Biden Urges Vaccines In Raleigh
(Raleigh, NC) -- President Biden is still urging North Carolinians to get vaccinated against COVID-19, although the state will not likely reach his July 4th goal. He spoke at the Green Road Community Center in Raleigh yesterday, thanking frontline workers in the crowd for saving lives. Biden's visit served as a vaccination reminder for a state that's seen 55-percent of adults receive at least one dose. North Carolina's GOP chair criticized the President for not meeting his own goal of 70-percent vaccinations of the adult population by July 4th.
Price Of Monument Removal Adding Up
(Asheville, NC) -- The removal costs of downtown Asheville's Confederate monument are piling up. The city reported this week it has cost nearly 32-thousand-dollars in mobilization, rental fences and traffic control since a judge halted the final removal of the Vance Monument earlier this month. The only thing left of the statue is the base. Asheville officials are also trying to force the 26th North Carolina Troops to pay for the costs, since the group is the one trying to block the removal.
Employee Injured In Asheville Business Fire
(Asheville, NC) -- A fire at an Asheville business is being investigated. One employee was injured when flames broke out at Andy Oxy on New Leicester Highway last night. The company supplies industrial gases, commercial gases and welding products. There's no word yet on how the fire started.
Suspect In Multiple Shootings Arrested
(Asheville, NC) -- A suspect is facing charges in three different Asheville shootings. WLOS-TV is reporting the man turned himself in earlier this week for assault, damage to personal property and more. The charges are connected to multiple shootings on June 16th in the Shiloh community, where no one was injured. The suspect posted a four-thousand-dollar bond.
Asheville Budget Includes More Paid Leave
(Asheville, NC) -- Asheville city employees will receive more guaranteed leave in the next fiscal year. The budget passed by the city council this week includes a plan to provide eight weeks of paid paternal leave with the arrival of a new child. It also guarantees six weeks of paid leave for anyone needing to provide care for family with health conditions.
Tourists Looking To Upgrade Stadium
(Asheville, NC) -- Asheville's minor league baseball team is looking to make some major improvements at its stadium. The Asheville Tourists announced a plan yesterday for a 30-million-dollar renovation, which will include locker room expansions and upgraded lighting at McCormick Field. Team president Brian DeWine says he'd like to make enough changes to last for the next 30-years. A new scoreboard is also a possibility.
Two Rock Hill Officers On Leave After Controversial Arrests
(Rock Hill, SC) -- Two Rock Hill police officers are on administrative leave as the state investigates the arrests of two men this week. Video from the arrests near a Valero gas station on Wednesday later went viral, which sparked a protest outside the police department. The confrontation between the officers and two brothers led to a struggle where punches were thrown and a forcible takedown was performed. The president of Rock Hill's NAACP said they've been given transparency, so let the investigation play out.
Three Injured In NW Charlotte Shooting
(Charlotte, NC) -- The CMPD is looking for the suspect in a triple shooting. Investigators say two of those victims are suffering from life-threatening injuries. The shooting happened on Hoskins Mill Lane on northwest Charlotte yesterday, shortly after an alleged fight at a Family Dollar. The suspect may have been driving a black pick-up truck.
Toddler Found Dead In Car
(Gaston County, NC) -- The death of a toddler is being investigated in Gaston County. Police say a two-year-old was discovered dead inside a car outside Industrial Fabricators off York Highway Thursday afternoon. It's unclear how long the child was in the car. Investigators haven't said what may have led to the death, but a police captain told WBTV it was a tragic mistake.
Charlotte Murder Suspect Arrested Out-Of-State
(Charlotte, NC) -- A suspect wanted for an east Charlotte murder is in jail out-of-state. Police arrested Saquaine Lewis in Rhode Island on Tuesday, one week after a 26-year-old man was shot to death on Waterwood Lane. It marked the 49th homicide of 2021, which is well ahead of the pace set last year.
CMPD Officers Undergoing Customer Service Training
(Charlotte, NC) -- Police officers with the CMPD are undergoing a special type of training. Chief Johnny Jennings has implemented a program geared towards customer service. He told NBC Charlotte this week he was inspired by a trip to a Chick-fil-A, and decided to start the CommUNITY Collaboration training. The president of the department's customer service consultant group said it's the first time he's used the concepts with police.
