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WASHINGTON The U.S. Supreme Court postponed arguments scheduled Monday morning in the dispute between North Carolina and South Carolina over the Catawba River's water supply.
Court officials announced the postponement shortly before the hearings were scheduled to begin, at 10 a.m.
Court officials said the delay was due to illness in the family of a lawyer who was scheduled to argue the case. The Supreme Court did not announce a new date for arguments.
The legal battle began in earnest two years ago, when South Carolina filed a federal lawsuit in an attempt to block N.C. cities and counties from taking water from the Catawba River watershed. S.C. officials said they were concerned that much of the river would be drained by the time it entered South Carolina. -- Staff and Associated Press
Meck briefs
Charlotte
Residents plan to speak out tonight against a new Mecklenburg County jail, saying money should instead be spent on diversion programs to help those with mental illness. The group said up to 75 percent of county inmates suffer from a mental illness.
About 50 residents are expected to show their opposition to the planned detention center at tonight's county commissioners meeting, said Liz Clasen-Kelly, an associate executive director of Urban Ministry Center. She said the group will include people affiliated with Urban Ministry, the Center for Community Transition, Homeless Helping Homeless, some church members and college students. -- April Bethea
The property owner and architects of the N.C. Music Factory have been named winners of the Excellence in Preservation award by Historic Charlotte Inc.
The ARK Group and Mistri Hardaway Architects are among several winners to be honored Oct. 15 at Historic Charlotte's ninth annual Blast for the Past awards event.
Also named award winners are owners, developers and architects of the Funderburk-Johnson House in Matthews; Summit Greenway in the Wesley Heights community of west Charlotte; Morning Star Lutheran Chapel in Matthews, near the Mint Hill line; and Mrs. Howard/Max & Company, the site of the clubhouse of the Charlotte Woman's Club. -- Steve Lyttle
Observer Associate Editor Mary Newsom, the City of Charlotte's Planning Staff and a former Davidson mayor have won awards from the N.C. chapter of the American Planning Association.
Newsom won the group's Media Award for her writing about growth, development and planning.
The City of Charlotte won a Special Theme Award for Sustainable Community Planning for 11 station areas along the Lynx Blue Line light rail. Former Davidson Mayor Randall Kincaid won the award for distinguished leadership by an elected official.
In addition, the City of Concord was given an Outstanding Planning Award for its Downtown Master Plan.
The awards were presented Friday at the chapter's statewide conference in Greensboro. -- Staff
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police are offering a series of citizen classes starting next week to educate community members about the department.
The first class is at 6 p.m. next Tuesday. Topics include department policies, laws of arrest, criminal investigation, traffic enforcement and use of force.
For more information, contact Officer Tom Allen at 704-432-0432 or tallen1@cmpd.org. Register online at: ww.charmeck.org/cm/ police/request/request2.html Ely Portillo
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Housing Partnership celebrated its 20th anniversary on Monday in a ceremony that also included groundbreaking for two projects in Double Oaks.
Over the years, the nonprofit has worked with local governments and private developers to build more than 2,000 senior and affordable housing units in areas including Genesis Park, Druid Hills and Oaklawn. It also has served nearly 13,000 families through its homeownership center.
On Monday, the group kicked off work on a 72-unit expansion of The Gables senior housing development and The Alexander, a planned 96-unit apartment complex with a daycare center. Both projects should be completed by the end of 2010. -- April Bethea
Tom Ridge, former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, will speak at Queens University of Charlotte Oct. 30.
Ridge, now a consultant, will discuss his new memoir, "The Test of Our Times: America Under Siege ... And How We Can Be Safe Again."
The Learning Society of Queens and The World Affairs Council of Charlotte will host the lecture at 7 p.m. in Dana Auditorium. Tickets are $40. For information, go to www.queens.edu/learningsociety. -- Jim Morrill
N.C. House Speaker Joe Hackney will speak to Charlotte's Uptown Democratic Forum Thursday.
The Chapel Hill Democrat will speak at the group's noon luncheon at the Levine Museum of the New South, 200 East Seventh St.
Lunch is $10. For reservations, e-mail patcotham@gmail.com or call 704-506-3056. -- Jim Morrill
Regional briefs
Catawba County
Hickory
CarMax Inc. announced Monday that its CarMax Foundation has awarded a $4,000 grant to the Rape Crisis Center of Catawba County.
The grant is for the Rape Crisis Center's Teens Emerge program, for teens who have been victims of sexual violence. The program provides retreats and a service learning project. -- Staff
North Carolina
Raleigh
An N.C. utility watchdog group wants regulators to reject a deal allowing Duke Energy to sell power to S.C. electrical co-ops.
The N.C. Waste Awareness & Reduction Network filed its objection Monday with the state Utilities Commission. The group said Charlotte-based Duke Energy would sell electricity resulting either from energy efficiency programs or construction of new power plants financed by ratepayers.
Company spokeswoman Paige Sheehan said it needs to modernize power plants and prepare for growing demand. -- Associated Press
Police digest
Mecklenburg County Charlotte
A 25-year-old driver facing DWI charges in a fatal crash Monday in Charlotte is scheduled to go to court in Union County in connection with a DWI offense last year, court records show.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police say Victor Manuel Pena was driving a car that crashed about 12:45 a.m. in northern Charlotte, killing Claudia Gonzales, 22. Pena was injured, but his injuries were not life-threatening. He was charged with DWI, and police said they also planned to charge him with felony death by vehicle.
Monday's accident occurred about three weeks before Pena is to be tried on an earlier DWI charge in Union County. In July 2008, he was charged with DWI and driving without a license. Tonya Jameson
Iredell County Mooresville
Additional sexual abuse charges raised Mathew Hess' bond beyond $1 million, according to authorities.
Hess sparked an Amber Alert when he disappeared with his 12-year-old pregnant adopted daughter and her 11-year-old sister. Hess, 40, was charged with misdemeanor child abuse and contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile in connection with the kidnapping. His bond for those charges was $12,000.
Last weekend, Lincoln County authorities charged him with indecent liberties with a child, first-degree rape and felony incest between near relatives. His bond in Lincoln County is $1 million. Tonya Jameson
South Carolina
Greer
Authorities say the human fetus discovered over the weekend at an S.C. wastewater treatment plant was only 18 weeks old and not viable outside the womb. Greenville County Deputy Coroner Scott Ramsey said an autopsy shows the female fetus was stillborn. -- Associated Press
