Morning Answer Daily

HAMPTON COUNTY, S.C. — A prominent South Carolina lawyer who found the bodies of his wife and son three months ago tried to arrange his own death earlier this month so his son would get a $10 million life insurance payment, but the planned fatal shot only grazed his head, state police said Tuesday.

The shooter, Curtis Edward Smith, was charged with assisted suicide, insurance fraud and several other counts in the Sept. 4 shooting of Alex Murdaugh on a lonely highway in Hampton County, the State Law Enforcement Division said in a statement...

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division has opened a new investigation into the case of Alex Murdaugh, officials said Monday.

In a release from SLED spokesman Tommy Crosby, officials said the latest investigation is based on allegations that he misappropriated funds in connection to his position as a former lawyer with the Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth, & Detrick Law Firm in Hampton, South Carolina...

ABBEVILLE, S.C. — Abbeville County deputies are searching for a 23-year-old man last seen Saturday afternoon.

According to a Facebook post from the department, Adam Clark Harvey was last seen wearing a black shirt and black jeans around Mt. Carmel Road around 3 p.m. Saturday.

He is described as a white man, 6'1" tall and has red hair.

The sheriff says Harvey has special needs...

COLUMBIA, S.C. — President Joe Biden announced Thursday night sweeping new federal vaccine requirements.

The government's expansive new rules mandate that all employers with more than 100 workers will require employees to be vaccinated or tested for the virus weekly, affecting about 80 million Americans.

Gov. Henry McMaster took to Twitter to respond.

"Rest assured, we will fight them to the gates of hell to protect the liberty and livelihood of every South Carolinian," the governor said, adding: "The American Dream has turned into a nightmare under President Biden and the radical Democrats."

GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. —

This crash happened at around 9 p.m. Wednesday near Monticello Drive, according to the Greenville County Coroner's Office.

According to troopers, the driver of a Ford truck rear-ended the dump truck. The driver was trapped inside the Ford truck, which caught fire.

Troopers said the driver of the dump truck was not hurt.

A driver was killed in a fiery crash involving a pickup and a dump truck in Greenville County, according to South Carolina Highway Patrol.

Troopers said a dump truck was disabled in the eastbound lane of SC-20, also known as S. Piedmont Highway.

POLK COUNTY, N.C. —  On Tuesday the Polk County Schools' Board of Education voted 5-2 during an emergency meeting to implement a mask mandate.

The temporary mask requirement for students and staff is effective Wednesday, Sept. 8., according to officials.

According to officials, the temporary measure is a means to combat the impact of COVID-19 events and quarantining that has led to clusters in classrooms, staffing issues and the temporary closing of three schools.

The mask requirement will only apply during the school day and in other instructional settings when students and staff are indoors and not eating or drinking, officials said...

HAMPTON COUNTY, S.C. — Alex Murdaugh, the prominent South Carolina attorney whose wife and son were shot and killed earlier this summer, released a statement Monday after he was reportedly shot in the head.

The statement was released by a PR firm out of Columbia, and reads as follows:

“The murders of my wife and son have caused an incredibly difficult time in my life. I have made a lot of decisions that I truly regret. I’m resigning from my law firm and entering rehab after a long battle that has been exacerbated by these murders. I am immensely sorry to everyone I’ve hurt including my family, friends and colleagues. I ask for prayers as I rehabilitate myself and my relationships...”

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Two officers were injured Friday in what the Richland County Sheriff called a "riot" inside the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center.

Sheriff Leon Lott said officers were called about 8:30 a.m. to the detention center.

He said several inmates attacked the officers and a shank was the only weapon used.

According to Lott, there were more than 50 inmates in the pod at the time the attack occurred.

He said the two officers were taken to the hospital but are expected to survive.

GREENVILLE, S.C. — The Greenville County School District said Wednesday the district cannot keep up with the number of teachers and students who are out with COVID-19 or who are quarantining.

The district said it would soon have a new, improved, and updated COVID-19 dashboard in place.

Parents have questioned the low number of cases district-wide that have been posted on the district website.

District spokesperson Tim Waller said those numbers are not current.

"We simply have not been able to keep up," Waller said...

GREENVILLE, S.C. (WIS-TV) — The school year just started, but grades are already starting to come in for South Carolina schools.

The South Carolina School Report Card compiles the results of the federal end-of-year assessment given to students in third grade and higher. The SC Department of Education asked the federal government for a waiver to not give these tests last year, as was done in 2020 but was denied.

While officials with the Department of Education say they expected a dip in students being at grade level because of COVID-19, the final numbers worried them...

GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. — A bus driver shortage has Greenville County Schools asking the parents of bus riders to provide transportation to school for their children or drive carpools to transport the children of friends and neighbors if they are able to do so, according to Greenville County school district spokesman Tim Waller.

