NC House candidate wants retraction on gambling stories, but media stands (new player ups ante)

House District 51 (Lee, Moore counties) has been looking like a foregone conclusion, but the players in this election sure are trying to make things interesting.

Initially, folks at The Assembly published a report indicating that candidate Charles Taylor (R) – a sitting Sanford City Council member – neglected to disclose his ownership of a Sanford building reportedly housing a video gambling parlor.

A local Sanford-based media entity also reported on the case and included information about an ethics complaint filed against Taylor for allegedly failing to disclose ownership of the gambling parlor building as well as some other properties.

Taylor followed up with a stern letter (read it here) from his attorney providing his side of the story – claiming he did nothing wrong and was cleared by the state on the ethics complaint- and demanding a retraction on the news reports.

As of now, The Assembly appears to not be acknowledging anywhere on its site the statement from the attorney and the request for a retraction.  The Sanford media entity reported on the lawyer’s statement but included language from The Assembly’s executive editor standing by their reporting on Taylor.

Now, a website apparently tied to the national-level gaming industry has published a report – based on The Assembly’s previous reporting – that suggests Taylor owns “a Sanford commercial property hosting 22 illegal video slot machines.”