North Carolina
Cooper appoints Allison Riggs to NC Supreme Court, setting stage for 2024 court race
Gov. Roy Cooper appointed a new North Carolina Supreme Court justice on Monday: Allison Riggs, an appellate judge who said she’s proud to become the youngest woman ever to serve on the state’s highest court.
Riggs, 42, said she will use her new position “to ensure that the phrase ‘equal justice for all’ lives up to its promise in this state.”
The move comes after Supreme Court Justice Michael Morgan, a Democrat elected to an eight-year term in 2016, stepped down last week. The court’s next oral arguments begin Tuesday.
Riggs currently serves on the state Court of Appeals, a position Cooper appointed her to last year. On Monday, Cooper also appointed Carolyn Thompson to take Riggs’ place on the appeals court. Thompson, a former trial court judge, ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the appeals court last year. Although judges are elected in North Carolina, state law allows the governor to fill any vacancies on the bench.
“It’s important to note how much our courts affect our lives,” Cooper said at a press conference at the governor’s mansion, adding, “Disputes ranging from women’s health to voting rights, protection of our air, water and lands and constitutional questions are making their way through courts across our country.”
Riggs previously served in top roles for the Southern Coalition for Social Justice. The Durham-based advocacy group is best known for its lawsuits against North Carolina’s Republican-led legislature on voting rights issues — particularly voter ID and gerrymandering.
The only other Democrat on the state’s highest court is Justice Anita Earls, who founded the Southern Coalition for Social Justice. Riggs took over the group’s legal leadership after Earls won a 2018 election to the Supreme Court.
Earls recently announced she was under investigation by the state’s Judicial Standards Commission for making critical comments about racial and gender biases in the state’s courts; the investigation claims she improperly cast doubt on the integrity of the courts.
Earls has since sued to stop that investigation, WRAL reported last month. And while Riggs didn’t directly address that issue Monday, she used her speech to say that courts have historically served as “a backdrop against extremism,” but that she believes there’s still more work to be done for equality in the justice system.
“I’m going to continue to communicate with North Carolinians about my values and my background as an experienced civil rights attorney — as someone who has seen the ways in which our courts system hasn’t always worked for everyone,” Riggs said.
Politics and the court
Republicans have often bashed Earls for her history suing the legislature over voting rights and civil rights.
Riggs has a similar background to Earls. She has twice led anti-gerrymandering oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court and was also heavily involved in the Moore v. Harper case, involving the controversial “Independent State Legislature” theory, which North Carolina Republican lawmakers lost in June. She said Monday she doesn’t think that her history should be a concern with any future decisions on the Supreme Court.
“I understand my role as a jurist, as opposed to my former role as an advocate,” Riggs said, adding that she has written dozens of opinions during her Court of Appeals tenure, many of them for a bipartisan majority.
One of her new colleagues on the other side of the aisle, Republican Supreme Court Justice Phil Berger Jr., sent Riggs a message of support on social media following her appointment.
“Welcome to the Court!” wrote Berger, who also previously served on the lower appellate court, although the two never overlapped there. “I look forward to working with you.”
The seat Riggs was just appointed to will be on the ballot in 2024, and she confirmed Monday she plans to run next year for a full eight-year term on the court. Republicans currently hold a 5-2 advantage on the court and could stretch that to a 6-1 majority if the GOP candidate wins that race instead.
Her former colleague on the Court of Appeals, Republican Judge Jefferson Griffin, also plans to run for the seat next year. And Riggs could face at least one Democratic challenger in a primary; over the weekend Guilford County Superior Court Judge Lora Cubbage announced her own plans to campaign for the Supreme Court in 2024.
Morgan chose to leave the court now rather than seeking re-election; even if he had won he would’ve hit the mandatory retirement age for judges midway through a new term.
There’s speculation Morgan may run for governor, setting up a Democratic primary challenge with Attorney General Josh Stein. When he announced he would leave the court last month, Morgan wrote that he has “a desire to make a difference in the state of North Carolina” and that “after I get off the court I can focus on how that might best be accomplished.”
North Carolina
NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank
With a recent study revealing North Carolina as one of the states with the riskiest roads to travel, some may wonder how safe the roads are here in the Cape Fear region.
MarketWatch Guides, a site that provides “reviews of consumer products and services to help readers make educated purchasing decisions,” focuses in part on car insurance comparisons, vehicle safety and more.
A recent study by the site analyzed factors including annual miles driven per 100,000 system miles, percentage of rough roads and fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers. States were given a rating out of 10 points, with 10 being the most dangerous.
More: Distracted driving in Wilmington: How big of a problem is it?
