AP-NC Newswatch

Latest North Carolina News:

ELECTION 2022-REDISTRICTING
North Carolina panel to hear redistricting case next month
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – A three-judge panel will soon hear a case challenging North Carolina’s legislative and congressional maps, according to court filings released Monday afternoon. Arguments are scheduled to be heard in Wake County Superior Court between Jan. 3 and Jan. 5. Closing arguments are planned for Jan. 6. The state Supreme Court had moved last week to push back the primary election by 10 weeks to May 17. It is directing panel of judges to reach a decision by Jan. 11. The losing side would then almost assuredly file an appeal to the high court. Republicans insist the congressional and legislative maps pass legal muster, while critics say the boundaries are partisan and racial gerrymanders.

OFFICER SHOT-NORTH CAROLINA
N. Carolina police officer shot, wounded outside restaurant
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) – Authorities say a North Carolina police officer was shot in the leg and wounded on Monday while responding to a domestic dispute. News outlets report Greensboro police said the police officer responded to the call from a restaurant on the city’s west side. The officer was investigating the incident when a struggle occurred between the officer and the suspect and a gun went off. The officer was struck in the leg and was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police said the unidentified person involved in the struggle was taken into custody. There was no immediate word on charges.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NORTH CAROLINA
North Carolina confirms 1st case of omicron variant
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Local North Carolina health officials have confirmed the first positive COVID-19 test for the omicron variant. The case came from a University of North Carolina at Charlotte student who traveled out of state over Thanksgiving. Officials say the student was isolated and has recovered, with the exposure limited to one known contact. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday reported it has detected the variant in 29 sates. Scientists say omicron is much more transmissible than previous variants, but it’s unclear whether omicron causes more severe disease than other variants.

BURNING BAN-NORTH CAROLINA
Burning ban lifted for all North Carolina counties
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Officials say a burning ban still in effect for 33 North Carolina counties in the wake of recent wildfires was lifted on Monday following weekend rainfall. A news release from the N.C. Forest Service says a ban was imposed on Nov. 29 due to hazardous forest fire conditions. It was lifted for 67 other counties on Dec. 8. As of noon Monday, burn permits are available statewide. Residents can obtain a burn permit from any authorized permitting agent or online. All burn permits granted before the statewide burn ban were canceled when the ban became effective. A valid permit must be obtained.

CAPITOL BREACH-MEADOWS
Jan. 6 panel votes for contempt charges against Mark Meadows
WASHINGTON (AP) – The House panel investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection has voted to pursue contempt charges against former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. Lawmakers have also revealed a series of frantic texts he received as the attack was underway. The texts reveal that members of Congress, Fox News anchors and even President Donald Trump’s own son were urging Meadows to push Trump to act quickly to stop the siege by his supporters. The panel voted 9-0 to recommend the contempt charges. The House is expected to vote Tuesday to refer the charges to the Justice Department, which will decide whether to prosecute the former Republican congressman.

SIX SHOT
Police: 2 killed, 4 hurt in Durham shooting
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) – Durham police say two young men are dead and four other young people are injured after a shooting. Police say officers responding to a report of a shooting around 3 a.m. Monday found a Hyundai SUV crashed into a utility pole and six people who had been shot. Police say two young men died on the scene. Three girls and one boy were taken to a hospital for treatment of their injuries and police say at least one of them was in critical condition. Police say the shooting did not appear to be a random incident. 

DOUBLE HOMICIDE-SUSPECT CHARGED
North Carolina man wanted in two deaths arrested by deputies
CLINTON, N.C. (AP) – A sheriff’s office says deputies have apprehended a North Carolina man in connection with a double homicide. A news release from the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office says it received information on Sunday night saying a suspect wanted for questioning in a double homicide in Alamance County may be at a residence in Clinton. Deputies and officers from the Clinton Police Department went to the address and found 45-year-old Alfonza McDuffie of La Grange. McDuffie is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony larceny of a motor vehicle. He’s being held in the Alamance County jail without bond.

FATAL HOUSE FIRE
Sheriff: North Carolina woman dies in morning house fire
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. (AP) – A North Carolina sheriff’s office says a woman has died after she was pulled from a house fire. The Pasquotank County Sheriff’s Office said deputies were responding to an alarm call early Monday morning when they noticed an orange glow in the sky. A news release says the deputies went to the source of the glow and found a house engulfed in fire with flames shooting through the roof. Both the deputies and emergency personnel who responded to the fire attempted life-saving measures, but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene. The sheriff’s office identified her as 33-year-old Stephanie Pearl Josvai.