AP-US-OFFSHORE-DRILLING

Sen. Tillis: Trump to extend offshore drilling pause to NC

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — One of North Carolina’s U.S. senators says President Donald Trump told him he’ll add North Carolina to a list of states whose coastal waters won’t be subjected to offshore drilling for a decade. Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said he spoke with Trump on Monday and asked him to extend an offshore drilling moratorium off the Georgia, Florida and South Carolina coasts to North Carolina. The Trump administration didn’t immediately announce such a move. The prohibition was seen as a potential political asset for Republican senators in Georgia and South Carolina running this fall. Democrat Cal Cunningham is challenging Tillis this fall.

DEATH AFTER ARREST

No charges against officers in custody death of Black man

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A prosecutor has declined to charge five North Carolina police officers accused of not giving immediate medical attention to a Black man who died after fatally ingesting drugs right before he was taken into custody. The district attorney said in a report Monday that prosecutors could not file involuntary manslaughter charges against the officers. He said prosecutors would not be able to prove Harold Easter would have lived even if he had received immediate medical attention. Investigators say Easter suffered a medical emergency in January in a police interview room, where he had been left unattended for more than 20 minutes. He died three days later.

CHILD SEX CRIMES

North Carolina man jailed on 300 counts of child sex crimes

RAEFORD, N.C. (AP) — Authorities have apprehended a North Carolina man and charged him with more than 300 counts of sex crimes involving children. The Hoke County Sheriff’s Office says in a news release that 30-year-old Joshuah Taylor Bradshaw of Raeford was apprehended in Etta, Mississippi, by the FBI and extradited to North Carolina. Sheriff Hubert Peterkin says Bradshaw is charged with 332 counts including statutory sexual offense with a child and crimes against nature. Bradshaw is being held on a $20 million bond, and Peterkin says the ongoing investigation could result in additional charges.

ELECTION 2020-POST OFFICE

Longtime ally to Trump’s postal chief was paid by RNC

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former executive who worked in the private sector for Postmaster General Louis DeJoy is now on the payroll of President Donald Trump’s reelection effort. That’s according to a new campaign finance disclosure that shows Joe Hauck, a former vice president of sales and marketing for DeJoy’s New Breed Logistics, was paid $3,000 by the RNC in August. House Democrats are exploring allegations that DeJoy encouraged employees at his former business to contribute to Republican candidates and then reimbursed them in the guise of bonuses, a violation of campaign finance laws. The Washington Post reported that Hauck helped DeJoy by soliciting donations from employees of his business.

ELECTION 2020-SENATE-NORTH CAROLINA

Supreme Court nominee to get attention in NC Senate debate

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will likely get attention in the next debate between Republican Sen. Thom Tillis and Democrat Cal Cunningham. They’ll hold their second televised debate on Tuesday evening at a Raleigh television studio. Tillis has called for a swift vote on President Donald Trump’s upcoming nominee. Cunningham says a successor shouldn’t be considered until the next presidential term begins. The two candidates clashed in last week’s TV debate over the federal COVID-19 response and their trust in a quickly approved vaccine. A third debate is scheduled for Oct. 1.

BC-US-ELECTION 2020-BIDEN-BATTLEGROUNDS

With cash windfall, Biden adds GOP states to campaign map

ATLANTA (AP) — Joe Biden is using a campaign cash advantage over President Donald Trump to add Republican-leaning Georgia and Iowa to his paid media footprint, bringing the Democratic challenger’s television and digital battleground map to an even dozen states. The expansion reflects Biden’s newfound status as a fundraising behemoth and his campaign’s longstanding promise to set up “multiple paths” to the 270 electoral votes required to win the presidency. The Biden campaign confirmed Sunday that Democrats’ joint financial operation had $466 million cash on hand to begin September; Trump and the GOP had $325 million.

AP-US-NATIONAL-PARK-SIGN-VANDALIZED

National park sign vandalized with racist message, bear skin

WALLAND, Tenn. (AP) — Investigators at Great Smoky Mountains National Park are trying to identify who mounted a cardboard sign with a racist message and hung the skin and head of a black bear over one of its signs. Visitors reported seeing the bear skin and sign on Saturday morning on a welcome sign near a highway intersection in Walland, Tennessee. The Park Service is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to those responsible. Chief Ranger Lisa Hendy said they take vandalism seriously in the park, and “this particular incident is particularly egregious.”

AP-NC-OUTER BANKS BRIDGE-TEST

Engineers are using lasers to test new Outer Banks bridge

NAGS HEAD, N.C. (AP) — Engineers are shooting trillions of laser beams at a new bridge on North Carolina’s Outer Banks. They want to make sure it will withstand the harsh elements of the Atlantic coast. The Virginian-Pilot reported Sunday that the tests are being done on the $252 million Marc Basnight Bridge. It carries N.C. 12 over Oregon Inlet and connects the northern Outer Banks to Hatteras Island. Expansion and contraction from heat and cold can have the most impact. One thing engineers don’t want the bridge to do is lean one way or another. An engineer for the North Carolina Department of Transportation said engineers are making sure the bridge is behaving according to its design.