The Supreme Court on Wednesday heard oral arguments in a case that will determine whether South Carolina can pull the plug on state-administered Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood. 
The case centers around a woman who sued the state Department of Health after it said she couldn’t use money from the state’s Medicaid program at Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. Arguments focused on whether Medicaid recipients can sue the state over the policy and if South Carolina has the authority to make guidelines about where the money can be used. 
John Bursch, a lawyer with Alliance Defending Freedom representing South Carolina, and the Trump administration argued that the state had no legal obligation to designate funds for abortion providers. 
“Disqualifying abortion providers like [Planned Parenthood] ensures that women receive comprehensive medical care,” Bursch <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/23/23-1275/341725/20250203121003568_23-1275%20Brief%20for%20the%20Petitioner.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a> in a legal brief to the court. “It also ensures that South Carolina’s Medicaid funding goes toward improving ‘access to necessary medical care and important women’s health and family planning services’ for all women—rather than improving Planned Parenthood’s ability to free up funding to pay for abortions.”
Bursch and the Justice Department argued that the Medicaid Act does not create a right for a recipient to choose a provider. 
Nicole Saharsky, a lawyer for Planned Parenthood, argued that the state has an obligation to allocate Medicaid funding to the health care provider of the recipient&#8217;s choosing. 
“As this case comes to the court it is established that South Carolina violated the statute by denying Julie Edwards of her choice of a qualified and willing provider,” she said. “The only question is whether she can do something about it.” 
Several of the justices, including Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch, appeared skeptical of several of Saharsky’s claims. 
Bursch argued that South Carolina&#8217;s two Planned Parenthood affiliates offer little of what actually constitutes health care and were rightly excluded from the program. 
“While both entities claim to offer a range of healthcare services, they mainly offer abortions, contraception, STD testing, other screenings, and experimental puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to those who identify as transgender, including minors,” he wrote in a filing to the court. 
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, who directed the state to stop sending Medicaid dollars toward Planned Parenthood, was at the Supreme Court for the hearing. 
“I&#8217;m in Washington this morning as we defend South Carolina&#8217;s right to exclude Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers from our Medicaid program,” he <a href="https://x.com/henrymcmaster/status/1907417543293444520" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> on X. 
There are <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-rep-biggs-calls-on-doge-to-probe-planned-parenthood-ceos-exorbitant-salaries" target="_blank" rel="noopener">currently efforts</a> underway to slash federal funding for Planned Parenthood, which ended the lives of around 392,715 unborn children from 2022 to 2023, according to its most recent annual reports. During that same period, Planned Parenthood received nearly $700 million in federal funding.

Demonstrators As US Supreme Court Hears Arguments In Medina V. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic

Red State Makes Case To Defund Planned Parenthood To Supreme Court

Abortion

Health Care

Medicaid

Planned Parenthood

South Carolina

Supreme Court

A woman who previously worked as the director of finance and operations for Habitat for Humanity in Central South Carolina has been sentenced for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the federal government.
Ashley Clark Ingram, 35, was sentenced last month to two years in federal prison after she pleaded guilty to theft of government funds, the U.S. Department of Justice<a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sc/pr/former-nonprofit-finance-director-sentenced-theft-government-funds"> announced</a> in February.
“Evidence presented to the court showed that while employed as the director of finance and operations for Habitat for Humanity, Ingram applied for an employee retention tax credit for retaining employees during the COVID-19 pandemic from the IRS on behalf of Habitat for Humanity, but without the knowledge of the nonprofit,” the DOJ said. “Ingram then received checks totaling $388,550.75 from the United States Treasury and deposited the funds into a Habitat for Humanity account that she controlled then transferred the money from the Habitat for Humanity account into her own bank accounts.”
“In total, Ingram misappropriated approximately $514,672.37 from Habitat for Humanity and the United States Government,” the DOJ added.
U.S. District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Ingram to two years in prison, followed by two years of court-ordered supervision. She was also ordered to pay “a remaining balance” of $30,165.47 to Habitat for Humanity, as well as a $10,000 fine and a $100 special assessment fee. Ingram had already paid back nearly all of the money she stole.
Ingram pleaded guilty last June to the theft, the South Carolina Daily Gazette <a href="https://scdailygazette.com/2025/02/11/sc-habitat-for-humanity-worker-sentenced-to-2-years-in-prison-for-nearly-500k-theft/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
“There’s a terrible irony in this case,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Matthews said, according to the outlet. “She stole money from an organization that helps people get housing of all things.”
Habitat for Humanity’s interim executive director, Emily Fernald, told the Gazette that Ingram’s crimes weren’t just about the money but the “reputation of our organization.”
Because of Ingram’s theft, 16 families in South Carolina saw their home construction delayed as the charity dealt with financial issues. The homes were still being built, but the work slowed, and the charity lost donors.
“They have to overcome what you did,” Judge Lewis said before sentencing Ingram.
Ingram’s attorney claimed she stole the money because of her personal financial struggles. Her husband had lost his job, and they lived in an unsafe neighborhood. She wanted to escape and used some of the stolen money to buy a new house.
But as Fernald said, many of the people who seek out Habitat for Humanity face similar problems.
“These are folks who worked extremely hard to get where they are in life,” she said, according to the Gazette. “But they’re not stealing. They’re not lying.”

