David Hodges
Investigative Reporter
Charlotte, NC
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David tries to accomplish two things with every story he tells - shed light on hidden issues and help people in need.
As an investigative reporter, he focuses on covering local government and consumer issues.
He started his investigative reporting career at NBC 2 in Fort Myers, FL. While there, David uncovered law enforcement was illegally conducting video surveillance that wasn’t disclosed to the courts, exposed a taxpayer-funded city council donation fund used to give money to churches and non-profits, and revealed numerous problems with rules and regulations that hold shady contractors accountable.
His first job in television was at WFFF in Burlington, Vt. That's where he covered local and state government and started a “You Paid For It” series highlighting questionable uses of taxpayer money.
David moved to Charlotte with his wife who is a mental health therapist specializing in helping children in crisis.
Originally from Jacksonville, FL, David is a huge Jacksonville Jaguars fan (sorry, David!). Since he has no true loyalty to an NBA team he decided to adopt the Charlotte Hornets. More than anything he's excited about getting to know the people of Charlotte and helping the people who need it.
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Charlotte Fire Department’s internal files give exclusive look inside SouthPark fire
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The North Carolina Building Code Council only recently passed the 2021 IFC version but they removed a specific section from the code that national fire code experts say is critical.
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The inspector’s report indicates he was “on-site” at the construction project to conduct a sprinkler inspection at the second of two buildings under construction. The report indicates the sprinkler contractor was a “no-show.”
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The WBTV Investigates team created a survey for Nissan of Shelby customers following the announcement of criminal charges filed against current and former dealership employees.
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Since July 2020, there have been more than 2,500 crashes in or near Charlotte school zones.
NC DMV agents filed charges after months-long investigation into Nissan of Shelby
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A WBTV investigation found commercial and residential buildings open to the public without a final inspection to make sure alarms and sprinkler systems were working.
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Records also show the department is years behind on conducting “maintenance inspections” that are required for apartments, hotels, churches and large stores. Those inspections are mandated by the state fire code and are supposed to be conducted regularly depending on the type of building.
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The contractor did not provide specific details about the problems on-site while answering WBTV’s questions. The contractor said his company has not been issued any citations by the fire marshal.
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The whistleblower said Mecklenburg County and state health leaders aren’t doing enough to warn people about the spike in STDs she said she warned them about.
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A note made by a Charlotte Water employee indicated that an important device for the fire sprinkler system had not been tested for years.
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Notes from Charlotte Fire’s plan reviewers reveal several fire holds were applied to the construction site because the plan drawings for alarms and sprinklers were not specific to the apartment site.
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Fire plans designed to prevent construction fires and prepare firefighters are not being kept or approved by the Charlotte Fire Department, a WBTV investigation has found.
The plans—known as a pre-fire plan—are required by the fire code to be created by builders in consultation with the fire department.
WBTV started investigating whether fire code was being followed, after the deadly construction site fire on Liberty Row Drive in South Park that killed two workers, Reuben Holmes and Demonte Sherrill.
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Fire plans designed to prevent construction fires and prepare firefighters are not being kept or approved by the Charlotte Fire Department, a WBTV investigation has found.
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The City of Charlotte and the Panthers signed their current agreement in 2013.
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Since the WBTV Investigates Team started investigating HOA issues in 2022, communities across North Carolina have reached out with similar issues to The Palisades.
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The projects were unaimously approved by a mostly enthusiastic city council, but it also raises questions about public funding for future projects like the city’s football/soccer stadium.
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Council’s Monday agenda lays out specific details for financing the River District Tennis Complex and the Eastland project after a WBTV Investigation earlier this week raised questions about how the city would continue to afford these types of public-private partnerships.
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The chamber’s resolution called on commissioners “to take immediate action to begin resolving… the current wastewater crisis.” The resolution also asked state legislators to create a study committee to investigate and make recommendations for ways to assure cost-effective wastewater capacity to sustain business and industry growth.
East Charlotte residents have been yearning for momentum on the project after another public-private partnership in the River District, called Project Breakpoint, materialized and moved forward while Eastland lagged.
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City staff is recommending two proposals for the redevelopment of the former site of Eastland Mall, which closed in 2010
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In western Union County, wastewater is so limited developers can’t get permits for new construction projects.
