NC Opening Shelters For Out-Of-State Irma Evacuees

North Carolina is playing host to evacuees trying to escape the path of Hurricane Irma through Florida and Georgia.

State officials said a fifth shelter opened Sunday in Greensboro to accommodate people and their pets coming to North Carolina and finding hotel rooms full.

The News and Record of Greensboro reports Gov. Roy Cooper touched down by helicopter Sunday afternnon in Greensboro to meet with members of the National Guard.

Other shelters near interstate highways opened Saturday in Dallas, Hendersonville, Smithfield and Huntersville. The state transportation department is using roadside electronic message boards to direct evacuees to the shelters.

Fort Bragg Paratroopers Rush To Florida To Help Irma Relief

Almost 300 paratroopers and dozens of military vehicles from the famed 82nd Airborne Division are deploying to Florida to help with recovery from Hurricane Irma.

The Fayetteville Observer reports unit spokesman Lt. Col. Joe Buccino says the soldiers unit was set to deploy late Sunday or Monday, depending on weather.

Navy ships and Marines from the Camp Lejeune's 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit are delivering supplies to the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Unincorporated Community Sues Town For Racial Discrimination

A predominantly black unincorporated community is suing an adjacent North Carolina town after a decades-long fight for annexation.

The Winston-Salem Journal reports the 73-household Walnut Tree Community Association and four individuals filed a lawsuit Thursday against the predominantly white town of Walnut Cove, alleging racial discrimination.

K&L Gates Law Firm, which represents the plaintiffs, says the lawsuit is an attempt to accelerate annexation so Walnut Tree community members can participate in town elections and receive the benefits and services available to town residents, including reduced water-sewer service rates.

The town rejected a formal petition for annexation in January. K&L Gates says repeated denials of annexation since the 1970s violate the North Carolina Constitution's Equal Protection Clause.

Cooper Wants Three Confederate Monuments Moved

Governor Roy Cooper is seeking formal permission to move three Confederate monuments, a request thatwill have to get past a recent law designed to protect them.

The Cooper administration wants the state Historical Commission to approve the move of the monuments from the old Capitol grounds to the Bentonville Civil War Battlefield.

A 2015 state law approved by the Republican-controlled legislature bars the permanent removal of most Confederate monuments on public lands. There's language in the law, however, that says in some cases a relocation can be made to a site of similar prominence and visibility.

Cooper says the battlefield about 50 miles away from Raleigh meets that criteria. It commemorates an 1865 battle, the largest to take place in North Carolina.

Attorney: Man Fatally Shot Pointed Gun At Charlotte Officer

The attorney for a North Carolina police officer involved in a fatal shooting says the dead man pointed a handgun at his client before the officer shot and killed him.

Attorney George Laughrun tells The Charlotte Observer Rueben Galindo pointed the gun at Charlotte Police Officer David Guerra before being shot Wednesday outside his apartment building.

Laughrun says Guerra told Galindo in Spanish to drop his gun and show his hands, but the 29-year-old did not follow those orders.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney said officers perceived an imminent lethal threat from the armed Galindo.

Panthers Topple 49ers

Cam Newton threw a pair of touchdown passes following San Francisco turnovers and the Carolina defense shut down Kyle Shanahan's offense in his coaching debut as the Panthers beat the 49ers 23-3 Sunday.

Newton threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Russell Shepard in the first half following a fumble by Brian Hoyer, then a 9-yard touchdown to Jonathan Stewart in the third quarter after Luke Kuechly intercepted Hoyer.

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