Habitat For Humanity

Former Habitat For Humanity Official Sentenced After Stealing Thousands From Govt

Former Habitat For Humanity Finance Director Sentenced After Stealing Thousands From Government

Crime

Theft

U.S.

A parental rights group on Wednesday filed a civil rights complaint against a South Carolina school district over teacher groups that “appear to exclude individuals based on their race.”
Parents Defending Education filed a <a href="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Charleston-County-School-District_OCR-_Redacted-1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">complaint</a> with the Office of Civil Rights for the Department of Education over multiple racially-focused “affinity groups” hosted by the Charleston County School District. The complaint, first shared with The Daily Wire, says that the groups violate federal civil rights laws by limiting participation by race. 
The <a href="https://archive.ph/oCimf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">groups</a> in question are the “Hispanic Latino Affinity Group” and the “Black Educator Affinity Group.” 
“Charleston County School District has affinity group programming that is not open to all. The District allows only some teachers to participate in affinity group programming and participation is based on their race,” the complaint reads. “Descriptions of individual affinity groups in the District appear to exclude individuals based on their race.”
According to the district’s website, the Black Educator Affinity Group is “a space for black educators to connect to one another, support one another, and celebrate one another in a safe space.”
The mission of the Hispanic Latino Affinity Group is to promote “professional development and career advancement opportunities” for Hispanic and Latino employees in the district and to “create a Hispanic-Latino Affinity committee to support recruitment, retention, and innovation among CCSD Hispanic-Latino employees.”
“Both affinity groups encourage hiring employees based on race and offer professional development opportunities exclusively for black and Hispanic-Latino employees,” the complaint says. “Furthermore, while other Districts ensures affinity group bodies are accessible to all teachers, Charleston County School District evades responsibility for the practices of its affinity groups, stating that ‘each affinity group establishes its own mission and goal.’”
The complaint argues that the affinity groups could run afoul of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits federal funding from going toward entities practicing racial discrimination, and the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment. 
The school district told The Daily Wire that all employee were welcome to join the affinity groups.
&#8220;Charleston County School District&#8217;s affinity groups were designed to provide support, mentorship, and networking opportunities for educators. Participation was completely voluntary, and all employees were welcome to join,&#8221; a spokesman told The Daily Wire.
&#8220;Leaders are currently reviewing all district practices that could be affected by the presidential administration&#8217;s orders to ensure all CCSD students receive the support and educational opportunities they need, including any necessary actions. Under the guidance of legal counsel, CCSD leadership met on February 25, February 26, and March 4 to advance discussions and implement any appropriate changes,&#8221; the district added.
Parents Defending Education President Nicole Neily told The Daily Wire that it would continue to challenge districts like Charleston that promote racially-focused programs and opportunities. 
&#8220;It&#8217;s grotesque that districts continue to separate teachers, students, and community members on the basis of skin color, and PDE will continue to file complaints about these types of racially segregated programs until such practices end,” she said. “Where there&#8217;s smoke there&#8217;s fire — and sadly, when a school spends finite time and resources organizing events like this, we often see other discriminatory practices on the books as well.&#8221;  
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January directing all federal funding to be cut off for school districts that promote racial and gender ideology in an effort to go after the promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at schools across the country.

High school classroom

EXCLUSIVE: Red State School District Accused Of Discrimination Over Racially-Focused Teacher Groups

