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Attorneys: North Carolina Congress Remap Claims Still Stand
Attorneys in North Carolina's congressional redistricting litigation have made arguments to federal judges that a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on partisan gerrymandering favors their respective clients.
The three-judge panel that last January struck down the state's congressional boundaries received legal briefs before a Wednesday deadline. The Supreme Court last month vacated the judges' earlier ruling and told the three judges to examine the case in light of its ruling involving Wisconsin legislative districts.
Wednesday's briefs from advocacy groups, the state Democratic Party and voters say the Wisconsin ruling shouldn't alter the three-judge panel's previous decision that the lines violate several portions of the U.S. Constitution.
But lawyers for Republican lawmakers defending the map wrote that the Wisconsin ruling means the North Carolina boundaries should be left intact.
North Carolina Counties Deadlock On Early Voting Plans
Early voting sites this fall in at least two North Carolina counties will be decided by state officials after local boards couldn't agree on hours or locations.
The Wake and Orange election boards deadlocked Tuesday.
Wake County board members disagreed whether to have a site at North Carolina State University. The Orange County board couldn't agree on weekend site hours.
North Carolina Chicken-Processing Plant Shuttered By Fire Sold
A poultry company has sold a chicken-processing plant to a longtime customer, months after a fire damaged the central portion of the North Carolina facility.
The Davie County Economic Development Commission announced Tuesday that the Wisconsin-based Brakebush Brothers Inc. purchased the Mocksville plant from House of Raeford Farms, becoming the third owner in seven years.
Brakebush plans to restore the 72,000-square-foot facility with new processing equipment and three production lines, with the goal of resuming full operational status by next spring.
NC Prisons Pay $190,000 Fine For Drug Record-Keeping Lapses
North Carolina prison officials have agreed to pay a $190,000 penalty for failing to keep track of prescription drugs that had the potential of being diverted to inmates.
Federal prosecutors said Wednesday that the dozens of lapses occurred during the last two years of former Gov. Pat McCrory's administration at the two Raleigh prisons that house separate death rows for men and women.
U.S. Attorney Robert Higdon Jr.'s office said investigators found at least 88 occasions that medical staff at Central Prison and the North Carolina Correctional Center for Women failed to document how controlled substances were dispensed and disposed of.
Higher Tides Expected In Coastal Areas Across US
Expected high tides in coastal areas across the country increase the likelihood of coastal flooding, potentially deadly ocean currents and sand erosion.
Citing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the News & Observer reports that higher-than-normal tides are expected from July 12 to July 16, and the southeastern U.S. will see peak tides July 12 to 14. The change is attributed to "perigean spring" or "king" tides, which is when the moon is closest to the earth.
NOAA says higher-than-normal tides are increasingly impacting coastal flooding because of the continued sea level rise.
Maryland physical oceanographer Greg Dusek advises those on the east coast to be mindful of rip currents.
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