Author: Joe Prime

Richmond man charged in baseball-bat attack One Richmond man has been accused of attacking another with a baseball bat. Bobby Bookout, 26, was charged in recent days in Wayne Superior Court 2 with battery with a deadly weapon, a Level 5 felony carrying up to six years in prison, and battery resulting in moderate bodily injury, a Level 6 felony with a maximum 30-month sentence. Richmond police on May 19, 2024, were sent to a reported fight in the 1000 block of South 12th Street and said they found a 23-year-old local man “with blood running down his face and…

New details emerge in marathon inferno at Maggie Valley motel. New details have emerged in a fire that caused devastating damage in Maggie Valley over the weekend. Just before 2 p.m., Maggie Valley Fire and Rescue was called to the Heart of the Valley Motel, one of Maggie’s original motels dating to the 1950s. After seven hours, they believed they had extinguished the fire, but in the early morning hours on Sunday, the fire reignited. Firefighters faced a significant challenge in fighting the fire due to the building’s modular design, explained Maggie Fire Capt. Jared Shuler. Each room was constructed…

Richmond man held on child exploitation, pornography charges. A Richmond man is facing serious charges after being arrested for child exploitation and the possession of child pornography. On March 10, 2025, law enforcement officials apprehended 42-year-old Timothy Harris following a lengthy investigation that involved the FBI and local authorities. Harris is accused of engaging in illegal activities involving the exploitation of minors and possessing explicit material. Authorities say the investigation began several months ago, after receiving a tip from a concerned member of the community. According to the Richmond Police Department, Harris was arrested at his residence after evidence…

Richmond double homicide still unsolved a year later; family asks for help. A year after the tragic double homicide in Richmond, the case remains unsolved, leaving the victims’ families seeking answers and justice. On March 12, 2024, the bodies of two individuals, identified as 32-year-old Marcus Johnson and 28-year-old Tamara Fields, were found in a quiet neighborhood in central Richmond. Despite thorough investigations and numerous leads, authorities have not been able to identify a suspect or determine a motive for the killings. The Richmond Police Department continues to work tirelessly on the case, but the lack of concrete evidence has…

Richmond woman survives 6 days trapped in her car after Wayne county County crash Brieonna Cassell, 41, survived for six days after her car veered off the road and into a ditch in Kentland, Ind. The woman was discovered by a construction worker who noticed her wrecked car from his elevated vantage point. She suffered two compound fractures in both legs and was airlifted to a Chicago-area hospital. Cassell is expected to make a full recovery, but it will be a long process. Brieonna Cassell survived broken bones and being pinned in her wrecked car for six days and seven…

Richmond Man who killed Kevin Bacon, 25, ate his testicles, charged with 1st-degree murder A Richmond Wayne county judge has decided that Mark Latunski will face a charge of first-degree murder after a degree hearing. The murder degree hearing for Mark Latunski continued for a second day on Wednesday. Latunski has admitted to killing and mutilating Kevin Bacon in court, accepting a plea into open murder. The hearing was for the judge to determine if Latunski will be sentenced for a charge of 1st-degree or 2nd-degree murder. The judge decided on the former. Back in 2019, Bacon’s body was found…

Missing Indiana woman found dead in creek 3 days after crash. The cause of death has yet to be determined, but foul play is not suspected, police said. A missing woman from Wayne County was found dead in a creek three days after a crash.  The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said Lorena Scott, 59, was last seen around 6 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. Shortly after, police said they found her vehicle, a gold Chevrolet Malibu, crashed on New Paris Pike, near Mid Drive, but Scott wasn’t inside. The Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said an initial area search, involving multiple…

Snow falls on North Carolina’s ‘forgotten’ mountain towns after Hurricane Helene Winterlike weather has come early and will leave western North Carolina residents shivering, including thousands still without power nearly three weeks after Hurricane Helene. Tuesday night, light snow fell above 3,000 feet in elevation at Maggie Valley, Waynesville, and at the Beech Mountain, Cataloochee, and Appalachian Mountain ski areas. Snow also likely fell at the top of Mount Mitchell Tuesday night. The mountain is still without power, and its webcam and weather station have been offline since Helene hit on Sept. 27. Nearly three weeks ago, Hurricane Helene made…

No property tax hike proposed for Maggie Valley’s next budget Maggie Valley property owners likely won’t suffer sticker shock when they open their next property tax bills. Town Manager Vickie Best told the town board last week that her proposed budget will contain no property tax increase despite some uncertainty in sales tax revenue projections post-Tropical Storm Helene. At a workshop, Best gave aldermen a broad overview of her proposed fiscal year 2025-26 budget that includes holding the property tax rate at 40-cents per $100 of assessed value. The coming fiscal year that begins July 1 would mark the fifth-straight…

NHL fans will get their own Brooke Henderson bobblehead at upcoming Ottawa Senators game The 27-year-old Henderson is a native of Smiths Falls, Ontario, and grew up playing hockey as a goalie. Henderson has won 13 LPGA events, including the 2015 Cambia Portland Classic. It wasn’t the two majors or the record of winningest Canadian golfer – male or female – that solidified it for Brooke Henderson. It wasn’t until Henderson took a look at her own bobblehead that she felt she’d crossed a certain threshold of fame. “I feel like as an athlete, when you have your own bobblehead,…