Charleston

Civil Rights

Department of Education

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Education

Racial Discrimination

With the advent of the new year, U-Haul released data gathered from one-way moves showing migration within the United States is heavily weighted toward moving toward southern states, which are more politically conservative.
“Growth rankings are configured by each state’s net gain (or loss) of customers utilizing one-way U-Haul equipment in a calendar year. The U-Haul Growth Index is compiled from well over 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck, trailer and U-Box moving container transactions that occur annually,” U-Haul <a href="https://www.uhaul.com/Articles/About/U-Haul-Growth-States-Of-2024-South-Carolina-Tops-List-for-First-Time-33083/">explained</a>.
The top growth states, according to U-Haul data, were, in order, South Carolina, Texas, North Carolina, Florida, and Tennessee in 2024. Leftist California ranked 50th for the fifth year in a row.
“State-to-state transactions from the past year reaffirm customer tendencies that have been pronounced for some time,” John Taylor, U-Haul International president, <a href="https://www.uhaul.com/Articles/About/U-Haul-Growth-States-Of-2024-South-Carolina-Tops-List-for-First-Time-33083/">stated</a>. “Migration to the Southeast and Southwest continues as families gauge their cost of living, job opportunities, quality of life and other factors that go into relocating to a new state. Out-migration remains prevalent for a number of markets across the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast — and particularly California.&#8221;
South Carolina, which had ranked fourth in 2023, soared to the top spot in 2024; Texas, which had placed at the top for three previous years and had ranked first or second every year since 2016, fell to second place. Florida has been fourth or higher every year since 2015.
“With so many people moving to the Carolinas, you have to ask yourself why,” Area District VP for the Carolinas Jason Hardin <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WocntSPDKGE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stated</a>. “The Carolinas are a great place to live. I mean, we have Southern charm, we have a lot of history here; we got beaches; we have mountains; we have low cost of living. South Carolina is 7% lower on cost-of-living than anywhere else in the United States. So there’s no reason you wouldn’t want to move here. We have great schools, universities &#8230; like Duke and Wake Forest.”
South Carolina and Texas have voted for every GOP presidential candidate since 1976; with the exception of 2008, when Barack Obama barely eked out a victory by only .3%, North Carolina has voted the same; Tennessee has voted for every GOP presidential candidate since 2000, and Florida, which used to be a purple state, has changed to a solid red state under GOP Governor Ron DeSantis. As the AP <a href="https://apnews.com/article/florida-republicans-democrats-voter-registrations-b843059f8f3f1419794751753626a120">noted</a> in August, Florida has one million more Republican registered voters than Democrats, whereas in 2020, Democrats had 97,000 more registered voters than the GOP.

U-Haul Moving And Storage Rental Company

The South Soars: U-Haul Moving Data Shows 5 Southern States Prime Target For People Relocating

Business

California

General

migration

U-Haul

On Monday, President Biden announced he was commuting the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row inmates, one of whom was a criminal who murdered two female South Carolina bank employees in 2017.
Brandon Council murdered 59-year-old Donna Major and 36-year-old Katie Skeen in an armed robbery on August 21, 2017, at Crescom Bank in Conway, South Carolina. Major’s family reacted to the commutation of Council’s sentence on Fox News.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;Desperate, hurt, vulnerable. Katie Skeen and Donna Major died staring down the barrel of that man&#39;s gun. He shot them five times. Five times he put bullet after bullet into their injured, dying bodies,&quot; U.S. Attorney Everett McMillan told the jury. <a href="https://t.co/uq6WyeUHoS">pic.twitter.com/uq6WyeUHoS</a>
&mdash; Daniel Greenfield &#8211; &quot;Hang Together or Separately&quot; (@Sultanknish) <a href="https://twitter.com/Sultanknish/status/1871624835497144780?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 24, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Asked how she felt after she received the news, Major’s daughter Heather stated, “Anger. Absolute anger. We were told from our prosecution team on Sunday afternoon. I was actually gathered with my in-laws for our family Christmas; my sister was gathered with her in-laws, and we got the call. And I was angry. I’m still angry. I am upset that this is even happening, that one man can make this decision without even talking to the victims; without any regard for what we’ve been through, what we’re going through. I’m completely hurt, frustrated, and angry.”
Asked if she had been given a heads-up that the commutation from the White House would be forthcoming, she responded:
<blockquote>
So, in May, we heard that this was a possibility. And at that point, we began writing letters to the pardon attorney. I reached out, requesting an in-person meeting in D.C. and we were refused. They denied our right to have our voices heard. That we’re victims. My mother was murdered at the hands of Brandon Council. They should have heard our story. And all we got was a ten-minute virtual conference, and clearly that fell on deaf ears. They did not want to hear our story.
</blockquote>
When Major’s husband Danny was asked whether his wife had been shown any mercy, he replied:
<blockquote>
She was shown no mercy at all. This man walked into the bank, never said two words to her, shot her three times in total, went and shot her co-worker, Katie Skeen, as well, who was totally defenseless and unaware of any things happening. It&#8217;s just beyond me; I can’t even believe that this is actually happening, commuting of sentences like this of 37 victims. All but three, which was certainly a political scheme &#8230; Joe Biden was also told by the Pope that he should stop these executions. That what the Pope has to do with anything in this country, I don’t know, but Joe Biden certainly has no convictions. He’s a senile old man. He couldn&#8217;t tie his shoes, I wouldn’t think, if you could see him in person. It’s absolutely disgusting.
</blockquote>
Major’s daughter Katie responded to far-Left Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) speaking of Biden’s “compassionate leadership” with regard to the commutations, she commented:
<blockquote>
Compassion? I don’t think that that’s compassion. The fact that he didn’t talk to any of us, the victims of this crime? We trusted the judicial system. We sat through court. I watched my mother be murdered; I watched images of her body laying on the ground. He does not have compassion. For who? A criminal? A criminal? No. I don’t agree with that. I don’t agree with that at all.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zphn3B-7vZQ?si=TZiAawOuBYlBBrRd" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></blockquote>

