FBI, Police Investigating Threat Against Jewish School
Police and the FBI are looking for someone who issued a threat against people involved with a Jewish school in Greensboro.
Greensboro police spokeswoman Susan Danielsen said Tuesday the B'nai Shalom Day School was closed for a second day. Danielsen says a letter opened by a school official Monday "expressed a clear threat to the school and its occupants."
She says the letter was mailed from somewhere in the Triad, and authorities are pursuing some leads but have made no arrests.
FBI spokeswoman Shelley Lynch says the letter included "racially charged language" and agents are investigating whether the sender could be guilty of a hate crime.
The school shares an address with the Beth David Synagogue.
Cooper Rejects McCrory Request To Join Transgender Lawsuit
Attorney General Roy Cooper has rejected a call by Governor Pat McCrory to side with a Virginia school district against a discrimination lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union. The suit would allow a transgender high school student to use the men's bathroom.
McCrory wrote to Cooper last week asking him to join the South Carolina attorney general in an opposing friend-of-the-court brief. Cooper rejected the request Monday.
Cooper is seeking the Democratic nomination to oppose McCrory next year.
The Virginia student, born female, identifies as male and wants to use male restrooms. The school board adopted a policy last year that requires students to use private restrooms or restrooms designated for their biological sex. The student's lawsuit was filed in federal court in Norfolk, Virginia.
NC Elections Head Steps Down As 2016 Election Cycle Revs Up
The head of North Carolina's statewide elections board is resigning just as the 2016 elections cycle starts with candidates filing for ballot places next month.
State Board of Elections Chairman Josh Howard said Tuesday he'll step down for health reasons effective New Year's Day. His replacement to the five-member board that handles election disputes will be picked by Gov. Pat McCrory from candidates recommended by the state Republican Party.
Howard is a Raleigh lawyer appointed to a four-year term in 2013. He previously worked on white-collar criminal cases at the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, D.C., and North Carolina. He worked for the independent counsel's office in Washington in 2000 as it was closing its Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky investigations involving President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton.
Google To Buy Solar Power To Run Massive NC Server Farm
Google says it will offset the tremendous electricity needed for its North Carolina server farm with solar power under a new program that allows corporations to voluntarily pay more for renewable energy.
The technology giant said Tuesday it will buy the power from Charlotte-based Duke Energy, which will buy the juice from a new Rutherford County solar farm. A Google spokeswomen would not say how much of the electricity used by the company's Caldwell County server farm would be offset by the 61 megawatt solar project.
Google's data center near Lenoir houses computer systems supporting the company's Internet search engine and other services such as Gmail and YouTube.
Duke says Google is the first to use a new program allowing its large customers to buy renewable energy from the utility.
States To Step Up Patrols On Interstate 40 For Thanksgiving
Police and highway patrol agencies in eight states spanning the country plan stepped-up patrols along Interstate 40 over the Thanksgiving travel period to reduce collisions and prevent fatalities.
States participating in the "Drive Toward Zero Fatalities" include North Carolina and Tennessee.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety says its effort includes increasing patrols along I-40 during busy 12-hour periods on Wednesday and Sunday.
The department also says Arizona troopers will focus on violations related to seatbelt usage, speed, impairment and overall dangerous driving behaviors.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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