Man Who Died in Uptown Jail Was Fed Wrong Meds, Autopsy Shows

Our Weekly News Roundup provides a quick glance at five stories that occurred throughout the week that we didn’t have a chance to cover more deeply, aggregated from outside reporting, press releases and social media. 

Man Who Died in Uptown Jail Was Fed Wrong Meds, Autopsy Shows

Reporting from WSOC this week found that a man who died while incarcerated at the Mecklenburg County Detention Center – Central (MCDCC) in Uptown in August is believed to have overdosed on medication that jail staff mistakenly provided to him.

An autopsy acquired by WSOC’s Hunter Sáenz stated that 38-year-old Miguel Gonzalez-Rasalas, who was found dead at the jail on Aug. 6, “was unintentionally administered a recently discharged inmate’s methadone dose,” a medication used to treat the symptoms of opioid withdrawal.

Staff gave Gonzalez-Rasalas the methadone dose in place of his regularly scheduled medication for bipolar disorder and schizoaffective disorder. The autopsy listed his cause of death as “methadone toxicity.”

Gonzalez-Rasalas had been incarcerated at MCDCC since April 2023, when he was arrested and charged for the murder of Laura Miller, killed in her home at the South Gate Apartments complex. Gonzalez-Rasalas lived in the apartment next to Miller and reportedly regularly argued with her.

According to reporting from Sáenz and fellow WSOC reporter Joe Bruno at the time, Miller’s body was found burned, mutilated and left with crosses surrounding it and salt spread throughout the scene. Gonzalez-Rasalas was charged with murder, desecrating a body and auto theft, though he was to be considered innocent until proven guilty.

Gonzalez-Rasalas was not the only man to die while incarcerated at MCDCC in August. On Aug. 31, the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office announced that an unnamed 62-year-old man whom Queen City Nerve later identified as Terry Antonio Howard had been found dead in the jail during routine breakfast-time checks. No cause of death has yet been named for Howard.

McFadden to Run for Reelection Despite Controversies

Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry L. McFadden announced Wednesday that he plans to run for reelection in 2026.

“True leadership is tested not in moments of comfort, but in seasons of challenge — when betrayal cuts deep, loyalty is questioned, and dishonesty threatens the foundation of trust,” McFadden wrote in a release. “Real leaders stand firm in integrity, guided by purpose rather than popularity. They refuse to compromise their values, mission, or vision for convenience.”

McFadden cited his work to keep staff and people incarcerated at the Mecklenburg County Detention Center – Central (MCDCC) safe during the pandemic as well as how he engaged with the outside community during unrest following the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

At the time of a state-run inspection carried out in December 2021, a fourth of the incarcerated population was reported as being infected with COVID-19. McFadden’s deputies also arrested a number of community organizers involved with a jail support drive outside MCDCC on multiple occasions in September 2020.

The announcement comes among controversy involving McFadden’s staff. Two chief deputies have resigned from MCSO in less than a year, citing McFadden as the reason for their resignation. In Chief Deputy Christopher Allen’s Aug. 18 resignation letter, addressed to McFadden, Allen claims the sheriff created a “hostile work environment” and orchestrated “constant backstabbing, lies, disrespect, and false narratives.”

Allen’s predecessor Chief Deputy Kevin Canty also accused McFadden of creating a toxic and abusive work environment. In 2022, Queen City Nerve reported on similar claims from former MCSO employees who had either left or been fired from the department.

Republican Lawmakers Continue to Call for National Guard

A day after Charlotte voters roundly rejected local Republican candidates who had supported recent requests that the National Guard be sent to Charlotte to quell crime, a slate of three Republican congressmen doubled down on the call for federal help first made by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge #9 (CM FOP) in October.

Representatives Mark Harris (NC-08), Pat Harrigan (NC-10), and Chuck Edwards (NC-11) demanded that Gov. Josh Stein send in the National Guard to Charlotte. A small fraction of Harris’ 8th congressional district is located inside Charlotte while the other two lawmakers who co-signed the letter do not represent any part of the city.

“Governor Stein is deaf to the desperate pleas of Charlotte’s police and residents,” said Harris in the letter. “He refuses reinforcements to crush the violent crime surge—exposing him and his party as pro-crime Democrats who coddle criminals while ignoring victims. That’s why my colleagues and I are fighting for millions of North Carolinians, demanding we reclaim the Queen City. Governor Stein: Stop stalling—send in the Guard now.”

Data has shown that there is no surge in violent crime in Charlotte; the numbers actually show a downward trend, though the Uptown area has seen a rise in homicides in 2025.

Two candidates who had spoken in support of the CM FOP’s October request were defeated handily at the polls on Tuesday. Republican Terrie Donovan lost her race against Mayor Vi Lyles, to whom the original request was made, by nearly 45 percentage points, while Republican District 6 candidate Krista Bokhari was beaten by 13% percentage points. Kimberly Owens’ win against Bokhari puts the district under Democratic representation for the first time since its creation.

Charlotte Magazine Set to Close

The Charlotte Ledger broke the news on Thursday that an institution of the Queen City’s media landscape, Charlotte magazine, will put out its final issue in a few weeks.

The Ledger reported that, having covered news, food, culture and lifestyle in Charlotte for more than 60 years, the magazine’s owner, Morris Communications, will make the coming December issue its last. Morris also publishes similar magazines in Athens, Augusta and Savannah in Georgia, plus Orlando Magazine in Florida and some other more niche publications.

According to its website, Charlotte magazine has a circulation of 28,000 with more than 200,000 online readers.

Counter- Awarded Charlotte’s First Michelin Star

This week saw the announcement of the latest round of Michelin Star winners, with Counter-, Lang Van and renowned Supperland mixologist Colleen Hughes all gaining recognition. Run by chef Sam Hart, Counter- received the city’s first Michelin Star as well as a Green Star, which recognizes establishments for their sustainability efforts.

“To say that Counter is an outlier in the Charlotte dining scene risks understatement: this ambitious, mercurial project from Chef Sam Hart is sui generis,” reads the Michelin entry. “The boldly immersive experience features shifting concepts fueled by Chef Hart’s multifarious passions and creativity, drawing on themes of nostalgia, music, personal history and more on a multicourse tasting menu.”

Lang Van was recognized with a Bib Gourmand designation, which highlights eateries that offer quality food for a good value. The Vietnamese establishment was recently named Best Old Restaurant in Queen City Nerve’s Best in the Nest Food & Drink Critics’ Picks.

Colleen Hughes, who has worked with Charlotte’s Tonidandel-Brown Restaurant Group for 15 years and was nominated earlier this year for a James Beard Award, was recognized with a Michelin Exceptional Cocktails Award. She was recently named Best Mixologist in Queen City Nerve’s Best in the Nest Social Life Critics’ Picks.

The touted Michelin Guide announced its expansion into North Carolina and the wider Southern region earlier this year with the release of the inaugural Michelin Guide American South.