Monday, June 11, 2012

Jacksonville, N.C.

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Big Rock competitors cast their lines Page 16

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New Midway Park home goes green Page 28

Game on?

Don Bryan/The Daily News

Manager Pat McDonough talks about the sweepstakes machines inside Paddys Pub in Emerald Isle. Electronic gaming operations are again under discussion as Emerald Isle considers regulations that would define what the town considers electronic gaming operations and set rules for their location and operation within town limits.

Big Rock disqualication appealed to N.C. Supreme Court

By JANNETTE PIPPIN
Daily News Staff

kicks off, Parks and his 2010 teammates aboard the Carnivore have yet to see prize MOREHEAD CITY money for their first-place Fishing begins today in the finish that year. Just days beBig Rock Blue Marlin Tour- fore the start of this years nament and all eyes will be tournament, they learned on this years leader board. that wait could continue for Thats what Im thinking another year or so. about, getting a big blue to A legal dispute surroundthe weigh station, said Big ing the 2010 disqualification Rock participant John Parks of a record catch is being of Jacksonville, who will appealed to the N.C. Sucaptain the Morehead Citypreme Court. based boat Dazzler. The dissenting opinion He said the competitor in (by one of the judges) gives him keeps him thinking ahead us the automatic right to apto the next tournament and peal to the Supreme Court not focusing on the past. and weve done that, said But as the 2012 tournament Andy W. Gay, attorney for

the owners of the Hatterasbased boat Citation, the boat that was disqualified. The Citation weighed in an 883-pound marlin on the opening day of the 2010 Big Rock and was in position to win more than $900,000 and go into tournament record books for the largest catch when it was disqualified. The tournaments decision to disqualify Citations catch centered around an alleged rule violation involving fishing license requirements for one of the mates working on the boat when the marlin was caught. The Citation owners filed

a lawsuit claiming breach of contract and have sought to have the tournaments decision overturned. A March 2011 order in Carteret County Superior Court dismissing the lawsuit and upholding the tournaments decision was appealed to the N.C. Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals opinion was filed June 5. A three-judge panel received the appeal and the majority opinion favored the decisions made for the Big Rock. However, Gay said, there is a dissenting opinion, in part, by Judge Robert C. Hunter.

As part of his dissent, Hunter said his opinion is that the trial court erred in granting summary judgment in favor of the defendants. Gay said summary judgment allows for judgment in a case without a trial and when there is no dispute in the material facts of the case. In this case there are questions, he said. There are questions here that havent been answered and a jury should be allowed to make that decision, Gay said. In his written dissent,

See Appeal Page 2

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