WILMINGTON — County and city law enforcement officers responded to what appeared to be an initially nonviolent but also disobedient and profanity-laced protest outside City Hall with tear gas and stun grenades, dispersing the protestors throughout the streets of downtown Wilmington Sunday night. Officials defended the use of force, saying there were concerns about armed protestors and damage to the downtown area.
Read MoreWILMINGTON — Last week, U.S. Representative David Rouzer told a crowd of about 50 Donald Trump supporters that, just like other investigations and criticisms aimed at the president since his inauguration, recent congressional investigations of the U.S. Postal Service and its moves to downscale operations were part of a “hoax.”
Read MoreBURGAW — Pender County Schools did not answer questions regarding the use of an outside law firm to investigate alleged racist comments by Pender High employees, instead of using its contracted firm Schwartz and Shaw, whose attorney was reprimanded in 2006 for detrimental conduct in a school sexual assault investigation in Avery County.
Read MoreWILMINGTON — City leaders have largely stayed silent concerning the requested removal and preservation of two Confederacy statues that have overlooked downtown Wilmington since at least 1924. Meanwhile, Mayor Bill Saffo has issued a curfew to protect the statues, banning foot traffic in four city blocks surrounding the monuments for at least five consecutive nights.
Read MoreWILMINGTON — Questions have swirled following a protest nearly two weeks ago that began peacefully, turned angry and disobedient in nature, and later caused the streets of downtown Wilmington to fill with clouds of tear gas, flash-bang explosions, rubber bullets, and lines of riot control officers blocking off city streets.
Read MoreWILMINGTON — Hundreds gathered for a sixth night of protest on the front steps of City Hall Friday evening, honoring the names of George Floyd and others — including former Wilmington resident Brandon Smith — killed by law enforcement officers. They also called for criminal justice reform and the lifting of the 9 p.m. curfew imposed earlier this week.
Read MoreSURF CITY — Surf City’s town attorney Brian Edes urged Council to enter a closed session Tuesday morning, but failed to state the specific purpose for doing so as required by state law. For Edes, who represents other towns in the Cape Fear region, this isn’t the first time this has happened.
Read MoreWILMINGTON — A few hundred people squeezed into the courtyard of Laney High School to listen to former mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, days before North Carolinians take to the polls on Super Tuesday to vote for their Democratic presidential candidate.
Read MoreSURF CITY — Mayor Pro-Tem William “Buddy” Fowler made the initial request to investigate possible election violations by fellow councilman Jeremy Shugarts, according to emails uncovered by a public records request.
Read MoreSURF CITY — Although a 10-month elections violations case brought against Surf City Councilman Jeremy Shugarts reached its conclusion last week, prosecutors are apparently at odds with state elections investigators over whether Shugarts benefited from errors made on past voter and campaign forms.
Read MoreSURF CITY — Newly released documents from Surf City reveal what happened when what one resident called a ‘military mob’ took over a section of the beach last summer. They also show some evidence of the town’s attempt to handle the incidents quietly, along with a police crackdown on the issue.
Read MoreSURF CITY — A five-month investigation into election violations by Surf City Councilman and mayoral candidate Jeremy Shugarts revealed that he did not benefit from using an old address when filling out past voter forms and a notice of candidacy. The investigation did find evidence Shugarts had violated election law.
Read MoreSURF CITY — After weeks of unanswered questions, Surf City Mayor Doug Medlin broke his silence about an altercation over the summer between his personal assistant and the town manager, albeit not to Port City Daily directly.
Read MoreSURF CITY — A week before a closed meeting vote to hire a new town manager, Surf City Police officers were dispatched to a verbal altercation between the current town manager and the mayor’s personal assistant.
Read MoreChris Medlin refused to deny creating a website that defamed his father’s political opponent, while local and state authorities say there are currently no indications of a campaign violation or any legal issues.
Read MoreSURF CITY — Mayor Doug Medlin responded to recent remarks made by Councilman Jeremy Shugarts that the town’s planning board had “rubber-stamped” the initial approval of the Surf City Crossing apartment complex, a move Shugarts said represented a “broken system” of development planning.
Read MoreTwo operators run the county’s only water treatment plant, earning a combined $84,000 from the county; adding two more positions would double the county’s water capacity. Nearly 40 days into a water shortage in the east, one commissioner said he was unaware of such a solution; another said she regrets the mismanagement of the water department.
Read MoreBURGAW — Months of public pressure came to a head last night as the Pender County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to spend $600,000 on the removal of hurricane debris along private unpaved roads in the county.
Read MoreBURGAW — Weeks of ambiguity concerning whether Pender County will remove debris from private, unpaved roads was resolved Monday night when a motion to fund debris collection failed at the County Commissioners meeting.
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