US-POLITICS-BIDEN

‘I Watched My Mother Be Murdered’: Family Reacts To Biden Commuting Killer’s Death Sentence

Commutation

Joe Biden

Murder

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/supreme-court" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Supreme Court</a> on Wednesday agreed to hear South Carolina’s case against Planned Parenthood, which seeks to cut the abortion giant&#8217;s Medicaid funding.
South Carolina first tried to cut funding for Planned Parenthood in 2018.
Governor Henry McMaster, a Republican, <a href="https://governor.sc.gov/sites/governor/files/Documents/Executive-Orders/Executive-Order-2018-21.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> an executive order directing the state&#8217;s Medicaid agency to take abortion providers off its “family planning” services list.
State law prohibits Medicaid funds from being used for abortions except in cases where the mother&#8217;s life is in danger or in cases of rape or incest. The Medicaid funds Planned Parenthood gets go toward the abortion provider&#8217;s other services, such as STD testing.
However, McMaster <a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-planned-parenthood-abortion-63c051a7f3c75b1af53805239a044014" target="_blank" rel="noopener">argued</a> that any public money given to Planned Parenthood effectively “results in the subsidy of abortion.”
&#8220;The State of Carolina has a strong culture and longstanding tradition of protecting and defending the life and liberty of unborn children,&#8221; the governor wrote in his order.
In response, Planned Parenthood and one of its patients, Julie Edwards, sued South Carolina to keep her Medicaid coverage.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/gift-guide/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CHECK OUT THE DAILY WIRE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE</a>
The Supreme Court will take up the state&#8217;s appeal of a lower court&#8217;s ruling that found federal law lets Medicaid patients choose their providers.
South Carolina currently bans abortion around six weeks or when cardiac activity is detected, with exceptions for the life and physical health of the mother, rape and incest up to 12 weeks, and fetal diagnoses dubbed “incompatible” with life.
At the time of McMaster&#8217;s executive order, abortion was still legal in South Carolina up to 22 weeks.
“Taxpayer dollars shouldn’t be used to fund facilities that choose to profit off abortion, and South Carolina is free to use its limited funding to subsidize life-affirming health care,” John Bursch, an attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom, which is representing the state’s Medicaid agency, <a href="https://scdailygazette.com/2024/12/18/us-high-court-to-decide-if-sc-can-take-planned-parenthood-off-medicaid-list-for-non-abortion-care/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Wednesday after the Supreme Court decided to take up the case.
&#8220;Taxpayer dollars should never fund abortion providers like Planned Parenthood. In 2018, I issued an executive order to end this practice in South Carolina. I&#8217;m confident the U.S. Supreme Court will agree with me that states shouldn&#8217;t be forced to subsidize abortions,&#8221; McMaster <a href="https://x.com/henrymcmaster/status/1869442904563085475" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> on X in response to the court&#8217;s decision to hear the case.
The case will be argued in the spring.
South Carolina&#8217;s case is one of several cases on abortion that the Supreme Court has taken up since Roe vs. Wade, the case that legalized abortion nationwide, was overturned in 2022.
In June, the court <a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-abortion-mifepristone-fda-4073b9a7b1cbb1c3641025290c22be2a#" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruled</a> to continue to allow access to the abortion pill, which is used for the majority of abortions.

