In a year of nationwide civil unrest, a global pandemic, a major election cycle and more, the Times-News has published thousands of stories on the latest events in and around Alamance County.
A collection of photos published alongside the Times-News' top 10 stories of 2020.
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The following stories, hyperlinked below, are what we believe to be the top 10 local stories published in 2020, in chronological order.
Officer involved shooting in Graham
Just before midnight on Jan. 28, Jaquyn Light, 20, was shot and killed by a Graham police officer serving a warrant for his arrest. According to police, officers were called to 716 E. Elm St. after an anonymous CrimeStoppers tip that said Light, who had outstanding warrants for two felony probation violations, misdemeanor communicating threats and misdemeanor simple assault, was at that residence. When police arrived, Light ran out of the front of the house where he encountered Graham police officer Marcus Pollock and was shot. He was unarmed.
Pollock’s body camera was not on at the time of the shooting, but was turned on shortly after as he handcuffed Light. The other two officers on scene had their cameras on, but were at the back of the house when the shot was fired and did not have footage of the incident.
Public outcry and a long investigation followed.
After six months of review by the State Bureau of Investigation and the Alamance County District Attorney’s Office, Pollock faced no prosecution. According to the DA’s office, Light ran into Pollock whole exiting the East Elm Street home, causing Pollock’s gun to go off in the collision.
“I believe that Mr. Light was not intending to harm the officer just as I believe the officer was not intending to harm Mr. Light, and it’s sometimes difficult for people not to have that clear resolution of somebody being at fault, but in some situations there is no fault beyond circumstance,” District Attorney Sean Boone said after the case was settled.
COVID-19 hits Alamance County
Alamance County confirmed its first COVID-19 case on March 20, marking the beginning on more than 9 months of rising case counts in the area. Just over a month later, the county’s first death was reported on April 23. By Dec. 29, the county had reported a total of 10,784 cases and 151 deaths.
The county saw a slower climb in case counts than many other parts of the state or the country, but numbers started rising quickly in June. By December, averages of over 100 new cases per day in any given week were common.
White residents between the ages of 20 and 39 have been most affected by the virus, according to the Alamance County Health Department, though a New York Times study conducted over the summer showed that minority populations were being disproportionately affected by the virus.
Alamance County schools remained on virtual learning by the end of the year and many businesses in the community were still struggling to stay afloat. Local government officials have tried to make funding and support available for these businesses throughout the year.
COVID-19 related news has dominated the pages of the Times-News this year, with over 1,000 stories connected to the virus published by local reporters and our USA TODAY colleagues.
Ace Speedway shut down by state
When COVID-19 restrictions in North Carolina began to loosen, Ace Speedway in northern Alamance County was eager to reopen its track for racing. On May 23, the first race was held drawing a large crowd. After two more weekends of racing with a large number of fans in attendance, state officials took notice – and they didn’t like what they were seeing.
On June 9, Gov. Roy Cooper and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services ordered the race track to shut down, declaring the speedway an “imminent hazard for the spread of COVID-19.” Local officials had been warned the day prior that they needed to take action, but Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson refused to cite the track.
On June 11, the case went to court and a temporary restraining order was issued telling Ace not to hold any events until further court proceedings. On June 24, the court ruled in favor of the NCDHHS and the track was closed until it could propose a plan that followed statewide capacity limits and safety guidelines.
The track reopened in early October.
Confederate monument sparks protests
In the wake of the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis on May 25, Alamance County saw frequent protests throughout the summer, many of which called for the removal of the Confederate monument in Graham’s Court Square. Several states of emergency and curfews were enacted on the days of these protests in an effort by Graham officials to clear the streets.
During one such protest on June 20, a husband and wife were assaulted by two counter-protesters who were then arrested.
“If Graham is the last city with a Confederate statue standing, it will very likely become a lightning rod drawing in protesters and counter-protesters throughout North Carolina and surrounding states,” Tony Crider, one of the assault victims, said at the time. “I fear that it will turn into a lightning rod that will lead to violence.”
That same week, County Manager Bryan Hagood sent an email to the county commissioners recommending that they move the monument to a new location. The commissioners shot down that proposal, despite petitions and letters sent to local officials that also called for the removal.
In August, over 1,000 residents voted on a mock referendum, with more than 700 voters calling for the removal of the monument from Court Square. No official action has been taken to move the statue as of Dec. 30.
Rare earthquake felt in Alamance, beyond
In a rare occurrence, Alamance County residents felt the rumble of a 5.1-magnitude earthquake on Aug. 9. The earthquake’s epicenter was in Sparta, about 120 miles from Burlington, according to the United States Geological Survey. The quake felt at 8:07 a.m. was the second of the day after an earlier 2.6-magnitude quake affected Sparta just before 2 a.m.
According to the USGS database, the earthquake was the strongest to occur in the state since a 5.1-magnitude quake in 1916. The Aug. 9 earthquake was also rare due to its location in the interior of the North American tectonic plate.
“Earthquakes in North Carolina are uncommon, but in the area – its called the Eastern Tennessee Seismic Zone – we have had a number of earthquakes over the years,” Paul Caruso with the United States Geological Survey Earthquake Information Center said.
Significant earthquakes with magnitudes greater than 5 in the Eastern Tennessee Seismic Zone are rare though, he said
Protests take aim at Alamance jail, more issues
In addition to the Confederate monument protests held over the summer, local activists also took the streets in Graham to protest outside the Alamance County Jail, which, at the time, had an outbreak of COVID-19.
