OBIT-SNYDER

N. Carolina Republican candidate Jim Snyder dead at 77

LEXINGTON, N.C. (AP) — A memorial service will be held Friday for attorney, author and former North Carolina Republican candidate Jim Snyder Jr. His family says Snyder died last weekend at age 77 following an extended illness. Snyder won the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in 2004 before losing to Democrat Beverly Perdue in the general election. He also ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 2008 and for U.S. Senate in 2002 and 2014. Snyder grew up in Lexington and ultimately attended Wake Forest University and its law school. He served briefly in the legislature in the early 1970s. Survivors include his wife, two daughters and several grandchildren.

GUN-STRAW BUYER

Feds: Man pleads guilty to getting girlfriend to buy gun

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A federal prosecutor in North Carolina says a man who was prohibited from buying a gun because of a prior conviction has pleaded guilty to getting his girlfriend to buy one for him. Acting U.S. Attorney William T. Stetzer says in a news release that 31-year-old Travis Shaqwann Fair of Asheville went to a gun dealer in June 2019 and discussed buying a cheap gun with a store worker. Stetzer says 29-year-old Kourtney Nichelle Shivers went to the same store to buy the gun for Fair. On Wednesday, Fair pleaded guilty to illegal possession of a firearm. He faces up to 10 years in prison at sentencing. 

NATIONAL PARK-BLACK HISTORY

Smoky Mountains park to hold town halls on Black history

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Officials with Great Smoky Mountains National Park have scheduled three town hall events to introduce the public to the history of Blacks within and around the park. According to a news release, participants will have the opportunity to learn about the history of Blacks in the park by attending a 30-minute program. The news release says facilitators will then lead an open discussion about current research and upcoming projects. The first town hall is scheduled for Thursday at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College. Future town halls are scheduled in October at the University of North Carolina Asheville and Western Carolina University.

STATE BUDGET

NC House speaker: Budget, new maps are goals for October

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore says Republican legislative leaders are aiming to finalize a North Carolina state budget and complete redistricting by the end of October. He spoke to reporters on Wednesday at the Legislative Building. Moore says he was hopeful House and Senate Republican budget writers would get a compromise spending plan to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper next week. The General Assembly wouldn’t vote on that plan. But it would serve as a starting point for negotiations with Cooper. Moore said later Wednesday he was hopeful the legislature could complete this year’s session by the end of next month.

ABSENTEE BALLOTS

Angry over 2020 ballot deal, NC Republicans vote to limit AG

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A flap over North Carolina absentee ballots in the 2020 election has resurfaced at the General Assembly as Republicans gave final approval to legislation limiting Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein’s ability to enter legal settlements. The bill is now heading to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk following a party-line House vote on Wednesday. It says legal settlements must be backed by the Senate leader and House speaker when they are named parties in litigation. The bill was introduced by GOP lawmakers angry about being left out of negotiations last year between Stein’s office and a labor-affiliated group that sued state election officials. 

FBI-HATE CRIMES

FBI campaign to raise hate crime awareness in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Charlotte division of the FBI says it is launching a campaign across North Carolina to raise awareness about federal hate crimes and to encourage people to report them. A news release from the agency says its campaign is part of a nationwide effort coordinated through FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. The national campaign includes billboards, social media, gas station pump ads, and radio, television, and bus advertisements. Robert Wells, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Charlotte Division, says no one should fear being targeted for violence because of their look, where they are from or any portion of their identity. 

WINSTON-SALEM SHOOTINGS

Three shootings result in one death in North Carolina city

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Police say one of three people shot in separate incidents in a North Carolina city has died. The Winston-Salem Journal reports police say 27-year-old Charles Edward Anderson Jr. died at a local hospital after he was shot on Tuesday, Officers responding to a report of a shooting found Anderson inside an apartment with a gunshot wound. Investigators think the shooting stemmed from a robbery. According to police, there was a second shooting on Tuesday that resulted from a robbery, while no motive was determined for a shooting in which a third person was wounded.   

WOMAN PULLED FROM SURF

Police: Woman pulled from surf at North Carolina beach

WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, N.C. (AP) — Police have opened an investigation after a woman was found unconscious and pulled from the surf at a North Carolina beach. Wrightsville Beach police say in a news release that officers responded to calls around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday in which callers reported seeing a woman in the surf and pulling her to shore. According to police, the woman was found unresponsive, not breathing and without a pulse. Police say the woman couldn’t be resuscitated and was pronounced dead. The woman was identified by police as 78-year-old Sally Mertens. Police are still investigating the incident.

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