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“I have seen CATS make improvements, sometimes that gets lost in these incidents, but I am encouraged that CATS is moving forward in small and big ways every day,” CATS Interim-CEO Brent Cagle said.
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Deltrin Harris was hired as the Rail Operations General Manager in December 2020 and was earning more than $160,000 per year, according to HR records.
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The accusations in the lawsuit raise more questions about how the light rail system is being run and by who, after a previous WBTV Investigation into the General Manager of the Rail Operations Control Center identified safety problems at his previous job.
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WBTV Investigates: Move comes as SBI continues investigating Cabarrus Co. commission chairman
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A CATS light rail vehicle derailed in a Charlotte railyard Wednesday, an NCDOT spokesperson confirmed to WBTV. There were no injuries and NCDOT has not yet determined the cause of the derailment.
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WBTV Investigates: North Carolina state lawmakers act to help homeowners.
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Charlotte city leaders are starting to grapple with how much it could cost taxpayers to strike a new stadium deal with the owner of the Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC, David Tepper.
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In a statement confirming the investigation, the SBI spokeswoman said the investigation was opened at the request of Shanley, the Cabarrus County DA.
The SBI’s statement confirming the investigation did not contain any details or specifics about the probe into Morris other than describing them as "investigate allegations of potential collusion and fraud."
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Questions about safety, oversight and the failures of CATS former CEO highlighted the evening and relegated other important topics like the Gold Line and the budget to mere side topics.
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Three separate audits of CATS completed in the last year identify more than 30 shortcomings the organization is now scrambling to fix, impacting taxpayers and the people who rely on bus and light rail service.
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In Bethel Glen and other neighborhoods across North Carolina there are orphan roads that didn’t meet government standards after they were left by the developer. Often it falls to the neighborhood HOA raising assessments on homeowners to pay for road repairs and replacements but it can end up as a taxpayer expense too.
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According to the letter, the City of Charlotte is already making contingency plans to make additional service cuts which could result in bus operator layoffs unless the contractor, TMOC/RATP DEV, “can stabilize service levels going forward.”
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A WBTV Investigation found that while on average LYNX trains are departing stations on-time, some rush hour trains are between five to eight minutes late.
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CATS Interim-CEO Brent Cagle told the Transportation, Planning and Development Committee that CATS light rail division is dealing with a high level of vacancies.
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WBTV used CMPD incident reports to track catalytic converter thefts and theft of motor vehicle parts across Charlotte.
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In an interview with WBTV on Tuesday, Republican Councilman Ed Driggs said the city needs to regain the trust of voters after a series of debacles at CATS that raise questions about transparency. Driggs also told WBTV that the Blue Line is safe after one of the cars derailed in May of 2022 but was kept secret from the public for nearly a year.
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Records from NCDOT show the failure of the previous CATS regime to complete the ‘overhaul’ maintenance was the root cause of one of the light rail vehicles derailing last year.
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More troubling news about safety was presented to members of the Metropolitan Transit Commission.
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Officials from NCDOT who reviewed the report offered blistering critiques of some of CATS’ initial findings and found that failure to immediately perform midlife and truck overhauls of the trains was “not acceptable.”
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The WBTV Investigates Team has been telling your stories about crippling medical debt for years. Now, those stories are getting the attention of local and state leaders who want to protect patients.
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Although Charlotte city councilmembers only recently learned about the derailment, public records show the “midlife overhaul” plan to prevent this type of derailment from happening, was delayed again and again.
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The city of Charlotte has become less transparent with the public and media, giving fewer opportunities for reporters to interview high-level officials, and leaving records requests unfulfilled for years.
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A city spokesperson confirms Allen Smith is no longer the Chief Operating Officer of CATS, making him the third top CATS official to be removed from a post in the last five months.
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The Chair of the Waxhaw Police Foundation wrote in a statement that they will work with an attorney on winding down and dissolving the charity. The decision came a little more than a month after Town of Waxhaw elected officials decided voted to force financial transparency from the Foundation.
WBTV had a lot of questions after our reporting found salvaged vehicles for sale on the dealership website for Nissan of Shelby.
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WBTV spoke with the President of the Colorado HOA Forum about how the group organized and advocated for changes in state statute to protect homeowners.
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The WBTV Investigates Team is uncovering the scope and impact of developer-controlled associations, called declarant control. It allows developers to profit off the sale of new homes while simultaneously appointing HOA board members to manage the homeowner fees.
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