Deputies arrested four protesters, including two event organizers and speakers, at a demonstration Sept. 8 focusing on the COVID surge in the county jail. Protesters marched to the jail and gathered in the parking lot, where they weren’t allowed to be, and didn’t vacate quickly enough for deputies.
By the end of September, more than 20 people had been arrested at protests in Graham. Two were arrested at the previously mentioned June 20 Confederate monument protest, two more were arrested on July 11 at the March for Justice and Community, four people including some Alamance NAACP members were arrested July 25 for standing inside barricades near the Confederate monument, three were charged Sept. 21 after a county commissioners’ meeting and another was charged Sept. 23. Seven more arrests came on Sept. 26 at the “We’re Still Here” march.
Burlington Royals restructured
The Burlington Royals were one of 42 teams in the Appalachian League that fell into limbo in late 2019 as Minor League Baseball announced that some teams could be shut down in an effort to restructure. Owners of the team as well as city officials spent a long time fighting the shut down, citing its importance to the community and local economy.
In September of this year, the announcement came that the rookie-level professional league will become an amateur wooden-bat summer league for rising college freshmen and sophomores.
While the team did not play any games in 2020, former team general manager Ryan Keur purchased the club and named Anderson Rathbun the new general manager. In December, the team announced its 2021 season schedule, which begins in June.
Stop and search investigation
Times-News reporter Ahmed Jallow wrote an investigative story this year, revealing that, statistically, police in the Alamance County area are more likely to stop and search a Black driver.
In the police agencies in and near Burlington, Black drivers are stopped 58 percent more often than white drivers, when you consider demographics, Jallow found after two months of investigation.
Once local police have pulled someone over, they are also more likely to search the driver or their vehicle if the driver is Black compared to if they are white, Jallow found. According to his investigation:
- In Alamance County, you are almost 50 percent more likely to be searched if you’re a Black driver who was stopped than if you are white.
- In Burlington, you are 64 percent more likely to be searched if you’re a Black driver who was stopped than if you are white.
- In Mebane, you are 40 percent more likely to be searched if you’re a Black driver who was stopped than if you are white.
- In Graham, you are 86 percent more likely to be searched if you’re a Black driver who was stopped than if you are white.
Jallow collected comments from county law enforcement agencies, local government officials and the Southern Coalition for Justice to round out his story.
Oct. 31 protest draws national attention, lawsuits
Alamance County drew national attention after protesters were pepper-sprayed and arrested at an Oct. 31 march to the polls in Graham.
A crowd of about 200 people headed from the AME Church to the county courthouse to speak near a polling location about voting rights. They marched over a mile to the location, the site of other summer protests over a Confederate statue and police brutality nationally. After the group on foot arrived at the scene and held a moment of silence, officers with the Graham Police Department doused them with pepper spray while telling the civil rights group to get out of the street.
According to law enforcement officers, the protesters violated their protest permit by bringing a gas-powered generator onto the courthouse grounds. At that point, the Sheriff’s Office deemed the protest unlawful and began dispersing the crowd. Law enforcement officials said announcements were made that the crowd needed to disperse, but when that did not happen quickly enough, pepper spray was used. A Graham police officer was allegedly assaulted during this time as well.
Among the 23 people arrested that day were a member of the media and five student journalists from Elon University as well as march organizers. Rev. Gregory Drumwright, who organized and led the march, was charged with felony assault with physical injury on a law enforcement officer and felony obstructing justice in addition to his previous charge of misdemeanor failure to disperse on command in relation to the event. All other arrests were on misdemeanor charges.
Less than a week after the protest, a lawsuit was filed, alleging that Graham police and the sheriff's deputies deliberately and premeditatedly attacked peaceful protesters, including children, the elderly and disabled, with pepper spray. A second lawsuit was filed charging the Sherriff’s Office and Graham police with voter suppression.
On Dec. 4, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina ruled that the cases should be consolidated. Both lawsuits stemmed from the same event, and the court ruled they examine a "common question of law." The merged lawsuit says Alamance County Sherriff Terry Johnson and Graham Police Chief Kristy Cole violated the first and fourteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution, the Voting Rights Act and the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, which was passed after the Civil War to protect civil rights.
In two court cases relating to arrests from this protest, an Alamance County District Court Judge Fred Wilkins banned the public and the media from the courtroom. This action prompted a lawsuit filed by North Carolina newspapers that remains unresolved.
Small businesses persevere through COVID-19
As COVID-19 arrived in North Carolina, state officials issued executive orders shuttering non-essential businesses and urging residents to stay at home to limit community transmission of the virus. Area businesses were forced to close temporarily and others who stayed open struggled with decreased customer traffic and revenues. At least two businesses in the area – Yo!Zone Frozen Treats and STEAM Junction – shut down permanently due to these struggles, though more closures that were not reported to the Times-News are possible. Economic aid programs were created, challenges to shop local were issued and county residents rallied around restaurants trying to keep them afloat with takeout orders.
Despite the challenges of the pandemic, Alamance County has seen more than a dozen new businesses launch this year and has heard stories of perseverance from others. From shifting to ecommerce, upping takeout orders, transitioning manufacturing efforts to PPE production and more, Alamance County has risen to the challenge to the best of its ability.
The Times-News has covered a number of these stories, some of which are linked above.
This article originally appeared on Times-News: Times-News' top 10 stories of 2020
