Latest North Carolina news, sports, business and entertainment

OCCUPY-DNC

NC city law ahead of DNC would end Occupy campouts

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - The North Carolina city hosting this year's Democratic National Convention may ban camping on city property, a move that would end an anti-Wall Street demonstration.

The new ordinances unveiled to Charlotte's city council also would forbid protesters from carrying items such as box cutters, pepper spray, body armor and gas masks.

The ordinances would essentially end the Occupy Charlotte encampment at the old City Hall, where protesters have had a presence for months.

Another ordinance would require demonstrators to apply for a permit, with the right to protest the convention selected through a lottery.

The rules are modeled after action taken in Denver before the 2008 Democratic convention.

Charlotte City Council holds a public hearing on the ordinances Monday and is scheduled to vote later this month.

TAX-CHEAT CEO

NC CEO admits cheating US out of $4.5M in taxes

WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) - The CEO of a bankrupt North Carolina corporation that ran a dozen assisted-living homes across North Carolina and South Carolina has admitted trying to cheat the federal government out of collected taxes.

Ronald Burrell of Wilmington agreed to plead guilty and is free without bond until his sentencing in April.

The chief executive of Leland-based Caremerica Adult Care Inc. pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiring to commit tax fraud after investigators accused him of trying to avoid paying the government $4.5 million in employee income and Social Security taxes.

Prosecutors say Burrell falsely filed forms with the Internal Revenue Service reporting the corporation paid its tax bill.

The StarNews of Wilmington reported Burrell has agreed to pay $4.8 million in restitution.

The company's liquidation is pending in bankruptcy court.

DISABLED GIRL KILLED

Zahra Baker's father due in NC courtroom

HICKORY, N.C. (AP) - The Hickory man whose disabled daughter was killed and dismembered is due in court on felony charges not related to her death.

The Hickory Daily Record reported that 34-year-old Adam Baker is due Wednesday in Catawba County Superior Court on one count each of identity theft and obtaining property by false pretense. The charges involve obtaining electricity from Duke Energy in a relative's name.

In court Tuesday, defense attorney Mark Killian told a judge that a plea agreement has been reached.

Baker is the father of 10-year-old cancer survivor Zahra Baker, whose remains were found in Caldwell County in 2010. Her stepmother and Baker's wife, Elisa Baker, is serving up to 18 years in prison for second-degree murder and other convictions.

Adam Baker wasn't charged in Zahra's death.

RACIAL JUSTICE ACT

Perdue's veto now considered by NC Legislature

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - The North Carolina Legislature is meeting again in Raleigh because Gov. Beverly Perdue vetoed a bill that would essentially repeal a 2009 law creating a new way for death-row prisoners to appeal their sentences based on racial discrimination.

The General Assembly was scheduled to gather Wednesday afternoon to decide whether to override the measure that would eliminate key components of the Racial Justice Act.

Three-fifths of the legislators present and voting in both the House and Senate must vote to override Perdue's veto for the repeal to be carried out. House Republicans who want to cancel the veto likely will have to depend on a handful of Democrats joining their side to be successful.

Local prosecutors and civil rights advocates have been on opposite sides of the legislation.

JUDGES-LAWYER EVALUATIONS

Trial court judges evaluated by NC lawyers

CARY, N.C. (AP) - Thousands of lawyers have become judges of North Carolina trial court judges whose seats are up for re-election in 2012.

The North Carolina Bar Association has released its performance report for District and Superior Court judges eligible to run this year. The association said the information released Tuesday will give voters access for the first time to evaluations for both District and Superior Court judges.

An association committee administered the evaluation last spring. More than 4,200 attorneys offered nearly 28,000 evaluations of 168 judges.

Attorneys scored judges from one to five- poor to excellent - in six categories, including integrity, professionalism and overall performance. The information is posted online.

Evaluations of candidates who plan to oppose incumbent trial judges will be released later in the year.

FAYETTEVILLE POLICE CHIEF

Fayetteville top cop retires amid profiling claims

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP) - Fayetteville's police chief says he's retiring this summer to spend more time doing volunteer work after more than three decades on the city's force.

Police Chief Tom Bergamine says there's no particular reason for his decision to retire in July after five years in the position. Bergamine was a finalist for the job as police chief in Kansas City, Mo., but now says he has no plans to take another law enforcement job.

Bergamine's retirement decision comes months after his department was accused of racial profiling. Officers now must follow a policy of getting written permission before searching cars or property to show the owner consented.

Bergamine joined the Fayetteville force in 1978 after spent three years in the Army as a military police officer.

TOY GUN HEIST

NC college student gets 10 months for bank robbery

SYLVA, N.C. (AP) - A Western Carolina University student will spend at least 10 months in prison for robbing a credit union with a toy gun.

Twenty-1-year-old Brian Anthony Edwards pleaded guilty to common law robbery Tuesday and was sentenced to between 10 and 21 months in jail. District Attorney Michael Bonfoey says the junior from Hendersonville majoring in computer information systems confessed to the holdup.

Law officers locked down the campus in Cullowhee three weeks ago after the robbery at a State Employees Credit Union branch across from the school.

Jackson County Sheriff's deputies found a black plastic gun under the front passenger seat of Edwards' car hours after the robbery. Deputies also found a mask in the car and money under a bathroom sink in his apartment.

FAMILY LAND FIGHT

NC brothers jailed for months over land dispute

BEAUFORT, N.C. (AP) - An attorney is asking a judge to release two North Carolina brothers locked in a coastal county's jail for nine months for refusing to abandon waterfront property in their family for a century.

The Charlotte Observer reported Wednesday that Melvin Davis and Licurtis Reels have been held in contempt of court for refusing to demolish or move their houses and agree never to return.

Attorney Terry Richardson of Wilmington says jailing the brothers is designed to force them to surrender their family's ownership rights.

Their Beaufort County property has been tied up in court since an ancestor died more than 40 years ago without a will. His brother claimed the land and the brothers say they didn't know their lawyer signed away ownership rights.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.wmbfnews.com/story/16444367/latest-north-carolina-news-sports-business-and-entertainment

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