SECOND SHOOTING

Suspect, victim in SC shooting shot each other at NC mall

ROCK HILL, S.C. (AP) — Investigators say the man charged with killing someone in South Carolina this week had wounded the same victim in a shootout at a North Carolina mall earlier this year. Police say 32-year-old Kevion Harris was found dead in a Rock Hill street Tuesday. Authorities charged 25-year-old Jamie Gavantay Williams with murder. Investigators said in May that Harris and Williams shot and wounded each other on May 1 inside the Carolina Place Mall in Pineville, North Carolina, The mall had to be evacuated. Investigators didn’t give a motive for the Tuesday shooting at Williams’ bond hearing, but Williams denied killing Harris.

FOOTBALL PLAYER KILLED

Police: Man charged in killing of college football player

HICKORY, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say the suspect in the killing of a Lenoir-Rhyne University football player has ended in an arrest. The Charlotte Observer reported Thursday that police in Hickory said suspect Quavius Shamond Izard was found “hiding on a property in Collettsville” by the owner. Officials said that Izard was taken into custody Wednesday and charged with first degree murder. He was being held without bond in a local jail. Collettsville is about 85 miles northwest of Charlotte, in Caldwell County. Izard is suspected of killing 19-year-old Omari Alexander of Concord. He died early Saturday morning in the parking of some apartments in Hickory. He was a sophomore at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory and played tight end on the football team. 

FATAL HOUSE FIRE

Fire marshal: One dead in western North Carolina house fire

MORGANTON, N.C. (AP) — Officials in western North Carolina say that a 54-year-old woman has died in an early-morning house fire in Burke County. Fire Marshal Mike Willis told WBTV that a call came in shortly before 3 a.m. Thursday for a structure fire in Morganton. Firefighters arrived at the scene, and the single-story home was fully ablaze. The fire marshal said that one of the home’s occupants told first responders that someone was still inside. Crews worked to put the fire out and began search and rescue efforts. Firefighters were unable to rescue the victim in time due to the intense fire conditions. The victim was identified as 54-year-old Mary Louise Mode. Willis said the fire originated from a heating source in the home.

MISSING HUNTER FOUND

Missing hunter found in North Carolina’s Green Swamp

WHITEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A sheriff’s office says a hunter who disappeared this week in North Carolina’s Green Swamp has reunited with his family after searchers found him “cold, hungry, and dehydrated.” The Columbus County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that 56-year-old Michael Edward Abernethy of Morganton was reunited with his family on Tuesday. That’s one day after he had gone hunting in the Juniper Creek Game Land section of the swamp. Multiple agencies sent search teams to the swamp. The sheriff’s office says Abernethy heard them and moved toward them until they found him on Tuesday morning.

FATAL CRASH-MAIL TRUCK

2 dead after tractor-trailer hits car on I-85 in N. Carolina

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The N.C. State Highway Patrol says two people were killed when a tractor-trailer carrying mail on Interstate 85 crashed into a car stuck that was in the middle of the roadway. News outlets reported that the car crashed just after 2 a.m. Wednesday. It had stopped in one of the middle lanes of I-85 south near Billy Graham Parkway in Charlotte. Around 2:15 a.m., a tractor-trailer crashed into the vehicle. Officials hadn’t identified the victims as of Tuesday evening. Medical personnel said a third person was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

VOTER ID

High court to consider if GOP leaders can join voter ID suit

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether North Carolina Republican legislative leaders can intervene in a federal court battle over a 2018 state voter ID mandate. House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger want to formally step into a pending federal case to defend the law. They have argued Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein won’t adequately fight for the law.  The high court said Wednesday in a brief order that it will hear the case at a later date. The case before the court won’t decide the underlying dispute over voter ID, and will focus on whether the GOP leaders can enter the case.  

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NORTH CAROLINA

1 in 6 North Carolina adults have gotten COVID-19 booster

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — New data released by state health officials shows roughly one in six eligible North Carolinians have gotten a COVID-19 booster shot. The state Department of Health and Human Services is urging all adults to come in for an extra shot ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. Recently approved kid-sized doses for children ages 5 to 11 have been administered thus far to about 1 in 8 kids in the age group. Recent state data shows unvaccinated individuals are more than five times as likely to get the virus and 25 times likelier to die from it compared to vaccinated people.

EARTHQUAKES-NORTH CAROLINA

Pair of earthquakes hit central North Carolina in 4 days

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Authorities say a 2.3 magnitude earthquake shook a portion of central North Carolina early Wednesday, the second earthquake to hit the region within a week. The Winston-Salem Journal reports that the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed a 2.3 magnitude earthquake occurred at 4:05 a.m. Wednesday in Winston-Salem. On Sunday morning, a 2.4 magnitude earthquake shook Winston-Salem shortly before 9 a.m. The Sunday earthquake was centered about 3 miles southwest of Winston-Salem. No injuries or damages were reported after either earthquake. In August 2020, a 5.1-magnitude temblor struck Sparta, the second such quake that morning. 

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