A longer wait: DOT: No money to replace Long Lane Bridge

A federal appeals court has sided again with North Carolina’s attorney general in a lawsuit involving a libel law that a district attorney sought to use to attempt to prosecute Josh Stein over a 2020 campaign commercial. A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed on Wednesday with Stein and others associated with his political committee and said the 1931 law is most likely unconstitutional. Stein's campaign committee sued last summer because it was worried Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman’s office could soon seek indictments. The same panel granted a temporary injunction against Freeman in August. Stein is running for governor next year.

A bill increasing punishments for violent protests following the 2020 demonstrations over George Floyd’s murder passed the House despite harsh criticism from social justice advocates. Some bipartisan support for Wednesday's measure signals a potential override of any veto by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who issued one that blocked similar legislation two years ago. The bills have been spearheaded by Republican House Speaker Tim Moore. Wednesday's measure now goes to the Senate. Democrats who opposed the measure and representatives of advocacy groups said the changes were unnecessary or attempts to discourage minority and low-income residents from speaking out. Some amendments were approved to address concerns of Democratic lawmakers.

North Carolina’s Republican-controlled Senate has passed a bill requiring teachers to alert parents in most circumstances before calling a student by a different name or pronoun. Sponsors say the bill is needed to keep parents informed about what their children are being taught in public schools. Critics say it would make schools unsafe spaces for LGBTQ and questioning children to explore their identities. The proposal passed the Senate 29-18 on Tuesday. It would also prohibit instruction about gender identity and sexuality in K-4 classrooms. It now heads to the state House, where Republicans likely would need some Democratic support to push it through.

The daughter of a South Florida Lyft driver who went missing more than a week ago has confirmed that the man has died. Lindsay DiBetta posted on Facebook on Tuesday that the family would be announcing information on services for her father, 74-year-old Gary Levin, in the next few days. Levin went missing Jan. 30 after dropping off a customer north of Florida’s Lake Okeechobee. His family reported him missing when he didn’t return home. Levin’s red 2022 Kia Stinger was spotted in Miami, Okeechobee and Gainesville, in north Florida last week. It was stopped Thursday night in North Carolina, and the driver is being held on $2 million bond.

Amid high egg prices, social media users are claiming that common chicken feed products are preventing their own hens from laying eggs. Some have gone a step further to suggest that feed producers intentionally made their products deficient to stop backyard egg production and force consumers to buy eggs at inflated prices. But experts say high egg prices are caused by bird flu and inflation. And while feed quality can affect egg production, there are more mundane explanations for backyard flock owners’ reported low egg yields, including environmental reasons like cold weather or insufficient light, rather than a broad conspiracy.

A city bus has crashed into a day care center north of Montreal, killing two children and injuring six, authorities said. The driver was arrested and charged with first degree murder. A neighbor who ran to the center in Laval, Quebec, said she saw children screaming and crying and watched a mother collapse. Other panicked parents were diverted to a nearby elementary school. Immediately after the crash, the driver stepped out of the bus, ripped his clothes off and started screaming, another neighbor said. “He was just yelling; there were no words coming out of his mouth,” Hamdi Benchaabane said.

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — Evacuated residents can safely return to the Ohio village where crews burned toxic chemicals after a train derailed five days ago near the Pennsylvania state line, East Palestine Fire Chief Keith Drabick said Wednesday.

Big name advertisers from Netflix to Google are paying as much as $7 million for a 30-second spot during the Super Bowl on Sunday. In order to get as much as a return on investment for those millions, most advertisers release their ads in the days ahead of the big game to get the most publicity for their spots. In the ads released early, actor Miles Teller dances to customer-service hold music for Bud Light, Will Ferrell crashes popular Netflix shows like “Bridgerton” in a joint ad for GM and Netflix; and Alicia Silverstone reprises her “Clueless” character for online retailer Rakuten.

A Nevada prosecutor has said a former “Dances With Wolves” actor accused of sexually abusing Indigenous women and girls was grooming young children to replace his older wives when he was arrested in January. The prosecutor pointed to the new evidence as reason for Nathan Chasing Horse to remain in custody. The judge set bail at $300,000 and said the 46-year-old can't go home but must stay with a relative if he is released from jail. He would be electronically monitored and can't have any contact with the victims or minors. Chasing Horse's public defender says she's happy with the judge's decision and that she will point out weaknesses in the state's case at Chasing Horse's next court hearing later this month.

The officer who pulled Tyre Nichols from his car before police fatally beat him never explained why he was being stopped, newly released documents show. Emerging reports from Memphis residents suggest that was commonplace. The Tennessee Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission released documents Tuesday blasting the conduct of Demetrius Haley and four other officers as “blatantly unprofessional.” They include revelations that Haley took photographs of Nichols as he lay propped against a police car.  Haley then sent the photos to other officers and a female acquaintance, the Memphis Police Department wrote in requesting that the five officers be stripped of the ability to work as police.