Press Releases

Free legal assistance is available to survivors in Buncombe, Haywood and Transylvania counties who were affected by Tropical Storm Fred.

Offender Angelo Smith (#1507327) died Friday at Pamlico Correctional Institution after an apparent suicid

The State of North Carolina and FEMA have approved a hazard mitigation project grant of $1,040,864 to improve disaster resilience in Currituck County. The grant will be used to pay for the elevation of seven flood-prone homes in Corolla, Grandy, Barco, Moyock, Grandy and Currituck.

RALEIGH—To make prisons safer and more secure, the North Carolina prison system is changing the way offenders receive mail.

The N.C. Department of Public Safety will host a Juvenile Justice hiring event at the Cabarrus Youth Development Center (850 Holshouser Road, Concord, 28027) on Thursday, Sept. 16, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

Survivors should be aware that con artists and criminals may try to obtain money or steal personal information through fraud, scams or identity theft. In some cases, thieves try to apply for FEMA assistance using names, addresses and Social Security numbers they have stolen from survivors.

The Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice has named Stephen Jacobs as the new warden of Scotland Correctional Institution in Laurinburg.Jacobs, 53, had been the warden at Tabor Correctional Institution in Tabor City.

The White House and FEMA have granted Governor Roy Cooper’s Aug. 27 request for a major disaster declaration for seven North Carolina counties that were hit hard by floods after Tropical Storm Fred.

Offender Tyler Lanier (#1525824) died Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021, at Scotland Correctional Institution after an apparent suicide.

The Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice has named Mary Locklear as the new warden of the Lumberton Correctional Institution in Lumberton.She had been the assistant superintendent for custody at the prison since 2019.

Last night, ALE special agents partnered with local law enforcement in a statewide operation that yielded a large number of arrests, charges and the seizure of drugs, guns and cash.

The N.C. Housing Opportunities and Prevention of Evictions (HOPE) Program has distributed more than $342 million in rent and utility payment to 96,944 North Carolina households since opening last fall.

On Aug. 21, Rutherford Correctional Center offender Christopher Ruona (#0785069) was pronounced dead at a local hospital after falling ill due to unknown causes.

RALEIGH — An officer at Columbus Correctional Institution in Whiteville was assaulted this morning by an offender.

RALEIGH — A staffing shortage at two Asheville-area prisons has led to a temporary reconfiguring of staff and offenders.