Full Story

Full Story

According to the police report, 19-year-old John Michael Dean was travelling west on New Bern Ave. at a high rate of speed when he lost control while approaching a curve.

The car collided with a stone wall and "ended in a vertical resting place between two trees", according to the report. Dean was ejected from the vehicle.

The accident report also states that alcohol is suspected in the crash.

Dean has been charged with DWI, careless and reckless driving and provisional DWI.

Read Full Story

George Johnson, 50, turned himself in to authorities Wednesday afternoon, on two charges each of Taking Indecent Liberties with a Child, and Indecent Liberties with a Student by a Teacher.

Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 59 months.

A criminal investigation began after a parent made accusations against Johnson, who was then a first grade teacher at Wakelon Elementary in Zebulon.

School officials suspended Johnson from work, and he subsequently resigned June 12.

Wake County Public School System leaders said that when Johnson was hired, his background check did not raise any red flags.

When hiring employees, WCPSS policy is to collect written and verbal recommendations from previous employers, conduct criminal background checks for every place the applicant has lived in the past ten years, and check the nationwide sexual offender registry.

The hiring process is halted if anything suspicious arises in someone's background, said WCPSS spokesperson Michael Evans.

Johnson's bond was set at $70,000. He is scheduled to appear in court again on July 23.

House and Senate negotiators said Thursday they will go home rather than keep working on differences in taxes and spending for the final two-year spending plan.

Rep. Jim Crawford of Granville County says leaders determined they aren't far enough along to finish by the end of the holiday weekend.
The House and Senate are still far apart on how to raise $1 billion in new revenues.

Perdue urged lawmakers Wednesday to act quickly and protect core services like education.

The Legislature approved a stopgap spending plan Tuesday that lets state government operate without a final budget through July 15.

According to police, three suspects in a black car with South Carolina tags were stopped and then fled the scene. NBC 17 Reporter Kim Genardo reports that there are at least 15 Raleigh Police cruisers are on the scene with support by the Highway Patrol.

Two suspects were taken into custody shortly after the chase ended. The third and final suspect was caught just after 1 p.m.

The Highway Patrol helicopter flew over the scene to help with the search.. The search had been centered east to west over a creek area at the intersection. Officers are also out on the scene with rifles drawn.

Earlier on Thursday, Raleigh police officers responded to a bank robbery call at a Sun Trust location. An officer spotted the car in the chase and began a pursuit. Shots were fired, hitting the patrol car and that is when the chase began.

There are no reported injuries at the moment.

Stay with NBC17 and NBC17.com as the story develops.

The North Carolina Highway Patrol said more troopers will patrol highways during the holiday, which begins at 6 p.m. Thursday and ends at midnight Sunday.

Last year in North Carolina, eight people died and 634 were injured over the holiday.

Troopers will take part in the nationwide "Operation C.A.R.E." (Combined Accident Reduction Effort), which involves high visibility patrols that are designed to prevent crashes.

Citizens may report crashes, drunken drivers and stranded motorists by dialing star HP (star 47) on their cellular telephones.

With his lawyer at his side, Andrew Young at about 8:30 a.m. walked into the building in Raleigh where a grand jury was meeting. The longtime Edwards loyalist simply smiled as he went by and declined to comment. He did not leave through a public entrance, and his attorney, David Geneson, did not return repeated calls from The Associated Press.

A few months before the crucial 2008 caucuses in Iowa, where Edwards placed second to eventual President Barack Obama, Young publicly declared that he was the father of Rielle Hunter's baby. Edwards has admitted to an affair with Hunter that he says ended in 2006. That year, Edwards' political action committee paid Hunter's video production firm $100,000 for work. Then the committee paid another $14,086 on April 1, 2007.

Edwards, a North Carolina senator from 1998 until his vice presidential bid in 2004, acknowledged in May that federal investigators are looking into how he used campaign funds. Grand jury proceedings are secret, and the U.S. attorney's office in Raleigh has declined to confirm or deny an investigation.

Young hasn't spoken publicly since saying he was the father in 2007 and has repeatedly ignored reporter requests for interviews.

John Murphy, a spokesman with St. Martin's Press, said Young signed a book deal with the publisher last week. He declined to discuss the details of the agreement or the book.

