blank

News Roundup

The Fayetteville Observer reported this week that an arrest has been made in connection with a road rage shooting last week near Lumberton that killed a Pennsylvania woman traveling with her husband to a beach vacation.  Dejywan R. Floyd has been charged with murder for allegedly shooting into the passenger side of an SUV occupied by Julie and Ryan Eberly after the SUV came close to Floyd’s car during a lane change maneuver on I-95.  Julie Eberly was struck by the gunfire and died.  Keep reading for more news.

Bladen Podcast.  Bladen County was in the national news in recent years because of the 9th Congressional District ballot fraud scandal involving McCrae Dowless.  The team behind the popular podcast Serial recently announced a new podcast coming in April that will explore issues of alleged election fraud in the county, taking a look at historical events and persistent accusations of ongoing impropriety.  Info about the podcast is available here.

Hedgepeth.  A recent article from the News & Observer pieces together a timeline and other information about the still unsolved murder of UNC student Faith Hedgepeth, a sophomore who was killed in an off campus apartment in 2012.  Anyone with information about the case should contact the Chapel Hill Police.

K9 Officer Resigns.  WBTV reported this week that Salisbury Police Officer James Hampton resigned from the department after an internal investigation found that his treatment of K9 police dog Zuul during a training exercise was “entirely inconsistent” with proper practice.  Video of Hampton hoisting Zuul by a leash and slamming the dog into the side of a vehicle made national news early last month.

New K9s.  In other dog news, WLOS reported that the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office recently added three new K9s to the force – Dabo, Koda, and Kilo.  The purchase of the dogs was made possible by a grant from a foundation associated with a business that operates a plant in Rutherfordton.

Violence Against Asians.  The Associated Press reports that a seemingly unprovoked attack on a Filipino woman in New York city this week added to fears of increasing racial violence against Asians in America.  Brandon Elliot, who was on parole after being convicted of killing his mother in 2002, allegedly was captured on surveillance video kicking and stomping 65-year-old Vilma Kari as she walked to church.  Police have said that racial slurs were used during the attack.

Humane Law Enforcement Award.  The Chatham Journal recently reported that Chatham County Sheriff Mike Roberson has been awarded the 2020 Humane Law Enforcement Award by the Humane Society of the United States.  Roberson said that the award reflected the collaboration of many Chatham organizations to make significant advances in animal welfare in the county.  The article notes that the sheriff’s office took over animal services work from the health department in 2019 and plans to open an expanded Animal Resource Center in 2021.

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.