Southeast
Charlotte residents say they feel less safe as city faces second transit stabbing
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Two in three Charlotte, North Carolina, residents say they feel less safe today than they did a year ago, according to a recent survey, as the city reels from two train stabbings.
More than 930 people responded to a survey that the Queen City recently completed before hiring its new police chief, Stella Patterson. Residents overwhelmingly said they want a proactive police force, not a reactive one, with 66% saying they feel less safe.
The results come as Charlotte contends with another stabbing on its light rail system, months after the stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska.
On Friday, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) officers responded to a call regarding assault with a deadly weapon. When they arrived, they found the victim, identified as Kenyon Kareem-Shemar Dobie, with a stab wound, according to warrants.
Oscar Solorzano, 33, was arrested in connection to a stabbing on a Charlotte, North Carolina light rail. (Mecklenburg County Jail)
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Oscar Gerardo Solorzano-Garcia, 33, of Honduras, was arrested after the stabbing and charged with attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon with serious injury, breaking/entering a motor vehicle, carrying a concealed weapon and intoxicated/disruptive behavior, according to multiple Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sources and arrest warrants obtained by Fox News Digital.
On Monday morning, Solorzano appeared in court, where he was denied bond. The 33-year-old appeared via Zoom in an orange jumpsuit where he was charged. Authorities revealed that Solorzano, prior to the Dec. 5 attack, was banned by Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS).
CMPD noted Dobie was in critical but stable condition when he was taken to a hospital.
The victim told WRAL News that he saw Solorzano yelling at an older woman before Solorzano handed his bike to another passenger and said: “I’m about to show you who I really am.”
“I wasn’t trying to be a macho man,” Dobie said in a TikTok post from his hospital room. “But what I won’t allow is you to attack random people for no reason, especially the elderly.”
Dobie said he jumped up and told Solorzano to leave everyone alone. He said Solarzano then grabbed his hands and stabbed him as he tried to grab him back.
Police in North Carolina have charged a 33-year-old man from Honduras with critically injuring another person in a stabbing on a Charlotte commuter train, just a few months after a Ukrainian refugee was murdered. (WJZY)
According to court documents, reviewed by Fox News Digital, Solorzano broke into a railroad car “with the intent to commit a felony,” while carrying a large fixed-blade knife.
While intoxicated, he challenged Dobie to a fight, cursing and shouting at others using “unintelligible and slurred words,” according to court documents.
He was booted from the country by the Trump administration in March 2018 on a deportation order and reentered illegally during the Biden administration at the Texas border in March 2021, DHS sources said.
WATCH: Migrant who was deported twice accused of Charlotte light rail stabbing
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Solorzano was deported a second time by the Biden administration and reentered illegally as a got-away at an unknown time and location.
Solorzano has a prior conviction for robbery in the U.S. and prior arrests for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, resisting arrest and false ID, DHS sources said.
Court records indicate he had known aliases, including Solorzano-Garcia, Oscar Herardo and Kevin Garcia.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks alongside a photo of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, who was allegedly killed by Decarlos Brown Jr., on a light rail train in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the White House, Sept. 9, 2025. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
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The stabbing attack comes months after Zarutska, 23, was fatally stabbed on a LYNX Blue Line light rail while on her way home from work from a local pizzeria shop.
Decarlos Brown Jr., 34, who is accused of killing Zarutska, was charged with violence against a railroad carrier and mass transportation system resulting in death, a capital offense under federal law.
Brown had a history of violent crime, including assaults and robberies, and had also been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Yet he was still free and walking the streets.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the city of Charlotte and the CMPD for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Alexander Koch and Fox News’ Bill Melugin and Chelsea Torres contributed to this report.
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Southeast
Naked woman allegedly assaults deputy while intoxicated, claims she was ‘trying to be a mermaid’
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A Louisiana woman’s attempt to go for a skinny-dip did not end swimmingly, authorities said, after she allegedly attacked a sheriff’s deputy responding to a trespassing complaint before finally surrendering to deputies Tuesday.
According to the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched in November to a residence in the Linville community of Marion after a caller reported a neighbor standing in their driveway screaming and refusing to leave the property despite having been warned previously.
When a patrol deputy arrived, authorities said the suspect was found nude and swimming in a pond located on the caller’s property.
The woman was later identified as Erin Elizabeth Sutton, 41, of Marion. Sutton initially refused to exit the pond or speak with the deputy, telling him she was “trying to be a mermaid,” according to a sheriff’s office Facebook post.
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Erin Elizabeth Sutton, 41, is accused of threatening a sheriff’s deputy in Louisiana after being caught skinny-dipping in a neighbor’s pond. She claimed she was “trying to be a mermaid,” according to police. (Union Parish Sheriff’s Office / Getty Images)
After repeated commands, Sutton eventually exited the pond. Due to cold temperatures, emergency medical services were contacted to evaluate her, authorities said.
A blanket was provided, and as the deputy attempted to escort Sutton inside a residence to warm up, she allegedly charged at him.
Authorities said Sutton ignored multiple commands to comply and resisted detention. A taser was deployed but had no effect, according to the sheriff’s office. Sutton was taken to the ground, where she allegedly continued to resist, kicking and punching the deputy before being restrained.
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The Union Parish Sheriff’s Office in Farmerville, La., announced on Facebook that 41-year-old Erin Elizabeth Sutton had allegedly attacked and threatened one of their deputies after skinny-dipping in a neighbor’s pond, citing she was “trying to be a mermaid.” (Google Maps)
Sutton was transported to a hospital for further treatment. During the transport, she allegedly threatened to kill deputies and paramedics, authorities said.