"We don't even have a writer yet. The book is way off in the future," Murphy said. "We've signed a very strict confidentiality (agreement)."

Edwards adamantly denied during his confessional interview with ABC News last summer that he had fathered Hunter's child, and he welcomed a paternity test. But his wife, Elizabeth, has said while promoting her book that she doesn't know if her husband is the father.

Young got his last campaign paycheck in the middle of November, a month before he and Hunter publicly declared through attorneys that he was the father. Fred Baron, who was Edwards' national finance chairman and a wealthy Dallas-based trial attorney, said last year he quietly sent money to Hunter and to Young's family to resettle in California.

Baron, who died following complications from cancer just a few months after Edwards acknowledged the affair, said he provided the money on his own, to "help two friends and former colleagues rebuild their lives when harassment by supermarket tabloids made it impossible for them to move forward on their own."

At the time of the April 2007 payment, the PAC only had $7,932 cash on hand, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission. What made the distribution possible was that on the same day, according to the records, Edwards' presidential campaign paid the PAC $14,034 for a "furniture purchase."

That money was one of just five contributions to the political action committee for the entire three months from April 1 to June 30, 2007. The other four were on June 30, the last day of the reporting period, including a $3,000 contribution from Baron's wife, Lisa.

Read Full Story

Beginning July 1, tethering a dog too long without any supervision is against the law in Raleigh.

The new ordinance says dogs cannot be tethered for more than three hours in any 24-hour period. Those who break the law could be fined up to $100 per day of the incidents.

Officer Erin Jenks, a Raleigh animal control specialist, said tethering is common.

"Tethering dogs is something every officer sees on a day to day basis," Jenks said.

Jenks said tethering a dog can be dangerous because chains can become tangle, leaving dogs stranded from shelter, water and food.

"It can easily strangle itself," Jenks said. "Unfortunately, if not properly cared for, animals can sometimes die from being tethered."

The ordinance also requires a tether be at least 10 feet long and chains be no heavier than 10 percent of the dog's body weight.

"Sometimes you run into issues that dogs are skinny and they've got this big heavy chain on them loading them down and that's something we're going to try to prevent," Jenks said.

Jenks said Raleigh Animal Control is taking the ordinance "very seriously" and will be on the lookout for long-term tethering, but is relying on the public to speak up.

"It really is going to take the public letting us know there is a problem," Jenks said.

One solution to tethering is building a fence, but that can be expensive. That's why the local group the Coalition to Unchain Dogs is stepping in to build fences for deserving households free of charge.

The group has built 200 fences in the Triangle.

Hailey Queen heads up the Raleigh crew, which has built five fences.

"We're definitely here to be a resource for the community, we really hope that we can help people come into compliance with this new ordinance," Queen said.

If you have a tip for Raleigh Animal Control you can call 919-831-6311. You can reach the Coalition to Unchain Dogs at www.unchaindogs.org

"The General Assembly has got to act," Perdue said. "Every day, without the positions that we've earmarked for reductions and without the revenues that is before the General Assembly, we're losing millions of dollars."

The governor signed into law a temporary spending plan to avoid a government shutdown Tuesday night. The continuing resolution gives lawmakers until July 15th to hammer out a budget and tax plan. Government agencies are expected to operate under 15% reductions.

"I do believe we will be able to pay the bills, but I can only say that for the next 14 days," Perdue said. "I need the General Assembly to step up and come to a consensus on a budget."

The governor supports a combination of budget cuts and tax increases. She hopes to protect education, community colleges, and the university system. And she has proposed more taxes on tobacco and alcohol.

Perdue said Wednesday she would accept a short-term solution to the state's budget problems..

"We must have overall tax reform," she said. "That has not happened. I think that you've got to do something and then roll that baby out sometime in 2010, 2011."

The governor also said if the General Assembly passes a budget soon, she does not expect any more furloughs for state employees this calendar year.

Paul Joseph Stafford, 41, was charged with one count of embezzlement. He is accused of embezzling more than $57,765.26.

The arrest warrant says that Stafford was the Club Treasurer. He is being held at the Wake County Jail.

Raleigh Police have arrested a man believed responsible for embezzling from the Rotary Club of Raleigh.

