704 Unfiltered

 On Tuesday morning part of Interstate 485 outer loop in Matthews was closed due to a crash that left one person dead. 

More than 1,700 people were killed in car crashes in 2021. The 5% increase from 2020 made 2021 the deadliest on North Carolina streets in two decades. Officials say so far this year, the trend seems to be leveling out.

“The roads have not changed significantly since 2020. Driver behavior has changed significantly,” Mark Ezzell, the director of the North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program, said.

That includes distractions behind the wheel. State data shows over the last five years, there has been a 15% increase in distracted driving-related accidents and fatalities. So far this year 117 people have died in distracted driving accidents, one more than this time last year.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/traffic/north-carolina-deadliest-roads-drivers-death-data/275-674f8ee8-720b-423b-bf0a-3b8643d9e3a7

The Epicentre has a new name: Queen City Quarter.

Global Commercial Real Estate Services announced Tuesday it will lead marketing, property management and renovations at the 302,324-square-foot Epicentre mixed-use development in Uptown Charlotte. 

CBRE said its renovation project will "enhance the visitor experience." The property has been renamed Queen City Quarter, inspired by Charlotte’s nickname, “The Queen City.”

“It’s a chance to bring a fresh approach, a new vision to the property,” Compie Newman, managing director of CBRE, said.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/epicentre-queen-city-quarter-charlotte-uptown-new-name-branding/275-e056161d-633a-4893-8db6-a81beb305c0a

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

Plus, on this edition of #WakeUpCLT To Go, forecaster Larry Sprinkle and Chris Mulcahy have the latest update on Hurricane Ian. The powerful Category 4 storm is approaching landfall along the Florida coast with sustained winds of 140 mph, as well as heavy rain and life-threatening storm surge.

An eighth grader was arrested by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for reportedly making threats of "mass violence" against Southwest Middle School in Charlotte, CMPD said.

According to police, on Sept. 19, school staff alerted a school resource officer at Southwest Middle School that a massing shooting threat had been posted on Instagram.

Officers were able to track the Instagram account to an eighth-grade student. They talked to the student at their home, and the student reportedly admitted to making the threat and was arrested.

"Making a school threat is not a prank - it's a crime," CMPD tweeted after announcing the arrest.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/14-year-old-arrested-making-mass-violence-threats/275-18bfa96e-bcb4-45aa-b857-4fb427d8bcc7

 The South Carolina House of Representatives returns Tuesday to vote on an abortion bill passed earlier this month by the state Senate.

The Senate's proposal would ban abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy and reduce the exceptions included in the state’s current “fetal heartbeat” law.

House Republicans like Melissa Oremus (R-Aiken) and her Freedom Caucus colleagues are expressing disappointment over the changes. 

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/politics/amended-abortion-bill-back-south-carolina-house/101-e6e4cdb9-7229-4a17-acb7-30e9932de050

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

It took until Week 3, but the Carolina Panthers have their first win of the season.

The Panthers took control of the game early using a strong defense, commendable offense, and undeniable determination to defeat the New Orleans Saints 22-7 at home on Sunday.

Both teams traded punts to open the first three possessions but things changed quickly with five minutes left in the 1st Quarter. Alvin Kamara fumbled and Marquis Haynes Sr. recovered the ball for Carolina and took it back 44 yards for a touchdown.

Both offenses struggled during the first half with only the Panthers adding points. Carolina added two Eddy Piñeiro field goals to go up 13-0 at the half. 

The Saints' best chance to score came on an 11-play 70-yard drive in the closing minutes of the 2nd Quarter that took them into the red zone before the Panthers blocked a 30-yard field goal that would have given New Orleans their first points of the game.

The Saints drove back into scoring territory to open the 3rd Quarter but another field goal attempt failed when Will Lutz sailed his kick wide right.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/sports/nfl/panthers/carolina-panthers-look-to-continue-to-fluster-winston-get-first-win-of-the-season-vs-saints/275-89c1e7ae-dfd1-4884-95fa-c2d91a38f1ca

The Conover Police Department is investigating after remains were found in the shallow grave behind a home in Conover.

