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Officials: Expect Heightened Police Presence At Area Schools Following Fatal Shooting

(From left) Gov. Roy Cooper, Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough, and Winston-Salem Police Chief Catrina Thompson listen to a question during a press conference Thursday, September 2, about the fatal shooting at Mount Tabor High School. PAUL GARBER/WFDD

It's been almost a week since William Chavis Raynard Miller Jr. died after being shot and killed by another student on Mount Tabor High School grounds. The suspect is in custody but has not been identified, and officials remain tight-lipped about the investigation.

But people may see more police officers on local school campuses, according to a statement released Monday by Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough and Winston-Salem Police Chief Catrina Thompson.

The statement says to expect a visible law enforcement presence around schools in the coming days as well as “the presence of those who will go unnoticed.”

The heightened security will come as a collaboration between the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office, the Winston-Salem Police Department, the Kernersville Police Department, and the North Carolina State Highway Patrol.

Kimbrough and Thompson said their own roles as parents have deepened their concerns for the community.

The officials are asking anyone with information to contact the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office at 336-727-2112. Law enforcement will continue to monitor social media as part of the ongoing investigation.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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