US-POLITICS-JUSTICE-RIGHTS-ABORTION

Supreme Court Takes Up Planned Parenthood Medicaid Case

Social Issues

More than 40 monkeys escaped from a bio-medical research lab in Beaufort County, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/south-carolina" target="_blank" rel="noopener">South Carolina</a>, on Wednesday afternoon after a caretaker accidentally failed to secure a door at an enclosure, allowing the primates to escape.
In a public service announcement on Thursday from the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/yemasseepolice">Yemassee Police Department</a>, it said the police received an alert from Alpha Genesis Primate Research facility “regarding the escape of numerous Rhesus Macaque primates from their enclosures,” and police have warned citizens to lock their doors and windows.
“The number has since been confirmed to be 43,” the announcement read. “The primates are described as very young females weighing approximately 6-7lbs, the animals have never been used for testing due to their young age and size.”
“A spokesperson from Alpha Genesis can confirm that these animals are too young to carry disease,” the statement added. “The Yemassee Police Department, in collaboration with Alpha Genesis, have initiated search teams to help locate the escaped primates. Alpha Genesis currently have eyes on the primates and are working to entice them with food.”
&#8220;Residents are strongly advised to keep doors and windows secured to prevent these animals from entering homes,&#8221; police said in the statement. &#8220;If you spot any of the escaped animals, please contact 911 immediately and refrain from approaching them.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Police Searching for 40 Escaped Monkeys After Mass Breakout from South Carolina Research Facility <a href="https://t.co/7NSNXkj58z">https://t.co/7NSNXkj58z</a>
— People (@people) <a href="https://twitter.com/people/status/1854542351328260305?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2024</a></blockquote>
Greg Westergaard, CEO of Alpha Genesis, told <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/monkeys-escape-south-carolina-research-facility-police-search/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&amp;linkId=645707041">CBS News</a> that the monkey escape is &#8220;frustrating&#8221; and he is &#8220;hoping for a happy ending&#8221; with the primates returning of their own volition.
“It&#8217;s really like follow-the-leader,” Westergaard added. “You see one go and the others go. It was a group of 50 and 7 stayed behind and 43 bolted out the door.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
“The public is advised to avoid the area as these animals are described at skittish and any additional noise or movement could hinder their safe capture,” the public service announcement read.
According to the Alpha Genesis facility <a href="https://www.alphagenesisinc.com/">website</a>, it said that the lab breeds monkeys and provides &#8220;nonhuman primate products and bio-research services,” with a client base across the globe.
Past clinical trials include research on progressive brain disorders, according to the <a href="https://www.outsourcing-pharma.com/Article/2018/07/26/Alpha-Genesis-wins-1m-contract-to-support-progressive-brain-disorder-research?fbclid=IwY2xjawGZbP5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHfsgKwb4xyuNyno1hwe7c1Cy7Sr9PUrauoF5g5BiTRUnCNSdZpRfXJknPQ_aem_LswVNliaA5c3feAPkTBvsw#.YbkfnSlxg98.facebook">Outsourcing Pharma</a> website.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/monkeys-steal-baby-boy-kill-him-by-throwing-him-off-roof" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Monkeys Steal Baby Boy, Kill Him By Throwing Him Off Roof</a>

Monkeys

More Than 40 Monkeys Escape From Bio-Research Lab In South Carolina

Animals

Law Enforcement

The death toll from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/hurricane-helene" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hurricane Helene</a> has risen to at least 180 people across the southeast U.S. as emergency workers continue to conduct search and rescue operations for hundreds of missing people. 
Deaths from Helene have been <a href="https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/hurricane-helene-damage-north-carolina-10-02-24/index.html?t=1727875795795" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> across six states, including Florida (17), Georgia (25), South Carolina (36), Virginia (2), Tennessee (9), and North Carolina (91). Surpassed only by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Helene is one of the <a href="https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/helene-north-carolina-florida-southeast-recovery-dead" target="_blank" rel="noopener">deadliest</a> hurricanes to hit the mainland United States in the last 55 years, according to Fox Weather. 
Additionally, the death toll is expected to increase as hundreds have been reported missing, with roads and communications being destroyed in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. The latest update from North Carolina Democratic Governor Roy Cooper’s office <a href="https://governor.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2024/10/01/rescue-relief-and-recovery-operations-continue-western-north-carolina" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> that search and rescue teams from 16 states have rescued 440 people and evacuated 4,700 others, with the North Carolina National Guard rescuing another 400.
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amiracist.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1726313279401000&amp;usg=AOvVaw115_qPFFEePDP86-Fvo-Vd">Am I Racist? Is In Theaters NOW — Get Your Tickets Here!</a>
&#8220;Our emergency responders are continuing to rescue people and rush aid to the mountains,&#8221; Cooper said. &#8220;The challenges are immense, but our joint response effort has and will continue to be massive.&#8221; 
In North Carolina, large portions of Asheville, Chimney Rock, Swannanoa, and Biltmore Village were wiped out by flooding after the area was rocked by torrential rain. President Joe Biden is expected to make a stop in Asheville on Wednesday as part of a tour of storm-ravaged areas. 
“God willing they&#8217;re alive, but there&#8217;s no way to contact them,&#8221; Biden said on Monday of those still missing. 
Duke Energy, which provides power in the region, <a href="https://news.duke-energy.com/releases/power-restored-to-1-35-million-customers-in-carolinas-workers-continue-efforts-to-access-damage-and-repair-and-rebuild-grid-in-s-c-upstate-and-n-c-mountains">said</a> on Monday that “major portions of the power grid” were “simply wiped away.” The company said it expects there will have to be a complete rebuild of energy infrastructure due to the storm. 
As of Wednesday morning, more than a million residences and businesses in the storm-impacted regions were still out of power. According to <a href="https://poweroutage.us/">PowerOutage</a>, there are 341,091 customers out of power in North Carolina, 493,006 in South Carolina, and 365,541 in Georgia. 
Officials expect that repairing the region will cost hundreds of millions of dollars and will take months to repair damaged infrastructure. 
&#8220;In most neighborhoods, the whole infrastructure has been destroyed. Poles have been knocked over. Lines are all down, so they’re going to have to rebuild the whole system. This is not going to be a quick fix,&#8221; Patrick Fitzsimmons, the mayor of Weaverville, North Carolina, told CNN on Wednesday. 
Roads throughout the southeast have been destroyed, including a portion of Interstate 40 connecting Tennessee and North Carolina. The Tennessee Department of Transportation <a href="https://www.tn.gov/tdot/news/2024/10/1/tdot-storm-damage-update.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> it expects some routes in eastern Tennessee to require a &#8220;total rebuild&#8221; and some routes to be closed for the immediate future. North Carolina officials reported that there were around 400 roads closed in the state.
There are a <a href="https://www.vpm.org/news/2024-10-01/hurricane-helene-donations-relief-western-north-carolina-blue-ridge-public-radio" target="_blank" rel="noopener">variety of organizations</a> providing relief to victims of the hurricane&#8217;s destruction including ministries like <a href="https://www.samaritanspurse.org/article/pray-for-those-in-helenes-path/?utm_source=Ggl&amp;utm_medium=cpc&amp;utm_campaign=m_YGND-B24V&amp;utm_content=HurricaneHelene&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gbraid=0AAAAAD2XO8dfI-fIJgeQmVfQ4iwr1_w0p&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjw3vO3BhCqARIsAEWblcCrnImjJQgMaTra_gaqh_n52tQqWNeePu11lgvq6_oeO37Ld1gQ9OkaAoIHEALw_wcB" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Samaritan&#8217;s Purse</a> while other aid is being organized by local political officials. Conservative activist Robby Starbuck is <a href="https://x.com/robbystarbuck/status/1840821376833503535" target="_blank" rel="noopener">working</a> with Tennessee state Reps. Jason Zachary and Jeremy Faison to collect water, toilet paper, non-perishable foods, and other supplies to help those hit in East Tennessee.

