Feds Seek Dismissal Of McCrory Lawsuit
The Justice Department wants a lawsuit by North Carolina's governor dismissed to streamline the legal battle over the state's law limiting protections for LGBT people.
Federal lawyers asked a judge Tuesday to dismiss Gov. Pat McCrory's lawsuit defending the law. Four other lawsuits, including a challenge by the Justice Department, are being heard by a judge in another federal court.
The federal government argues that McCrory's lawyers "rushed to the courthouse" because they knew the Justice Department planned to sue the state. They say McCrory raises the same issues in litigation in the other court.
Bills Signed By McCrory Address Map Act, Industrial Hemp
A short-term response to a North Carolina Supreme Court ruling last month over land for proposed highway projects and slight adjustments to a 2015 law authorizing experimental industrial hemp farming have been signed by Gov. Pat McCrory.
McCrory's office announced late Tuesday he had signed five more bills the General Assembly left on his desk.
One bill addresses the Map Act, which had been used by the state to keep property costs in check while planning to build loops around cities. The justices said the land-use restrictions effectively took private property from landowners, who could be compensated.
North Carolina Attorney General Says Body Camera Law Needs Fixing
North Carolina's chief law enforcement officer and Democratic challenger for governor, Roy Cooper, says the state's new law excluding police camera recordings from the public record goes too far in withholding information from the public.
The law allows a person shown in a video to ask police to see it but not copy it. The department can deny such requests, citing concerns about safety, reputation or an ongoing investigation. Then it would be up to a judge.
Attorney General Cooper said Tuesday that recordings from body cameras and dashboard cameras should instead be treated as public record, with some exemptions for crime victims or investigations.
Gov. Pat McCrory says the law he signed Monday properly balances transparency, fairness and privacy.
Cooper Outraises McCrory By Nearly $2M Over Past 4 Months
Democrat Roy Cooper has extended his fundraising advantage over Republican incumbent Pat McCrory in the North Carolina governor's race — one that's been shaded by a state law McCrory signed limiting anti-discrimination rules for LGBT people.
Cooper's campaign announced Tuesday it has raised more than $5.1 million during the past four months compared to McCrory's $3.2 million. The governor's campaign says it will report having $6.3 million in the bank as of June 30. Cooper's team had $9.4 million.
The race is expected to be among the most expensive gubernatorial races this November.
Alcoa Sells NC River Dams To Maryland Clean-Power Company
Alcoa Inc. is ending a century of ownership and its years-long relicensing fight over four North Carolina hydroelectric dams, selling them to a Maryland company that specializes in running clean-power projects.
Spokeswomen for Alcoa and Cube Hydro Partners on Wednesday declined to disclose the purchase price for the dams originally built to power an aluminum smelter on the Yadkin River.
Alcoa closed the factory that once employed hundreds in 2007. The company has made about $200 million since then by selling the electricity to commercial customers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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