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Community Corner

šŸŒ±Multi-County Strike Team + City Lawyer on $6 Million Payout Decision

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Christina Fullford, Neighbor
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(Patch)

Happy Earth Day Durham!

First, today's weather:

Sunny to partly cloudy. High: 81 Low: 55.

Here are the top five stories in Durham today:

  1. The April 9 incident in which an unmarked police car was shot at has raised many questions as the officers were from the Alamance County sheriff's office. Durham County Sheriff Clarence Birkhead says that the units were part of a "strike team," between Alamance, Orange, Guilford, and Durham counties. The partnership is aimed at picking up gun and drug runners, and stopping gang activity in the areas of Interstates 40 and 85. (INDY Week)
  2. In Mayor Elain O'Neal's State of the City address, she talked about one possible solution for some of Durham's gun violence. The model she outlined is in place in Wilmington, where the New Hanover County Jail was transformed into a supercenter for community support services. O'Neal hopes to bring a similar concept to Durham and emphasized that, "These are not pipe dreams. These are things people are doing." (abc11)
  3. An attorney for the city of Durham is speaking out in defense of the city council's controversial decision to not pay the $6 million compensation to Darryl Anthony Howard. City attorney Kim Rehberg claimed that some media reports regarding Howard are "rife with misstatements, mischaracterizations, and falsehoods." The lawsuit that awarded Howard the $6 million was against retired detective Darrell Dowdy who fabricated evidence and engaged in bad faith failure to investigate, and Rehberg cited a variety of reasons that the council elected not to pay on Dowdy's behalf. (FoxNews)
  4. A flight out of Raleigh-Durham International was unable to take off after an unknown odor was detected. There were 152 people deplaned off American Airlines flight 1894, and one person was transported to WakeMed after EMS kept two people for further inspection. RDU officials have not identified the odor at this time. (WBTW)
  5. The North Carolina Supreme Court agreed on Wednesday to give Special Superior Court Judge Michael Robinson a seven day extension. Robinson requested the extension on Tuesday while citing differences between the legal parties over details and numerous documents to review. The Supreme Court tasked Robinson with reviewing Judge David Lee's order and originally gave him until Wednesday to report findings. (Spectrum News 1)

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Today in Durham:

Bonus: 10 Things to do with kids (WRAL) & weekend best bets (WRAL).

From my notebook:

  • It's Earth Day and Durham's official Earth Day Festival is being held on Sunday, but if you want to party with mother nature today, Triangle on the Cheap has a list of all the Earth Day Celebrations today and coming soon.
  • Once Upon a Child is hosting a Blood Drive with The Blood Connection today from 10:00am-2:00pm.
  • The deadline to register for Durham Police Department's free week-long summer camps is on May 8. (Bull City Today Facebook)

More from our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

Events:

  • Prismatica Kaleidoscope Experience: A Color-Filled Exhibition of Lights and Reflections at The Streets at SouthPoint (See schedule)
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You're officially in the loop for today! I'll see you around.

— CJ Fullford

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