d been banned from using CATS transportation a few months earlier.

But violent riders flouting bans is a common occurrence on CATS, according to the transit system’s own records from the last two years.
Charlotte Observer •

Over 1,100 Charlotte airport flights canceled or delayed during latest winter storm

Travelers hoping to fly in or out of Charlotte Saturday won’t have much luck, as most air traffic has been halted amid Winter Storm Gianna, with up to 11 inches expected to fall in the city by Sunday.

Some 1,086 flights have been cancelled and another 70 delayed at Charlotte Douglas International Airport at about 10 p.m., according to flight tracking site Flight Aware.com. That’s a total of 1,156 flight disruptions so far.

Much of the snowfall throughout the region will come on Saturday, accor...
Charlotte Observer •

Charlotte woman again sues Novant, questions baby’s death

A Charlotte woman suspicious of what happened to her premature baby is reviving legal action against Novant Health, she said in a press conference Thursday.

In a lawsuit re-filed this week, she accuses the health system of negligence and emotional distress following a February 2022 ordeal that she said left her devastated and confused. Her story was first reported by the Charlotte Observer in 2024.

After giving birth to a premature daughter, Legacy, at Novant, LaChunda Hunter was told her baby...
Charlotte Observer •

In one decade, 170 babies, kids and teens died in NC after fentanyl encounters

One hundred and seventy babies, kids and teens in North Carolina died after fentanyl exposure between 2015 and 2024, new state data shows.

Infants, children younger than 5 and teenagers aged 13 to 17 were the most likely to die after fentanyl exposure here during the past decade, according to updated data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

The data, focused on fentanyl-positive deaths between 2015 and 2024, was presented by the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to a commit...
The Dallas Morning News •

Texas car accident victims could have a harder time recovering damages under legislation

It was just after 9 a.m. and Devyn Dally was wondering why she hadn’t received the usual “goodmorning” text from her husband, Clint, when she heard a knock at the door.

Two sheriff’s deputies told her Clint, who worked in the oil field, had been on his way to a job site
outside Midland when he was hit head-on by a frac engineer who fell asleep at the wheel. Clint died in his car, where he was trapped, 30 minutes later.
The Dallas Morning News •

Closure of Texas shop kept open by 19th-century pact leaves rail workers ‘in limbo’

Union Pacific Railroad has notified employees in the East Texas town of Palestine that their jobs —
kept in place by an 1872 contract with the county — will be eliminated following a decision Friday
by the Texas Supreme Court.
In the latest development in a long legal battle between the railroad and local officials, the court on
Friday denied the county’s request to reconsider hearing the case.
The Dallas Morning News •

NTTA files $8.6 million in suits targeting businesses over unpaid tolls

A monthslong Dallas Morning News investigation has uncovered a little-known program
created by the North Texas Tollway Authority that
allows the region’s only public toll operator to sue small business owners for tens to hundreds of
thousands of dollars for unpaid tolls that sometimes are erroneous or unproven in state court, and
then seek tens of thousands more in attorney fees.
Load More