Fayetteville Announces New Police Chief to Replace Gina Hawkins

The City of Fayetteville announced that Kemberle Braden will be the next Chief of Police for the Fayetteville Police Department.

Braden, has been with the Fayetteville Police Department for 26 years. He was most recently the Assistant Chief of Police, and has previously served as a sergeant, lieutenant, captain and major as well.

"I'm extremely thankful for this opportunity to continue to serve the residents of Fayetteville which I have called home for more than 45 years," said Chief of Police-select Kemberle Braden. "I look forward to bringing what I have learned throughout my career to lead the police force as those have done before me."

Braden was selected over another internal candidate, Assistant Chief James Nolette.

"We know, based on community input and feedback, that our next Chief should be fully invested in our community and uniquely prepared to build on the foundation in place,” City Manager Doug Hewett when announcing the two finalists earlier in December. “Which is why I’m pleased that through a rigorous process using community members and external reviewers, we’ve identified two candidates who understand Fayetteville, along with our strategic goals and priorities for moving forward.”

According to the City of Fayetteville, Braden was named Officer of the Year in 2002, and earned a Police Purple Heart that year as well. He has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from UNC Pembroke, and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy Leadership Development course.

"We are truly fortunate to have identified exceptionally qualified candidates through the search, and making an internal hire exemplifies how well we cultivate and nurture talent from within," Hewett said. "Throughout the entire process, Chief-Select Braden has shown us his authenticity, professionalism, leadership, desire to serve and dedication to our City and this police department. I am confident in his ability to lead the Fayetteville Police Department into the future with innovation and collaboration."

Braden will replace Gina Hawkins, who announced she will soon be retiring, after serving as Police Chief since 2017.

Out of 229,011 miles of roads in North Carolina, it turns out the deadliest stretch of it is right here in Fayetteville.

According to our friends at MoneyGeek.com, the stretch of Cliffdale Road from Beverly Drive to Landsdowne Road is the deadliest spot in the state. There were 10 fatal accidents in that 4.9 mile stretch from 2018-2020.

"The top five counties with the most deadly crashes made up 23% of all recorded incidents in North Carolina in the three years studied," MoneyGeek said in the post. "Mecklenburg had the highest count at 289, most of which occurred along I-485. MoneyGeek’s analysis found that these crashes typically involved speeding and drunk driving."

While Mecklenburg County (Charlotte) was highest, Wake County came in second with 188 fatal crashes. Guilford County was third with 170, and Cumberland County came in fourth with 143.

Of the 143 fatal accidents during the study period, 32 of them were drunk driving related, 10 were distracted driving related, and 37 were speeding related.

Despite being only the 24th largest county in the state, Robeson County came in a startlingly high fifth on the fatal accidents study. There were 126 fatal accidents, with 38 being drunk driving related, six being distracted driving, and 30 being speed related. I-95 in Robeson County was the most dangerous spot in the county, with eight of the 126 accidents.

Also of note in the study, June was the worst month overall with 409 fatal accidents, far more than May, which had 383. The 409 accidents was 10.2 percent of the total number. The lowest total came in December, with just 211 fatal accidents.

Speeding was the highest cause of fatal accidents overall in the state, with 25.4 percent of them coming that way. Drunk driving was involved in 23.4 percent of the fatal accidents.

Below are the 10 deadliest stretches of roads in North Carolina, including the worst of which, right here in Fayetteville.