Three students killed at UNC Chapel Hill
Tuesday in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Deah Shaddy Barakat, Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha and Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha were killed by neighbor Craig Stephen Hicks, The State reported.
Barakat and Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha were married, and Yusor and Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha were sisters. Barakat was a doctoral student at UNC-Chapel Hill’s School of Dentistry, where Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha planned to begin school soon. Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha was a student at N.C. State University.
Chapel Hill police said that a parking dispute could have lead Hicks to shoot the three students.
However, the women’s father, Dr. Mohammad Abu-Salha, thought that the shooting was a hate crime based on their Muslim faith. He said that they were killed execution style and that Hicks had confronted his daughter and her husband on multiple occasions.
The investigation is in its early stages and has yet to be launched as a federal hate crime investigation.
Hicks was charged with three counts of first-degree murder and is being held in the county jail without bail.
— Madeleine Collins, News Editor
South Carolina House passes bill banning abortion past 20 weeks of pregnancy
The South Carolina House passed a bill banning abortion at 20 weeks of pregnancy, The State reported.
The legislation is based on pro-life supporter’s claims that a fetus can feel pain at 20 weeks, though this fact is disputed within the medical community.
Abortion is currently legal in South Carolina through 24 weeks. The only exception is when the mother’s life is at risk.
Those who are against the legislation argue that some life threatening abnormalities cannot be detected until 20 weeks into pregnancy, and that late abortions are often the result of complications.
If passed by the South Carolina Senate, doctors who perform abortions after 20 weeks would face up to three years in jail and fines between $2,000 to $10,000.
Last year, a similar bill passed through the House only to fail in the Senate.
— Madeleine Collins, News Editor
Mike Farmer, retired Greenville teacher, dies in car crash
Mike Farmer, a retired physics teacher at Riverside High School, Greenville Technical College and the Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, died at age 73 in a car crash, Greenville Online reported.
Throughout his career, Farmer inspired his students, and some of them went on to become professors, engineers and brain surgeons.
Farmer was well known for his passion for space and teaching, and was popular among his students.
He was a recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching and was a Greenville County Teacher of the Year. Farmer also won several awards from Discover Magazine and the National Science Teachers Association.
Friends, family and colleagues say they remember Farmer as passionate and friendly. They say they will miss him greatly.
— Madeleine Collins, News Editor