Read Full Story

Some community activists say drug users can turn those stems into paraphernalia for meth, heroin or crack.

Durham community activist Melvin Whitley pushed for regulation of "The rose in a glass" since 2006. That's when he started urging his city government to ban the small novelty sold in some convenience stores.

"When [drug users] start using the glass stem, that's when they became really addicted," he said when Representative Hilton introduced House Bill 722 back in March. "These glass stems are only sold in drug-infested neighborhoods and they're sold for $4 ... but the retailer pays $0.18."

"They're making money off of people's misery."

The bill passed with no opposition in Raleigh.

Part of it reads:
"Glass tubes or splitters shall not be offered for retail sale by self-service, but shall be stored and sold from behind a counter where the general public cannot access them without the assistance of a retailer's agent or employee."

Starting Dec. 1, retailers will require buyers of the potential paraphernalia to:

• Present a photo ID that includes the person's name and current address.
• Enter his or her name and current address on a record that the retailer keeps on hand to track these items.
• Sign his or her name, verifying by signature the glass tube or splitter will not be used as drug paraphernalia in violation of the criminal laws of the State of North Carolina.

Both retailers and buyers face misdemeanor charges if a court finds them guilty of breaking the new law.

Read House Bill 722
Read more about why Representative Hilton introduced the bill

Read Full Story

Read Full Story

This event will offer job seekers an opportunity to meet face to face with dozens of employers who are hiring today!  Companies such as Aaron's Sales and Lease, Fidelity Investments, Orange County Human Resource Department, United States Secret Service and many others will be at the event. National Career Fairs will have a local career expert on hand to provide a free professional resume review.

All job seekers are encouraged to attend this free event to network, submit resumes, and connect with hiring managers.  Make the most of the event by dressing professionally and bringing multiple copies of your resume.

It's a mantra triangle residents are learning to live by this summer.

"We're gonna go camping on the beach and, actually we're not doing any real, travel vacations," Andrea Bowden, a local mother, said.

The furthest many residents plan to go is the North Carolina coast, which means this Fourth of
July weekend the fun has to be close to home.

"Just enjoying things in the local area is nice too," Michelle VonHoene, a local mother, said. "We go to museums a lot."

You never quite know what interesting things you'll find at the North Carolina Museum of Art and it's free of charge.

Other residents plan to make a splash at a local pool, while stay-at-home mom Debi Calhoun said she likes to meet friends at the local library.

"We just come out here for a good time," she said. "It's entertaining, kills a little time in our day and it's cool, which is important cause it's so hot outside."

Calhoun came to the library Tuesday because she saw it on the web site, Meetup.com

She said the site helps her find things to do.

"It's really community specific," she said. "I'm part of the Knightdale stay-at-home moms group and I know that there is one for North Raleigh and Clayton as well."

The site also fits into the summer life for triangle residents because it is inexpensive and close to home.

Read Full Story

Attorney General Roy Cooper's office said he would attend an announcement Wednesday in Washington at the headquarters of the Federal Trade Commission.

Officials said the operations will target scams such as work-at-home schemes, debt settlement plans, guaranteed income promises and free government grants.

Also attending the announcement will be FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz and Assistant U.S. Attorney General Tony West.

The fiscal year starting Tuesday doesn't yet have a state budget, but from this day state government takes over completely the Medicaid cost-sharing payments that counties paid for decades. The state gasoline tax that was supposed to drop by 2 cents a gallon on Tuesday will remain the same.

A $675 million-plus bailout of the health insurance plan for teachers and state employees takes effect Tuesday. The state also expands property tax breaks for completely disabled veterans, the elderly and people with "working waterfront" property such as fisheries.

State residents serving active military duty and home on leave can hunt or fish without a license.

As many as 5,000 workers at the packing plant near Lumberton will finish voting Wednesday on an initial union contract. Both sides have refused to describe details of the deal until the vote is counted late Wednesday.

The company and the United Food and Commercial Workers had been locked in a bitter dispute over union organizing efforts since the plant opened in 1992.

Workers at the Tar Heel plant complained of injuries from the fast pace of the butchering process. Others complained that they were treated as dispensable.

The plant processes up to 32,000 live hogs a day.