WRAL Newscasts
7PM News on WRAL - Monday, July 8, 2024
At WakeMed MyCare 365, we deliver convenience others only talk about every day of the year. Primary care and urgent care under one roof. Multiple locations, virtual visits, walk in or schedule an appointment online. From annual physicals and routine care, to sinus infection strep or the flu, we couldn't be more convenient. Learn more about our kind of care at www.arcanicconvenience@wakemed.org ♪ An apex woman accused of leaving puppies in a hot car on a day with record heat. While she's telling WRAL, those dogs were never in distress. Then only on WRAL, inside the courtroom, for a man pled guilty to murdering his two roommates. The outrage from the victim's family during sentencing. I'm tracking who could see pop-up storms this afternoon and an even better chance for rain at the end of the week. Now at 7, and new tonight, we are hearing from the woman accused of leaving several puppies in a hot car in apex with no AC or windows cracked, temperatures soaring above 100 degrees. She's facing seven counts of animal cruelty. Thanks for joining us tonight, I'm Ashley Rowe. And I'm Dan Hagerty. Here's another look at the French bulldog puppies that were inside of that vehicle. Investigators saying that they were struggling to breathe when they found them and that one was unresponsive. WRAL's Julian Grace is live now after speaking with the woman who is accused of doing this. And Julian, give us an idea of how she's rationalizing all of this. Well Dan, as you know, there's two sides to every story. And tonight we got Whitney Johnson's side. She's from New Jersey, and she's the owner of those French bullies that you just saw right there. She's been a breeder for five years, and she says this is not only an investment for her, but those dogs are her babies. Here's some pictures that she sent to us earlier this evening when we talk to her via Zoom. Now she tells me the dogs were in the car outside of the first watch, but the climate was controlled. She says the air was on, a fan was placed inside, and the temperature was set to 89 degrees. A temperature she says is required for the puppy's health and wellness. She says when officers arrived, the dogs were not in the car because they were being bathed because some of them had pooped on themselves. Now she says the officers never asked her for a statement. They just took the word from a bystander. Now Johnson also shared over and over in a very emotional interview that these dogs are not only an investment, but she takes care of these puppies around the clock. Absolutely, absolutely. That is an investment for me. So I don't know why anyone would think I would throw my investment in the trash. Now we can't tell you those puppies are currently with the Wake County Animal Shelter. There were a total of seven currently. The shelter only has six. One of those puppies has been euthanized. Now coming up all new tonight at 10 and 11, you'll hear more from Johnson. And you'll hear specifically what video she says would clear her. Also, you'll hear from the Apex Police Department on what they have to say about their investigation. All of that is all new tonight at 10 and 11. Reporting live in Apex, Julian Grace, WRAL News. Absolutely. Boy, a lot of questions still there. Of course, why did one of the dogs die if they were never in danger? A lot more from Julian tonight at 10 o'clock and 11. So we're keeping an eye on the radar across our area. We could see some showers and storms pop up. And this is not the only thing, the only day I should say that we have a chance for some rain this week. Lots of that this week. Meteorologist Kat Campbell in the WRAL Severe Weather Center to explain. We have a really good chance for rain by the end of the week. So good news there for us. In the meantime, it's just some of these hit or miss summertime storms. We do have some development, though. Right around 540 here in the triangle and up to the north, some lightning closer to Rotok Rapids and Lake Gaston. Rain falling right now around Wake Forest, the north side of town. 548, Capital Boulevard, seeing some rain right now. And a few spotty showers just west of the airport that are kind of dissipating. One new developing shower on the north side of town in Apex. And some storms moving out of Warrington into the northern part of Franklin County. And then here are the showers and storms around Rotok Rapids. The thing is, these storms really not moving. Once they pop up, they just kind of rain themselves out in the same spot. So I wouldn't expect them to really move from one city to the next. If anything, maybe one neighborhood to the next. But as we move ahead this week, we've got much better chances for rain on the horizon. A 70% chance of rain Thursday night. And a 80% chance during the day on Friday. So all thanks to this front, we're not likely to see direct impacts from barrel, but I'll track them both coming up. Alright, Kat, thank you. A man convicted of killing his two roommates in Franklin County will spend the rest of his life in prison. Today, Christian Webster pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree murder in the deaths of William Hill and Matthew Johnson at their home in April. Police say Webster expressed wanting to harm people since he was a child. WRL's Destiny Patterson joining us now live. Destiny, you were in the courtroom for this emotional case. That's absolutely right, Ashley. There were multiple moments when the family was handed tissues. You could hear sniffling during the testimony from witnesses. But it was really during the victim impact statements when that grief was really palpable. This book right here explains justice. 