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A group representing off-road vehicle owners has withdrawn a lawsuit it filed against the U.S. Forest Service over the temporary closing of trails.
The agency barred four-wheelers from some trails in the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee and the Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina after concerns about erosion that washed soil into streams that feed the Tellico River.
Forest Service spokesman Terry Sidon in North Carolina said a public meeting is planned within the next few months after public comments on the issue are reviewed.
Meck briefs
Charlotte
Mike Daisley, a Democratic party activist, will give a wrap-up of the fall election at Wednesday's meeting of the Mecklenburg County Democratic Women. The meeting will be held at the Morrison Library, 7015 Morrison Blvd. Refreshments start at 6:30 p.m. and the meeting will begin at 7 p.m.
Guys who want to grow some fall facial hair for a good cause can sign up for Mustaches for Kids, a benefit for the nonprofit DonorsChoose.org.
Growers must start with a clean-shaven face on Wednesday; they'll raise money through Dec. 12, when they'll compete for best mustache. DonorsChoose.org is a national charity that lets online donors pay for classroom projects and field trips that would otherwise come out of teachers' pockets. The Charlotte office will compete with similar fundraisers going on in other cities.
For details about the kickoff or to donate: http://m4kclt.org.
If you speak Spanish and English and want to help families improve their kids' education, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools wants you.
CMS plans to expand its Parent University, which debuted this fall with a series of courses in English, to include Spanish-speaking families. About 16 percent of the district's 134,000 students are Hispanic.
For spring semester, Executive Director Jerri Haigler is seeking bilingual presenters and also wants ideas for topics and speakers that Spanish-speaking families would benefit from. Contact her at 980-343-1719 or learn more about Parent University at www.cms.k12.nc.us/ departments/parentuniversity.
Regional briefs
South Carolina
Clemson
Clemson University fire officials say they don't think there was much damage when a fire started in a utility tunnel outside Littlejohn Coliseum.
Capt. Bill Shivar said firefighters were called about 8:35 p.m. Sunday and brought the fire under control.
Shivar said no one was hurt. He said there was no activity at the time in the building, where the Tigers basketball team plays.
He said there might have been some “very light” smoke damage to the interior of the coliseum.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Charleston
The S.C. Supreme Court on Monday ruled that a disbarred lawyer who spent more than seven years in prison for killing a jogger in downtown Charleston while driving drunk can return to the courtroom.
Mark Evans was disbarred in December 1996 after he pleaded guilty to felony drunken driving in the death of Laura Griffin, 25. Griffin, director of substance abuse programs at the College of Charleston, was jogging along The Battery when Evans' car jumped a curb and hit her in January 1996. Evans drove off and later filed an insurance claim saying he had hit a bridge embankment. He turned himself in to police three days after the hit-and-run. Griffith died two days later.
The state's high court found that Evans had turned his life around, and the seriousness of the crime should not prevent him from practicing law again. The court noted Evans completed an alcohol and drug program while in prison, completed his probation and paid his fine. He's also been active in Alcoholics Anonymous and Lawyers Helping Lawyers, a South Carolina Bar program that helps lawyers suffering from alcoholism, substance abuse and mental health issues.
Police digest
Iredell County
Statesville
A Statesville man faces six felony charges after being accused of sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl for the past year, authorities said.
The Iredell County Sheriff's Office's Special Victims Unit began investigating Herbert Dean Hollander, 40, after being contacted by the Department of Social Services, Detective Sgt. Christopher Nitzu said.
The victim and her three siblings were taken to Dove House, where they were questioned by deputies. During the interview, the girl told Nitzu she had been abused, beginning last fall, when she was 9, Nitzu said.
DSS took the four children into protective custody.
Hollander, who is an acquaintance of the child's mother, was arrested Friday evening and charged with two counts of first-degree statutory rape of a child, two counts of first-degree sex offense and two counts of indecent liberties with a minor.
Hollander was placed in the Iredell County Jail under a $500,000 secured bond.
Durham County
Durham
The younger brother of a murder suspect in the killing of the UNC Chapel Hill's student body president has been shot to death while leaving a weekend party.
Authorities said 19-year-old Shelton Henderson Jr. had recently testified before a federal grand jury that indicted his older brother, Demario Atwater, on fatal carjacking and other charges. The 22-year-old Atwater also is among two suspects charged in Orange County with first-degree murder in Eve Carson's death.
Durham police said Henderson and a 17-year-old were killed late Saturday. Two other teens suffered gunshot wounds that were not considered life-threatening.
Police arrested two teens Sunday in the shooting, but neither suspect has been charged with homicide.