On Friday, officers received word about a body possibly being buried in the backyard of a home on Fourth Avenue SW in Conover. 

Conover officers, the Catawba County Sheriff's Office and NC State Bureau of Investigation officials found what appeared to be a shallow grave behind the home.

Remains were found in the grave, although they did not appear to be recent, police said.

The remains were taken to Wake Forest Baptist Hospital to determine if they were human remains or other remains, police said.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/police-investigating-remains-found-behind-conover-home-sbi/275-40dcbe7a-651d-4333-86b4-d479567abe2f

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

Emails released between state officials show that Gaston County Schools administrators were advised to not transition to a payroll system that has led to missing paychecks and retirement funds.

North Carolina Representative Kelly Hastings (R-110) revealed emails between him and Eric Moore, North Carolina General Assembly Fiscal Analyst, that show partially what led to payroll issues impacting Gaston County Schools.

The email chain begins on Thursday, Sept. 8 when a concerned employee reached out to Hastings asking for help with the payroll issues at the school district.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/gaston-county-shools-were-advised-to-delay-use-of-system-causing-payroll-issues-state-officials-confirm-north-carolina-kelly-hastings/275-caf8720e-d1a6-4440-b1dc-2df96a3de9e0

In a stark repudiation of Donald Trump's legal arguments, a federal appeals court on Wednesday permitted the Justice Department to resume its use of classified records seized from the former president's Florida estate as part of its ongoing criminal investigation.

The ruling from a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit amounts to an overwhelming victory for the Justice Department, clearing the way for investigators to continue scrutinizing the documents as they consider whether to bring criminal charges over the storage of of top-secret records at Mar-a-Lago after Trump left the White House. In lifting a hold on a core aspect of the department's probe, the court removed an obstacle that could have delayed the investigation by weeks.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/nation-world/court-lifts-hold-mar-a-lago-documents-trump/507-63875e8c-f22c-4c39-a7ad-57049f392756

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

 New York’s attorney general sued former President Donald Trump and his company for fraud on Wednesday, alleging they padded his net worth by billions of dollars by lying about the value of prized assets including golf courses, hotels and his homes at Trump Tower and Mar-a-Lago.

Attorney General Letitia James dubbed it: “The art of the steal.”

James' lawsuit, filed in state court in New York, is the culmination of a three-year civil investigation of Trump and the Trump Organization. Trump’s three eldest children, Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric Trump, were also named as defendants, along with two longtime company executives, Allen Weisselberg and Jeffrey McConney.

The lawsuit strikes at the core of what made Trump famous, taking a blacklight to the image of wealth and opulence he’s embraced throughout his career — first as a real estate developer, then as a reality TV host on “The Apprentice” and “Celebrity Apprentice,” and later as president.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/nation-world/new-york-attorney-general-sues-donald-trump-donald-junior-ivanka-trump-eric-trump/507-c0ef0bec-c459-4707-8b26-1dfc01159004

More than half of all bomb threats against the United States were reported against schools, according to data from the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

Two Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools were put on lockdown after bomb threats were reported Wednesday morning. Cox Mill High School was evacuated again Wednesday following another bomb threat.

The threats are the latest in a series of threats this week, including threats Tuesday against multiple schools in Cabarrus County.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/school-bomb-threats-increasing-data-review/275-d16debd3-974b-42f3-a225-da7c66ad4776

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

The Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners has voted to approve guidelines by which all property values in the county are assessed. 

It's one of the final steps in the reappraisal process of all 400,000 properties in the county. 

The county has been working on reassessing property values for the past two years, which could lead to property taxes going up for thousands of homeowners. The new values will be released to homeowners in January 2023.

The last time there was a county-wide reappraisal was in 2019. 

In the commissioners' Sept. 20 meeting, they passed the "Uniform schedules of values, standards and rules for the 2023 county-wide reappraisal," which lays out how the value adjustments are made.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/mecklenburg-county-board-commissioners-county-reappraisal-process/275-fff0c872-da96-44fb-a7c2-2e16edcb5048

Carowinds announced a new chaperone policy Tuesday following an incident Saturday that set off a panic among guests. 

