VOLUME 149 ISSUE 15 | THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 2026
CHATHAMNEWSRECORD.COM
THE CHATHAM COUNTY EDITION OF NORTH STATE JOURNAL
GENE GALIN FOR CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD
Out for a stroll Kids and adults alike were out and about in Pittsboro for Summerfest 2026 on Sunday.
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BRIEF this week
Trump taps housing regulator Pulte to be acting director of national intelligence President Donald Trump has tapped Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to be the acting director of national intelligence — elevating a real estate scion without any clear national security credentials to a key post as the U.S. remains at war with Iran. Trump made the surprise announcement Tuesday on social media that Pulte would be replacing Tulsi Gabbard, the former Hawaii congresswoman who had served as the director of national intelligence. Trump said Pulte will keep his other positions even as he fills in for Gabbard, who resigned last month after revealing her husband’s cancer diagnosis.
Trump signs executive order to vet top AI models for national security risks President Donald Trump has signed a new executive order on artificial intelligence. The order establishes a framework for the federal government to vet the national security risks of the most advanced AI systems for up to a month before their public release. The government will be able to work with trusted partners “that will have early access to covered frontier models to promote secure innovation and strengthen the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure,” the order says.
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Siler City approves updated UDO The previous ordinance had been in place since 1993 By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record SILER CITY — The Siler City Board of Commissioners has adopted a new UDO. At the board’s June 1 meeting, the final draft of the updated Unified Development Ordinance was presented for a public hearing. The new UDO was devel-
oped in conjunction with town staff and the UDO steering committee, whose members were appointed by the Board of Commissioners. “This is a review of the draft language for the entire new UDO that will replace the existing UDO that was adopted in August of 1993,” said Director of Planning and Community Development Tim Garner. “This
project was begun shortly after the adoption of the comprehensive plan and is the natural progression as the comprehensive plan outlines the objectives we’re trying to achieve with this new UDO.” The new UDO follows a lot of what was laid out in the town’s 2024 Comprehensive Land Plan, which intends to ensure quality development within the town, and also updates the outdated plan to keep it in line with the current state statutes.
Some of those goals include encouraging infill and redevelopment in commercial corridors and near downtown, updating subdivision requirements, encouraging open space, sidewalks and landscape buffers in all new residential developments, promoting a mix of housing types and updating design standards. “We think we have a document that will really let us start See ORDINANCE, page A3
Wildlife game camera image, drone used to arrest man in fatal shooting of Virginia deputy The suspect was arrested two days later while ringing a doorbell in North Carolina By Kathy McCormack The Associated Press INVESTIGATORS in North Carolina used a wildlife game camera image and a drone to
find and arrest a man wanted in connection with the fatal shooting of a Virginia sheriff’s deputy who was conducting a welfare check, authorities said. The suspect, identified as Mi-
chael Puckett, was found with a gun Sunday night, two days after the shooting, as he was ringing the doorbell of a home less than several miles from the Virginia state line in Surry County. He was arrested and booked without bond, the state’s bureau See DRONE, page A3
Robot helping ailing couple stay in home; could more be coming for aging population? “I was never into technology. Then I realized I can’t remember to wash my face and my armpits. So it just really kind of set me free almost.” Brian Marquis
The robot handles reminders and daily tasks to help older adults stay independent By Matt O’Brien The Associated Press DURHAM, N.H. — After outliving Booker T. Bones, their second service dog, Brenda and Brian Marquis still needed help with some of the more difficult parts of daily life. They found Robbie, a robot that rolls out of a hallway into their living room several times a day. “Do you want to exercise
now? Please answer yes or no,” the caregiver robot asks 59-year-old Brian Marquis, who has been living with a traumatic brain injury since a 2012 car crash. “Yes,” he responds. Then he stands up as the robot’s googly-eyed digital screen “face” morphs into an exercise video that guides him through an afternoon workout. The decades-long quest to build home robots that are both helpful and lifelike — spurred on by fictional machines like The Jetsons’ humanoid maid Rosie — is still mostly a pipe dream. That’s See ROBOT, page A7
“He had a servant’s heart. He cared for others, he cared for his country, he cared for his family.” Kevin Kemp, Carroll County sheriff