Free Republic

Expiring Ethanol Credit to Add to Gas Price JumpBy WRAL POSTED: 9:04 am EST December 28, 2011 RALEIGH -- Lack of action by state lawmakers and Congress is expected to raise gas prices in North Carolina by more than 8 cents a gallon, starting Sunday. Half of the increase comes from the state. North Carolina's gas tax is linked to the price of gas and is adjusted every six months. Because gas prices have gone up since July, the state tax, which is already one of the highest in the country, is going up by 3.9 cents a gallon on...

A front-page story in today's New York Times tries to stir up alarm about liberalized carry permit laws, which let people carry concealed handguns if they meet a short list of objective criteria. To illustrate the hazards of that policy, the Times cites crimes committed by permit holders in North Carolina. How many crimes? Excluding traffic offenses, the Times counts 2,400 over five years, of which 200 were felonies. More relevant (since critics of nondiscretionary permit laws worry that they contribute to gun violence), "More than 200 permit holders were also convicted of gun- or weapon-related felonies or misdemeanors, including...

Two robberies and a near-death experience convinced Mark Headstrong that he needed to carry a gun. So he started packing a few months ago – a black revolver with a brown handle, small enough to tuck into his front pants pocket. For the soft-spoken convenience store clerk, the weapon proved its usefulness on the afternoon of Nov. 17, when he was almost robbed a third time. A man walked into the Wrightsville Country Store wearing a dark jacket and a Groucho Marx mask, pointed a loaded single-automatic pistol in Headstrong's face and demanded cash. Rather than obeying the order, the...

Raleigh going after unpaid parking ticketsUpdated: 6:41 p.m. Wednesday Raleigh, N.C. — Hundreds of area residents are getting mail from Raleigh officials this week, but it's not holiday greetings. The city sent 4,000 letters Monday to people who have unpaid parking citations, and officials said more mailings are planned. The move is part of a new collection method approved last spring by the City Council. Effective Dec. 15, the city can intercept the state income tax refund of anyone with more than $50 in unpaid parking citations that are more than six months delinquent in order to pay off the...

NC city mulls rules change for Occupy protestersDec 20, 9:00 AM EST WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) -- City council members in Winston-Salem have postponed a vote on an ordinance that would have temporarily declared city hall is no longer public property. **SNIP** Some council members said they were uncomfortable voting on the changes without advance notice or a public hearing. The council will take up the matter next month.

Staffers working for the Democratic governor of swing-state North Carolina have been using embargoed federal data for political advantage, putting state employees at risk of jail time, according to emails uncovered by the free-market John Locke Foundation. Republicans jumped on the news to demand explanations from embattled Gov. Beverly Purdue, whose declining poll ratings may stymie President Barack Obama’s campaign to win the state’s crucial 15 electoral votes in November 2012.

Absolutely, people should be allowed to defend themselves anywhere. Providing the option to ban concealed-carry handguns from "recreational facilities" was a bad change to House Bill 650, which became law on Dec. 1. It should never have occurred. The inclusion of that provision was a lame attempt by ignorant state legislators to water down the bill. The personal choice of some state representatives to refrain from carrying a weapon for self-defense does not extend to allowing legislators to take that choice from other North Carolinians regardless of the location in question. So, yes, concealed carry should be allowed anywhere in...

23.6 Giuliani +4.2 19.4 Huckabee 13.7 Romney 11.6 Thompson 11.3 McCain 4.4 Paul

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) -- For the second time in a month a Wilmington store clerk has turned the tables on a would-be robber. The owner of the store says the man who allegedly tried to rob the store is "lucky to be alive." The owner of A&J Food Mart on Princess Place Drive says Jaquan Martin said, "Please don't kill me, please don't kill me," when his apparent attempt to rob the store went wrong. Police say Martin fumbled as he pulled out a gun giving a store clerk a chance to pull a gun of his own. The clerk...

Police: Womble's car crossed center line in crashUpdated: 6:19 p.m. Monday WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Police in Winston-Salem say a car driven by state Rep. Larry Womble crossed the center line of a local street and collided head-on with another vehicle in a wreck that killed the other driver. Authorities say 54-year-old David Allen Carmichael of Winston-Salem died in the crash. Carmichael was the son of a man who ran against Womble for his legislative seat in the 1990s.

Newt Gingrich has dominent leads among Republican voters in both North Carolina and Colorado. In fact, Gingrich is the first candidate outside of his or her home state that PPP has ever found with an actual majority of the primary vote in any one state.

