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LOUISBURG -- District Attorney Mike Waters concluded that a Franklin County sheriff's deputy acted lawfully when the officer fatally shot a man in December 2023.
Samuel Joseph Tripp III, 59, died from injuries he sustained in the confrontation inside his Cheves Road home.
State law, Waters said, imposes two common-sense tests to determine wether an officer-involved shooting is justified:

FRANKLINTON -- Franklin County commissioners and school board members completed their tour of Franklin County's public schools last week.
Last April, county commissioners agreed to establish the committee, made up of officials and staff from both the school board and county commissioners.
Late last year, both boards agreed to tour the school system's 16 public schools in an effort to better understand facility and budgeting needs.
On March 6, officials, along with school system administrators and staff visited Franklinton Elementary School and Franklinton Middle School, rounding out the facilities tour.

LOUISBURG -- Barring some last-minute adjustments, the Franklin County Board of Education will be requesting $3,960,648.86 from the Franklin County commissioners to cover various capital expenditures over the 2025-26 school year.
That request is almost double what the district requested in Cap-X funding last year but the district's upcoming current expense request of $30.5 million is what it received in this school year. Of that total, $8.5 million "flowed through" to charter schools and will again this year.

The history of the Colored Fire Company is not very well documented. However, this group of men played an important role in the history of the Louisburg Fire Department. Although lacking some of the equipment, gear, and training in the early years after the formation of the company, there was considerable interest and willingness to respond to fire alarms.
The Louisburg Hose and Reel Team was formed in 1931. (Most early fire departments were called a "Reel Team.")

The Kerr-Tar Area Agency on Aging will hold Region K Senior Games Opening Ceremonies beginning at 10 a.m. Friday, March 21.
The annual event to kick-off the local Senior Games this year will be held at the Aycock Recreation Center, 307 Carey Chapel Rd., Henderson. Opening remarks will be made by Melissa Elliott, Henderson mayor, Hassan Kingsberry, Henderson city manager, Jeremy Jones, assistant manager for Vance County and Shantel Hargrove, assistant director of Aycock Recreation Center.

LOUISBURG -- A church family who alleges they were wrongly arrested a year ago has filed a lawsuit against the county and sheriff's deputies who investigated the matter.
Franklin County sheriff's deputies took out warrants against Kenneth Neil Jones, 64, of Beasley Road, Rachel Christian Jones, 41, of Dyking Road, and Imre Briscoe Balazsi, 46, of Williamson Street, charging them with misdemeanor assault of an individual with disabilities and false imprisonment.

A number of students were saluted by the Franklin County Board of Education Monday night for being the best at their school displaying "acceptance and tolerance," the character traits the district emphasized in February.
Here are the students:

There have been a couple of strange, unusual sightings around Franklin County in recent days -- and they aren't products of the brisk, often chilly winds which have left little doubt about what month it is.
March came in like a lion with some very seasonal winds, some much-needed rainfall and temperatures that were downright chilly for a couple of days.
In other words, March 2025 is exactly like what March is supposed to be like!

I've been a reporter since the spring of 1998 and during my tenures at the New Bern Sun Journal, the Lynchburg News & Advance and your The Franklin Times, I have covered cops and courts in some form or another -- either as a nights and weekends fill in, or as the primary beat reporter.
As someone who grew up watching "L.A. Law" and "Law & Order," I quickly realized televised courtroom drama and real-life courtroom "drama" were too different things.

Louisburg police, fire crews and emergency medical staff responded to this two-vehicle wreck on Bickett Boulevard Tuesday at about 6:40 p.m. Above, a driver and passenger, including a dog, escaped serious injury while riding in a sport utility vehicle that was turned onto its side after impact from a vehicle that t-boned it on the passenger side.

LOUISBURG -- A Youngsville contractor was sentenced to just more than two years in prison for billing a Louisburg man for roof work he never did.
The Feb. 25 hearing in Franklin County Superior Court underscores a litany of similar legal troubles for Timothy Earl Sherron.
According to court records and Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Fitzgerald, in March 2023, Sherron cheated Vincent Allen Austin out of $4,100 when he collected money for roof work he never performed.

LOUISBURG -- The case against a man accused of shooting his neighbors was continued until next month.
Franklin County sheriff's deputies arrested Todd R. Rogers on April 6, 2022 -- a day after authorities allege he shot Sharon Gourley, Jason Gourley and Jacob Gourley during an apparent neighbor dispute.
The wife, husband and son sustained gunshots to the face, arms and chest, but their injuries were not life threatening.

RALEIGH -- Black infants are dying at triple the rate of white infants, a 2023 State Child Fatality Task Force Report has revealed.
The 2023 Infant and Child Mortality Data from the report shows non-Hispanic Black and American Indian children have higher mortality rates compared to other racial and ethnic groups.
In 2023, the disparity worsened, with black infants dying at rates three times higher than white infants.

LOUISBURG -- Terrell Lane Middle School made it a three-peat when the Tornados secured the MAC-10 wrestling crown at Franklinton High.
The Tornadoes were able to defend their title, holding off runner up Cedar Creek.
Bunn Middle and Ravenscroft tied for third place in the nine-school tournament.

LOUISBURG -- Louisburg Magnet High School wrestlers wrapped up the 2024-25 campaign with conference and state honors.
Coach Albert Long was named the Northern Lakes 2A-3A Coach of the Year.
Team members and accomplishments in the 2024-2025 wrestling season for the girls team included Caitlyn Jordan, LeNessa Lee, and Leyla Dale.

Above, senior twins Brandon Nolasco-Rayo, who finished third in the 120-pound weight class, and Braulio Nolasco-Rayo, who finished fifth in the 126-pound weight class, achieved the "Legacy" goal and their names will be listed on the wrestling banner for the 2024-25 season. They are joined by Coach Albert Long, right, and LaTeshia Long.

These Louisburg Magnet High School wrestlers hit the Elite Wrestling Milestone and earned more than 100 wins for their career. Left to right are Braulio Nolasco-Rayo, who hit the mark on December 7, Stephen Lamm, who earned the distinction on Jan. 17, and Brandon Nolasco-Rayo, who hit the mark on Dec. 7.

LOUISBURG -- The Louisburg Town Council moved quickly Tuesday evening to rectify two pending personnel problems and to rezone a 25.5 acre tract to potentially allow for a 94-home development.
The council hired Epsom resident Russell Fuller as its new fire chief, filling a position that has been vacant since late last year.
Fuller, a veteran fireman with the Cary Fire Department, begins his duties immediately. He has been a professional fire fighter for 26 years.

Loyal subscriber Joyce Newell

FRANKLINTON, NC -- Peggy Lou Moore, 90, died March 5, 2025 at her home in Franklinton, NC.

Louisburg, NC -- Graveside services for George Thomas Holden, who died on Thursday, March 6, 2025, will be held on Saturday, March 15, at 11 a.m. from the Haywood Baptist Church, Louisburg, NC.

Henderson, NC -- Funeral services for Alice Walker Harris, who died on Thursday, March 6, 2025, were held on Tuesday, March 11, at 2 p.m. from the Clearview Church, Henderson, NC. Pastor Abidan Shah, PHD, officiating.

Warrenton, NC -- Graveside services for William Richardson, who died on Thursday, March 6, 2025, were held on Tuesday, March 11, at 11 a.m. from the St. Jones Family Cemetery, Warrenton, NC.