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LOUISBURG -- The Franklin County Board of Commissioners plan to rezone the county and held a hearing to gauge public sentiment. And, property owners let them have it.
"Redistribution of wealth and some retaliation is what this [Unified Development Ordinance] is all about," said Youngsville resident Frank Winstead. "Sixteen thousand changes are buried in that proposal.

LOUISBURG -- The demand for COVID-19 vaccination is waning, county health officials said.
However, not nearly enough people in Franklin County have been vaccinated to trigger herd immunity.
And, there are two troubling issues on the horizon, said Franklin County Health Director Scott LaVigne:

This sport utility vehicle crashed into the front of Cuts & Curls Beauty Service on Bickett Boulevard on Friday afternoon. No injuries were reported in the crash that occurred just before 1 p.m. According to authorities, a woman was going to the shop when, instead of applying the brake, she hit the gas pedal. The vehicle pushed in the front door and knocked out two glass windows at the front of the store.

LOUISBURG -- Police continue to look for a suspect or suspects in a shooting that sent a Louisburg man to the hospital.
The evening of April 28, Frankie McDonald Sutton, 25, was treated and released for injuries sustained in the shooting incident, authorities said.
Police are actively looking for suspects in the case, but have identified one man: Vernon Hicks, 26, of Louisburg.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County's assistant manager passed along an update on Open Broadband's efforts to bring better Internet service to the area.
Through William Doerfer, county commissioners passed a message back to Open Broadband's brass -- do better.
During the board's April meeting, Open Broadband executives told commissioners that they'd hooked up 39 residential customers.

Courtney Sabatini & Parents

It's May. And can you believe that a third of the "new" year is already behind us?
Once again, time seems to be flying and before you blink it will be high school graduation time -- and those who get their diplomas will be heading off to college, the military or beginning their working lives.

We're not totally out from under the cloud of COVID-19, but there is some sunshine coming -- both personally and professionally.
I've not taken to any social media platforms to tout personal health decisions, but for the purposes of this column, I'll share: I'm scheduled for my second COVID-19 vaccination shot this Thursday.

Dear editor:
I took time the other evening to watch the Presidential address by President Biden. I think a lot of the content is scary and it appears to be leading this country into socialism. It appears to me to be Karl Marx theory on steroids.

YOUNGSVILLE, NC- Harry Victor "Shorty" Bullock, 75, of Youngsville, died Monday, May 3, 2021 at his home.

LOUISBURG, NC -- Royster "Junior" Thorne Harris, Jr., 86, of Louisburg transitioned peacefully into eternal rest on Friday, April 17, 2020 at Brian Center in Durham. He was born August 22, 1933 to the late Royster T. and Alice Hunt Harris.

LOUISBURG, NC - Thomas Earl Morgan, 76, of Louisburg, died Monday morning, May 3, 2021.

TARBORO - Louisburg High School rolled into Tarboro with advancement to the NCHSAA Class 1-AA Football State Championship game on its agenda.
But it wasn't meant to be for the young, upstart Warriors, who were defeated 66-13 by powerful Tarboro Friday night in the East Regional Finals at the THS Football Field.

LOUISBURG -- Predictably unpredictable.
That's the best way to describe the annual Region X Baseball Tournament, where calamity often defies convention as the league's clubs spend a long weekend chasing a potential district spot.

STANHOPE -- Most quality soccer coaches agree upon this statement -- any rebuilding process begins along the back end, especially at keeper.
Southern Nash High School discovered that assessment back in 2018 when Kathryn Robinson took over in net as a freshman for a struggling program.
The Ladybirds didn't win a match that year, but Robinson was so highly thought of that she would eventually earn Big East Conference Player of the Year honors.

FRANKLIN COUNTY -- Franklin County boasted a strong senior class on the softball diamond -- a fact that helped both Louisburg and Franklinton qualify for the state playoffs in their respective classifications.
Louisburg managed to get into the Class 1-A State Playoffs out of the Northern Carolina Conference, and dropped a tough 6-4 home decision against Princeton in Monday's opening round of action.

LOUISBURG -- Leave no doubt.
That was the theme for Louisburg College softball coach Eric Lee heading into last Friday's key Region X rematch at Pitt Community College in Winterville.
One week earlier, the Lady Hurricanes had swept Pitt at home, meaning they needed to win just one contest during the reunion twinbill in order to claim the Region X East Division regular season championship.

BUNN -- Some players might have sulked through the year after their prep football career came to an abrupt end due to a serious injury.
But that isn't in Scott Casagrande's makeup. Instead, the Bunn High School senior became an impromptu volunteer coach for the Wildcats after suffering a torn ACL in the second week of the 2021 campaign.

ZEBULON -- The Milwaukee Brewers have announced the initial roster for the Carolina Mudcats in advance of the 2021 season opener.
The new roster features several of Milwaukee's top-rated prospects and native North Carolinians, including Raleigh's Noah Campbell, Creedmoor's Justin Bullock and Goldsboro's Ashton McGee.

Louisburg's Shamir Sheppard plows through the Tarboro defense during last Friday's game.

Louisburg High School senior Jaheim Brown enjoyed the best statistical season of any quarterback in LHS history. Brown has signed to play baseball at North Carolina A&T.

Louisburg's Stephen Falkner makes a sure tackle for the Warriors during last Friday night's road matchup at Tarboro in the Regional Finals of the Class 1-AA State Football Playoffs.

Last week, a woman mistakenly applied the gas instead of the brakes and crashed into this business on Bickett Boulevard the afternoon of April 30. The sport utility vehicle crashed into the front door and shattered two windows, sending glass and bricks inside Cuts & Curls Beauty Service. No injuries were reported. The driver is the mother of the building's owner. No chargers were filed.

YOUNGSVILLE -- A pair of domestic disputes led authorities to charge a local fire chief with communicating threats.
It was not immediately clear when Hopkins Fire Chief Robert Lovon Carter Jr., 50 would next appear in court to face the charge.
According to a report, Carter was arrested on May 3 following a verbal confrontation with his estranged wife at the sheriff's office parking lot.

YOUNGSVILLE -- Authorities continue to look for a missing Youngsville teen.
The N.C. Center for Missing Persons issued a Silver Alert for Moses Daniel Reyes, believed to be missing and endangered.
Reyes, 16, is believed to be suffering from dementia or some other cognitive impairment.

FRANKLINTON -- Sheriff's deputies arrested two out-of-state suspects on drug trafficking charges.
Marlon Bruff, 40, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, and Ramaro Higgins, 30, of Inglewood, Calif., were both charged with trafficking marijuana after a May 4 arrest.
According to the report, Officer A. Callahan made the arrest at the intersection of U.S. 1 and N.C. 56 in Franklinton.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County sheriff's deputies are looking for suspects who stole dogs.
The incident was reported the morning of May 4.
According to the report, it was alleged to have occurred in the 100 block of Galloping Way.

YOUNGSVILLE -- Franklin County sheriff's deputies are looking for suspects who stole from a construction site.
The incident was reported the morning of May 3 from Lot 14 at Stephens Way in the Youngsville area.
The matter remains under investigation.

A gas leak on Louisburg's South Main Street prompted police to reroute traffic from the scene at about 9 a.m. on Wednesday. According to authorities, a construction crew is believed to have hit a line, causing the leak.

LOUISBURG -- Prosecutors are attempting to expedite a nearly four-year-old murder case
Franklin County sheriff's deputies arrested Charles Pender on Sept. 5 2017, a day after they allege he shot and killed 28-year-old Montral Kearney outside a home on Marlless Drive near Franklinton.