🌱 Mayor Won't Seek Reelection + Man Injured In Shed Collapse

Hello, hello! I'm here right on time with your Saturday edition of the Durham Patch newsletter, filled with all the things you need to know about what's happening in town.

But first, your local weather:

• Saturday: A t-shower in spots; humid. High: 86 Low: 65.
• Sunday: A t-storm around in the p.m.. High: 90 Low: 69.

From our sponsor:

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Here are the top three stories in Durham today:

1. Mayor Elaine O'Neal, who has served as Durham's first Black woman to be mayor, went public on Thursday, Jun. 22, that she will not be seeking reelection for a second term. O'Neal is newly engaged and a mother and grandmother, and has made comments before that she would like to withdraw from public life and focus on her family, but has kept the details of her private life from prying eyes. She has also been open that she does not relish the personal attacks that have sometimes come with her prominent public position. O'Neal said, "It's been a great ride. I love the city of Durham, but I love my family more." (News & Observer)
2. A Durham man has been injured after a shed he was working on disassembling fell down on and around him, trapping him. Around 11:30 a.m. Friday, Jun. 23, firefighters were called to a possible structure collapse in the 4700 block of Rollingwood Drive, where they found a man whose legs were trapped under the debris of a partially torn-down two-story shed. It took 27 personnel roughly 10 minutes to extricate the man from the debris; he was taken from the scene to Duke University Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. (CBS 17)
3. Almost 33 years after the initial report of kidnapping and sexual assault, Durham police have charged the man named in the backlogged rape kit. Local Samuel Harris, 56, was arrested last week on two counts of first-degree rape and three counts of first-degree sex offense after his DNA was found to match evidence collected in a rape kit from Aug. 1, 1990. According to the report, in 1990 a man had gotten into the victim's car near the intersection of Morris and West Corporation streets in downtown Durham and forced the victim to drive around the area while he assaulted her. (News & Observer)

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Today and tomorrow in Durham:

Saturday, June 24

• Fitness Center At The Edison Johnson Recreation Center (9:00 AM)
• West Point Park Tour At The McCown-Mangum House (10:00 AM)
• Bey Blade Tournament At The W.D. Hill Recreation Center (12:00 PM)
• Rock The Park Concert & Movie Series At Durham Central Park (8:30 PM)

Sunday, June 25

• Craft Meet Up At Leigh Farm Park (12:00 PM)

From my notebook:

• Durham Police are reporting that 16-year-old Aniha Hooper, named in a recent Amber Alert, has been found and is safe! (Durham Police Department via Facebook)
• The City of Durham is offering congratulations to its Fleet Management team, who have been named in the top 50 leading fleets in Government Fleet Magazine! (City of Durham, NC Government via Facebook)
• The Durham Co-op Market has fresh seafood available, including copper river salmon, Norwegian salmon, tuna, wild-caught cod, and wild sockeye! (Durham Co-op Market via Facebook)

Now you're in the loop and ready to start this Saturday! See you all soon for another update.

— Amy Mayo

About me: Amy Mayo is a writer, visual artist, and political scientist, living in the NC Research Triangle. She graduated from the University of North Carolina Asheville with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and has worked in a variety of fields outside of copywriting including policy advocacy, the healthcare industry and pharmaceuticals, and education. She hopes one day to live up to the stringent expectations of her cat, Morty.