Good morning.1. Hand of Hope is suing the city of Raleigh. A crisis pregnancy center, blocked by the Raleigh City Council in July from rezoning a property directly next to an abortion clinic, has filed a lawsuit against the city in federal court. From our story about it yesterday: “Pregnant women in Raleigh should be […]
Paul Blest
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Breaking: Crisis Pregnancy Center Files Federal Lawsuit Against Raleigh For Denying Zoning Request
Hand of Hope, the crisis pregnancy center looking to open up a location next to an abortion clinic in Raleigh, has filed a federal lawsuit against the city for denying its zoning request. “Pregnant women in Raleigh should be allowed to choose Hand of Hopes’ free help and support and should not be limited to […]
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NCGOP Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse Had a Banner Day Yesterday
It’s an open secret that North Carolina Republicans really don’t like it when Democrats vote, which is why four federal rulings this year alone have found N.C. voting-related laws to be in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. But a coordinated voter suppression effort is something you talk about over the […]
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The General Assembly and the Equal Protection Clause: A Love Story
The Equal Protection Clause is the last section of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution; it says that no state can “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” Like the entire Fourteenth Amendment, it was designed by Republicans to ensure basic rights for African-Americans after the Civil War. […]
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Coal Ash and North Carolina: A Timeline
A state toxicologist accusing the state health director of putting politics over public safety. A late-night press conference in which Governor McCrory’s chief of staff accuses the toxicologist of perjury. An “open editorial” in which that state health director sounds a lot like a McCrory campaign staffer. The resignation of the state’s epidemiologist because of […]
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Trump Names N.C. Senator Facing Lawsuit and Department of Labor Investigation to Advisory Committee
Donald Trump has announced the formation of an “agricultural advisory committee,” and one familiar name is on the list: Senator Brent Jackson, a Republican from Sampson County who co-chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee. As we reported last week, Jackson’s farm is currently under investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. Jackson, […]
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Citing N.C., Environmentalists Call For EPA to Set Hexavalent Chromium Levels
Today, environmental activist Erin Brockovich and the D.C.-based nonprofit Environmental Working Group sent a letter to EPA administrator Gina McCarthy asking for federal standards on hexavalent chromium. Hexavalent chromium is the contaminant that caused the “do-not-drink” order from DHHS to nearly 400 well owners who lived near Duke Energy plants, and was the contaminant in […]
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The Morning Roundup: What Happened At Crabtree?
Good morning. This was an eventful weekend.1. Was there a shooting at Crabtree Mall?We reported on Saturday’s Crabtree Mall shooting. Check out this blog for a detailed account of what was going on that day. Update, 5:59: If you head to our Facebook page, you can watch the press conference live. Here are some of […]
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Breaking: Federal Court Rules Against NC Legislative Districts
A three-judge panel in the U.S. District Court (not to be confused with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals) has ruled against the North Carolina legislative districts, as they violate the Equal Protection Clause, but the 2016 elections will be allowed to proceed with the unconstitutional districts anyway. This is the third time this year, […]
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Senator Brent Jackson’s Farm Under Investigation by U.S. Department of Labor
The INDY has learned that there is an open investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division into Senator Brent Jackson’s farm, the Jackson Farming Company in Autryville. We reported in June on a lawsuit that seven former migrant workers had filed against the Jackson Farming Company alleging wage violations and retaliation. […]