Because Sutton required medical care at the time, deputies later sought arrest warrants, which were signed by a judge in Louisiana’s Third Judicial District Court, according to the sheriff’s office.
Sutton surrendered to deputies on Jan. 6, 2025, and was arrested on multiple charges, including three counts of resisting an officer with force or violence, two counts of public intimidation, two counts of battery of a police officer, disturbing the peace/drunkenness and criminal trespassing.
According to the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched in November to a residence in the Linville community of Marion after a caller reported a neighbor was trespassing. (iStock)
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Her bond was set at $62,000, authorities said.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office for additional comment but did not immediately receive a response. It was not immediately clear whether Sutton has retained legal representation.
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Southeast
Dem governor-elect taps Crockett’s former ‘chief brand strategist’ for top DEI role
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FIRST ON FOX: Soon-to-be Virginia Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger has tapped the former “chief brand strategist” for Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, to serve in the state’s top diversity, equity and inclusion role.
In a Tuesday statement, Spanberger, who takes office on Jan. 17, announced she is appointing Dr. Sesha Joi Moon to serve as Virginia’s chief diversity officer and director of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Spanberger said that Moon’s “experience across government, education, and the nonprofit sectors gives her firsthand insight into the ways in which we can build a stronger, safer, and more prosperous Virginia for every family.”
“I’m excited to announce that Dr. Moon is joining our administration,” said Spanberger, adding, “Virginia deserves leaders who will make sure our work to grow our Commonwealth’s economy keeps the needs of all Virginians in mind.”
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Virginia Democratic Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger celebrates as she takes the stage during her election night rally at the Greater Richmond Convention Center on Nov. 04, 2025. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
“When every Virginian has the opportunity to reach their full potential, it benefits all of us,” she said.
Moon, whose doctorates are in public administration and policy and self-identifies as a “Black queer woman,” responded to her appointment by saying she is looking “forward to joining the cabinet of Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger as her historic administration works to advance a future in which all Virginians have access to opportunity — to include residents from some of the hardest-to-reach communities throughout the Commonwealth.”
Moon most recently served as the chief impact officer for the Girl Scouts of the USA. Before that, through her private consultant practice Moon & Associates, she worked as the “chief brand strategist” for Crockett, a radical far-left Democrat who is currently running for the U.S. Senate in Texas.
Earlier this year, Moon appeared on a 40-minute podcast episode, where she defended the importance of DEI and delivered a direct message to critics, saying, “This work has not stopped. You can defund and dismantle all you want, but the work continues.”
“I’m excited. I feel like DEI is just getting started,” Moon continued. “I know that sounds so insane to some people because some people think our discipline is crumbling, and I don’t see it like that. I feel like we’re onto something here.”
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Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Moon also served as executive-in-residence with two-time failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams’ American Pride Rises Network, a DEI advocacy network.
Before that, she was the chief diversity officer of the U.S. House of Representatives during the 117th & 118th Congresses under Speakers Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and Mike Johnson, R-La.
Spanberger won a decisive electoral victory this November, defeating Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears by a margin of over 10 percentage points.
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Then Republican Virginia gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earle-Sears speaks at a CPAC Latino Rally for Virginia on October 25, 2025 in Sterling, Virginia. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Considered a purple state, Spanberger’s victory returns the Virginia governor’s mansion to the Democrats after being held by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
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Fox News Digital reached out to Spanberger, Moon, Crockett, Abrams and the Girl Scouts of the USA for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
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Southeast
NASCAR star Denny Hamlin gives health update on mom after she was injured in deadly house fire
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NASCAR star Denny Hamlin shared an update on his mother’s condition after she was moved to a burn unit following a house fire in North Carolina that left his father dead earlier this week.
Hamlin thanked those who reached out to him and shared their condolences. Dennis Hamlin died from injuries suffered in the blaze that occurred in Stanley.
Denny Hamlin looks on prior to a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Concord, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley, File)
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out with condolences on my father’s passing,” he wrote on X. “My mother continues to improve, and our family truly appreciates the outpouring of support and the respect for our privacy during this time.”
Officials said Mary Lou Hamlin was transferred to a burn specialist in Winston-Salem to treat her injuries.
Officials said the cause of the fire was still under investigation.
The fire broke out at a home in Stanley around 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, which drew emergency responses from Gaston and Lincoln Counties, according to Queen City News.
NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin during practice for the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 12, 2025. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
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Both Dennis and Mary Lou Hamlin were out of the house as emergency personnel rushed to the scene.
“We are thankful for the multiple agency response and ask that the public be in prayer for the affected family and our first responders in fire, GEMs and police,” the Lucia-Bend Fire Department said in a statement to the outlet.
Dennis Hamlin’s death was announced later Monday.
NASCAR released a statement on Tuesday to honor the NASCAR driver’s father.
“NASCAR extends its deepest condolences to Denny Hamlin and the entire Hamlin family,” the organization said.
Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Progressive Toyota, exits his car after the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on Nov. 2, 2025, in Avondale, Arizona. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)
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“Dennis Hamlin instilled a love of racing in his son, and sacrificed greatly to develop Denny into a world-class talent in the sport. We also continue to offer our thoughts and prayers to Denny’s mother, Mary Lou, and hope for her full recovery.”
Fox News’ Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.
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