North Carolina dedicating historical marker to victims of state’s forced sterilization program

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina recalled a regrettable side of its history on Monday by unveiling a roadside marker remembering poor people, mental patients and prisoners who were sterilized against their will by state officials.

Ammonia leak at North Carolina poultry processing plant kills 1, sends 4 to hospitals

LUMBER BRIDGE, N.C. — An ammonia leak Saturday at a poultry processing plant in North Carolina killed one worker and injured four others, authorities said.

Ammonia leak at North Carolina poultry processing plant kills 1, sends 3 to hospitals

LUMBER BRIDGE, N.C. — An ammonia leak Saturday at a poultry processing plant in North Carolina killed one worker and injured at least three others, authorities said.

NC gov. bans text-messaging by motorists, gets word out by texting: ‘Hope u r not driving now’

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina has become the seventh state to pass a ban this year on texting while driving. So how did Gov. Beverly Perdue get the word out?

2 Marines indicted in Army nurse’s death in NC; her burned remains found in shallow grave

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Two Camp Lejeune Marines have been indicted in the killing of an Army nurse whose burned and dismembered remains were found in a shallow North Carolina grave last summer.

Mayfield will try to get NASCAR suspension lifted in July 1 hearing before federal judge

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Jeremy Mayfield’s next chance to have his indefinite drug suspension lifted will be at a July 1 hearing in federal court.

Investigators says heater installation could be source of natural gas in fatal NC plant blast

RALEIGH, N.C. — A contractor clearing a natural gas line during water heater installation likely released a flammable cloud that ignited in a fatal blast at a North Carolina Slim Jim factory, federal investigators said Thursday.

BB&T redeems $3.1 billion of preferred stock issued to Treasury; plans warrant buyback

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — BB&T Corp. says it has paid back the $3.1 billion in bailout money it received from the government, plus a final dividend payment of about $13.9 million.

Consumers, companies re-evaluate insurance coverage during recession, needs to lower costs

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Barry Miller figured he was saving $100 a month when he scaled back his disability insurance. After all, he was healthy.

NC man enters plea in death of son tied to tree; acknowledges evidence enougn to convict him

TARBORO, N.C. — A North Carolina man whose 13-year-old son died after being tied to a tree overnight has entered a plea to second-degree murder in which he acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence to convict him.

‘ConAgra just blew up’: 911 tapes detail panic after explosion at Slim Jim processing plant

RALEIGH, N.C. — Emergency tapes released Monday show workers dialed 911 in a frenzy after escaping an explosion that killed three workers at a Slim Jim processing plant, with one panicked woman telling dispatchers: “ConAgra just blew up!”

Education secretary uses stimulus to prod states to adopt common academic standards

RALEIGH, N.C. — U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan is offering federal cash incentives to achieve one of his priorities: developing national standards for reading and math to replace a current hodgepodge of benchmarks in the states.

For industrial towns where the recession arrived long ago, the road to recovery looks longer

BURLINGTON, N.C. — Tim Holt was among the men and women who wove fabric and prosperity here for generations, until the textile factories left town in a global manufacturing shift that the rest of the country hardly seemed to notice.

Feds: Natural gas leak sparked by machinery caused blast that killed 3 at NC Slim Jim plant

GARNER, N.C. — An explosion that killed three workers at a North Carolina Slim Jim plant was caused by a natural gas leak that ignited in a room housing vacuum pumps for sealing the snacks, authorities said Saturday.

Police: NC man charged with rape of woman allegedly arranged by husband on Craigslist

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — Police have arrested a man suspected of raping a North Carolina woman in her home after authorities say the victim’s husband arranged the attack on Craigslist.

Former President Clinton calls historian John Hope Franklin ‘an angry, happy man’

DURHAM, N.C. — The late historian John Hope Franklin was “an angry, happy man” whose work as the head of a commission on race helped pull the country together, former President Bill Clinton said Thursday.

Gaughan’s crew chief suspended for using slur toward Davis

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The crew chief for Nationwide Series driver Brendan Gaughan was suspended indefinitely Thursday for using a racial slur about rival driver Marc Davis, who is black.

As Bank of America CEO Lewis testifies on Merrill deal, shares rise, gain analyst support

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Even as Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis came under fire — again — for buying investment bank Merrill Lynch, his company’s stock soared as analysts became more bullish on the bank and its chieftain.

Feds: Half of NC Slim Jim plant damaged in fatal explosion; engineers look at stability

GARNER, N.C. — At least half of a sprawling Slim Jim processing plant was damaged in a fatal explosion, and parts of the building may need to be removed before federal investigators can go inside, officials said Thursday.

Official: Federal agents ready to enter ruins of NC Slim Jim plant when it’s safe

GARNER, N.C. — Federal agents are ready to begin investigating an explosion that killed three people and leveled part of a Slim Jim snack factory, but it may be a few days before they can safely enter.

Police say husband who hired man to rape his wife watched as she struggled with her attacker

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A North Carolina man accused of arranging his wife’s rape on Craigslist watched as she pushed a knife away from her attacker, then told her to shower afterward to destroy evidence, according to a police document released Wednesday.

Survivor describes chaotic scene after NC Slim Jim plant blast that killed 3; Bodies recovered

GARNER, N.C. — A dazed Harold Harris looked up and saw the roof of the Slim Jim snack factory falling down. The doorway was buried in debris. People were crying and screaming.

Search crews recover 3 bodies from Slim Jim plant wreckage after NC explosion; victims named

GARNER, N.C. — Search teams recovered three bodies from the unstable wreckage of a Slim Jim snack factory Wednesday, one day after an explosion knocked down parts of the roof and an exterior wall.

Search crews work in unstable Slim Jim plant to recover bodies after NC explosion kills 3

GARNER, N.C. — Recovery teams in bulky hazard suits worked cautiously in the unstable wreckage of a Slim Jim snack factory Wednesday to retrieve two remaining bodies a day after an explosion ripped through the plant.

Search crews find 3rd body inside North Carolina Slim Jim plant; 1 recovered

GARNER, N.C. — Authorities say they have found a third body inside a Slim Jim factory in North Carolina a day after an explosion wrecked the building.

Richmond Fed head says signs emerging that economy will hit bottom this year, then expand

RALEIGH, N.C. — The head of the Federal Reserve Bank branch in Richmond, Va., said Wednesday that signs point to the U.S. economy hitting bottom later this year and then expanding.

Searchers head back into NC Slim Jim plant after explosion to reach 2nd body, find worker

GARNER, N.C. — Crews in protective suits headed back into a collapsed Slim Jim factory through the roof Wednesday in an effort to reach a second body and find a missing worker after an unexplained blast ripped through the plant.

1 body recovered in wreckage of NC Slim Jim plant blast; search hampered by rain, instability

GARNER, N.C. — Crews in protective suits were headed back into a collapsed Slim Jim factory through the roof in an effort to reach a second body and find a missing worker after an unexplained blast ripped through the plant, officials said Wednesday.

Searchers at NC Slim Jim plant blast scene hampered by rain-swollen roof, structural integrity

GARNER, N.C. — Searchers on Wednesday planned to attempt entering a North Carolina meat products plant ripped apart by an explosion that killed at least two workers, officials said. One worker was still unaccounted for.

Searchers of fatal blast at NC meat plant hampered by rain-swollen roof, structural integrity

GARNER, N.C. — Searchers will attempt to enter a North Carolina meat products plant that was ripped by an explosion that killed at least two workers. One person is still unaccounted for.