Hurricane Helene North Carolina

Hurricane Helene Death Toll Approaches 180 As Hundreds Still Missing

Georgia

Hurricane

Hurricane Helene

North Carolina

Severe Weather

Tennessee

The powerful storm that slammed into northern Florida as a Category 4 hurricane on Thursday night has been downgraded to a tropical storm as it moves across the southeast.
Hurricane Helene made landfall around 10 miles west of Perry, Florida, at 11:10 p.m. ET, Fox Weather <a href="https://www.foxweather.com/weather-news/tracking-hurricane-helene-florida-landfall" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Helene <a href="https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/hurricane-helene-florida-georgia-09-27-24/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">set the record</a> for the strongest hurricane to hit Florida&#8217;s Big Bend, the area of the state where the panhandle meets the peninsula.
As the storm moved inland into Alabama and Georgia, it weakened to a tropical storm. Helene, however, remains dangerous, causing flooding and high winds that knocked out power for nearly one million customers in Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. That&#8217;s in addition to the over 1.2 million customers without power in Florida, CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/hurricane-helene-florida-georgia-09-27-24#cm1khxftz00003b6oef4s78ww" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. At least three storm-related deaths have been reported as of early Friday morning, and around 25 people in Atlanta have been rescued from flooding, authorities told CNN.
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ATLANTA WATER RESCUES: Fire crews conducting water rescues as neighbors in Peachtree Park apartments evacuate due to rising flood waters from Peachtree Creek. Full report starting at 4:00 <a href="https://t.co/bT0o9IktH0">pic.twitter.com/bT0o9IktH0</a>
&mdash; Lindsay Tuman (@LindsayOnTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/LindsayOnTV/status/1839573660480282771?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Florida, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia have all declared states of emergency over Helene, with authorities warning of catastrophic flooding. As of Friday morning, Tropical Storm Helene was centered just east of Macon, Georgia, and moving northward at 30 mph, according to <a href="https://weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/2024-09-26-hurricane-helene-forecast-landfall-florida-southeast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Weather Channel</a>.
The storm is expected to bring high winds and potential flash flooding to Tennessee and Kentucky and parts of Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and West Virginia later on Friday. The east coasts of North and South Carolina are also at an increased risk of tornadoes on Friday.
Videos posted to social media showed the massive damage caused by Hurricane Helene in Florida. Footage of Cedar Key, Florida, posted by a storm chaser showed water nearly reaching the roofs of some houses as waves and high wind battered others.
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Insane footage of storm surge coming from Cedar Key, FL. Please continue to pray for those in the path of Hurricane Helene. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Helene?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Helene</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HurricaneHelene?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HurricaneHelene</a> <a href="https://t.co/rU6MSAmUNq">pic.twitter.com/rU6MSAmUNq</a>
— James Jinnette (@james_jinnette1) <a href="https://twitter.com/james_jinnette1/status/1839625146786599282?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Florida saw extreme flooding as far south as Maderia Beach — near Tampa — as video showed water rising in the lobby of a resort.
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Really bad flooding going on in Maderia Beach area. This is the lobby of the All Season Resort. Stay safe out there! Get the latest on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Helene?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Helene</a> -&gt; <a href="https://t.co/qyo9QUAXi9">https://t.co/qyo9QUAXi9</a> 
Couresy: Randy Paradine <a href="https://t.co/U6ycY2DQRz">pic.twitter.com/U6ycY2DQRz</a>
&mdash; Spectrum Bay News 9 (@BN9) <a href="https://twitter.com/BN9/status/1839465048726507899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Helene Downgraded To Tropical Storm After Battering Florida