5-4-9-2-3-2-1 for blood. Anger trembled through the voice of this grieving father. Burn hell. As the man who killed his son left the courtroom to spend the rest of his life in a prison cell. If somebody's a vicious heinous murder, they deserve to be murdered themselves. I cannot imagine his grief and what he must be going for right now. The legal system just does not fix everything. Webster lived with William Hill and Matthew Johnson, who were in a five-year relationship. The prosecution said Webster attacked the couple in their home using their own guns. They say Hill was also stabbed. Are you in bad guilt in the lives of these towns in the courtroom room? Yes. Webster agreed to a plea deal, two life sentences without the possibility of parole. A forensic psychiatrist acknowledged Webster's long history of mental illness. It's much deeper seated and much more dangerous and much more ominous psychopathy, which is this... They just don't emotionally attach to other individuals around him. A detective said Webster admitted that he had a yearning to kill. During the interview multiple times, Mr. Webster expressed that he had been pointing to harm people since he was a child. Just before the double homicide, Webster was charged with discharging a weapon and city limits. He was held for a psychiatric evaluation for less than 24 hours. And part of that time was spent with him sobering up. Matthew Johnson's mother says he shouldn't have been released so quickly. There are evil people. There are evil people among us. Johnson's family says that they were okay with today's outcome, while Hume's family says that the death penalty would have been justice for them. Both of these families agree that there need to be mental health reforms and they could have saved their children's and loved ones lives. Destiny Patterson, W-O-R-L News, Franklin County. That is a lot of grief for those families. While the alert to on your phone this morning turned out to be a false alarm from the Harris Nuclear Power Plant. People living nearby heard the sirens. This is the text message that came 30 minutes later. Duke Energy says it was a mistake. There was no emergency. People living near the plant asked W-O-R-L why it took so long to send that text after the sirens sounded. They weren't sure if they needed to evacuate. Wake County Emergency Management tells us that it takes time to coordinate ensuring the alerts are accurate. The worst thing that we can do in a situation like this is provide inaccurate information because we're trying to get something out the door quickly. Duke Energy says the plant is operating normally and they are investigating why the sirens went off. They'll continue with a previously scheduled siren test on Wednesday. A car crash into a wake-med urgent care on Fayetteville Road in Raleigh. Look at where the vehicle went right into the windows there. W-R-L Sky 5 was over the scene as EMS crews responded. The sedan crashed through those windows. Police tell us the car hit what is a classroom inside. No one was injured, fortunately. The driver did have some minor injuries. They're now charged with failure to reduce speed. The urgent care is closed until further notice. New at 7 o'clock the battle over who can manage the state health plan has been decided. At now, we'll take over third-party. Carrie, get ready for the exciting new Go Carry Downtown Loop. Enjoy easy access to downtown destinations like Downtown Carry Park, Carry Regional Library, the Carry Theater and more. The loop operates Thursday through Sunday every 25 minutes and it's free to ride. Driving downtown, park at the town hall parking deck and hop on the downtown loop. With the new Go Carry app, you can effortlessly plan your trip and track your bus in real time. The app is free to download and use. Visit GoCarry.org to learn more and start your journey today. At Wake Med MyCare 365, we deliver convenience others only talk about. Every day of the year, primary care and urgent care under one roof. Multiple locations, virtual visits, walk in or schedule an appointment online. From annual physicals and routine care, to sinus infection strep or the flu, we couldn't be more convenient. Learn more about our kind of care and our kind of convenience at WakeMed.org. Questions about Joe Biden's presidency and his candidacy now don't just affect the race for the White House. The race for President, of course, can sway who wins many of the other races on the ballot as well, especially in a closely divided swing state like North Carolina. WRL State government reporter Will Doren joins us now, and we'll wondering how our Democrats here in North Carolina reacting to some of these questions about whether or not the president should stay in the race. So, publicly, all of North Carolina's most influential Democratic leaders are backing President Biden. But behind the scenes, there's definitely some anxiety. Over the weekend, Democrats in the state Senate called an emergency meeting. They were speaking about Biden and how it could affect their own chances of breaking the Republican party's veto-proofed supermajority at the state legislature. That's supermajority. Again, they use that to override any veto that they don't like, that the governor puts in place here in North Carolina. How close, though, is that margin from Republicans losing that power and Democrats