By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Their faces illuminated by electric candlelight, students at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke wept as they gathered for the second time in less than a month to remember a friend who was shot and killed. Cameron Taylor, 22, was killed in a March 2 mass shooting when a fight […]
Rachel Baldauf
Rachel Baldauf is a reporter at the Border Belt Independent. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, where she helped produce in-depth stories for the Medill Investigative Lab.
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Daylight saving time remains controversial in southeastern N.C.
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Last Sunday, clocks across most of the country sprang forward an hour, marking the start of daylight saving time. The practice of shifting clocks forward an hour in the spring and back an hour in the fall is intended to make the most out of the amount of sunlight the Northern […]
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How can Bladen, Columbus and Robeson counties gain better access to food?
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Four open-house forums about the future of food access in southeastern North Carolina will take place across Bladen, Columbus and Robeson counties this month. The events, organized by N.C. State University’s Visioning Our Food Future project, will gather community input on how to improve residents’ access to healthy and affordable food. […]
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Despite efforts, Robeson County ranks last for traffic deaths. What needs to happen?
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org The N.C. Department of Transportation had an idea in 2018 to reduce traffic deaths in Robeson County, which has ranked the worst in the state for traffic safety for the past 20 years. The goal was to assemble a task force of community leaders to brainstorm solutions to traffic problems and […]
Posted inCourts & Justice
How a man charged with murder was released on bond and shot two Robeson County deputies
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Robeson County sheriff’s deputy Jonathan Walters had an uneasy feeling as he and his partner set out to arrest a suspect who was out on bond and cut off his ankle monitor. “It was just pretty much like a sixth sense,” said Walters, who has worked for the sheriff’s office since […]
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Southeastern North Carolina counties will be the last to transition to eCourts
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Counties in southeastern North Carolina will not transition to the eCourts digital record management system until 2025, according to the state Administrative Office of the Courts. Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Mecklenburg and Wake counties transitioned last year to the $100 million eCourts system. The state has announced plans to expand the program […]
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Partners in Ministry helps kids become ‘change agents’ in their communities
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org The hallways of Partners in Ministry’s building in Laurinburg are covered in inspirational sayings: “Put first things first.” “Begin with the end in mind.” When Executive Director Melba McCallum first dreamed the idea for the nonprofit in 2003, she couldn’t have known all that it would grow to become. Today, the […]
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Construction firm must pay after off-duty deputy injured in Robeson County, court rules
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Robeson County sheriff’s deputy Stephen Matthew Lassiter was off duty but directing traffic at a construction site on Interstate 95 north of St. Pauls just after midnight on March 28, 2019, when he was hit by a pick-up truck. A month later, when Lassiter filed for workers’ compensation benefits, the Robeson […]