NEWBORN DEATH-WOMAN ARRESTED

Police: Woman charged in 2010 death of newborn girl

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Authorities in North Carolina say that a woman has been arrested on charges that stem from the death of her newborn child more than a decade ago. The Winston-Salem Journal reports that Jennifer McMillan Crow was arrested Tuesday. Winston-Salem police said that she was charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of the infant known as “Therese, the Little Flower.” An arrest warrant said that Crow is accused of killing her unnamed infant child on Sept. 11, 2010. Police said the baby’s body was found in a container outside a Planned Parenthood office in Winston-Salem. Crow was released on an unsecured bond set at $100,000. She declined to comment to the newspaper.

MOUNTAIN VALLEY PIPELINE

Proposed pipeline extension into NC gains new life in court

ROANOKE, Va. (AP) — A proposed extension of the Mountain Valley Pipeline from Virginia into North Carolina has gained new life in an ongoing court battle. The Roanoke Times reported Thursday that the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out a decision by North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality. The appeals court ruled that the state agency did not properly explain the reasons why it had denied a water quality certification for that portion of the natural gas pipeline. The portion is called MVP Southgate. And it would start at the main pipeline’s terminus in Virginia’s Pittsylvania County and run for 75 miles into North Carolina. The main portion of the pipeline would run for 300 miles in West Virginia and southwest Virginia.

AP-NC-ELECTRIC WORKER-DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT

Black electrical worker files discrimination lawsuit

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A Black electrical worker who says he was fired from his job after he reported finding a noose on a job site has filed a federal anti-discrimination lawsuit. The Charlotte Observer reports that Stevie Lamont Stuckes was working as a lineman for Pike Electric in 2019 when he said he found the noose hanging from some machinery. Stuckes’ lawsuit says he was subject to a workplace culture rife with “racially charged ‘jokes’” and racial slurs. A Pike Electric vice president said the allegations distort the facts and the company’s response. Stuckes’ lawsuit was filed against the company on Tuesday.

POLICE CHASE-WRECK

Investigators: 2 die in crash in two-state police chase

GAFFNEY, S.C. (AP) — Authorities say two people inside a SUV whose driver did not stop for police in North Carolina have died in a crash after officers chased them into South Carolina. Investigators said the driver of the SUV was wanted for several felonies when a North Carolina trooper in Cleveland County tried to pull him over Thursday evening, Authorities say officers chased the SUV into South Carolina and the driver lost control and crashed into a tree in Gaffney. Troopers say the man and women inside were thrown from the vehicle. Officials say a North Carolina trooper crashed his vehicle during the chase but was not seriously injured.

FATAL VISION-RELEASE REQUEST

Ex-officer MacDonald in Fort Bragg murders seeks release

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Attorneys for a former Army physician serving life sentences for the 1970 murders of his pregnant wife and two young children at a North Carolina base say he should be released. They cited deteriorating health as the reason for their request Thursday to free Jeffrey MacDonald. MacDonald’s lawyers and the federal government argued over the request before a federal judge in Raleigh. The ex-physician was convicted in 1979. He’s now 77 years old and serving time in Maryland. The federal government’s lawyers oppose his release. The brother of his slain wife urged the judge to keep him behind bars. The judge didn’t immediately rule.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NORTH CAROLINA

Medically at-risk in N.C. able to get COVID shots March 17

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina health officials say medically vulnerable residents between the ages of 16 and 64 will be able to get vaccinated starting March 17. The state had initially planned to begin administering the doses to those with serious underlying health issue a week later. State Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen said Thursday that the state expects to get more Johnson & Johnson vaccines around the start of April. She and Gov. Roy Cooper bumped up the timeline that had previously made medically at-risk North Carolinians with any of 18 conditions eligible on March 24. Essential workers in eight sectors may get their shots starting April 7.

SHERIFFS-ICE

NC Senate OK’s bill telling sheriffs to act on ICE requests

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — One North Carolina General Assembly chamber has approved Republican legislation demanding sheriffs pay attention to the immigration status of jail inmates and be obliged to help federal agents seeking their custody. The state Senate approved the measure Thursday along party lines. It now heads to the House. It generally follows the scope of a 2019 bill that Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed successfully. A similar result would be likely since the GOP’s House and Senate majorities aren’t veto-proof. The bills have been prompted by first-term Democratic sheriffs in several counties who’ve refused to work closely with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-REOPENING SCHOOLS

NC bill to return more students to classrooms becomes law

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Compromise legislation that directs how North Carolina’s K-12 schools must offer in-person instruction this spring to all students is now law. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper signed it on Thursday, hours after the House vote unanimously for the measure, which came about through negotiations between legislative Republicans and Cooper. The Senate already passed it Wednesday. The bill untangles a stalemate surrounding a previous school-reopening measure that Cooper vetoed almost two weeks ago. The measure directs elementary schools to provide full-time classroom instruction to all students and gives that option to districts for their middle and high schools.

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