North Carolina’s ranking among the most dangerous
According to the study, the states with the most dangerous drivers based on the factors studied are:
- Louisiana – 7.55/10
- California – 7.21/10
- New Mexico – 6.74/10
- Hawaii – 6.73/10
- Delaware – 6.67/10
- New Jersey – 6.53/10
- Mississippi – 6.47/10
- North Carolina – 6.39/10
- Massachusetts – 6.33/10
- Maryland and Texas – 6.26/10
According to the study, North Carolina had 32.5 fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers, but only 2.1% of rough roads, which was the lowest percentage out of the other ranked states.
For a more localized perspective, the North Carolina Department of Transportation releases annual traffic crash facts data. The most recent 2022 report includes a ranking of counties based on several factors, including reported crashes, crash severity, crash rates based on population, registered vehicles and estimated vehicle miles traveled.
The most dangerous county for drivers, ranked at No. 1 for the past five years, was Robeson County. The county had 60 fatal crashes in 2022 with 1,136 non-fatal injury crashes. The rest of the total 4,056 crashes were property-damage-only. The county with the best ranking was Hyde County, coming in at No. 100. The county had one fatal crash in 2022 and 10 non-fatal injury crashes. The county had a total of 45 crashes, the rest of which were property damage only.
More: MyReporter: Which intersections see the most red-light camera violations in Wilmington?
Here’s where the Cape Fear region counties ranked.
Brunswick County
Ranked No. 76 in 2022, Brunswick County had 25 fatal crashes and 715 non-fatal injury crashes. The total crashes for that year were 3,146. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.
New Hanover County
Ranked No. 58, New Hanover had 19 fatal crashes and 1,313 non-fatal injury crashes, both of which went down from 2021. The total crashes in New Hanover were 5,617. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.
Pender County
Ranked No. 47, Pender County had the worst ranking despite having the lowest number of crashes. The county had 12 fatal crashes and 374 non-fatal injury crashes, and a total of 1,156 crashes. The rest of the crashes were property damage only.
Iris Seaton, USA Today Network, contributed to this report.
Tropical Storm Debby already has parts of Florida under tropical storm warnings. The Florida Big Bend is currently under a Hurricane Warning. Debby is forecast to briefly strengthen into a category 1 hurricane as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico where water temperatures are near 90 degrees.
As it continues its path over land it is expected to dial back to tropical storm strength as it reaches the Carolinas mid to late next week. Moderate rainfall is possible for northeast North Carolina and southern Virginia by the end of the week.
Higher amounts of rain are possible for southernmost portions of the Outer Banks but generally models show 2-4 inches for northeast North Carolina and 1-2 inches for southern Virginia through Thursday.
Stay with News 3’s First Warning Weather Team for the latest updates as the storm develops.
The National Hurricane Center continues to monitor a tropical depression over Cuba. It’s expected to become a tropical storm later Saturday, bringing impacts to the Carolinas around the middle of next week.
Heavy rainfall and flooding are the primary impacts expected, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.
“Gusty winds are also possible, but it is too early to predict specific impacts in great detail at this time,” the weather service said.
At the same time, there is the potential for heavy rainfall and some flooding associated with front expected to stall inland this weekend.
As of 11 a.m. Saturday, the center of the tropical depression, which would be name Debby if it becomes a tropical storm, was over Cuba and moving west-northwest near 15 mph. The hurricane center said a turn toward the northwest is forecast for Saturday, followed by a northward motion on Sunday and then a slower northeastwardmotion Sunday night and Monday.
Maximum sustained winds were near 35 mph. Slow strengthening is expected throughout the day Saturday. Faster strengthening is possible Sunday, with the storm nearing hurricane strength when it reaches the Florida Gulf Coast, the hurricane center said.
STORM TRACKER: Monitor the latest tropical developments here.
Here’s a look at what we can expect in the Wilmington area, according to the latest briefing from the National Weather Service in Wilmington.
Wind
The probability of tropical storm force winds has increased, especially for the South Carolina coast. The most likely time of arrival of for northeast South Carolina is Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, and for Southeastern North Carolina is during Wednesday morning.
Rain
The potential for significant rainfall exists with 8 to 12 inches possible from near Cape Fear to portions of thenortheast South Carolina coast. Flash flooding and urban flooding are possible. Some rivers, including the North Cape Fear River and the Waccamaw River, could exceed flood stage next week.
INTERACTIVE MAP: Enter your address to see hurricanes, tropical storms that have passed nearby
Marine impacts
Rough surf, including dangerous rip currents, and hazardous marine conditions are expected this weekend and will persist into the upcoming week.
Are you prepared for a hurricane?
Hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. Even if this system won’t pose a threat to the NC coast, it’s never too early to be prepared.
GET READY: Are you prepared for a hurricane? Here’s what to know if you live in the Wilmington area.
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