Cooper Wants Body Cameras And Rejects Republican Gay Marriage Bills

Attorney General Roy Cooper says he supports requiring North Carolina police to wear body cameras. Cooper is preparing a run for governor in 2016 and spoke Wednesday to the Associated Press.

He says equipping patrol officers with cameras should be part of a comprehensive plan to improve law enforcement after recent police shootings of black men nationally.

The Democrat also says if he was governor, he'd veto two Republican legislative proposals related to gay marriage. One would allow magistrates and court officials to refuse to carry out civil same-sex marriages due to religious beliefs. Cooper rejects a proposal allowing public officials to cite religion for declining to serve gay couples.

Supporters say the other measure protects businesses from government interference, which is similar Indiana's religious freedom law that sparked furor.