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North Carolina student indicted for kidnapping, assault of teacher in viral incident, charged in 2nd attack

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North Carolina student indicted for kidnapping, assault of teacher in viral incident, charged in 2nd attack


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Two weeks after a North Carolina high school student allegedly slapped and threatened a teacher in an incident that was captured on video that went viral, the student has been indicted for kidnapping and assault on a government official, the Forsyth County DA announced Thursday. 

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Aquavis Hickman, 17, has also been indicted for the alleged assault of another teacher at the same school — Parkland High School in Winston-Salem, North Carolina — in February. 

“A grand jury was convened last week, last Monday, comprised of members of this community and the grand jury returned two bills of indictment against the defendant now in this case, Aquavis Hickman,” Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill said at a press conference. 

He said Hickman, who will be charged as an adult, faces second-degree kidnapping charges in the April 15 incident with a female teacher “by unlawfully confining and restraining her without her consent for the purpose of terrorizing her. That defendant was also indicted on that same bill for assault on a government official, that being a teacher, and finally communicating threats against that teacher.” 

STUDENT ACCUSED OF VICIOUSLY BEATING AIDE IN VIRAL VIDEO BLAMES SCHOOL IN NEW LAWSUIT: ‘TICKING TIME BOMB’

Police outside the school where a teacher was attacked by a student on April 15 in North Carolina.  (WGHP)

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He said Hickman told the teacher he was going to kill her, and the “threat was made in a manner and under circumstances which would cause a reasonable person to believe that threat was likely to be carried out, and the person threatened believed it would, in fact, be carried out.” 

The viral video shared on social media appeared to show Hickman violently slap his teacher twice amid a profanity-laden rant against her. 

“Do you think that affected me in any way?” the teacher can be heard asking. “Want me to hit you again?” Hickman says, while stepping up and repeating the question. “I don’t want it,” the teacher says, before she is struck again. The hit is so hard that her glasses fly off her face while the teenager continues his profanity-filled rant. 

“Ain’t nobody even coming. You got slapped,” Hickman says. “B—-, go back to teaching.”

He was also indicted on the same charges for the alleged assault on the second teacher in February and was indicted on a misdemeanor count of riot based on allegations Hickman gathered with at least two others and “engaged in a public disturbance, kidnapping the second teacher in this case, attempting to fight him. This disorderly and violent conduct created a clear and present danger of injury to the victim in this case.” 

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Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill announced this week that Aquavis Hickman has been indicted by a grand jury for kidnapping and assault on two teachers (WGHP)

“Sheriff Kimbrough, Chief Penn and myself made a promise to this community that we would not tolerate any assaults on our teachers, plain and simple,” O’Neill said. “Nobody should go to work and expect to be assaulted.” 

He added, “We stand with the teachers, we will fight to protect those teachers and if you lay a hand on a teacher and assault a teacher you can expect that the punishment will be swift and severe. Promise made and promise kept.”

Kimbrough, at the press conference, said “everyone sitting in this room owes a debt to the woman or man who educated you: teachers. All of us are who we are because of the men and women that educated us.” 

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He added, “How can we in good conscience allow anyone to assault a teacher?” adding, there are “some things in society that have to be sacred,” and “we have to protect the people that educate us.” 

The assault caught on video took place at Parkland High School in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, last month.  (WGHP)

Kimbrough said every day in the community he sees teachers breaking up fights, getting injured and deputies even forced to mace students. 

He said that incidents with students have steadily increased since 2020.

Winston-Salem Police Chief William Penn, Jr. added, “Our schools aren’t a battleground nor a boxing ring … Our schools must be safer.”

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He said the video that went viral “put us on the map in a negative manner. I’m also glad today that the rest of the nation will hear that we do not tolerate that in Winston-Salem and in Forsyth County.” 





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‘It was dire’: NC State professor returns from Qatar after being trapped during Iran war

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‘It was dire’: NC State professor returns from Qatar after being trapped during Iran war


An North Carolina State University professor is back home Monday night after he was trapped in the Middle East as war with Iran broke out.

Rich Spontak was stuck in Qatar while traveling from Bangkok to Spain and was forced to stay in the country for about a week. Several travelers were trapped for days in the Middle East after Iran’s
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several defense leaders were
killed in joint strikes by the United States and Israel.

