Robert Lewis Dear, the man suspected in Friday’s attack on a Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic, had lived in the Carolinas before moving to Colorado a year ago. Neighbors say he kept mostly to himself. Meanwhile, in other news this weekend, North Carolina will meet Clemson in next weekend's ACC championship football game in Charlotte.
NEIGHBORS REMEMBER SHOOTING SUSPECT
Robert Lewis Dear’s South Carolina neighbors say he hid food in the woods and liked to skinny dip. Neighbor John Hood said when he moved to the small town of Walterboro, about 50 miles west of Charleston, Dear was living in a doublewide mobile home next door. Hood said the man made money by selling prints of his uncle Bill Stroud's paintings of Southern plantations and the Masters golf tournament. The Associated Press reports Dear rarely talked to neighbors. When he did, he offered unsolicited advice. He once told Hood to put a metal roof on his home so the U.S. government couldn't spy on him.
The 57-year-old Dear also has lived in North Carolina, including Swannanoa and Black Mountain, near Asheville. Police in Colorado Springs, Colorado arrested him after an attack on a Planned Parenthood Clinic that left three people dead. Authorities say they're not ready to discuss a possible motive.
One law enforcement official said Saturday Dear made a comment about "no more baby parts" after his arrest. The official did not elaborate. Dear is in custody and is expected to make his first court appearance Monday.
See Nov. 28, 2015, NPR.org, "Planned Parenthood Shooting Suspect Robert Lewis Dear To Appear In Court Monday"
Nov. 29, 2015, NPR.org, "What We Know About The Alleged Planned Parenthood Shooter"
TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION LOSES INFLUENCE IN RALEIGH
The North Carolina Association of Educators was among the state's most influential policy and political advocacy groups when Democrats controlled state government. Today, with Republicans in charge, the state's largest teacher organization is trying to revive its relevance in Raleigh. The group's statewide clout has been eroding since the 2010 elections, when the GOP took control of both General Assembly chambers. Then Republican Pat McCrory became governor in 2012. Education policies are at the heart of the hostility, but Republican leaders say they’re not inclined to work with the association while it largely continues to back Democratic legislative candidates. The NCAE is the state affiliate of the National Education Association. Its relationship with GOP lawmakers went south after efforts to ban payroll deductions for NCAE-member teachers dues.
See the full AP “Capitol Letter” column, by Gary Robertson, “Hostility remains between Republicans, teachers' group”
GIRL LOSES APPEAL ON CLIMATE CHANGE PETITION
A judge has ruled against a 13-year-old who took North Carolina to court over climate change. The News & Observer of Raleigh reportsHallie Turner learned Wednesday that Wake County Superior Court Judge Mike Morgan declined to overturn a decision by the state Environmental Management Commission.
The eighth-grader had petitioned the commission almost a year ago for a rule to require North Carolina to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by at least 4 percent annually. A commissioner who rejected the petition said it was incomplete. He also said North Carolina law prohibited environmental agencies from enacting state laws stricter than federal law. Hallie and her attorneys are considering their options, including a new petition or an appeal of Morgan's ruling.
2 DIE IN HIGH-SPEED CRASH ON US 52
A man driving 100 mph and not wearing a seatbelt was one of two people killed in a one-car wreck Thanksgiving Day in Midway, in Davidson County. State Highway Patrol troopers told The Dispatch of Lexington that 28-year-old Miguel Adina-dab Morato Torres of Lexington was thrown from the vehicle Thursday. It was his birthday. 26-year-old Patricia Rodriguez was a passenger in the car and also died. Troopers say the accident occurred on U.S. Highway 52, where the speed limit is 65 mph. They say the 1997 Honda Civic struck a tree in the median.
PEDESTRIAN DIES ON I-85
A pedestrian died Saturday night on I-85 northbound in Concord Saturday night. WSOC-TV reports the person was hit around 10 o’clock near the Poplar Tent Road exit.
TARHEELS TO MEET CLEMSON IN ACC TITLE GAME
Deshaun Watson ran for three touchdowns and passed for a fourth as No. 1 ranked Clemson held off rival South Carolina 37-32 on Saturday. The Tigers ended the regular season undefeated. They’ll next play No. 11 North Carolina in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game on Dec. 5 in Charlotte. The Tarheels beat NC State 45-to-34. Elijah Hood and T.J. Logan each ran for two touchdowns.