Alabama

Florida

Convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh could be getting a new trial thanks to a South Carolina Supreme Court ruling this week.
The state Supreme Court overturned a previous ruling that said the former Colleton County Clerk who worked the trial didn’t tamper with the jury, as Murdaugh’s attorneys alleged. The new ruling could pave the way for Murdaugh to get a new trial, the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/08/14/us-news/alex-murdaugh-could-face-new-murder-trial-as-south-carolina-supreme-court-drops-bombshell-decision/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
Before a new trial is granted, however, the state Supreme Court will hear oral arguments for and against the decision.
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Murdaugh’s attorneys had requested a new trial last year after he was convicted of the 2021 murders of his wife, Maggie, and youngest son, Paul. Their argument for a new trial stemmed from comments then-Colleton County Clerk Rebecca “Becky” Hill made that Murdaugh’s attorneys said amounted to jury tampering.
Hill had a book deal to write about the Murdaugh case and trial. She discussed Murdaugh’s demeanor when he testified and made other comments about him to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alex-murdaugh-appeals-decision-denying-him-new-trial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">at least one juror</a>. She also allegedly allowed a photo of Murdaugh sitting in a holding cell to be taken so that she could use it to promote her book. Even though she resigned in March, she still <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/county-clerk-who-worked-alex-murdaugh-case-facing-76-ethics-violations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">faces 76 counts</a> of ethics violations for her behavior, and many of those violations relate to her actions during Murdaugh’s trial.
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But in January, South Carolina Judge Jean Toal denied that Hill’s actions amounted to jury tampering, though she did admonish Hill for her behavior.
“She made comments about Murdaugh’s demeanor as he testified and she made some of those comments before he testified to at least one and maybe more jurors,” Toal said, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/29/us/judge-jean-toal-murdaugh-jury-tampering-clerk-rebecca-hill/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to CNN</a>. “Did clerk of court Hill’s comments have any impact on the verdict of the jury? I find that the answer to this question is no.”
At least one juror testified that Hill made comments indicating she thought Murdaugh was guilty, which the juror said influenced her decision to convict. But that juror also told Judge Tol that she stood by an earlier sworn affidavit that said the other jurors influenced her to vote guilty more than Hill’s comments.
Even if Murdaugh gets a new trial and his conviction is overturned, he’s still likely to remain in prison for the rest of his life. While he’s always denied killing his wife and son, he has pleaded guilty to financial crimes and received a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alex-murdaugh-sentenced-to-27-years-for-financial-crimes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">27-year sentence</a> from the state of South Carolina and an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alex-murdaugh-sentenced-to-40-more-years-in-prison-for-federal-financial-crimes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">additional 40 years</a> from the federal government to run concurrently. He is <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alex-murdaugh-appeals-sentence-for-financial-crimes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appealing</a> the 40-year sentence.

Alex Murdaugh

Convicted Murderer Alex Murdaugh Could Get New Trial After SC Supreme Court Ruling

