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Morning News Briefs: Monday, July 10th, 2017

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NC Board Gets Hundreds Of Protest Calls Over Voter Data

North Carolina's elections board says it has received hundreds of phone calls and emails complaining about voter information being turned over to a federal commission investigating voter fraud.

Bipartisan State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement spokesman Patrick Gannon says some people have asked how to remove their names from the voter rolls in protest.

Gannon told The News & Observer of Raleigh that the board is discouraging people from cancelling their voter registration.

The board is only turning over information already publicly available, like voter names, party registrations, addresses, and voting histories to President Donald Trump's commission.

It isn't turning over information it collects to confirm identities, but keeps private, like dates of birth and Social Security and driver's license numbers.

NC Leaders Remain Hopeful For Full Lumbee Recognition

As the annual homecoming of North Carolina's Lumbee Indians ends, tribal leaders and politicians say they're optimistic that full federal recognition will come soon.

U.S. Rep. Robert Pittenger says he's hopeful that Congress will approve full federal recognition. Pittenger spoke to the 15-day Lumbee Homecoming, which ended Saturday.

Pittenger says a meeting will be held with congressional leaders about how to push Lumbee recognition through the U.S. House. He acknowledges lawmakers who represent other tribes are likely to oppose legislation.

Over 1,000 Protest KKK Rally In Charlottesville, VA; 23 Arrested

A small group of North Carolina Klansmen were met by more than 1,000 protesters at a Charlottesville, VA park where they'd come to rally.

The Daily Progress reports about 50 members of the Loyal White Knights traveled from North Carolina Saturday to Justice Park to protest the removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

The Klansmen rallied for less than an hour before leaving. Protesters followed them to a parking garage where police told them to disperse for unlawful assembly.

Virginia State Police threw three tear gas containers to disperse the crowd.

Twenty-three people were arrested and three people were taken to a hospital, two for heat and one for alcohol-related issues.

North Carolina Episcopal Priest Charged In Florida Road Rage

The rector of an Episcopal church in North Carolina is facing criminal charges in Florida after police say he pointed a gun at another vehicle in an apparent road rage incident.

35-year-old Rev. William Rian Adams is charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Martin County, Florida records show he was released from jail on $15,000 bail.

State troopers say a pickup truck driver was closely following a Corvette on Florida's Turnpike and tried to pass the car when its driver pointed a handgun at him. Troopers then stopped Adams in the Corvette.

Records show Adams is rector of Calvary Episcopal Church in Fletcher, North Carolina.

Shifting Sand Could Determine Final Ownership Of New Island

There's no question in the mind of the superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore as to who owns the new island off North Carolina's coast — for now.

Superintendent Dave Hallac tells The Charlotte Observer that the state of North Carolina owns the new mile-long island known as Shelly Island and that it's under the jurisdiction of Dare County.

But if it connects with land, Hallac says he would have to research ownership because it then could be part of the national seashore.

The island is separated from Hatteras Island by a few hundred feet of water, which is no more than 5 feet deep at low tide.

Judge OKs Completion Of 24-Bedroom House On NC Outer Banks

A New England woman has won a court case allowing her to complete work on her 24-bedroom rental home along North Carolina's Outer Banks.

The Daily Advance of Elizabeth City reports that a judge ruled last in favor of Elizabeth LeTendre of Needham Heights, Massachusetts. A Currituck County judge told the county to rescind both a stop-work order issued in September 2016 and a February notice of violation.

LeTendre says the $4.6 million house located north of Corolla is a single-family home, which neighbors have contested.

Judge Walter Godwin said the house is 95 percent complete and that the county must issue all approvals once it's finished.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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