Published: 2020-05-04 00:00:00Updated: 2020-05-04 18:11:22Local NewsTags:A high-speed chase on Interstate 95 that started in Harnett County and ended in Lumberton left three state troopers injured with one requiring surgery.Calvin Curtis Benjamin, 75, was charged with felony eluding law enforcement after he led a chase that a State Highway Patrol official said started at 1:45 p.m. Sunday and lasted 25 to 30 minutes and reached speeds of 140 miles per hour.The chase started when Benjamin's car was spotted going 109 miles per hour in a construction zone. The car had tags that did not belong...…Published: 2020-05-04 00:00:00Updated: 2020-05-04 18:11:22Local NewsTags:A high-speed chase on Interstate 95 that started in Harnett County and ended in Lumberton left three state troopers injured with one requiring surgery.Calvin Curtis Benjamin, 75, was charged with felony eluding law enforcement after he led a chase that a State Highway Patrol official said started at 1:45 p.m. Sunday and lasted 25 to 30 minutes and reached speeds of 140 miles per hour.The chase started when Benjamin's car was spotted going 109 miles per hour in a construction zone. The car had tags that did not belong...WW…

Published: 2020-09-23 22:41:00Updated: 2020-09-24 11:30:20NC CapitolTags:By Travis Fain, WRAL statehouse reporter — A pair of State Board of Elections members resigned Wednesday, less than six weeks before a presidential election, complaining of the details in absentee voting rules in the weeks ahead.Ken Raymond and David Black were the only two Republican members on a board that has been split 3-2, with Democrats in control. Notice of their resignations went out shortly after 10 p.m.In , Raymond said Attorney General Josh Stein's office kept him in the dark on key details tied to a lawsuit...…Published: 2020-09-23 22:41:00Updated: 2020-09-24 11:30:20NC CapitolTags:By Travis Fain, WRAL statehouse reporter — A pair of State Board of Elections members resigned Wednesday, less than six weeks before a presidential election, complaining of the details in absentee voting rules in the weeks ahead.Ken Raymond and David Black were the only two Republican members on a board that has been split 3-2, with Democrats in control. Notice of their resignations went out shortly after 10 p.m.In , Raymond said Attorney General Josh Stein's office kept him in the dark on key details tied to a lawsuit...WW…

Published: 2020-08-07 18:03:00Updated: 2020-08-08 07:10:31Local NewsTags:By Brian Mims, WRAL reporterLes Atkins described losing both of his parents this week as "being in the middle of both a horror movie and a beautiful love story."Raymond and Kathleen Atkins bought a house not long after they stood on the front porch of Kathleen's childhood farmhouse where the two got married."That's just where life happened from them," described Les Atkins.Raymond and Kathleen raised four children together.A couple of years ago, Raymond was diagnosed with lung cancer."He continued to work. He did not...…Published: 2020-08-07 18:03:00Updated: 2020-08-08 07:10:31Local NewsTags:By Brian Mims, WRAL reporterLes Atkins described losing both of his parents this week as "being in the middle of both a horror movie and a beautiful love story."Raymond and Kathleen Atkins bought a house not long after they stood on the front porch of Kathleen's childhood farmhouse where the two got married."That's just where life happened from them," described Les Atkins.Raymond and Kathleen raised four children together.A couple of years ago, Raymond was diagnosed with lung cancer."He continued to work. He did not...WW…

Published: 2020-09-21 10:42:00Updated: 2020-09-21 10:51:45National NewsTags:By CNN Newsource — Greg Golba and his son, Ian, don't understand why the 11-year-old had to remove his Hooters mask at school on Tuesday."I don't think it's offensive at all, it's just a restaurant," said Ian, whose teacher at Sunset Park Elementary School in Windermere said something about it."I wore it and she said it was not appropriate for school," Ian said. "I asked her why, and she said if you really want to know why go ask the principal."When Ian went to the principal's office, he was asked to remove the mask...…Published: 2020-09-21 10:42:00Updated: 2020-09-21 10:51:45National NewsTags:By CNN Newsource — Greg Golba and his son, Ian, don't understand why the 11-year-old had to remove his Hooters mask at school on Tuesday."I don't think it's offensive at all, it's just a restaurant," said Ian, whose teacher at Sunset Park Elementary School in Windermere said something about it."I wore it and she said it was not appropriate for school," Ian said. "I asked her why, and she said if you really want to know why go ask the principal."When Ian went to the principal's office, he was asked to remove the mask...WW…

Published: 2020-09-30 05:01:00Updated: 2020-09-30 23:30:33Local NewsTags:By Matthew Burns, WRAL.com senior producer/politics editor, & Adam Owens and Julian Grace, WRAL anchor/reporters — Gov. Roy Cooper said Wednesday that coronavirus cases are stable enough in North Carolina to move the state into the next phase of reopening businesses and resuming social activities during the pandemic.The shift to , which will allow bars to reopen for outdoor seating and movie theaters and amusement parks to reopen, takes effect at 5 p.m. Friday."We're cautiously encouraged about where we are in this...…Published: 2020-09-30 05:01:00Updated: 2020-09-30 23:30:33Local NewsTags:By Matthew Burns, WRAL.com senior producer/politics editor, & Adam Owens and Julian Grace, WRAL anchor/reporters — Gov. Roy Cooper said Wednesday that coronavirus cases are stable enough in North Carolina to move the state into the next phase of reopening businesses and resuming social activities during the pandemic.The shift to , which will allow bars to reopen for outdoor seating and movie theaters and amusement parks to reopen, takes effect at 5 p.m. Friday."We're cautiously encouraged about where we are in this...WW…