According to Waller, on Friday, GCS was more than 100 drivers short due to absences and a shortage of people who are qualified to drive a bus.

Reducing the number of bus riders in Greenville County Schools will allow the district to more efficiently serve those students who have no alternative means of transportation, Waller said.

Parents of bus riders who are able to drive their children are asked to notify their school, Waller added.

According to Waller, as a result of the bus driver shortage, most daytime field trips are currently suspended in Greenville County Schools...

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Hurricane Ida blasted the Louisiana coast on Sunday, with the eye of one of the most powerful storms to ever hit the U.S. coming ashore near the barrier island of Grand Isle with violent winds of 150 mph.

What impacts could we see here in the Carolinas and Georgia?

On Tuesday, the remnants of Ida will be moving to our northwest, but will bring its tail end of moisture our way beginning Tuesday afternoon and evening thru Wednesday.

This will mean a better chance for scattered showers and storms...

Kabul, Afghanistan —  A U.S. official says the complex attack outside Kabul airport is "definitely believed" to have been carried out by the Islamic State group.

The official says members of the U.S. military were wounded in Thursday's attack, which involved two suicide bombers and gunmen.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations. The Islamic State group is more radical than the Taliban and has carried out a wave of attacks targeting civilians.

The official says evacuation flights have continued to take off from Kabul airport in the waning days of an airlift to help people flee the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan...

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Some parents in Greenville County are frustrated and say they want masks mandated. Others say they're glad it's an option.

The Greenville County School board voted unanimously at a meeting Tuesday to pass a motion allocating 5.5 million dollars in federal funding. The district will allocate $3.3 million for 80 hours of COVID-19-related leave for staff.

The district's current COVID leave program, before Tuesday's vote, was set to end August 31, 2021. It is now extended through 2022 and includes leave to help care for family members. After COVID leave is exhausted, available sick leave would be utilized.

The district also voted to allocate $1.1 million dollars in hiring permanent substitutes and $600,000.00 to hire temporary staff to track student COVID-19 tests, quarantines, isolations and ESSER federal funding compliance.

Masks were not on the agenda.

This year, Greenville County Schools...

SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. —  Leaders of an Upstate health system said they are seeing a surge in COVID-19 patients in the last six weeks and 90% of them are unvaccinated.

“We are struggling. There’s no other way to say it,” said Dr. Chris Lombardozzi, Chief Medical Officer at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. “Like a lot of hospitals, particularly in the southeast, we are seeing a mega surge in COVID-19 cases.

Back on July 1, Lombardozzi said there were three patients with COVID-19 in Spartanburg Regional Healthcare.

As of Monday morning, that number was 210.

According to DHEC, 96% of hospital beds are now occupied in Spartanburg County.

CHICAGO (AP) — The Rev. Jesse Jackson and his wife, Jacqueline, have been hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19.

The famed civil rights leader is vaccinated against the virus and publicly received his first dose in January, as he urged others to vaccinate as soon as possible.

According to a statement released Saturday evening by his organization The Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the Jacksons are being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago...

GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. — A lawsuit has been filed in Greenville County asking the federal government to step in and require masks on South Carolina school buses.

The suit was filed Thursday against the Greenville County School District and the South Carolina Department of Education by the guardian of a group of minor children identified as Jane or John Doe.

The lawsuit is asking the court to rule that federal law preempts the South Carolina budget proviso on masks on school buses and requires enforcement of the federal mask policy declared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The filing states information shows 46 of 46 counties in South Carolina – including Greenville County – are recording “high” levels of community transmission of the virus.

About 23,000 children ride the school bus every school day in Greenville County, the suit states...

HAYWOOD COUNTY, N.C. — Two people were found dead and 20 remain unaccounted for after flooding in Haywood County as Fred moved through the area.

The names of those found dead have not been released.

Officials say 200 searchers are out Thursday searching home to home along the Pigeon River, clearing areas and making preliminary assessments of damage.

They said ground, aerial (drone), and swift water rescue teams are continuing intensive search efforts.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Sen. Thom Tillis will be joining Haywood County officials to tour flood-damaged areas.

There is significant damage to roads and bridges, especially in Cruso, with at least 10-15 bridges damaged or destroyed, officials said...

GREENVILLE, S.C. — A group of bipartisan lawmakers want school districts to be able to choose whether they should mandate masks, and they’re asking for a special session in hopes of changing the current law.

“This is an effort to revisit what was done in a different era. In a different time,” said Republican State Senator Luke Rankin from District 33 in Horry County.

Rankin is one of four lawmakers to sign the letter, which he said has been sent to Senate President Harvey Peeler. Of the four lawmakers, two are Republicans, two are Democrats.

The letter requests a special session for the South Carolina Senate “to reconsider restrictions on school districts and mask mandates.”