gaining some more? So, Democrats only need to flip one seat in the legislature to break that supermajority, and doing so could, of course, give them a lot more negotiating power over state policy and spending. But there are only about a dozen or so truly competitive seats out of 170 total. So, Democrats worry that if Biden supporters stay home, that could hurt their own chances this year in those competitive legislative districts or in the governor's race. What about any worries when it comes to Republicans? You know, Donald Trump, far from a perfect candidate, we know that. He is a convicted felon now in New York for falsifying business records. He faces other ongoing criminal trials, or Republicans concerned what that might do to their ticket in general. So, Republicans have really coalesced around Donald Trump. You won't hear calls from party members for him to drop out, like Biden is facing from some Democrats. But, polling does show that around 5% of North Carolina voters are undecided still. And so, Democrats will use Trump's legal issues to try to convince those remaining undecided voters to vote for Biden. Republicans, of course, will continue hammering Biden's age, his debate stumbles. Whoever wins those undecided voters, they'll influence not just the race for president, but many of our other elections on the ballot is here. A lot of stake here will. Thank you so much. And for all of our state political coverage, you can visit the NC Capitol section of WRL.com or hop on the WRL News app. And if you're interested in visiting the state Capitol building, it's back open to the public after more than a year of renovations. The outside of the building was repaired, including replacing copper on the roof and dome. The work also included an HVAC system update. Visitors can take self-guided tours Monday through Friday from 9 to 5, Saturdays from 10 to 5, and then free guided tours are available from 11 to 1 on Saturdays. A downtown Raleigh restaurant is closing its doors this month. Plates Neighborhood Kitchen says its final day will be July 28. The restaurant opened in 2013, and just two years ago, one open tables diner's choice in the best overall category. A post on Instagram says this isn't goodbye, we just have to go away for a while and dream it all up again. It's unclear what's next for the spot along Glenwood Avenue. A new all-time travel record was broken this July 4th holiday weekend. The Transportation Security Administration TSA says it screened more than 3 million passengers for the first time ever yesterday. People flooded checkpoints nationwide, heading home from independent state trips. Hurricane barrels impacts led to some travel troubles. Although thousands of flights were canceled today and yesterday. Meteorologist Kat Campbell joining us now. Kat, you've got some beautiful satellite image behind you. I do. We've got a good ISS pass coming up tonight. So you've got to check this one out. It's going to be worth checking out because it'll pass for six minutes. So a nice long view. Look outside at 935. It'll be moving from the southwest to the northeast to good time to go outside with your family. Get in some science tonight. It should be a nice night for it. We do have partly cloudy skies, but I don't think that should hold back viewing much. Let's take a look at RDU today. No big issues out here. If you traveled at all and your travel plans brought you to Texas, that's where we had all the flight delays due to barrel. But it's a beautiful evening here at RDU. We do have some thunderstorms around Wake County. These are east of RDU right now. In North Raleigh, that's where we've got the bulk of the rain. Extending up into Franklin County, there has been quite a bit of lightning there in Franklin County and all the way up into Roanoke Rapids. That's where the bulk of the rain is right now. But today, it's just scattered summertime storms. As this front gets here, love a much better chance for rain later this week. I don't expect any direct threats or impacts from barrel. Ahead of this front, though, we have a couple of sources of moisture. We're going to have a flow due to the jet stream from the Gulf, bringing a lot of moisture. And we also have an upper level low offshore that's going to bring more moisture into the area as well. And that's why rain chances really go up later in the week. For tropical storm barrel, it's expected to continue to weaken as it moves as a remnant low into the Great Lakes region. You can see the swath of rain from barrel. It's a pretty sharp cutoff for where the rain is. Doesn't include us here in North Carolina. We've got our own separate moisture sources. So let's track the arrival of better rain chances. For tomorrow, it's kind of like today, just some spotty hit or miss pop-up showers and storms. It's only a 20% chance tomorrow. A little bit better chance on Wednesday again. It's going to be scattered about a 40% chance. But by Thursday, as the front actually moves in, we'll have a better chance of raining storms. And that's going to continue Friday because this front gets stuck and it just kind of wavers around a little bit. Friday looks like our best chance for rain. We've got an 80% chance. I'm thinking one to two inches of rain, maybe up to three inches in a few spots, but we need a lot more rain than that. Still about a three to six inch deficit over much of North Carolina. Here's our W Mario weather watcher photo today from Holt Lake. Thank you to Rupert Hester for sharing that with us. If you have a W Mario