Watchful citizens gathering to the Maria Parham Medical Center auditorium tonight at 7 will put a spotlight on vacation season safety concerns.

Installation of a remote door release and access system on front doors at schools in Vance County could be done in a matter of 90 days, according to Claiborne Woods, director of Vance County Schools maintenance department.

Edward Demario Hawkins, charged in a double-homicide at a Henderson motel in February, appeared in Superior Court Wednesday and is a step closer to an undetermined trial date.

Beach music will flood downtown Oxford this evening as the Craig Woolard Band performs for the 10th anniversary of Alive After Five, sponsored by the Granville County Chamber of Commerce.

Arrests, citation reports from the Henderson Police Department and the Vance County Sheriff's Office.

Church congregations, community organizations and local government representatives from Granville and Vance counties gathered Tuesday evening for a Faith Initiative for Community Action open house.

Vincent Eugene Gregory’s lawyer said a psychological evaluation shows he is competent to stand trial for multiple charges in the death of 5-year-old Jayden Chad Stokes, but an official report is not yet ready. At a hearing in Vance County Superior Court Tuesday, Judge Elaine Bushfan said Gregory was also not ready for a reduced bond.

During an interview this week with The Dispatch, Ronald Gregory, superintendent of Vance County Schools, provided insight on how student comments from a Feb. 26 forum were handled, and what’s been done to address safety concerns since the forum.

Vance-Granville Community College will have a police chief this summer and a police department at the main campus by early next year if plans to upgrade law enforcement to sworn officers at the school stay on track.

Henderson police have arrested 19-year-old Lagarris Alexander Peace on charges of heroin trafficking.