Vietnamese carmaker to build electric vehicles in N Carolina
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A Vietnamese automaker has announced plans to build a plant in North Carolina to manufacture electric vehicles, promising to bring 7,500 jobs. VinFast will build its first North American plant in Chatham County southwest of Raleigh, with production expected to start in 2024. It expects to employ 7,500 by 2027 with average salaries of $51,000. The company is building on a nearly 2,000-acre site that’s about a 30-minute drive southwest of Raleigh and is expected to invest $4 billion in the plant. The state agreed to hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives. Officials say the manufacturer considered sites in 12 states before narrowing its search to North Carolina and a site in Savannah, Georgia.
BOYS SHOT
NC sheriff’s office: Boys, 15 and 10, fatally shot
SYLVA, N.C. (AP) — Authorities in North Carolina say two boys are dead after a shooting over the weekend. WLOS-TV reports that the Jackson County sheriff’s office said deputies responded to a report of a shooting off Ferguson Road in Sylva on Sunday and found two boys, ages 10 and 15, shot. Officials say the boys were taken to Harris Hospital, then flown to Mission Hospital in Asheville, where 15-year-old Noah Joseph Ensley succumbed to his injuries on Sunday. Jackson County Maj. Shannon Queen says 10-year-old Bridger Owen Ensley died Monday afternoon. A joint investigation is being conducted by the sheriff’s office and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. No further details were released.
INMATE-FATAL ASSAULT
Inmate assaulted, killed at North Carolina prison
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Officials say an inmate at a North Carolina prison was assaulted by a group of inmates and killed. The Department of Public Safety says in a news release that 24-year-old Semajs Short was attacked on Tuesday in a housing area at Bertie Correctional Institution in Windsor. Prisons first responders performed life-saving measures until local paramedics arrived and also worked to resuscitate Short. He was pronounced dead by paramedics at around 2:30 p.m. Three other inmates were injured during the group assault and were taken to a hospital outside the prison for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.
LOWE’S-COLLEGE PARTNERSHIPS
Lowe’s invests $4 million in two North Carolina colleges
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Lowe’s says it is investing $4 million toward new partnerships with two North Carolina universities. The Charlotte Observer reports Queens University of Charlotte announced Lowe’s is providing $2.5 million for the Charlotte Talent Initiative, which is a partnership between Mecklenburg County businesses and the college to expand Charlotte’s talent pipeline and help low-income graduates of local high schools. N.C. Central University in Durham, a historically Black college, says it’s receiving a $1.5 million gift from Lowe’s for the college’s School of Business. That includes placing Lowe’s name on the auditorium at the business school now under construction and a new academic program
FELONS-VOTING-NORTH CAROLINA
NC trial judges again allow more felony offenders to vote
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina judges have struck down a state law that prohibits people convicted of felonies from registering to vote while they are still serving probation, parole or other supervision. While appeals are possible, Monday’s ruling ultimately could allow tens of thousands of additional people to register to vote. The judges’ decision expands on a preliminary injunction issued last August in a trial challenging a state law that delays the restoration of voting rights for some offenders who aren’t serving prison or jail time. That injunction was essentially blocked, but Monday’s ruling makes it more permanent. The judges say the law discriminates against Black residents and is unconstitutional.
POLICE PURSUIT-FATAL CRASH
Police: Man killed in crash while fleeing police
SANFORD, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say a man fleeing officers was killed in a crash. News outlets report that Sanford police said officers were called to the Fastee Mart on Lee Avenue around 12:30 a.m. Monday after a man drove through the front of the store and was stealing from inside the business. Police say officers found extensive damage to the store and the man, identified as Scott Reid of Raleigh, drove away, refusing to stop for officers. Police say officers pursued Reid, who crashed head-on into another car and died at the scene. Two people from the other car were taken to hospitals with injuries that police say aren’t considered life-threatening.
LITHIUM MINING PUSH
US seeks new lithium sources as demand for batteries grows
NEWRY, Maine (AP) — The United States will need far more lithium to achieve its clean energy goals, and the industry that mines the chemical element is poised to grow. The industry also faces a host of challenges from environmentalists, Indigenous groups and government regulators. Lithium is distributed widely throughout the Earth, but the U.S. is home to just one active lithium mine, in Nevada. The element is critical to the development of lithium-ion batteries, which are rechargeable batteries seen as critical to reducing the carbon emissions created by cars and other forms of transportation.
SHOOTINGS-RESEARCH TRIANGLE
4 killed, 4 hurt in North Carolina’s Research Triangle area
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Police say four people were killed and four more were wounded in two cities in North Carolina’s Research Triangle last weekend. The News & Observer of Raleigh reports that in Durham, two people died Saturday night after being shot just before 9 p.m. in the eastern part of the city. Officers arrived to find two people fatally shot inside a car, including a 17-year-old. There were three shootings in Raleigh, police said. A 22-year-old man was killed and two others were injured at around 9 p.m. Friday.The next day, two unrelated shootings just 15 minutes apart left one dead and another seriously injured. Police said two people were arrested in the Saturday shootings.
