North Carolina News – September 16

TEAR GAS-PROTESTS

Report: Raleigh police used expired tear gas on protesters

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Raleigh police used expired tear gas on demonstrators during protests over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, according to a report released Tuesday. The News & Observer reports that the review of the Police Department’s response and use of force during the protests also found that police used tear gas unnecessarily in one instance. Fourteen officers were injured, and 17 police vehicles were damaged during the protests, according to the report. Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown told the City Council there have been 106 arrests stemming from the protests.

SHOOTING-TOWN CURFEW

Northeastern NC town sets curfew following recent shootings

HERTFORD, N.C. (AP) — A small northeastern North Carolina town has issued an expansive curfew following three recent shootings that authorities say left one town resident dead and two injured. Hertford Mayor Ernell Brown signed the curfew order, which lasts a week. Brown says the shootings were likely committed by people from out of town. The mayor says unsolved drive-by shootings in Edenton in July and in Portsmouth last weekend contributed to the curfew decision. Young people must stay off the streets from 4 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. The curfew begins for adults at 9 p.m. There are some exceptions.

DURHAM SHOOTINGS

Eight hurt in rash of shootings on violent night in Durham

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Durham police are investigating a rash of shootings that left eight people injured, including two teens. Police said in a news release that the first shooting was reported just after 5 p.m. Monday when a 15-year-old was dropped off at a local hospital. He told officers he was walking in East Durham when he was shot in the leg. In a separate shooting, a 17-year-old told police he was walking when he was shot in the thigh by someone in a white car. No arrests had been made by late Tuesday. One man who was shot in the head was in critical condition.

MISSING MAN

Man charged in theft of missing North Carolina man’s car

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A suspect has been arrested in the theft of a car that police say belongs to a missing North Carolina man. The News & Observer reports that detectives in Virginia arrested 34-year-old Justin Fernando Merritt in Danville, Virginia, just over the North Carolina border. He was charged with robbery, larceny of a motor vehicle and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Police said the stolen Range Rover belongs to 39-year-old William “Andy” Banks, 39, of Raleigh, who has been missing since Saturday. The car was found Monday, but Banks is still missing.

BC-NC-FATAL SHOOTING-TEEN

Police investigating fatal shooting of 17-year-old boy

SALISBURY, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina are investigating after a 17-year-old boy was found shot to death outside an apartment complex in Salisbury early Tuesday morning.  WSOC-TV reports that the shooting happened just before 2:30 a.m. at the Laurel Pointe Apartments. Neighbors say they heard a single gunshot and called 911. When police arrived, they found the boy dead. He has not been identified. Authorities have not said what led up to the shooting and no arrests have been made. No other information was immediately released.

NORTH CAROLINA-BALLOT BATTLE

Split North Carolina appeals court retains 2 amendments

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina appeals court panel has overturned a court ruling that voided amendments to the state constitution because legislators who put referendums on the ballot were elected from racially biased districts. The challenge to actions by the Republican-dominated General Assembly is not over after Tuesday’s split decision by the Court of Appeals and will be decided by the state Supreme Court. The litigation centered on two amendments approved by voters in 2018, including a photo identification requirement to vote. A trial judge declared the legislature lacked the power to approve legislation that created the referendums because federal judges had found illegal gerrymandering.

ELECTION 2020-SENATE-NORTH CAROLINA

NC Senate candidates trade accusations on virus, vaccine

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis and Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham have traded accusations over the government’s COVID-19 response and an upcoming vaccine in their first televised debate. Tillis was largely the aggressor in Monday night’s debate, criticizing Cunningham for failing to accept the Senate’s latest COVID-19 relief bill and for questioning the efficacy of a coronavirus vaccine should it arrive soon. Cunningham says he’s worried about the influence of politics and money in Washington when it comes to public health. The outcome of their campaign in the closely divided state could determine which party controls the Senate in 2021.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-INCORRECT-MESSAGES

Thousands in North Carolina incorrectly told they have COVID

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A county in North Carolina incorrectly told nearly 7,000 residents they had tested positive for the coronavirus. The Charlotte Observer reports the messages were sent by text messages to more than 6,700 residents in Mecklenburg County on Friday. More than 500 people also received a county email with the notice. The county said Friday on Twitter the messages went out due to a technical glitch. The county’s manager told county commissioners on Monday they were sent through HealthSpace Data System, a company based in Canada. The county has been using the company’s software to help with contact tracing efforts in the pandemic.