POLICE SHOOTING-SUSPECT KILLED
Suspect killed, North Carolina deputy wounded in shooting
HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina sheriff’s deputy has been critically wounded and a suspect killed during an exchange of gunfire. The Henderson County Sheriff’s Office says a deputy has been hospitalized following the encounter just before 3 a.m. Thursday near Hendersonville. News outlets say deputies responded to a neighborhood on a car break-in report in which a caller said a homeowner and suspect had been shooting at each other. Officials say the suspect started shooting at them, wounding a deputy before other officers returned fire and struck the suspect. The State Bureau of Investigation and the sheriff’s office are investigating. The deputy and the suspect haven’t been identified.
PARATROOPER KILLED
Fort Bragg paratrooper dies in training accident in Georgia
FORT STEWART, Ga. (AP) — Officials for a North Carolina army base confirm that a paratrooper has died in a training accident in Georgia. News outlets quoted 82nd Airborne Division Lt. Col. Mike Burns as saying that the paratrooper was assigned to Fort Bragg in North Carolina but was at Georgia’s Fort Stewart at the time of the accident. Officials said Thursday that the paratrooper will be identified after family members are notified. No other information about the accident has been released.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-INTERNET
COVID-19 money to improve internet access for NC students
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s state government is using federal COVID-19 relief dollars to purchase equipment so more public school students access online classes and homework help. Gov. Roy Cooper announced this week that nearly $40 million would go toward a new partnership involving his administration called NC Student Connect. It’s designed to improve reliable internet for children as they learn remotely this fall due to coronavirus restrictions. Most of the money will be used to buy and distribute 100,000 wireless high-speed hot spots for students. Other funds will set up high-speed internet in more public locations.
LOWE’S VENDOR-JOBS
Lowe’s vendor in Italy to bring jobs to North Carolina
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Officials say a vendor for North Carolina-based Lowe’s home improvement stores is planning to bring 144 jobs from Italy to its new U.S. headquarters in Mooresville. The Charlotte Observer reports the town of Mooresville approved a $551,000 incentives grant for FITT Group, based in Sandrigo, Italy, over five years. Officials also said Iredell County plans to schedule a public hearing to consider a grant of up to $470,000 for the company. FITT Group has made pipes, hoses and conduits for use in homes, businesses and industrial sites for more than 50 years. It sells its products to major retail chains including Lowe’s and Home Depot.
AP-US-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-TRUMP-RALLY
NC: Trump rally exceeded pandemic limits, but not illegal
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A spokeswoman for North Carolina’s governor says President Donald Trump’s rally in Winston-Salem this week violated state health and safety protocols but was not illegal. Thousands of supporters who attended Tuesday’s rally were seen crammed together without masks or the 6 feet of physical distancing that the White House itself has recommended. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has limited mass gatherings to 50 people outdoors. Cooper spokeswoman Dory MacMillan says there is an exception for First Amendment activities including political rallies. But in a written statement, she also admonished the Trump campaign for putting people’s health at risk by ignoring the rules.
AP-US-TRUMP-POSTMASTER-GENERAL
Dem report: Postal Service changes delay prescription drugs
WASHINGTON (AP) — Delivery of mail-order prescription drugs was delayed significantly this summer after the new postmaster general ordered major changes in U.S. Postal Service operations. That’s what a report by Senate Democrats finds. The report contradicts public claims by Louis DeJoy that the recent moves he imposed “should not have impacted anybody.″ The report found that prescription drug orders filled by mail increased by one-fifth during the coronavirus pandemic, and deliveries for medications that previously took two days or three days now take an extra day. The report was based on information from five of the largest pharmacies and pharmacy benefit managers in the country that provide mail order service.
POLICE SHOOTING-NORTH CAROLINA
DA: No charges for North Carolina officer in fatal shooting
ROXBORO, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina district attorney says no charges will be filed against a police officer who fatally shot a Black man who pointed a sawed-off shotgun at the officer. Person County District Attorney Mike Waters said Wednesday that after reviewing the dashboard video, he determined that the officer “reasonably … did fear for his life, and he was justified in using deadly force.” Police say 45-year-old David Brooks Jr. of Roxboro was shot on July 24 after officers responded to a call about a man wearing a mask and carrying what appeared to be a shotgun walking down a highway and near a discount retail store.
ELECTION 2020-DUELING CAMPAIGNS
Trump and Biden run vastly different pandemic campaigns
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden are taking diametrically opposite approaches to campaigning during a pandemic. With less than eight weeks until the Nov. 3 election, the candidates are effectively staking out different visions for the country. Biden is emphasizing guidelines supported by local health officials. Trump is railing against restrictions that he argues are politically motivated, though he isn’t backing up those claims with evidence. Trump prefers indoor arenas, but after a June rally in Oklahoma, when the president addressed a half-empty arena, his campaign decided to move to airport hangars and tarmacs. Biden has appeared in public sparingly since the pandemic, and with the strictest adherence to state guidelines.
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