Wiley Nickel, Wake County's district attorney in waiting, says he wants to use the next 10 months to secure more resources for the office before he assumes the role of DA.

• The top priority, he told Axios, is to significantly increase the number of prosecutors working in the state's largest county by population — which could help clear case backlogs and keep violent offenders off the streets.

Why it matters: District attorneys wield significant influence over criminal justice policies in their communities, deciding which cases move forward and which crimes are prioritized.

Between the lines: And in Wake County, historically, once a district attorney is elected, they command the office for a long time.

• Outgoing District Attorney Lorrin Freeman has been in office since 2014, and her predecessor, Colon Willoughby, served for more than 27 years.

Zoom in: Nickel, a former congressman and state senator, told Axios that he believes Wake County remains under-resourced compared to where it should be.

• He cites Mecklenburg County's 95 prosecutors as a more appropriate figure than Wake County's current total of 45.
• He notes that, on a per-capita basis in North Carolina, Wake has the lowest ratio of assistant district attorneys per 10,000 residents.

State of play: In Mecklenburg County, Nickel noted, both the county and the city of Charlotte help fund the district attorney's office.

• He said he's going to approach the Raleigh City Council, the Wake County Board of Commissioners and the N.C. General Assembly to ask for more funding for his office in the coming weeks. He'd like to see 23 more positions funded locally.

What they're saying: "Understaffing means victims have to wait years, rather than months, for justice," Nickel said, "and repeat offenders stay on the street much longer."

Go deeper on Nickel's plans for political corruption cases

NCAA tournament brackets were unveiled last night, and all of the Triangle's ACC schools made both the men's and women's fields.

⛹🏽‍♂️ On the men's side, Duke locked down the top overall seed,

• No. 11 N.C. State has to play in, facing No. 11 Texas on Tuesday at 9:15pm in Dayton, Ohio. The team that advances will play No. 6 BYU on Thursday in the West.
• No. 1 Duke vs. No. 16 Siena on Thursday at 2:50pm in Greenville, South Carolina. The East region is a tough draw for the Blue Devils. ESPN said it's "stacked with big names."
• No. 6 North Carolina vs. No. 11 VCU on Thursday at 6:50pm. The Tar Heels are in the South and also play in Greenville.

⛹🏽‍♀️ Several local women's teams will play at home, bringing March Madness to the Triangle. Game times are TBA.

• No. 3 Duke vs. No. 14 Charleston on Friday in Durham. The Blue Devils are ACC champions.
• No. 4 North Carolina vs. No. 13 Western Illinois on Friday in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels are on a hot streak.
• No. 7 N.C. State vs. No. 10 Tennessee on Friday in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The teams played at the start of the season and the Wolfpack won 80-77.

The intrigue: High Point University secured spots in both the men's and women's tournaments. The men's team is ranked No. 12, and the women's team is No. 15.

Explore the full men's and women's brackets

🤖 The town of Apex moves toward implementing a one-year moratorium on data centers. (INDY Week)

🔥 The state's fire marshal warns North Carolina is not prepared for increased wildfire risk in the western part of the state. (WUNC)

🥪 Eastcut Sandwich Bar plans to open its third Triangle location at Cary's Waverly Place shopping center. (Triangle Business Journal 🔒)

Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page continues to lead state Senate leader Phil Berger by 23 votes in the Republican primary after election officials in Guilford and Rockingham counties finalized their initial count Friday.

Why it matters: A victory would cause a seismic change at the N.C. General Assembly, where Berger is seen as the most influential member of the majority party.

Yes, but: There's still a long way to go before this race is over.

State of play: Berger, who was endorsed by President Trump in the race, has the right to call a recount because of the narrow margin.

• The results could also be challenged in court, and the two candidates are already preparing legal funds, The News & Observer reported.

Flashback: If it goes to court, the final result of this election could be undetermined for a while.

• 2024's state Supreme Court race between Allison Riggs and Jefferson Griffin took six months to be decided.

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The life of a traveling musician lends itself to idle hours, Avett Brothers bassist Bob Crawford tells Axios. That's how he found the time to write a book.

Why it matters: Crawford, who lives in the Durham area, isn't just part of the beloved Grammy Award-nominated North Carolina band. He also has a master's in history, which he earned while the band was on the road and hosts a history podcast.

Flashback: Crawford's obsession with history began amid the war in Iraq. "I just wanted to know how we got from 1776 to that moment," he says. He began to pick up history books to make sense of the world, books like "The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln" by Sean Wilentz.

• Crawford found the period between Thomas Jefferson's presidency and the 1860s fascinating.
• "It's the period we don't learn about," he says. "We learn about the revolution. We learn about the Civil War."

Driving the news: This led him to John Quincy Adams, the subject of his new biography.

• Crawford's new book, "America's Founding Son," a detailed look at the sixth president, is out now.

The bottom line: "It's quite a leap from studying history in the back of a Chevy van to writing a book, a really specific historical account," Crawford says of the book, which was about 20 years in the making.

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