Police: Teen stabbed at NC high school track practice
ROANOKE RAPIDS, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say a high school student was stabbed multiple times at track practice. News outlets report that Roanoke Rapids Police said the 18-year-old man was flown to a hospital with life-threatening injuries. Officials say the assault happened at Manning Elementary School where Roanoke Rapids High School students were using the school’s track. Police say a 16-year-old suspect in the stabbing was taken into custody. Investigators don’t yet know what led up to the stabbing, but they say there were multiple witnesses in the area during the attack.
DURHAM NIGHTCLUB STABBING
Police: 3 stabbed outside nightclub in North Carolina
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Authorities say three people were stabbed outside of a nightclub in a Durham suburb overnight. WRAL-FM reported that officers responded to 9ONE9 at about 2:45 a.m. after an argument escalated outside the club. Three people were taken to the hospital. Their conditions are not currently known. No further details were immediately made available.
ELECTION 2022-SENATE-EASTMAN
Eastman officially joins crowd to succeed NC Sen. Burr
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Combat veteran and political newcomer Marjorie Eastman has filed her candidacy papers to run for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in North Carolina. Eastman is now one of nearly two dozen official candidates seeking to succeed retiring GOP Sen. Richard Burr after filing Thursday at the state elections board. Filing for the May 17 primary ends Friday. Eastman announced her Senate bid in October and soon joined the conversation with other leading Republican candidates thanks in part to strong fundraising and support from an independent political committee. Rep. Ted Budd, former Gov. Pat McCrory and ex-Rep. Mark Walker are among other top GOP candidates.
VOTER ID-NORTH CAROLINA
Voter ID lawsuit to NC Supreme Court in accelerated appeal
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The North Carolina Supreme Court has agreed to accelerate appeals in a photo voter identification lawsuit by hearing the case without waiting for the Court of Appeals to deliberate first. The justices on Wednesday granted the request of lawyers for minority voters who successfully sued at the trial-court level to bypass arguments at the intermediate-level appeals court. In September, a divided panel of three trial judges threw out the state’s 2018 photo ID law, ruling that it intentionally discriminated against Black voters. Republican leaders disagreed and appealed. Oral arguments could happen this summer. Two other voter ID legal cases are pending.
FATAL SHOOTING-SHOPPING CENTER PARKING LOT
Police: 1 fatally shot in Salisbury center parking lot
SALISBURY, N.C. (AP) — Authorities say one person has been fatally shot in the parking lot of the Salisbury Shopping Center in central North Carolina. WS0C-TV reported that Salisbury Police Chief Jerry Stokes said officers responded to a 911 call of a shooting Thursday at about 9 p.m. Stokes said arriving officers found a man suffering from at least one gunshot wound. He died on the scene. Police did not name the man. Stokes said there is no one in custody and whoever is responsible left the area, but that there is no public threat. No other injuries were reported. Authorities have urged people to avoid the area during the investigation.
2010 SLAYING-EX CHARGED
NC man charged in ex-wife’s 2010 shooting death
ROWLAND, N.C. (AP) — Authorities in North Carolina say they’ve charged a man in the shooting death of his ex-wife 12 years ago. News outlets report that the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest Thursday. Officials say Linda Hammond of Lexington was found dead from apparent gunshot wounds along Badin Lake Road in New London in January 2010. Authorities say their investigations led them to Hammond’s ex-husband, Michael Hammond, and he was arrested Wednesday at his Rowland home. He’s charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping, robbery with a dangerous weapon and burglary. Hammond is being held without bond. It’s not known whether Hammond has an attorney to comment on his behalf.
DRIVING WHILE POOR
Settlement over N. Carolina driver license revocations OK’d
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A federal judge has approved an agreement designed to help tens of thousands of North Carolina residents whose driver’s licenses are revoked only because they can’t afford to pay traffic fines and court costs. The settlement signed by U.S. District Judge Thomas Schroeder and disclosed Thursday essentially ends a 2018 lawsuit. The settlement directs the Division of Motor Vehicles to send letters and emails to about 185,000 people letting them know about the legal process to seek the waiver of traffic fees and court costs. Similar notices will be sent in the future before revocations are complete.
DOT-BRIDGE PRESERVATION
Preservation work set for bridges over Pee Dee River
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Three bridges over the Pee Dee River will soon undergo preservation work approved by the N.C. Department of Transportation. A news release says the U.S. Highway 74 bridges at the Richmond-Anson county line and the N.C. Highway 731 bridge at the Montgomery-Stanley county line will receive a variety of upgrades, including deck treatments, new joints and substructure repairs. The contract was awarded to a California contractor who can start working in late March. The project is scheduled to be complete by spring 2024.