-----cut------ Garner, on the other hand, defined "recreational facility" for what it seems to be - a playground, ball field, gym or swimming pool. That definition seems more in line with what the General Assembly, though we suspect the courts will ultimately write the definition. (And we suspect lawmakers were purposely vague in defining recreational facility because they wanted the courts to.) As for those who think that law-abiding folks ought to be able to carry a gun wherever they want, we're sympathetic. At the same time, we sympathize with moms and dads who might be uncomfortable at the sight...

A North Carolina nonprofit organization that advocates for Second Amendment rights is trying to rally Winston-Salem residents opposed to a new city ordinance that prohibits guns in certain parts of some of the city's parks and recreation facilities. Grass Roots North Carolina, which is based in Raleigh, issued an alert this week saying that the ordinance, which the city council passed Nov. 21, violates state law. The alert also says the nonprofit is considering filing a lawsuit against the city, though Paul Valone, president of Grass Roots North Carolina, said he could not comment on possible litigation. Winston-Salem's new ordinance...

New laws go into effect for NC, including changes to Castle DoctrineBy: NBC17 Staff Published: December 01, 2011 **SNIP** Under the bill, a person charged with murder, manslaughter, or assault on a pregnant woman will face the same charged for the unborn child. **SNIP** Other laws that went into effect Dec.1: Laura's Law. This toughens sentences on repeat drunk drivers. It's named for 17-year-old Laura Fortenberry who was killed in a crash by a repeat offender. Police will start taking DNA samples from people arrested for an assortment of crimes. It used to only apply to suspects arrested for violent...

$22 million incentive package helped bring Chiquita to CharlotteBy: Becky Bereiter Updated 1:12 PM CHARLOTTE — More information is being released about incentives package that helped persuade Chiquita Brands International to move its corporate headquarters to Charlotte. Chiquita CEO Fernando Aguirre is not hiding the fact that the $22 million incentives package played a major role in bringing the company to the Queen City. $20 million came from the state and $2 million came from the city and county. Aguirre said in order to get the $22 million in incentives, the company has to meet a number of requirements. Primarily,...

2 with ties to Perdue surrender at Wake jailBy MICHAEL BIESECKER, Associated Press Posted: 1:00 p.m. today RALEIGH. N.C. — Two people with close ties to North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue have surrendered at the Wake County jail on charges related to campaign finance violations. Both were quickly released Wednesday on $50,000 unsecured bonds. Juleigh Sitton of Morganton recently resigned as director of the governor's Western Office. Sitton was indicted on two felony charges Monday, accused of accepting $32,000 in secret salary payments from illegal campaign donations when she worked for Perdue's 2008 campaign.

North Carolina’s new “Castle Doctrine” law, which addresses certain circumstances under which a person can legally shoot or use other deadly force against another, takes effect Thursday. North Carolina’s current Castle Doctrine only applies to homes, but under the new law it also applies to vehicles and places of work. The Castle Doctrine, rooted in English common law, expresses the belief that one should be safe from illegal intrusion in one’s home. The new law is much longer and clarifies when deadly force can be used. New law more specific The new law defines a person’s home as any property...

N.C. grand jury indicts 3 with ties to Perdue campaignPosted to: Crime News North Carolina By Gary D. Robertson and Michael Biesecker The Associated Press November 28, 2011 RALEIGH, N.C. - A Wake County grand jury on Monday indicted former campaign workers and a close family friend of North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue as part of an investigation into undisclosed flights on private airplanes leading up to her 2008 election victory. Grand jurors handed up indictments in state court against former Perdue campaign finance director Peter Reichard of Greensboro; Juleigh Sitton of Morganton, until recently the director of the governor's...

CLAYTON - A local gun shop owner is suing to force Johnston County Sheriff Steve Bizzell to grant him a machine gun permit. Ronnie Mitchell, Bizzell's attorney, said he will ask the court to dismiss the case. Dennis Nielsen, owner of Freedom Arms, a newly opened gun store on U.S. 70 Business in Clayton, requested a machine gun permit in May. Bizzell refused, saying he needed more information, including the type of automatic weapon Nielsen needed a permit for, where and how it would be stored and why Nielsen needed the weapon. State law requires permits from the county sheriff...

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Police in North Carolina were investigating Sunday after two students were robbed by several gunmen in a dorm room at Fayetteville State University. WRAL-TV reported four to six men with guns knocked on a dorm room door at around 2:00am local time, university spokesman Jeff Womble said. When the two students answered, a physical altercation ensued. Shots were fired, damaging some furniture in the room, but no one was struck. The two students were injured during the altercation, Womble said. One of the students was taken to a local hospital in unknown condition, and the other was...