Corporations Sour On NC Killing LGBT Ordinance
Corporations are expressing disappointment that North Carolina lawmakers banned local measures to expand anti-discrimination protections to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
An American Airlines spokeswoman said Thursday that laws allowing discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender customers and employees are bad for the economy. Biotech company Biogen says the law approved Wednesday undermines equality.
The payments processor PayPal said last week it plans to hire 400 employees at a new Charlotte operations center. The California-based company says it's disappointed by the North Carolina law.
The NCAA says it's monitoring the situation and takes diversity into account when it chooses its event sites. Men's college basketball tournament games are planned in Greensboro in 2017 and Charlotte in 2018.
Rally Held To Support NC Teen Facing Deportation
Supporters of a North Carolina teen facing deportation to his native Honduras say he deserves the opportunity to return to high school and graduate in June.
About 50 people attended a rally Thursday in Durham for 19-year-old Wildin Acosta, a senior at Riverside High School. They say his absence has created fear among other students, who want their classmate to return by the time the fourth quarter begins April 4 so he can graduate in June.
Attorney General Cooper Will Work With NAACP
Lawyers in the North Carolina attorney general's office have met with a civil rights group calling for state investigations of wrongful convictions.
Attorney General Roy Cooper's spokeswoman Noelle Talley said Cooper wants to work with the NAACP to address problems in the criminal justice system.
Talley says Cooper also wants more money for the N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission, which has been involved in releasing eight innocent men.
Officer In Christmas Eve Mall Shooting In NC Cleared
An off-duty police officer who shot and killed a teen firing a gun at a Charlotte mall on Christmas Eve will not be charged with a crime.
The Mecklenburg County district attorney's office said in a news release Thursday that Officer T.E. Ferguson, after being called to a fight, saw the teen fire a shot into the Journeys store at Northlake Mall.
NC's February Jobless Rate Drops A Notch To 5.5 Percent
North Carolina's unemployment rate is trending downward, coming in at 5.5 percent in February.
The state Commerce Department said Thursday the jobless rate ticked down from 5.6 percent in January. The national rate was 4.9 percent last month.
North Carolina's unemployment rate is where the national rate was 10 months ago.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.