Mask Decision Coming Up In Buncombe County
(Buncombe County, NC) -- A face mask mandate in Buncombe County is coming up for discussion. The current requirement is set to expire next Wednesday, but it is expected to be discussed at Tuesday's commission meeting. Public Health Director Stacie Saunders told WLOS-TV that it's encouraging to see COVID case numbers and the positivity rate dropping.
Child Injured In Asheville Shooting
(Asheville, NC) -- Asheville police are investigating what appears to be an accidental shooting of a child. Officers say the five-year-old was brought to fire station eight off Tunnel Road last night with injuries. Latest reports show the child was in stable condition. A police lieutenant said people are encouraged to safely secure their firearms, whether children are present or not.
Commissioner Removed From Woodfin Board
(Woodfin, NC) -- A commissioner in the town of Woodfin is being removed. A lawsuit was filed in December, claiming Theresa Stoker was placed into office by the commission last fall in violation of open meeting laws. Stoker was initially appointed to the board in place of a resigning member. The board is also set with the task of filling another commission post left by another resigning member.
State Board Of Education Member Resigns
(Raleigh, NC) -- The state board of education is down one member due to a resignation. Republican Todd Chasteen submitted his resignation earlier this month due to what he calls regressive standards in the direction of North Carolina's education direction. He said the board's current trajectory is steering more towards activism, rather than education. At issue are social studies standards which critics say lean towards critical race theory.
Positions Still Need Filling In Asheville, Buncombe Schools
(Buncombe County, NC) -- Asheville City and Buncombe County Schools are continuing to deal with workforce shortages. There are over 40 vacancies in Asheville now, which cover positions in maintenance, teaching and bus driving. Over 100 positions are being advertised in Buncombe County. North Carolina school districts have been especially challenged to fill roles left open due to the COVID pandemic.
Attendance At DuPoint Park Hits Record
(Transylvania County, NC) -- More people are visiting the DuPont State Recreational Forest than ever before. Nearly one-point-three-million people came out to the area last year, which tops record attendance numbers reported in 2020. Visitation records were also set last year in other parks like Chimney Rock.
Mint Hill Abduction Suspect Arrested
(Mint Hill, NC) -- The search for a man accused of abducting his one-year-old daughter in Mint Hill is over. U.S. Marshals helped arrest the suspect, Jeremy Lemmond, near Pilot Mountain yesterday. He allegedly took his 15-month-old daughter from a home on Quail Ridge Drive early Sunday morning, although he didn't have custody. The girl was found safe late Sunday morning.
CMPD Eyes Crime Reduction Plans
(Charlotte, NC) -- The CMPD is continuing to work on ways to reduce crime in Charlotte. Police Chief Johnny Jennings said yesterday that homicides are down 50-percent when compared year-to-year, which is part of an overall violent crime decrease of 15-percent. The department will concentrate on de-escalation, training, and pulling guns off the streets.
Couple Arrested For Attempted Murder Of Child
(Salisbury, NC) -- A Salisbury couple is accused in the attempted murder of their eleven-year-old adopted son. The child was initially found in late January suffering from sepsis, hypothermia and multiple open wounds. Officers raided the couple's home on Maupin Avenue Wednesday afternoon. Charges for the man and woman include attempted murder and child abuse.
Suspect Wanted For Gastonia Shooting
(Gastonia, NC) -- Gastonia police are searching for a shooting suspect. Officers were unable to capture Rakeem McCree after they thought he was cornered inside an East Fifth Avenue home last night. He's wanted for two counts of attempted murder. Shots were fired, but no injuries have been reported.
Bus Carrying Soldiers Crashes On Way To Hornets' Game
(Charlotte, NC) -- Some Fort Bragg soldiers were able to make it to last night's Hornets' game in spite of a wreck. A bus carrying the soldiers was in a four-car wreck in Sanford yesterday, while they were on their way to see Charlotte play. The group of three-dozen soldiers still made it to the Spectrum Center, where Military Appreciation Night was being celebrated.
