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Latest North Carolina News:

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NORTH CAROLINA
Union Co. to comply with COVID protocols amid lawsuit threat
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Union County Public Schools said Monday it will follow COVID-19 quarantining procedures the state is requiring. The development came a week after the school district allowed most of its more than 7,000 quarantined students to go back into the classroom before their 14-day isolation period had expired as long as they weren’t symptomatic or infected. The district remains one of a small handful in the state not compelling students or staff to wear masks. The local school board has also decided to let the county health department assume primary responsibility for contact tracing.

ALCOHOL BOARD CHAIRMAN
Head of North Carolina alcohol board resigns, cites stress
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – The chairman of the North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission has resigned from the board, citing anxiety over the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the agency’s recent challenges with liquor distribution. A.D. “Zander” Guy submitted his resignation on Friday to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. He was at the job for over four years. WBTV first reported Guy’s resignation. He told The Associated Press on Monday that recent events led he and his wife to reassess his service, including the liquor supply troubles and the deaths of people around him due to COVID-19. He previously served as chairman while Beverly Perdue was governor.

HOUSE FIRE-ASSAULT CHARGE
North Carolina man accused of assaulting firemen during fire
GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) – Authorities have arrested a man who they say assaulted firefighters as they fought a fire at his North Carolina home. News outlets report the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office says firefighters were inside a home in Belvoir on Sept. 9 when a man identified as 40-year-old Desmond Spencer entered and began fighting them. The sheriff’s office says a deputy used a taser to subdue the homeowner after a struggle. Deputies arrested Spencer and charged him with assault on a government official and probation violation. He’s jailed on a $35,000 bond and it’s not known if he has an attorney.

FATAL SHOOTING-WOMAN’S DEATH
Police: North Carolina woman fatally shot, hit by car
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) – Police say a woman in a North Carolina city has died after she was shot and hit by a car. Greensboro police say in a news release that officers responding to a call about an assault on Sunday found 33-year-old Keyoka Robinson lying in the street with a gunshot wound. Police say Robinson, who died at a local hospital, was also hit by a car while she was in the roadway, but investigators don’t believe that Robinson being hit by the car contributed to her death. Police said the driver of the car remained at the scene and wasn’t charged.

HEAD-ON CRASH-TWO KILLED
Two dead in head-on collision in North Carolina city
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) – Police say two people were killed in a head-on collision in a North Carolina city. Winston-Salem police say in a news release that a car driven by 23-year-old William Gentry Bates was traveling east on Hanes Mall Boulevard on Sunday evening when his car crossed the center median and collided head-on with a car driven by 60-year-old Michael Brent Sutton. Both drivers were pronounced dead at the scene. Police say a passenger in the car driven by Bates was hospitalized with serious injuries. Investigators don’t know why Bates crossed the center line.

FIRE CHIEF RESIGNS
N. Carolina fire chief resigns after drunken driving arrest
GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) – A North Carolina fire chief is resigning after authorities confirmed his arrest on drunken driving charges. WITN-TV reports that Greenville Fire/Rescue Chief Eric Griffin announced Sunday that he’s resigning. The announcement comes after the Nash County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Griffin was arrested early Sunday and charged with speeding and driving while impaired. Chief Deputy Brandon Medina says Griffin was traveling 94 mph in a 70 mph zone and a sobriety test found a blood alcohol content of .20. Griffin had been with the department since 1993 and served as chief since 2014. Last month, he announced that he would retire in December. Deputy Chief Brock Davenport has been named acting chief.

FIREFIGHTER DEATH
North Carolina firefighter dies after battle with COVID-19
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) – A North Carolina firefighter has died after battling COVID-19 for more than a month. The Durham Fire Department announced the death of 45-year-old Jeremy Klemm in a Facebook post Sunday morning. The 15-year employee died late Saturday. Klemm began his career with the Durham Fire Department on Feb. 27, 2006, after graduating from Fire Academy 19. He became fire driver on Jan. 2, 2020, and was last assigned to the Engine 8 A-Shift.

CAMPUS SHOOTING
Two men fatally shot at North Carolina Central University
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) – Two men were shot and killed on the North Carolina Central University campus while a college football game was being played nearby. Durham police said the shooting happened Saturday night in the surface parking lot next to the Latham Parking Deck. More than 5,600 people who were attending the football game were placed on lockdown in the nearby O’Kelly-Riddick Stadium. Area roads were closed as police looked for the shooter or shooters. WRAL-TV reports that police are searching for a black Nissan Altima with tinted windows and are still working to determine what led up to the shooting. The NCCU department of Police and Public Safety said in a statement that neither of the victims were students at the university.