Public Safety

It took a specialized craze to lift a BMW convertible from its illegal but locally famous  parking place on the Cape Fear River Bridge in Elizabethtown Wednesday. Department of Transportation spokesman Andrew Barksdale said the car was discovered on the section of the bridge that is under construction on Dec. 27. A DOT highway inspector found the vehicle, which had already become a popular topic of conversation  on...

An accidental shooting led to the discovery of marijuana plants, a quantity of drugs and firearms Saturday. The incident occurred just before midnight in a home on Swamp Fox Highway West. Augustine Franco, 22, called 911 after shooting himself in the hand, according to a report with the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies responded with EMS as is standard protocol in any case involving gunshot wounds.  While deputies...

Back to back murder trials for a Columbus County man could send him to death row. Jury selection starts Monday as Chauncey Askew goes on trial for the first degree murder of Jerome Parrott in 2016. Court officials said that as soon as that trial is over, jury selection will begin for the capital murder for the killing of Trooper Kevin Conner in 2018. The trials were moved...