Public Safety

Two Independence women were injured, one seriously, in a Feb. 19 accident on Virginia Route 274 near Virginia 94, according to a Virginia State Police report.
The incident occurred at about 10 a.m. when 36-year-old Joy Hawks lost control of a 2002 Chevy Cavalier, went off the road to the right and struck a tree, according to a report by Trooper C.W. Keesling.
Both Hawks and a passenger, Destina Upchurch, were transported to Twin County Regional Hospital for treatment.
Hawks was transferred to another hospital by helicopter.
Charges are pending.

The general trend of applications for concealed handgun permits has been increasing for years in Carroll and Grayson counties, with large spikes from 2011 to 2012 and on track to be even higher in 2013.
Grayson expects a 300 percent increase in requests over last year, while Carroll is on track to have triple the requests of 2005.
While the sudden spike in 2013 has occurred after the mass shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Ct., there’s evidently more to the story given the general increase over the last few years.

INDEPENDENCE ― A bomb threat at Grayson County High School on Feb. 12 turned out to be a hoax.

Grayson County Sheriff Richard Vaughan said he received a call around noon that day from Grayson school administrator Steve Cornett in reference to a bomb threat found written on a bathroom wall at GCHS.

HILLSVILLE — A suspect in a Feb. 8 shooting death might have moved the body, but search warrants show that Carroll County law enforcement found a lot of evidence left behind during their investigation of the crime scene.
Jesse James Owens, 30, of Woodlawn stands accused of first-degree murder and related charges in the death of 45-year-old Delphie Jane Willey.