AP-NC Newswatch

Latest North Carolina News:

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
North Carolina unemployment rate drops to 4.1% in October
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina’s jobless rate fell further in October to 4.1% as the overall number of people employed kept growing. The state Commerce Department unveiled the seasonally adjusted rate on Friday. It compares to a revised September rate of 4.3%. The number of people employed in grew in October by 11,000 to well over 4.82 million workers. North Carolina hasn’t logged a rising monthly unemployment rate since September 2020. The rate reached as high as 13.5% during the peak of COVID-19 lockdown and commerce restrictions in spring 2020.

ROBBERY SUSPECT-FATAL SHOOTING
N. Carolina robbery suspect killed after taking hostages
GASTONIA, N.C. (AP) – Police say a suspect in an armed robbery in North Carolina was shot and killed by law enforcement officers after he took hostages at a different location. Gaston County Police say in a news release that the suspect fled the scene of an armed robbery on Thursday in adjacent Cleveland County. He eluded police after a chase, and authorities learned he went to a deli in Gaston County and took hostages. Law enforcement officers encountered him and shots were fired, killing the suspect. The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation will look into the shootings, which is standard when law enforcement officers fire their weapons.

NORTH CAROLINA AWARDS
Virus researchers, integration leader among NC Award winners
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Developers of COVID-19 treatments and a champion of public school integration are among the nine latest recipients of North Carolina’s highest civilian honor. Gov. Roy Cooper emceed Thursday’s formal presentation of the North Carolina Awards for 2020 and 2021. The award was created 60 years ago to recognize significant contributions to the state and the nation. Recipients include National Institutes of Health director Dr. Francis Collins and Harvard University faculty member Kizzmekia Corbett for COVID-19 work. Dudley Flood is a former Department of Public Instruction administrator who worked to desegregate the state’s K-12 schools. Musician David Holt and historian Timothy Tyson also were honored.

ELECTION 2022-VOTING BILLS
Earlier NC absentee vote receipt deadline goes to Cooper
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina Republicans have pushed a bill through the legislature that would prohibit the counting of mail-in absentee ballots not received by Election Day. The bill now heads to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who is likely to veto it. Current law allows ballot envelopes postmarked by the day of the election to count if received within a three-day grace period. The bill that cleared the General Assembly with a House vote Thursday would require ballots be turned in by 7:30 p.m. of the day of the general or primary election. Two other election-related measures also advanced through the House on Thursday.

STATE BUDGET
N Carolina budget gets final OK, quickly signed by Cooper
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – A final North Carolina budget bill is now law after Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper signed it almost as soon as the legislature placed it on his desk. The General Assembly gave its final approval on Thursday to a two-year state spending plan with a vote in the House. The Senate gave its final OK on Wednesday. The bill passed by wide margins in large part to the fact that Cooper announced this week he’d sign the measure into law, saying the good inside outweighed the items he disliked. There were several weeks of negotiations between House Speaker Tim Moore, Senate leader Phil Berger and Cooper.

ELECTION 2022-NORTH CAROLINA-BUTTERFIELD
Democrat Rep. Butterfield to retire, new district is toss-up
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina congressman G.K. Butterfield, a Democrat, has announced he’ll retire from Congress next year after Republican-drawn map put him in a toss-up district. Butterfield is the second Democratic North Carolina congressman to decide against a reelection bid. Rep. David Price announced last month he wouldn’t run. Butterfield made his announcement Thursday. He has represented northeastern North Carolina in the U.S. House since 2004 and is a former head of the Congressional Black Caucus. The congressional boundaries could still get struck down in court as Democrats and voting rights groups argue that Republicans created racial gerrymanders and drew lines for pure partisan gain.

SEXUAL ABUSE-PRIEST-LAWSUIT
North Carolina diocese, priest named in sexual abuse lawsuit
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) – A North Carolina diocese and a former priest have been named in a lawsuit alleging child sexual abuse involving a boy at an elementary school that spanned four years. The lawsuit was filed in Mecklenburg County by attorneys representing the plaintiff, who is identified only as John Doe J.C. Among those named as defendants are the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, Mecklenburg Area Catholic Schools and the Rev. Francis P. Gillespie. The lawsuit accuses Gillespie of regularly sexually assaulting the boy in the church sacristy after gaining his trust. The lawsuit says the assaults began sometime in the 1996-1997 school year and continued through the 1999-2000 school year.

DOG FIGHTING-MAN SENTENCED
N. Carolina man sent to prison on dog fighting, gun charges
WASHINGTON (AP) – Federal officials say a North Carolina man was sentenced to 75 months in prison for his part in a dog fighting operation and having a firearm as a convicted felon. A news release from the U.S. Department of Justice says 26-year-old Delontay Moore of Concord pleaded guilty on July 8 to conspiracy to commit dog fighting offenses and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Moore was sentenced on Wednesday. In February, agents seized 25 dogs from Moore which showed evidence of having been in dog fights as well as suffering from gross neglect. Authorities say he was also in possession of an AR-15.