Prosecutors with the Department of Justice have asked the court to deny convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh’s appeal of his sentence for financial crimes.
Federal prosecutors argued that part of Murdaugh’s plea deal included a stipulation that he sign away his right to appeal the sentence, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/doj-asks-court-toss-alex-murdaugh-appeal-federal-financial-crimes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Murdaugh <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alex-murdaugh-appeals-sentence-for-financial-crimes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pled guilty</a> in September 2023 to <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sc/pr/alex-murdaugh-sentenced-40-years-prison-federal-financial-crimes#:~:text=Murdaugh%20was%20a%20personal%20injury,from%20his%20personal%20injury%20clients.">22 counts</a> of fraud and other financial crimes after reaching a plea agreement with federal prosecutors.
&#8220;For more than 15 years, he spun a complex web of exploitation, manipulation and deceit, preying on highly vulnerable victims in pursuit of his own financial gain,&#8221; federal prosecutors wrote in a motion filed in federal court last week, according to Fox.
Murdaugh’s attorneys and federal prosecutors had asked U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel for a 30-year sentence to run concurrently with Murdaugh’s 27-year sentence for state financial crime and consecutive life sentences for the murders of his wife Maggie, and youngest son, Paul.
Instead, Gergel sentenced Murdaugh to 40 years in prison for the federal financial crimes, which Murdaugh’s attorneys <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alex-murdaughs-attorneys-say-sentence-for-financial-crime-constitutes-cruel-and-unusual-punishment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have called</a> cruel and unusual punishment. In appealing the sentence, Murdaugh’s attorneys argued that the 40-year sentence is effectively a life sentence, given Murdaugh’s age, WCSC <a href="https://www.live5news.com/2024/07/12/murdaugh-attorneys-claim-federal-sentence-financial-crimes-unconstitutional/?outputType=amp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Murdaugh, who is 55, is required to serve at least 85% of his sentence, which amounts to 34 years. However, the life expectancy of a 55-year-old man is only another 24 years, <a href="https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/STATS/table4c6.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to the Social Security Administration</a>.
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Murdaugh’s appeal said the state guidelines should have sentenced him between 17 and 22 years for the crimes and cites three similar cases with median sentences of 17.5 years.
Judge Gergel sentenced Murdaugh to the longer term, stating in his ruling that Murdaugh stole money from “the most needy, vulnerable people.” This included a client who was left without the use of his arms or legs after a crash and a trust fund for children whose parents had been killed in a car crash.
Murdaugh pleaded guilty to stealing millions of dollars from his previous law firm and its clients and, in addition to prison time, was ordered to pay more than $8 million in restitution to his victims.
&nbsp;

DOJ Asks Court To Deny Alex Murdaugh’s Appeal For Financial Crimes Sentence

DOJ Asks Court To Deny Alex Murdaugh's Appeal For Financial Crimes Sentence

Fraud

Multiple people, including a teenage boy, are dead after Hurricane Debby made landfall in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/florida" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Florida</a> Monday, bringing torrential rain, flooding, and devastating winds. 
The small town of Steinhatchee <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/08/05/hurricane-debby-live-updates/74666168007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was hit</a> around 7:00 a.m. local time with 80-mile-per-hour winds. The storm then moved from the Big Bend coast of Florida through northern parts of the state before it was downgraded from a Category 1 hurricane to a tropical storm. 
This is the second time in less than a year that Steinhatchee has been hit by a hurricane, as Hurricane Idalia first made landfall about 20 miles away on August 26, 2023.
“Two in less than a year is pretty bad,” local resident Chris Williams <a href="https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-debby-flooding-storm-surge-high-winds-eb9fc50d578826784824f35ba943a6da" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the Associated Press. “You do everything you can possibly do to prepare. And when you’ve done that, clean up and put it back together and move forward.”
Hundreds of thousands throughout Florida and Georgia are without power, and there is widespread flooding and other risks. Four people have already been reported dead due to storm conditions. 
Law enforcement in Levy County <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/live-updates/hurricane-debby-path-tracker/?id=112553231" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that a tree fell on a mobile home there, killing a 13-year-old boy. 
&#8220;Our thoughts and prayers are with this family as they deal with this tragedy,&#8221; said the Levy County sheriff’s office. &#8220;We encourage everyone to use extreme caution as they begin to assess and clean up the damage. Downed powerlines and falling trees are among the many hazards.&#8221;
A truck driver was also killed after the vehicle ended up in a bypass canal off of Interstate 75 in Hillsborough County. 
&#8220;We send our condolences to the driver&#8217;s family,&#8221; <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HCSOSheriff/">said</a> Sheriff Chad Chronister. &#8220;Even the harshest conditions didn&#8217;t stop our deputies working swiftly in this tragic situation.&#8221;
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Two other people <a href="https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/weather/fhp-florida-12-year-old-boy-among-2-dead-after-driver-loses-control-during-hurricane-debby-in-dixie-county/77-bfb7b071-9e1a-4493-9c0f-4475cda2bc9c" target="_blank" rel="noopener">were killed</a> Sunday night after a 38-year-old woman in Dixie County lost control of her vehicle “due to the inclement weather and wet roadway,” leading to her death and also killing a 12-year-old boy. A 14-year-old boy was also in the vehicle and hospitalized after the accident. 
Portions of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas are expected to be inundated with rain.
Florida officials are warning that floods could be a danger for days after the storm passes. Florida Division of Emergency Management executive director Kevin Guthrie said Monday that the chance of flooding &#8220;is probably going to be here for the next five to seven days, maybe as long as 10 days depending on how much rainfall we get.”
Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis told people not to drive through flooded areas.
“When the water rises, when you have streets that can be flooded, that’s hazardous,” he said. “Don’t try to drive through this. We don’t want to see traffic fatalities adding up.”
About 272,000 customers are <a href="https://poweroutage.us/">without power</a> in Florida, and 24,000 have lost power in Georgia.

Hurricane Debby Heads Towards Florida’s Big Bend Region

Multiple Dead After Hurricane Debby Makes Landfall In Florida

Ron DeSantis

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