GUN PERMIT DELAY LAWSUIT

North Carolina sheriff sued over gun permit delay

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Gun rights organizations and three residents are suing a North Carolina sheriff alleging that his office failed to issue pistol purchase and concealed handgun permits in a timely manner. The Charlotte Observer reports that Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners Foundation, Grass Roots North Carolina, Rights Watch International and three Mecklenburg County residents filed the lawsuit against Sheriff Garry McFadden and his office on Thursday. State law requires sheriffs to issue pistol permits within 14 days of the date of the application, and concealed handgun permits within 45 days. The lawsuit asks a judge to order McFadden’s office to comply with state law and immediately issue both permits to qualified applicants.

NORTH CAROLINA

NC college students must get COVID shot or be tested weekly

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The University of North Carolina System has announced it will require all students attending any of the state’s 16 public colleges and universities to get a COVID-19 vaccine or face weekly testing. The standard will also soon apply to faculty and staff. Young adults are less likely than older North Carolinians to have gotten the vaccine thus far. But more residents appear to be coming for the shot as the delta variant surges across the state. More people came in for an initial dose last week than on any given week over the past two months.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE

Bill going to Cooper requires parents to OK kid’s COVID shot

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A bill requiring minors to get approval from their parents before receiving a COVID-19 shot in North Carolina was sent to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper on Thursday. The measure passed with support from all but five House Democrats and previously cleared the state Senate unanimously. Americans who are at least 12 years old are currently eligible for the shot. Parental consent for the vaccine would be required once the bill becomes law but only apply as long as the COVID-19 shots remain approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for emergency use. The FDA may soon give the Pfizer vaccine final approval.

ELECTION 2022-NORTH CAROLINA

Cheri Beasley’s campaign manager, finance director quit

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Two top campaign officials working to elect North Carolina Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Cheri Beasley have decided to leave the campaign. Beasley’s campaign manager, Katie Gladstone, will remain on staff for the next couple weeks as her team transitions to a new leader. Finance director Margaret Nelson left in July. Neither Nelson nor Gladstone responded to requests for comment on why they decided to leave the campaign to fill the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Richard Burr. Beasley has won two statewide elections but narrowly lost her 2020 bid to remain as chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court.

POLICE SHOOT DRIVER

Police: Officer shot driver who veered toward deputy

WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — Officials in North Carolina say police officers and sheriff’s deputies shot a driver when he veered toward a deputy on foot as if to strike him. Wilmington police say officers tried to stop a vehicle Wednesday for a traffic offense, but the driver refused to stop. Supervisors terminated a pursuit because of the volume of traffic and a short time later, the vehicle pulled up behind police to follow them. That’s when police say the driver veered toward a New Hanover County Sheriff’s deputy on foot as if to strike him and police and deputies fired at the driver, striking him. After a crash, the driver was arrested and taken to a hospital.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-SUMMER LEARNING

Summer funding helped school districts address disparities

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Even before the pandemic, student experiences over the summer divided heavily on socioeconomic lines. As school districts and community organizations respond to increased demand and need for summer programming, part of that work is focused on overcoming persistent barriers to access for families. An infusion of philanthropic and public funding, including at least $1.2 billion in federal stimulus money, has allowed districts to invest in expanded partnerships with community organizations, to provide support services and to retain staff for the summer to address those challenges.

NEWPORT HEIRESS-DEATH WITNESS

1966 death of heiress’ employee under renewed scrutiny

The 1966 death of a longtime employee of wealthy tobacco and power company heiress Doris Duke is coming under renewed scrutiny because of an eyewitness account that has never before been made public. Vanity Fair on Thursday released a video interview with Bob Walker, who in 1966 was a 13-year-old paperboy and the first person on the scene after Duke struck and killed Eduardo Tirella with a car in Newport, Rhode Island. His description of events does not match up with the official police investigation which determined that the death was an accident. The new information has prompted police to take another look at the case, even though Duke died in 1993.

SPRING BREAK-DEATHS

Murder charges filed in Miami Beach spring break overdoses

MIAMI (AP) — Two North Carolina men accused of raping a tourist who died of an overdose during a spring break trip to Miami Beach are now facing first-degree murder charges. A grand jury in Miami-Dade County returned an indictment Wednesday finding Evoire Collier and Dorian Taylor responsible for the fentanyl-induced death of Christine Englehardt. Prosecutors say the 24-year-old from Richboro, Pennsylvania, met the men in South Beach. Her body was found in the Albion Hotel. The grand jury added a murder charge against Taylor for supplying the same opioid to 21-year-old Walter Riley of Chicago. He was found unconscious and died two days after Englehardt.

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