CHILD KILLED

4 arrested in drive-by shooting that killed 13-year-old girl

MONROE, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say four people have been arrested and charged in the drive-by shooting of a 13-year-old girl. Monroe police said in a Facebook post all four have been charged with first-degree murder and are being held at the Union County Jail without bond. News outlets report that the men charged range in age from 18 to 22. Police say the girl was sitting with friends at a picnic table in Monroe, about 30 miles from Charlotte, on Saturday evening when someone in an SUV opened fire in their direction and then sped away. The child, who was not immediately identified, was treated at the scene and then transported to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

LEGISLATIVE SESSION

North Carolina General Assembly holds abbreviated work week

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The North Carolina General Assembly is slowing down this week as lawmakers prepare for budget negotiations and action on other measures during August. The state Senate plans no recorded floor votes until next week, while House leaders say they’ll take up legislation in floor sessions only on Monday evening and Tuesday. This week’s break is happening largely because some Republicans are traveling to a conference. Senate leader Phil Berger says his chamber is also awaiting the House to approve its version of the state government budget. The Senate approved its two-year spending proposal in June.

CHILD KILLED

Child killed in North Carolina drive-by shooting; 1 arrested

MONROE, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina have arrested one man and are searching for other suspects in connection with a drive-by shooting that left a 13-year-old girl dead. According to Monroe police, the victim was sitting outside with friends on a picnic table when an SUV drove by Saturday evening and someone inside opened fire. The girl was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. The city said Sunday that a 20-year-old had been arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He was being held without bond. Warrants were issued for two other men, and police were working to identify a potential fourth suspect.

PLANE CRASH-OCRACOKE

Plane flips after landing on Ocracoke; no serious injuries

OCRACOKE, N.C. (AP) — Officials say no one was seriously injured when a small airplane flipped over onto its roof shortly after landing at the Ocracoke Island Airport on North Carolina’s Outer Banks. A news release from the Cape Hatteras National Seashore said the incident happened around 1:30 p.m. Sunday. The single-engine airplane came to rest in grass near the end of the runway, and emergency officials responded. Neither the pilot nor passenger required transport to a hospital. The Federal Aviation Administration was notified and no further details were immediately available.

ORGAN DONOR

North Carolina woman to become rare 2-time organ donor

WILSON, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina woman is set to join the elite ranks of two-time living organ donors. The Wilson Times reports that on Tuesday, surgeons in New York will take part of 54-year-old Stephanie Allen’s liver and transplant it into her brother, Eric Allen. Stephanie Allen, a delivery driver and mother of four, previously donated a kidney to her sister in 2006. According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, just 91 people have donated two organs to two people since April 1994.

OUTER BANKS-DRONES

Successful drone trial delivers supplies to Ocracoke Island

OCRACOKE, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina transportation officials say successful drone flights this week to Ocracoke have them hopeful that it may soon get easier to deliver vital supplies to the remote Outer Banks island amid bad weather. The North Carolina Department of Transportation and drone logistics company Volansi completed two successful trial flights of a delivery drone from a ferry dock in Hatteras to Ocracoke Island. That’s according to a news release the department issued Friday. The tests conducted Thursday involved an eight-mile round-trip flight. A transportation official says deliveries to Ocracoke from the mainland might be possible someday. The testing will be continued.

CHARLOTTE PROTEST-SETTLEMENT

Settlement reached over 2020 police clash with protesters

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Civil rights groups in North Carolina have reached a settlement with the city of Charlotte and its police department in a lawsuit filed last year after officers surrounded and gassed demonstrators protesting the death of George Floyd. According to a news release issued Friday by the ACLU of North Carolina, the terms of the agreement include extensive revisions to police directives, including a ban on the use of CS tear gas during protests. Police will also be banned from using chemical weapons to “kettle” or trap protesters under the agreement, which also says crowd dispersal orders must be communicated clearly and repeatedly in English and Spanish.

INTERSTATE SHOOTING

Police: 2 dead after interstate shooting in North Carolina

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say two men have been found shot to death inside a car on an Interstate 85 exit ramp. News outlets report the shooting happened late Friday afternoon in Durham and both men were pronounced dead at the scene. Officers told TV station WRAL it appeared the driver and passenger were targeted. Mourners gathered at the scene. An investigation is ongoing, and anyone with information was asked to call police.