AP-NC-NOOSES FOUND-PHARMACEUTICAL PLANT

Nooses found hanging at North Carolina pharmaceutical plant

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Officials at a pharmaceutical plant in North Carolina have launched an investigation into the discovery of two nooses at a construction site. The News & Observer of Raleigh reports Merck and local authorities are looking into the incidents. Plant management notified employees of the first noose just over a week ago. The second noose was reported to the Durham County Sheriff’s Office last week. Merck’s Durham plant was one of two selected to help manufacture the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine earlier this year. Loops of rope have long been used to intimidate African-Americans because they evoke lynchings.

BC-NC-AIRPORT PROJECTS-TRANSPORTATION BOARD

Transportation board awards funds for airport projects

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The N.C. Board of Transportation has approved state funds totaling more than $4 million for projects that help improve safety and customer service at seven airports across the state. The board awarded the money last month and announced them on Monday. The awards range from $90,000 for the design and bid of an airfield drainage system assessment at Duplin County Airport in Kenansville, to $2.3 million for land acquisition in the runway protection zone at Moore County Airport in Carthage. The funds awarded will be distributed by the NCDOT Division of Aviation,

SWAT SHOOTING-GEORGIA

Echoes of Breonna Taylor in shooting of Black man in Georgia

ATLANTA (AP) — The family of a Black man fatally shot by police in Georgia wants answers in a case that resembles the highly publicized death of Breonna Taylor. Johnny Lorenzo Bolton was on a couch in his apartment near Atlanta in December when police serving a narcotics search warrant burst through the front door with no warning. A lawyer for the family says that when the 49-year-old Bolton stood up from the couch, at least one of the officers fired, hitting him with two bullets. He died of his injuries. The district attorney’s office in Cobb County where the shooting happened says it is investigating. Otherwise, authorities have released few details on the case.

AWOL WEAPONS-NORTH CAROLINA

AP: US military guns lost, stolen from North Carolina bases

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Military weapons including assault rifles and a light machine gun have been lost or stolen from bases in North Carolina. An Associated Press investigation into firearms missing from the U.S. armed services shows at least 56 guns disappeared or were recovered in North Carolina from 2010 through 2019. The weapons are among at least 1,900 U.S. military firearms that AP learned were unaccounted for during the last decade. Intended for war, some guns ended up on America’s streets. Army pistols, for example, were used in violent crimes including shootings and robbery. Military officials say missing firearms are a tiny fraction of their stockpile, and note that some are recovered.

AWOL WEAPONS

US military guns keep vanishing, some used in street crimes

An Associated Press investigation has found that at least 1,900 U.S. military firearms were lost or stolen over the last decade. These weapons are intended for war — but some have ended up on America’s streets. Army pistols, for example, were used in violent crimes including shootings and robbery. Pistols, machine guns and automatic assault rifles vanished from military armories, supply warehouses, Navy warships and elsewhere. Security lapses included unlocked doors, sleeping troops and a surveillance system that didn’t record. The Pentagon and armed services say that missing firearms are a tiny fraction of the military’s stockpile, and note that some weapons are recovered.

AP-US-TROPICAL-WEATHER-

Tropical Storm Bill swirls, briefly, far out at sea

MIAMI (AP) — The second named storm of this year’s hurricane season, Tropical Storm Bill, strengthened slightly off the U.S. eastern seaboard on Tuesday, but not for long. It was expected to dissipate on Wednesday over colder water as it approaches the coast of Nova Scotia. Bill became a named storm late Monday. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Bill was swirling about 240 miles off Nantucket, Massachusetts. The storm had top sustained winds of 50 mph and was moving to the northeast at 31 mph, on a path that doesn’t pose any immediate threat to land.

APNEWSALERT

Tropical Storm Bill, second named storm of 2021 hurricane season, forms off North Carolina

MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Bill, second named storm of 2021 hurricane season, forms off North Carolina.

ELECTIONS-CENSUS DELAY

Election delays in 3 dozen NC cities gets final lawmaker OK

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A bill heading to Gov. Roy Cooper would delay this fall’s scheduled elections for over 30 North Carolina towns and cities to early next year because of delays in census data. The Senate agreed 33-14 on Monday to the changes made by the House. These municipalities elect council members by district, and there won’t be enough to redraw the boundaries based on population changes. These elections would be pushed to next March, with some others to follow in April or May.  Some senators rejected the bill because it would also allow Raleigh to move its elections permanently to even-numbered years.