The new policy requires all guests under the age of 17 to be accompanied by a chaperone who is at least 21 years old during SCarowinds hours. 

"We are implementing additional security protocols, including a new chaperone policy that will be introduced tomorrow," a spokesperson for the amusement park said Monday in a released statement.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/carowinds-introduce-chaperone-policy/275-f4167b99-5dbf-407e-925b-c55463ee1411

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

Gaston County school employees made their voices heard at the Gaston County Board of Education meeting on Monday.

In a post on social media, NCAE President Pam Miller called for students, parents and concerned citizens to participate in a rally and walk-in at the BOE meeting Monday evening. 

The rally began at 5 p.m., just outside the school district headquarters, with several educators joining together to demand a solution to these payroll problems, including a hardship bonus.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/gason-co-ncae-rally-board-of-education-meeting/275-d0f8561e-2683-4326-a91a-94afbed7e31a

House Democrats are voting this week on changes to a 19th century law for certifying presidential elections, their strongest legislative response yet to the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection and former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat.

The vote to overhaul the Electoral Count Act, expected Wednesday, comes as a bipartisan group of senators is moving forward with a similar bill. Lawmakers in both parties have said they want to change the arcane law before it is challenged again.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/nation-world/house-democrats-electoral-count-act/507-32e34fac-097f-413a-9c57-54ed64dbee49

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

The Carowinds theme park closed early Saturday night, but park officials said unruly guest behavior led to panic inside.

The amusement park kicked off the spooky season with Scarowind this weekend. However, a night of thrills turned into a night of horror for families.

“We were walking normally then out of nowhere a massive crowd of probably like, between 50 and 100 people running towards us screaming. So, we ducked over and got out of the way. It was chaotic,” said Bethany Bloomer.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/unruly-behavior-carowinds-charlotte-nc-crime-local/275-922b00d9-ea24-493d-bab0-c183df3cc4af

In the past few years there’s been plenty of change as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and experts say with that change can come stress and trauma. 

"A lot of people have physically lost family members to death, there’s been lost some sense of safety and innocence that we once had," Victor Armstrong with Recovering Innovations International said.

North Carolina ranks 12th in the US for states dealing with mental health struggles.

READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/health/nc-students-dealing-with-added-stress-from-pandemic/275-dad3017c-b790-40ee-b9eb-04994c7da3dd

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

Mecklenburg County is expanding access to monkeypox vaccination appointments as cases continue to climb in the Charlotte area. Richard DeVayne has details on who is eligible for walk-in appointments as health officials in Charlotte attempt to contain the virus before it spreads even further.

Tens of thousands of people are waiting in miles-long lines to pay their final respects to Queen Elizabeth II. Jay Gray joins Wake Up Charlotte To Go from London, where the royal family is preparing for the Queen's funeral with thousands of mourners saying goodbye to the beloved ruler.

Plus, Starbucks is making big changes. Ben Thompson connects the dots on what you can expect when it comes to getting your morning coffee faster and why the company believes these changes will raise employee morale.

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT! 

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is calling on state lawmakers to pass legislation that would exempt those who have their student loans forgiven from paying state income tax. Under current North Carolina law, forgiven loans are considered income, thus making anyone whose loans are forgiven responsible for around $500 for every $10,000. Wake Up Charlotte's Richard DeVayne has the details on Cooper's plan and how it could affect those hoping to have their debt erased.

State regulators have begun weeks of testimony over how Duke Energy can reduce carbon emissions. But the cost of going green may be passed down to customers through higher utility bills, critics say. Ben Thompson connects the dots on Duke's proposed measures and how state leaders will make a decision on the best way to move forward without hurting consumers.

Plus, we have details on the ongoing legal battle between David Tepper's real estate firm and local governments in South Carolina over the Panthers' failed training facility, Larry Sprinkle has your complete forecast and more on #WakeUpCLT To Go!

Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT!