Army doctor faces 273 allegations involving 96

May 21, 2026

1–2 minutes

Summary

Army prosecutors said an Army doctor now faces 273 allegations involving 96 victims, up from 73 previously reported.

Why this matters

The case involves allegations against a military physician at Army medical centers in Texas and Hawaii, with the number of alleged victims rising significantly. It also shows the status of the military prosecution and when the next court proceeding is scheduled.

An Army gynecologist in Texas accused of sexually abusing and secretly recording female patients now faces allegations involving 96 victims, military prosecutors said Wednesday.

Blaine McGraw, 48, faces eight charges and 273 specifications, according to the Army’s Office of Special Trial Counsel.

The office said in April that McGraw, who is assigned to Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center at Fort Hood, Texas, faced six charges and 146 specifications involving 73 victims from 2023 to 2025.

The preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 26.

The latest charges include allegations of abusive sexual contact, sexual assault, indecent recording, and attempted sexual assault.

Seven alleged victims were patients at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, where McGraw was assigned during his medical residency, the office said. Those alleged offenses occurred during medical evaluations of female patients between June 2019 and July 2023.

The Army said 87 other alleged victims were tied to Fort Hood and reported offenses during medical examinations of female patients.

An additional alleged victim was secretly recorded at a private residence away from the Army base, the office said.

McGraw also was accused of sexual misconduct in a lawsuit filed in Bell County, Texas, in November.

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Miss South Carolina pageant returns to Columbia

This year marks the 89th year of the Miss South Carolina competition and its 15th year in Columbia.

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The Miss South Carolina and Miss South Carolina’s Teen competitions will return to Township Auditorium in Columbia, with contestants arriving Sunday and preliminary events beginning June 16.

There are 39 contestants in the Miss South Carolina competition and 26 in Miss South Carolina’s Teen.

New this year is a separate panel of judges for the talent competition. “It mirrors the approach taken at Miss America, where talent is evaluated by experts who live and breathe their craft,” the Miss South Carolina Scholarship Organization said on Facebook.

The talent judges are Jeremy Hudson, Eras Tour choreographer; Miki Abraham, Broadway vocalist and actor; Yili Fan, director and screenwriter; Morihiko Nakahara, South Carolina Philharmonic conductor; and Corey Ward, “The Voice” semifinalist.

Judges for the Miss South Carolina competition are Melanie R. Bridgeforth, founder of strategy firm Bridgeforth; Jacob Young, producer and director; Lisa Seagroves Nulph, dancer and Miss West Virginia 1988; Eddie Rabon, storyteller and talent agent; and Lacey Whitt, educator, singer, and Miss Missouri 2008.

Contestants will be judged on a private interview, health and fitness, talent, onstage conversation, and red carpet/evening wear.

The next Miss South Carolina will advance to the Miss America contest, now called Miss America Opportunity, at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach. The final night is Sept. 6.

The reigning Miss America is Cassie Donegan, formerly Miss New York.

Miss South Carolina Teen 2025 is LilyKate Barbare of Greer, who was appointed Sept. 18 after Tess Ferm won Miss America’s Teen 2026. Miss America’s Teen will also be held in West Palm Beach, with the winner to be crowned Sept. 5.
North Carolina

Greenville adopts $530.4M budget, keeps tax rate

The budget kept the property tax rate at 39.54 cents per $100 of assessed value, a rate city officials said remains among the lowest for comparable North Carolina cities.

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Greenville residents will not see an increase in the city’s property tax rate after the City Council unanimously approved a $530.4 million budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year Monday night.

The plan included $194.9 million in city operating funds, $330 million for Greenville Utilities Commission, $2.3 million for the Pitt-Greenville Convention & Visitors Authority, and $3.1 million for Sheppard Memorial Library.

According to city officials, public safety accounted for more than half of the city’s operating spending.

Major investments included funding for 12 additional Fire/Rescue positions at a cost of $750,000, $250,000 for pedestrian safety projects, $450,000 in local funding for Community Development Block Grant and housing initiatives, and $300,000 in new funding for the city’s Affordable Housing Strategic Plan. The budget also included support for more than 50 special events.

The council approved the budget during a public hearing at its regular June 8 meeting.

Council members also approved several transportation, housing, and infrastructure projects. Those actions included agreements with the North Carolina Department of Transportation for the Evans Street Widening Project and the North-South Connector Project, as well as contracts tied to affordable housing initiatives in partnership with Pitt Community College.

The council also approved funding and site development services for two homes on West Fifth Street as part of the city’s 50-in-10 affordable housing initiative, which aims to increase Greenville’s supply of affordable housing units.
North Carolina

Eastern N.C. EMS agencies get funds for addiction care

State health officials said Mobile Integrated Health programs allow EMS personnel to serve as a bridge between emergency response and ongoing health care services, especially in rural communities with limited access to care.

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Several eastern North Carolina emergency medical services agencies were among 39 recipients sharing $10 million in state funding to strengthen the EMS workforce and expand behavioral health and substance use treatment in rural communities.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced the awards Monday through the North Carolina Rural Health Transformation Program. The grants will support Mobile Integrated Health programs, which allow EMS agencies to provide care beyond traditional emergency response.

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State health officials said the investment was intended to help EMS agencies address substance use disorders, improve access to care, and support people recovering from opioid overdoses and other behavioral health challenges.

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“Improving access to care starts with investing in our health care providers, including our frontline EMS workforce,” North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai said in a statement. “By strengthening EMS-led Mobile Integrated Health programs, we can provide timely treatment, support life-saving recovery, and ultimately reduce preventable overdoses.”

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Amazon-Corning deal to add 1,000 N.C. jobs

The company said it has invested more than $20 billion in the state since 2010.

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Amazon announced a multibillion-dollar agreement with Corning Inc. to supply optical fiber, cable, and connectivity products for Amazon’s expanding data center infrastructure in the United States.

Amazon said the agreement will create 1,000 new jobs at Corning manufacturing facilities in North Carolina and support hundreds of construction jobs tied to facility expansions.

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Amazon said the agreement is separate from its previously announced plan to invest $10 billion in North Carolina to expand cloud computing infrastructure.

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South Carolina early voting sets primary record

Early voting began May 26 and ran every weekday through Friday. The first day drew the most voters, with 56,407 ballots cast.

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South Carolina voters cast a record number of early ballots ahead of Tuesday’s statewide primary, according to the State Election Commission.

Nearly 319,000 ballots were cast during the two weeks before the election, more than double the number cast early in the 2024 primary and more than triple the total from two years earlier, after the state enacted no-excuse early voting.

As of last Tuesday, the most recent data available, nearly 64% of early ballots were cast in the Democratic primary. South Carolina voters do not register by party. At the polls, they choose either a Republican or Democratic primary ballot.

Another 11,000 people voted absentee, according to the election commission.

Voters will choose party nominees for governor, other statewide constitutional offices, and seats in Congress and the state Legislature.

Runoffs, if needed, are scheduled for June 23. In South Carolina, if no candidate receives at least 50% plus one vote in a primary, the top two finishers advance to a runoff.

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North Carolina

Kinston woman charged after child found home alone

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A Kinston woman was charged after police said her 5-year-old child was left home alone for several hours before a family member found him.

The Kinston Police Department said A-Squad officers responded around 9 a.m. June 7 to a home in the 900 block of Savannah Lane after a report of a missing child.

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USDA confirms 5 screwworm cases in Texas, New Mexico

Experts had said a widespread outbreak could cause $1.8 billion in economic damage in Texas and heavily affect wildlife.

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U.S. officials confirmed three additional cases of New World screwworm on Tuesday, bringing the total to five since the first domestic infestation in six decades was found in a Texas calf last week.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said the new cases included a calf in La Salle County, Texas, and a goat in Gillespie County, Texas.

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Duke Energy gets $28.4M for N.C. coal plant upgrades

The Energy Department said it is investing $525 million nationwide in coal-related projects, using the Defense Production Act of 1950 to classify the projects as important to national security.

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The Trump administration awarded Duke Energy a $28.4 million grant to upgrade its Roxboro coal plant in Person County, North Carolina.

The U.S. Department of Energy announced last week that the Roxboro plant was among 13 projects selected nationwide. The agency said the funding is intended to support domestic coal mining, baseload power generation, and energy infrastructure.

“This funding supports previously planned critical upgrades that help ensure we can continue delivering reliable power to our North Carolina customers while keeping costs as low as possible,” Kendal Bowman, president of Duke Energy’s utility operations in North Carolina, said in a statement.

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It was the strongest earthquake to hit the Philippines this year.

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A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck off the southern Philippines on Monday, killing at least 32 people, injuring more than 200, damaging buildings, and sending tsunami waves into nearby coasts.

The quake was centered at sea off Mindanao at a depth of 33 kilometers (20 miles), about 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Maasim town in Sarangani province, according to Teresito Bacolcol, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

In Sarangani, a landslide in Glan killed 13 villagers, and four others died elsewhere in the province, provincial disaster official Rene Punzalan told DZBB radio. Other deaths were caused by collapsing buildings and falling debris, including in a damaged mosque, in South Cotabato, Davao Occidental, and on Balut Island, according to disaster officials Rod Sosmeña and Ednar Dayanghirang.

At least 12 people remained missing in General Santos, where several mostly low-rise buildings collapsed or were heavily damaged. Search teams looked for possible survivors in a supermarket, a warehouse, a grade school, and other buildings, officials said. The city’s airport temporarily closed, and 17 domestic flights were canceled, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.

In Malita, Davao Occidental, more than 100 students and about a dozen teachers were gathered for a flag-raising ceremony when the quake struck.

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Europe

Russian strikes kill 4, wound 10 in Kharkiv region

According to the UN, at least 15,850 civilians have been killed in Ukrainian-controlled areas since February 2022. More than 2,800 civilians have died in Russian-controlled areas.

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Russian strikes killed four people and wounded 10 others in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region early Tuesday, regional officials said.

Kharkiv regional Gov. Oleg Synegubov said on Telegram that Russian forces struck the city of Chuguiv, killing four people, including a 22-year-old woman.

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