Mass Demonstration At UNC Chapel Hill To Denounce Denying Tenure To Journalism Professor
(Chapel Hill, NC) -- Hundreds are expected to gather on the campus of UNC Chapel Hill today for a demonstration against the school's refusal to grant tenure to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicole Hannah-Jones. The event, organized by the UNC Black Student Movement, will take place outside the administration building. The event comes just days after her attorney informed the Board of Trustees that she will not begin her teaching duties on July 1st unless she is given tenure. Hannah-Jones was the lead journalist in a series of New York Times reports known as The 1619 Project about slavery.
State Senate Approves Plan To Distribute $5B In Federal Stimulus Funds
(Raleigh, NC) -- The North Carolina Senate voted Thursday to approve the distribution of some five-billion dollars in federal pandemic relief funds through the state's budget. Among other things, the plan calls for a one-point-five-percent pay raise for teachers and state employees. It would also decrease the individual income tax rate to less than four-percent and the corporate tax rate to two-point-five-percent over the next four years. The bill now moves to the House for consideration.
Annual Booze It & Lose It Campaign Kicked Off In North Carolina Thursday
(Raleigh, NC) -- The North Carolina Highway Patrol kicked off its annual 'Booze It & Lose It' campaign yesterday. The program, also known as 'Operation Firecracker,' runs from June 28th through July 4th. During the period, multiple law enforcement agencies will be running sobriety checkpoints in all 100 counties. The goal is to catch drunk and impaired drivers in an effort to reduce the number of fatal accidents during the long 4th of July holiday weekend.
Candlelight Vigil Held For Sampson County Woman Missing For Past Three Weeks
(Sampson County, NC) -- Friends and family held a candlelight vigil Thursday night for Kiara Wiggins, the 39-year old Sampson County woman who's been missing since June 9th. Meanwhile, her husband Carl is in jail facing multiple charges after he was arrested Wednesday for leading police on a high speed chase. Authorities say so-far, Carl Wiggins has refused to cooperate with investigators about the whereabouts of his wife.
Gastonia Police Investigating After Child Found Dead In Hot Car
(Gastonia, NC) -- Police in Gastonia are investigating an incident in which a two-year-old child was found dead inside a vehicle that was parked outside a business. It happened around 4:15 p.m. Thursday, along York Highway at Industrial Fabricators. Paramedics arrived and discovered the child was unresponsive. They immediately performed CPR in an attempt to save child, but it was too late. The two-year old was pronounced dead at the scene. So far, no charges have been filed.
Baggies Of Meth Found At Popular Family Attraction In Davidson Co.
(Davidson Co., NC) -- An investigation is underway at a popular swimming area in Davidson County where a family discovered baggies of meth. They were found at Buttle Creek Swimming Area on Wednesday evening, just feet from where little kids were playing and swimming. Deputies responded to the scene and discarded the drugs. So far, no arrests have been made.
Thousands Lose Power In Greensboro
(Greensboro, NC) -- The lights are back on in Greensboro after a car crash caused more than four-thousand Duke Energy customers to lose power. The single-vehicle accident happened yesterday morning near West Florida and O'Connor streets. Power was almost fully-restored by the evening. There's no word on the condition of the driver.
Man Killed In Hit-And-Run In Greensboro
(Greensboro, NC) -- A man is dead after a hit-and-run crash in Greensboro. It happened early yesterday morning on Wendover Avenue and Guilford College Road. Twenty-nine-year-old Stephan Hampton was driving a moped when he was struck by a vehicle. He died at the scene. Troopers are asking anyone who may have witnessed the crash, or who knows anything about it, to come forward.
Burlington Truck Driver Wins Lottery
(Burlington, NC) -- A Burlington truck driver says he plans to help his family out after cashing in on his multi-million-dollar lottery prize. Howard Poole bought the 30-dollar scratcher at the Sandy Cross Mart 2 on NC Highway 49 in Burlington and won ten-million dollars. He chose the lump sum of six-million dollars, which ended up being closer to four-million-200-thousand after taxes. Poole tells "NBC News 12" he plans to buy his mother a new home and help out his other family members with their bills.