Charges against a Taylorsville man held in a child abuse case have been upgraded to First Degree Murder. The Alexander County Sheriff's Office was notified Monday about 4:35pm that 17 month old Camden Hudson had died, after being taken off life support at Brenner Children's Hospital in Winston-Salem. Warrants were issued shortly after on 25-year-old Justin Lon Carver. He is currently being held in the Alexander County Detention Center without bond, with a first court appearance scheduled today. Carver was arrested Friday after Alexander 911 was contacted about a child that had fallen off a couch. EMS responded to the residence on Highway 16 South and reported to the Sheriff's Office that the injuries did not match the fall and the child was taken to Winston-Salem. The investigation is continuing.

A Morganton state trooper is among 16 state employees chosen for this year's 'Governor's Awards for Excellence.' It is the highest honor a state employee may receive for dedicated service to the State and the people of North Carolina. The honorees attended a special awards ceremony Tuesday, at the NC Museum of History. On the morning of January 2nd, Trooper Jonathan Gouge was traveling on Eldred Street in Valdese when he noticed heavy smoke and flames coming from the second floor of a residence. At the time, Gouge was not on duty. He stopped his vehicle and after talking to a neighbor, learned that someone was inside the residence. After finding the door locked, Gouge took off his hooded sweatshirt, wrapped it around his fist, and knocked out a window. Inside the house, he found an elderly woman in a state of panic, screaming and confused. Trooper Gouge helped her out of the burning house and after going back into the residence to get her medications, rescued the woman's three pet dogs.

On Tuesday, Blue Ridge Parkway officials joined representatives of Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina, members of the Moody family, project funders and community members at the Bear Den Overlook to announce the regional land trust's conservation of the 208-acre Bear Den property. The property lies along 1.6 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway between mileposts 323 and 325 in McDowell County. Its purchase protects critical lands amidst a complex of federal, state, and privately owned conservation lands along the parkway, according to a news release from the Morganton based Foothills Conservancy.