Spontak, like many travelers, found himself stranded in the Middle East after the initial attacks, which quickly entangled more surrounding countries, including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, where seven U.S. service members were killed in retaliatory attacks from Iran.  

Spontak said there were times he thought he wouldn’t make it out.

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“I would just keep looking out and looking for the missiles,” Spontak said. “Some people that I met along the way were hit by shrapnel from the missles. It was dire.”

Airspace over Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait and Syria remained closed, according to flight-tracking service Flightradar24. Azerbaijan also shut the southern sector of its airspace on Thursday after accusing Iran of a drone attack that injured four civilians and damaged an airport building.

Lilia Austin, a Chapel Hill woman who was part of a group of 100 women who went to Israel for a trip the day before Khamenei was killed, also returned home on Sunday after she left Israel through Egypt.

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Gov. Stein proposes $1.4B ‘critical needs’ budget for North Carolina

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Gov. Stein proposes .4B ‘critical needs’ budget for North Carolina


With North Carolina still without a new state budget, Gov. Josh Stein is urging state lawmakers to approve a $1.4 billion “Critical Needs Budget.” Stein says this budget will address the state’s most urgent priorities while the General Assembly works on a full spending plan.

“North Carolina has gone nearly two and a half years without passing a new state budget – the only state in the country to finish 2025 without one[…]This budget invests in critical public safety, education and health care services for the people of North Carolina that cannot wait,” Gov. Stein said in a press release Monday.

A major part of Stein’s proposal is $319 million to fully fund Medicaid, which provides health coverage to over three million North Carolinians. This program also supports rural hospitals, nursing homes and statewide health care providers, per the release.

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The “Critical Needs Budget” would target public safety staffing and pay. According to the governor’s office, North Carolina currently ranks 49th in starting salaries for state troopers and correctional officers, and low pay has contributed to staffing shortages and vacancy rates. This budget would bring pay raises to correctional officers, law enforcement officers, probation and parole officers and more.

Stein’s proposed budget calls for raising starting and average teacher pay, as well as increasing pay for senior teachers and other education staff. The governor’s office said the state remains in the bottom 10 nationally in average teacher pay.

The budget proposal also includes pay increases for state employees and a cost-of-living adjustment for retired state employees, citing rising inflation costs and increasing health care premiums. Stein’s plan also includes targeted funding to maintain essential services, such as support for child care access and affordability.



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The North Carolina Arboretum’s “Spring Into the Arb” returns for year two

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The North Carolina Arboretum’s “Spring Into the Arb” returns for year two


The North Carolina Arboretum has announced a new season of “Spring Into the Arb!”

The “Spring Into the Arb!” is in its second year, with its series of plant shows and sales, science and nature activities, music, and art, allowing people to reemerge and reconnect with nature.

The season begins with Nature Play Day on Saturday, March 14, continuing through April, May, and June with new activities every weekend.

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According to a news release, throughout the season, guests can enjoy the following:

  • Asheville Orchid Festival, annual Ikebana and Rose shows
  • Purchase plants at the Spring Plant Sale and Market
  • Get back to their native roots with Native Azalea Day, Mountain Science Expo, and Nature Play Day

The series culminates with Bonsai in the Blue Ridge in June, according to the release.

The release says guests and members are invited to drop in on the newly-opened Arbor Eatery in the Arboretum’s Education Center, which is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Hours extend to 5 p.m. beginning April 1.

Spring Into the Arb events and programs are included with the regular Arboretum parking fee of $25 per vehicle. Arboretum Society Members get in free.

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According to the release, additional admission is required for the Asheville Orchid Festival and Bonsai in the Blue Ridge.

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A full list of the Spring Into the Arb 2026 events includes:

  • Nature Play Day: March 14
  • Asheville Orchid Festival: March 28 to 29
  • Music in the Mountains Day: April 4
  • Arbor Day Celebration: April 11
  • Native Azalea Day: April 18
  • Mountain Science Expo: April 25
  • World Bonsai Day: May 9
  • Change of Seasons: Spring into Ikebana: May 16 to 17
  • The Asheville-Blue Ridge Rose Society Exhibition: May 22 to 24
  • The Arb in Focus: 40 Views for 40 Years: Opening May 23
  • Spring Plant Sale and Market: May 29 to 30
  • Bonsai in the Blue Ridge: June 4 to 7

For more information, visit here.



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