Asheville city police face potential budget cuts a month after body camera footage of an officer beating a black pedestrian was leaked to the Asheville Citizen-Times. The beating prompted outrage and led to the arrest of the former officer who beat the pedestrian and the firing of City Manager Gary Jackson. Blue Ridge Public Radio News Director Matt Bush speaks with host Frank Stasio about the latest updates from the story.
Bush also discusses negotiations over the sale of the not-for-profit Mission Health hospital system to Hospital Corporation of America Inc., a for-profit healthcare titan. In other Western North Carolina news, former Buncombe County Manager Wanda Greene and her son were indicted by a federal grand jury. Greene faces decades in prison for embezzlement and wire fraud charges, and federal prosecutors say she made nearly $200,000 in unauthorized purchases on company cards. Asheville Citizen-Times reporter Jennifer Bowman speaks with host Frank Stasio about the indictment.