weather, watch your photo. If you'd like to see on TV, go to W Mario dot com and search weather watchers. Submit them there. A very unsettled week ahead. We'll have a chance for rain each day. Some days a lot better chances than others, especially Thursday and Friday. As we get into the weekend, we're likely to heat right back up into the upper 90s. But the one day Friday with the best rain chances highs may be limited to the mid 80s. Okay, Kat. Thank you. Deepak is celebrating a successful season. The records they just broke with some of the most popular Broadway shows took this stage. Are you ready to buy or sell your home? The Jim Allen group is a nationally recognized and award winning real estate team in the triangle, dedicated to providing exceptional service to meet your needs. With the latest insights and expert market knowledge, they'll make your home buying and selling journey as smooth as possible. Don't wait. Head over to Jim Allen dot com and start your next move today. That's Jim Allen dot com. The Jim Allen group, your partner in real estate. Save big this summer with great deals. All in the King Supers app. Get juicy Washington red cherries for $2.99 a pound. Then get 10 for 10 on items like Lays Stacks, Rice Oroni, and Sparkling Ice Sparkling Water for $1 each, all with your card. Shop these deals at your local Kroger today or tap the screen now to download the King Supers app to save big today. King Supers, fresh for everyone, prices and product availability subject to change, restrictions apply. See site for details. Chapel Hill's Franklin Street was blocked to traffic today as filming began for the popular TV series the summer I turned pretty. Behind the scenes was a lot of activity. There was a lot going on. A lot of waiting and watching as well as you know that's how those sets work. The main characters in the Amazon prime series are about to enter college, which is why they're filming at UNC. And some UNC students like Enie Roberts is an extra who helps to become an actress one day. I'm very curious to see how it plays out. I know there's like a love triangle with I think there are brothers or something and the main girl and she's trying to figure out who she wants. And I know who I personally prefer. She's certainly shy in front of a camera. Oh no. Her personality shines through. Maybe she got actress to enter future after all. Crews have moved a lot of equipment around to different parts of the campus to film this story. So it's been busy around there, but kind of cool. Yeah. The DPAC just had its biggest season ever breaking several records. The chef says the Performing Arts Center welcomed a record 626,000 guests to 260 performances from July 23 to June 2024. DPAC also had a record number of sold out shows. This season's lineup included Broadway's MJ, Disney's The Lion King and Wicked, my favorite show. DPAC also landed among some of the top theaters in the nation in new rankings. So a good year for DPAC. Let's hope another good season coming up. I think so. It's a great spot. It is. It's really fun. Durham's a great city to go out and enjoy and kind of build your night around that. Totally. Great. You have a chance to snag some great deals on kids' toys, clothes and more in Raleigh with the Kids Exchange Consignment Sale. It started today. It's at the Jim Graham and Expo buildings at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds. And the consignment sale is free admission, but it's going to be open every day. Nine to six through next Monday. So get out there and see what they got. Another animal was born at the North Carolina Zoo. Winnie is a baby baboon. She's already hanging out in the baboon habitat in the zoos Africa section. Her caretakers say she will hang around her mom for a while as she continues to nurse and to grow. She's so cute. Look at the hairdo on the mama baboon. Oh, yeah. Is that the back left? That's looking good. Like all poofed up. I don't know what kind of conditioner they're using right there, but. How about the little nose, little little wrinkles? It's a cute little guy. I like their hands because it looks like our little hands, right? Yeah, kind of. Yeah, very cool. Thanks for making WRL your choice for local news. I sound like I know what I'm talking about. I'm a real biologist over here. We're really spooning over that path. Cool hands, bro. Thanks for being with us. Next newscast is at 10 o'clock on Fox 50. We'll see you back here at 11 o'clock right here on WRL. What a shot of white light. Enjoy it. We'll see you later tonight. [Music] Keep watching WRL News over the Air Channel 34 and Spectrum Channel 1257. [Music] Save big this summer with great deals. All in the King Supers app. Get juicy Washington red cherries for £2.99 a pound. Then get 10 for 10 on items like Lays Stacks, Rice Oroni, and Sparkling Ice Sparkling Water for $1 each. All with your card. Shuff these deals at your local Kroger today. Or tap the screen now to download the King Supers app to save big today. King Supers. Fresh for everyone. Prices and product availability subject to change. Restrictions apply. See site for details. [Music] 5280 exteriors James Hardy's sighting is a low maintenance sighting made primarily of cement that resists flame spread and repels wood-borne insects and woodpeckers. Through the month of July, you'll receive free rigid foam installation with the purchase of whole house sighting. That's installing additional insulation behind your sighting for free. 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