| Failed lender's ex-head in jail
Former Lt. Gov. Earle E. Morris Jr. has reported to prison to begin serving a nearly four-year sentence for a 2004 securities fraud conviction from his chairmanship of Carolina Investors. Two weeks ago, Morris, 79, lost a final appeal, and Wednesday he was ordered by the S.C. Supreme Court to start serving his sentence. With good behavior, he will be eligible for parole in about 11 months. More than 8,000 S.C. investors lost more than $277 million when Pickens-based Carolina Investors and its Lexington-based parent company HomeGold Financial failed in early 2003. It is considered the state's largest bankruptcy. "Earle Morris never profited from the wrongdoing of others," said a statement released by his lawyers Wednesday. "Evil men took advantage of his trusting nature and faith in the goodness of humanity." From the late 1990s until it failed, subprime mortgage lender HomeGold fueled its rapid expansion by borrowing heavily from subsidiary Carolina Investors.
Waco Fire Department’s bankruptcy plan approved
The Waco Volunteer Fire Department has won approval of its debt repayment plan, more than a year after filing for protection from its creditors.The non-profit organization's creditors unanimously accepted the plan which was confirmed Sept. 19 by federal bankruptcy Judge Joseph Scott."We want the 6,000 people we serve in the Waco area to know that we will be there for them," said WVFD spokesperson Patsy Woolum."WVFD will now be able to pay its creditors and eventually become debt free," said its bankruptcy attorney, Ellen Arvin Kennedy of Lexington."I think this plan will allow us to work on regaining the people's trust," Woolum said.The department gets most of its operating funds from the proceeds of bingo games conducted on Saturdays from 7 to about 10:30 p.m. at a hall on KY 52 near Waco.Attendance at its bingo games fell off after the Madison County Board of Health's ban on smoking in public places took effect in June, Woolum said.
City wants Asarco hearing delayed
The city of El Paso on Tuesday asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to postpone a Feb. 13 hearing that could help determine whether Asarco's copper smelter will be allowed to reopen. As expected, the city on Monday also asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Corpus Christi for permission to file a petition to revoke the air-quality permit for the shuttered plant in West El Paso. The court filing is the latest salvo in the city's fight to block Asarco's efforts to win a renewed air-quality permit from the TCEQ. City leaders claim that the plant has previously caused dangerous levels of air pollution and would be a health risk to residents if it is reopened. Asarco, a Tucson-based copper company, has denied the allegations. "Asarco opposes a continuance and will file a motion (today) outlining the reasons why the city's request (to delay the February hearing) is frivolous and without merit," Thomas L.
Jiffy Lube franchise owner declares Chapt. 11 bankruptcy
Heartland Automotive Services Inc. of Omaha, Neb. -- which operates three Jiffy Lube locations in Vermont -- declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Jan. 7, allowing the company to fend off creditors as it reorganizes.
Heartland operates a Jiffy Lube franchise in Essex Junction, Rutland and South Burlington. Each location employs about 10 people, and no layoffs are expected, said Ralph Tschantz, Heartland's senior vice president of marketing.
All of the company's 438 stores are expected to remain open throughout the bankruptcy, he said Tuesday.
The bankruptcy filing is a result of a disagreement between Heartland and Houston-based Jiffy Lube International Inc. on a variety of issues, including how advertising funds should be spent, Heartland said in a written statement.
Chrysler Supplier Files for Bankruptcy
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Chrysler LLC scrambled to maintain its inventory of plastic parts after a supplier filed for bankruptcy protection. Plastech Engineered Products Inc. apparently failed to negotiate a bailout package with its customers, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. Dearborn-based Plastech agreed to supply Chrysler through the weekend, spokeswoman Michele Tinson said. The bankruptcy filing had not forced Chrysler to shut down any plants, Tinson said. "But it could potentially," she said. "It could impact a number of plants." Calls to Plastech headquarters were not answered late Friday. Chrysler was Plastech's fourth-largest customer, The Journal said. The company has 8,000 employees at more than 30 plants in North America.
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