Public Safety

Ervin Hakeem Johnson was shot once in the head when he was killed in February, according to the autopsy report. The state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) autopsy report on Johnson said he died of a single gunshot wound to his head. Johnson, 25, was last seen alive Feb. 15 outside his Bermuda Bay Lane home, the sheriff’s office said. His mother told investigators that Johnson...

Two felony animal cruelty charges and 19 misdemeanor counts have been filed against the Hallsboro woman who had dozens of animals in filthy conditions. Deborah Dahl, 70, of Pone Hill Road, was originally charged with 94 counts of misdemeanor cruelty to animals and one charge of practicing medicine without a license. Most of those charges have been dismissed, and Dahl now faces the 21 new charges, including the...

A landmark florist in downtown Chadbourn burned to the ground Tuesday morning. Old Town Florist, on First Avenue, was destroyed when a lithium battery caught fire, Columbus County Fire Marshal Shannon Blackman said. An employee of the shop heard a smoke alarm and went to investigate around 9 a.m., Blackman said. He told firefighters that he found a burning glue gun and knocked it down it with a...