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The Charlotte Observer •

Complaints dogged Charlotte log cabin company for a decade, new NC records show

Records from the North Carolina Attorney General’s Office provided new details about a Charlotte log cabin company that has been accused of fraud by former customers.

The Charlotte Observer previously identified at least 50 customers in 22 states who each lost tens of thousands of dollars when American Log Homes and Cabins abruptly shuttered in January — just weeks after accepting large payments from customers. A law firm that once represented the company said total customer losses amounted to...
The Charlotte Observer •

Asbestos cancer victims in limbo as legal battle stalls in Charlotte court

As a young man in the 1960s, Tommy Lineberger spent summers on construction sites, doing everything from driving a bulldozer to spackling and mudding walls in the North Carolina sun.

Decades later, those early experiences would come back to haunt the Newton resident. Lineberger was diagnosed with mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer caused by asbestos exposure, in 2016. He died less than two years later.

Lineberger is one of thousands whose claims against the companies that produced asbe...
The Charlotte Observer •

After prison, these Charlotte women are getting a second chance. Few will join them.

Karen Griffin says she’s one of the lucky ones.

At 43, Karen, who goes by “K.C.,” is starting over. After three years in North Carolina state prisons — first Anson, then Western Correctional — that ended this spring, Griffin had nowhere to go.

She found a spot at A New Way of Life, a six-bed home for formerly incarcerated women that just opened in Charlotte. Part of an international network of houses for formerly incarcerated women founded by Susan Burton in 1998, it offers residents services...
The Charlotte Observer •

Sports cars, ‘fraud,’ adultery: Bitter court feud over Rep. Tricia Cotham’s dad

One of Charlotte’s most well-known political families is engaged in an ongoing legal battle in Gaston County involving millions of dollars in assets.

Hundreds of pages of filings in a civil lawsuit and countersuit detail allegations of fraud and elder abuse, years of adultery, and a battle for property, luxury sports cars and cash.

At the center of the litigation is the Cotham family — N.C. State Rep. Tricia Cotham, who made national headlines when she switched from Democrat to Republican in 2...
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 •

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...
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