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A judge’s bizarre ruling on Blade reporters’ case asserts that journalists can be arrested for inconveniencing cops, and that the First Amendment even requires it. This sets a threatening precedent for reporters everywhere On June 16 Asheville Blade reporters Veronica Coit and Matilda Bliss were…

In a nearly-unprecedented move, police and prosecutors insist on taking two Blade reporters to trial for doing their jobs Above: Asheville city hall by night. File photo by Max Cooper UPDATE: On June 16, after a judge told the jury they couldn’t consider the First…

Despite some blatant APD spin, body cam footage confirms horrific police brutality against Devon Whitmire Above: A screenshot from on of the body cam videos of Devon Whitmire’s May 13 arrest, showing officers pressing his throat into the pavement Blade editor David Forbes contributed to…

The prosecution tries to portray protest as a crime, but their tactics fall flat as defendants head to separate trials Above: A banner displayed at the Aston Park Build protest and mutual aid project, December 2021. Photo by Veronica Coit Over a year after 16…

Over 12 hours of body cam footage from the Aston Park Christmas night crackdown shows police bigotry, casual cruelty and an open attack on the rights of journalists and protesters Above: Blade journalist Matilda Bliss is hauled into the detention wagon on Dec. 25, 2021.…

Asheville’s housing authority tosses out a free food fridge run by a local community farm group. It’s a shocking, revealing incident Above: The free fridge at the Edington Center, stocked with fresh produce, before its removal. Photo courtesy of Southside Community Farms Blade editor David…

Sweetheart deals for the wealthy pushed Asheville’s aging water system to the brink. Incompetence and arrogance shoved it over. This is the story of our city’s water crisis Above: A tap in Candler, one of the areas hardest hit by the water crisis, runs dry.…

Graphic by Matilda Bliss Welcome back, readers and listeners. Our latest Asheville Bladecast episode, recorded just before Xmas, is a wide-ranging look at a bevy of recent stories with a very common theme: corruption. That’s right, we’ve got corrupt politicians, preachers, gentry gays, non-profit hatchetmen,…

The city’s non-discrimination ordinance was supposed to help protect against bigotry, and its architects are touting it in their runs for office. But over a year later it has helped no one. It wasn’t meant to. Above: A pride flag flies from city hall in…

Welcome to another episode of the Bladecast, just in time for Halloween! Marvel at the terror of … campaign season! The slimy corruption of … airbnb! The banal evil of … city council and more in this look at our town’s everyday horrors Graphic by…