Charlotte voters will pick a new mayor November 3rd and a new poll shows the Democrat Jennifer Roberts leading the race. The Charlotte Observer poll of 1,324 likely voters shows Roberts with support from 54 percent. Republican Edwin Peacock has 39 percent, while seven percent are undecided.
Roberts is the former chair of the Mecklenburg County Commission, and beat incumbent Mayor Dan Clodfelter in a primary runoff earlier this month. Peacock is a former City Council member who lost two years ago to former Democratic mayor Patrick Cannon by six percentage points. Cannon resigned after he was arrested on federal corruption charges. Early voting in local elections begins this Thursday. Voting information is at MECKBOE.org. And we’ve got profiles of the mayor and school board candidates at WFAE.org.
MAN CHARGED AFTER FATAL SHOOTING
A 29-year-old man was shot to death in an altercation last night on Davis Avenue, off Wilkinson Boulevard in Charlotte. Police were called to a home around 11:10 PM, where they found two men with gunshot wounds. Robert Griffin died at the scene, while the second man was hospitalized with serious injuries. On Sunday morning, police charged Montreal Forman, 25, with Griffin's murder, after he was released from the hospital.
REVIEW OF CHARLESTON DONATIONS SOUGHT
An attorney for a man whose wife was one of nine people shot and killed at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston will be allowed to review records about donations made after the massacre. The Post and Courier of Charleston reports the husband of Cynthia Hurd sued on behalf of her estate. He wants to prevent the money from being spent until families' attorneys can complete a review.
TSA OFFICER FACES DRUG CHARGES
A former airport screening officer in Los Angeles has been charged with taking money to allow bags of marijuana through security onto flights bound for Charlotte. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles says 33-year-old former TSA office Deondre Smith was charged Friday with bribery of a public official and conspiracy to distribute marijuana. Smith is accused of taking at least $500 to let the pot pass through LAX airport. Prosecutors say Smith and others conspired to move at least 50 kilograms of marijuana in 2009 and 2010.
JUDGES REVIEW ELECTION DISTRICTS
Another panel of judges is considering whether some electoral districts drawn by North Carolina Republicans in 2011 and used in the past two elections are illegal because they contained too many black residents. At a trial in Greensboro last week, three federal judges examined the legality of the 1st and 12th Congressional District lines. They didn't immediately rule. Voters who sued want the districts invalidated and redrawn. The two districts had already consistently elected black Democrats, but lawmakers still increased the black voting-age population of both districts above 50 percent. State attorneys defended the districts, saying lawmakers drew the districts with politics and legal protections in mind, not discrimination.
SC ISSUES DAM SAFETY ORDERS
South Carolina environmental regulators have issued emergency orders to the owners of 63 dams, of which almost half are in Richland County.
Officials with the Department of Health and Environmental Control say they assessed 390 dams, issuing emergency orders to 63 of those in the wake of the historic flooding in the state. Of those 63 dams, 28 - or almost 45 percent - are in Richland County. The flooding caused 36 dams to fail and damaged others.
Under the S.C. Dams and Reservoirs Safety Regulations, an emergency order may direct the dam owner to: lower the water level by releasing water from the reservoir; empty the reservoir; take whatever immediate measures are necessary to reduce the risk of dam failure. Regulators say there's no immediate threat to public safety.
BURIAL SITE GETS NEW MARKER
A proper memorial will finally mark the burial site of up to 80 slaves and Native Americans in a wooded area near Sardis Presbyterian Church in Charlotte. The Charlotte Observer reports about 20 people planned to gather Saturday at the cemetery where people were buried more than 150 years ago. A small stone monument will be placed at the site that will alert people that the cemetery "is the final resting place of Afro-American slaves and Native Americans who were baptized communing members of Sardis Presbyterian Church."
SPORTS CALENDAR
The Carolina Panthers are on the road at Seattle today, after taking last weekend off. They’re undefeated in their first four games. Star Linebacker Luke Kuechly will be back after missing three games with a concussion. Kickoff is at 4:05 PM Eastern Time.
And NASCAR’s Sprint Cup series is in Kansas. Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards have the No. 1 and 2 start positions for the race, which begins at 2:15.
