Police: Teen crashes grandfather’s car while on joyride
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Police in North Carolina say a teenager taking a joyride in his grandfather’s car lost control and crashed into two homes and two cars. No one was hurt. News outlets report Fayetteville police said they received a call around 10 a.m. Monday,. According to police, the 15-year-old was speeding around a corner when he lost control, drove through a front yard and hit a car in a driveway before hitting a garage. The teen’s car then hit another garage and a car. The teenager and two others who were in the car ran from the accident, but police apprehended the driver, who authorities said didn’t have a license.
CERTIFICATE OF NEED
NC appeals court won’t strike down medical certificate law
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The state Court of Appeals has refused to strike down a state law requiring regulators first agree that new medical facilities are necessary based on population and other needs before they can be built. A three-judge panel of the intermediate-level appeals court ruled unanimously on Tuesday in the case of a New Bern eye doctor who sued in 2020 based on how he says he was unable to expand his practice. The case stems around what’s called the certificate of need laws. The opinion writer says the ruling doesn’t mean the rules can’t be challenged in the future by someone else.
AP-US-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-NORTH-CAROLINA
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper tests positive for COVID-19
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper says he’s tested positive for COVID-19 but is continuing to do work from home while experiencing mild symptoms. Cooper’s office released a statement Monday saying that he has begun taking the antiviral pill Paxlovid to treat the virus. The statement said that he has been vaccinated and has had two booster shots. The governor said that he believes that the shots helped ensure he’s only having mild symptoms. The governor plans to work from home and follow the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for isolating.
FIREFIGHTER-TREE DEATH
NYC firefighter killed by tree limb at Biltmore Estate
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Officials say a New York City firefighter was killed when a tree limb fell onto the vehicle he was driving at the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina. Biltmore spokesperson Marissa Jamison says the limb fell across a road at the entrance to the tourist attraction amid high winds Friday and struck a guest’s vehicle. The Citizen Times reports an Asheville fire spokesperson says the driver died before firefighters arrived. A spokesperson for the Fire Department of New York says Casey Skudin would have turned 46 on Sunday. Skudin had 16 years of service and worked in the Rockaway area of Queens. He was married to Angela Skudin and had two children.
BRUSH FIRE
Crews fight 500-acre blaze in North Carolina
PONZER, N.C. (AP) — Multiple agencies are fighting a brush fire that is affecting hundreds of acres in North Carolina. WITN-TV reports that Hyde County officials say crews are battling the 500-acre blaze near the Ponzer community Sunday afternoon. No nearby structures were damaged and no injuries were reported. The North Carolina Forestry Association, Hyde County Emergency Management, and Hyde County Sheriff’s Office are on the scene. The cause of the fire is unknown, but the investigation continues.
AP-US-INMATES-ESCAPE
1 of 4 who escaped federal prison satellite camp surrenders
HOPEWELL, Va. (AP) — Officials say one of four inmates who escaped from a federal prison’s satellite camp in Virginia over the weekend has turned himself in. The Richmond Times-Dispatch quotes a supervisor with the U.S. Marshals Service as saying that Tavaraes Lajuane Graham showed up at the satellite camp of the Federal Correctional Complex Petersburg early Sunday. Inmates Corey Branch, Lamonte Rashawn Willis and Kareem Allen Shaw are still at large. Kevin Connolly is a supervisor with the U.S. Marshals Service Capital Regional Fugitive Task Force. Connolly says investigators are following up on leads on the remaining escapees. The U.S. Marshals Service is offering a reward of up to $2,000 per escapee for information leading to their capture.
SUPREME COURT-ELECTIONS
Justices seem poised to hear elections case pressed by GOP
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court seems poised to take on a new elections case being pressed by Republicans. It could increase the power of state lawmakers over races for Congress and the presidency, as well as redistricting. It also could cut state courts out of the equation. The issue has arisen repeatedly in cases from North Carolina and Pennsylvania, where Democratic majorities on the states’ highest courts have invoked voting protections in their state constitutions to frustrate the plans of Republican-dominated legislatures. Already, four conservative Supreme Court justices have noted their interest in deciding whether state courts that find violations of their state constitutions can order changes to federal elections and the once-a-decade redrawing of congressional districts.
AP-FOOD-TV-THE-GREAT-AMERICAN-RECIPE
PBS joins food TV contests with ‘The Great American Recipe’
NEW YORK (AP) — America has perfected the stressful TV cooking competition. Amateur or professional chefs are pitted against each other in high-pressure, scream-filled shows like “Chopped,” “Cutthroat Kitchen” or “Top Chef.” PBS hopes to change that with an original food competition show, “The Great American Recipe.” It dispenses with the angst and scary knife graphics. It’s more like “The Great British Baking Show” than “Hell’s Kitchen.” The show gathers 10 home cooks from all over the country and gives them the opportunity to showcase their signature dishes in a gentle and supportive way. The eight-episode series premieres Friday on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS Video app.