Homicide Charges Filed In Infant's Death
(Gaston County, NC) -- The parents of a Gaston County child are facing charges in connection to the infant's death. Details from an autopsy report were just released after the child was found dead last March. The man and woman were both arrested for second-degree homicide. Bond was set at one-million-dollars each.
Hornets Drop Sixth-Straight
(Charlotte, NC) -- The losing streak for the Hornets is continuing. Chicago defeated Charlotte 121-to-109 at Spectrum Center last night. It marked the Hornets' sixth-straight loss, which brought the squad to an even 28-and-28 record on the season. The Hornets still stand just a few games outside of a guaranteed playoff spot.
Senate Republicans And Democrats Pledge To Work Together On New District Maps
(Raleigh, NC) -- In a rare show of bipartisanship, North Carolina Senate leaders announced Wednesday, their intentions to work together to create a new set of Congressional district maps in compliance with a state Supreme Court order last week. Republican Phil Berger and Democrat Dan Blue released a joint statement saying they hope to reach a "negotiated end product" privately before making it public next week. The General Assembly has been given a February 18th deadline to come up with the new maps.
Single-Day Surge In New Cases Throws Doubts On Whether Omicron Variant Has Peaked
(Raleigh, NC) -- Data released by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services showed a dramatic rise in new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday. The 10-thousand-513 new infections was a 58-hundred case increase over the day before. This comes as the North Carolina National Guard announced the deployment of 25-medical personnel to the Alamance Regional Medical Center in Burlington to assist with an Omicron surge in hospitalizations. Meanwhile the North Carolina Department of Education is reporting at least 31-percent of local school districts have decided to end mandatory masks mandates.
Car Riddled With Bullets On Orange County Road; Family Of Three Hurt
(Orange County, NC) -- Authorities in Orange County are investigating a drive-by shooting early Wednesday morning that resulted in a child and two adults being wounded. It happened just before 8 a.m. along Industrial Drive off I-40 and I-85 near Mebane. Sheriff's Deputies say the suspect, who was trailing a family in a sedan, suddenly pulled up and unloaded a barrage of bullets into the victims car. A man, woman and seven year old boy were all injured. They managed to drive themselves to nearby UNC Hillsborough, where they were treated for non-life threatening injuries. Sheriff Charles Blackwood said the shooting was not random.
No Fort Bragg Soldiers Injured When Car Crashes Into Their Chartered Bus
(Sanford, NC) -- A multi-vehicle crash on Highway 87 near Sanford forced a chartered bus carrying a troop of Fort Bragg soldiers off the road Wednesday. Fortunately, none of the members of the 82nd Airborne Division were hurt. According to the state Highway Patrol, the accident was caused by a Ford Escape crossing over the center lane and crashing into another car, which sideswiped a tractor trailer and smashed into the bus head on. Both the driver of the Ford Escape and the first car were seriously injured and had to be transported to a nearby hospital.
Durham Born Avant Garde Singer And Cultural Arts Influencer Betty Davis Dies
(Durham, NC) -- North Carolina native and innovative Funk, Soul and R&B singer Betty Davis has died. Davis, who was born in Durham, left the state at age 16 and enrolled at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, where she also found work as a model. After meeting Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone and several other 60's icons, Davis began her own music career and later married jazz legend Miles Davis. Davis died Wednesday at the age of 77.
Super Bowl 56-Will Feature Two Former NC State Standouts
(Raleigh, NC) -- When the Bengals meet the Rams in Super Bowl 56 on Sunday, two former NC State stars will be in the starting lineup. Oakboro native B.J. Hill, who played for the Wolfpack from 2014-through-2017, will be lining up for the Bengals at Defensive End. Hill had a rare interception of a Patrick Mahomes pass in the AFC Championship game victory. And Germaine Pratt of High Point, who played at NC State from 2014-to-2018, will hold down the Middle Linebacker position against the Rams. It'll be the Bengals first Super Bowl appearance since 1989.