Published: 2020-04-27 05:27:00Updated: 2020-04-27 06:22:18BusinessTags:By Nia Harden, WRAL reporterMany small businesses in the Triangle are hoping to reopen soon but, with a shortage of cleaning supplies, some are worried they won't be ready to safely serve customers.Many businesses were forced to close suddenly due to COVID-19 and were not able to stock up on cleaners and disinfectants before the shortage.Even commercial suppliers are feeling the pinch. According to retail experts, products like Lysol and Clorox won’t be fully back in stock until July or August.Dr. Mike Walden, an...…Published: 2020-04-27 05:27:00Updated: 2020-04-27 06:22:18BusinessTags:By Nia Harden, WRAL reporterMany small businesses in the Triangle are hoping to reopen soon but, with a shortage of cleaning supplies, some are worried they won't be ready to safely serve customers.Many businesses were forced to close suddenly due to COVID-19 and were not able to stock up on cleaners and disinfectants before the shortage.Even commercial suppliers are feeling the pinch. According to retail experts, products like Lysol and Clorox won’t be fully back in stock until July or August.Dr. Mike Walden, an...WW…

Published: 2020-06-12 15:44:00Updated: 2020-06-13 14:12:03Local NewsTags:By Matthew Burns, WRAL.com senior producer/politics editor — People hospitalized with the coronavirus hit another record high on Saturday, for the fifth time this week. Over 1,100 people have died, and 42,880 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the virus.But, Gov. Roy Cooper said he hasn't yet closed the door on moving to the next phase of resuming business and social activities amid the pandemic in the next couple of weeks."These numbers and trends are sobering," Cooper said at a news conference Friday...…Published: 2020-06-12 15:44:00Updated: 2020-06-13 14:12:03Local NewsTags:By Matthew Burns, WRAL.com senior producer/politics editor — People hospitalized with the coronavirus hit another record high on Saturday, for the fifth time this week. Over 1,100 people have died, and 42,880 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the virus.But, Gov. Roy Cooper said he hasn't yet closed the door on moving to the next phase of resuming business and social activities amid the pandemic in the next couple of weeks."These numbers and trends are sobering," Cooper said at a news conference Friday...WW…

Published: 2020-08-14 15:50:00Updated: 2020-08-14 16:14:12@NCCapitolTags:By Travis Fain, WRAL statehouse reporter — The U.S. Postal Service has warned officials in North Carolina and in other states that late deadlines for absentee voting mean voters who wait may find their ballots delayed in the mail and ultimately uncounted.A top postal official reached out to the state at the end of last month, saying "it is particularly important that voters be made aware of the transit times."He recommended that ballot request forms – the first step to getting an actual ballot, which also has to be...…Published: 2020-08-14 15:50:00Updated: 2020-08-14 16:14:12@NCCapitolTags:By Travis Fain, WRAL statehouse reporter — The U.S. Postal Service has warned officials in North Carolina and in other states that late deadlines for absentee voting mean voters who wait may find their ballots delayed in the mail and ultimately uncounted.A top postal official reached out to the state at the end of last month, saying "it is particularly important that voters be made aware of the transit times."He recommended that ballot request forms – the first step to getting an actual ballot, which also has to be...WW…

Published: 2020-05-15 18:49:53Updated: 2020-05-15 18:49:53Local NewsTags:By Laura Leslie, WRAL Capitol Bureau chief — Rocky Mount officials bent or broke rules to benefit other city officials, and local taxpayers didn’t know about it because of lax record keeping, according to .The investigation, which was prompted by more than 200 calls to the State Auditor's Office hotline, found that various Rocky Mount officials intervened in 2013 and 2017 to write off $47,704 in delinquent utility bills for an unidentified so that his service wouldn't be disconnected."Although the policy required...…Published: 2020-05-15 18:49:53Updated: 2020-05-15 18:49:53Local NewsTags:By Laura Leslie, WRAL Capitol Bureau chief — Rocky Mount officials bent or broke rules to benefit other city officials, and local taxpayers didn’t know about it because of lax record keeping, according to .The investigation, which was prompted by more than 200 calls to the State Auditor's Office hotline, found that various Rocky Mount officials intervened in 2013 and 2017 to write off $47,704 in delinquent utility bills for an unidentified so that his service wouldn't be disconnected."Although the policy required...WW…

Published: 2020-09-17 17:30:00Updated: 2020-09-17 18:35:09EducationTags:By Matthew Burns, WRAL.com senior producer/politics editor, & Joe Fisher, WRAL multimedia journalist — Public school students across North Carolina who are taking classes online during the coronavirus pandemic aren't getting as good an education as if they were at school, a slight majority of state residents said in a WRAL News poll released Thursday.But, according to the 750 people statewide polled by SurveyUSA between Sept. 10 and Sunday for the exclusive poll, few believe it's safe for students to return to...…Published: 2020-09-17 17:30:00Updated: 2020-09-17 18:35:09EducationTags:By Matthew Burns, WRAL.com senior producer/politics editor, & Joe Fisher, WRAL multimedia journalist — Public school students across North Carolina who are taking classes online during the coronavirus pandemic aren't getting as good an education as if they were at school, a slight majority of state residents said in a WRAL News poll released Thursday.But, according to the 750 people statewide polled by SurveyUSA between Sept. 10 and Sunday for the exclusive poll, few believe it's safe for students to return to...WW…