Former Wal-Mart manager says chain broke laws

Former Wal-Mart manager Sylvester Johnson alleges civil rights and securities law violations by mega retailer. Read the suit, filed today in federal district court in Charlotte.
http://media.charlotteobserver.com/static/images/pdf/walmart.pdf

Feds seek CMS assignment info

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has until Jan. 7 to provide federal civil-rights investigators with student-assignment policies and demographic data related to 2011 school closings and other changes, according to a notice sent by the U.S. Education Department's Office of Civil Rights this week.

Click here to read the notice.

Seven people - the department does not identify them - have filed complaints alleging that CMS's recent decision to close schools and otherwise reassign students discriminates on the basis of race or national origin. CMS officials acknowledge that most students whose schools will close are black, Hispanic and/or low-income, but they say closings were based on low enrollment and/or academic problems, not race.

- Ann Doss Helms

Read the SEC accusations

Bank of America Corp. agreed to pay $137 million in restitution for its involvement in a conspiracy to rig bids on 88 municipal bond contracts, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Justice Department said.
The Charlotte bank agreed to pay $36 million to settle an SEC case. The bank will pay an additional $101 million to resolve investigations by other federal and state agencies, the SEC said.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/static/images/pdf/bofasec.pdf

Read emails behind Jim Turner's resignation

These emails from earlier this year reveal the cozy relationship between then-chairman of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission David Lott Hardy and top Duke Energy executive Jim Turner, who resigned over the emails today. They are among hundreds between the two that were obtained under public records law by the Indianapolis Star.


email one
email two

New Zahra Baker documents

In stark detail, court documents released Tuesday disclose new allegations in the death of 10-year-old Zahra Baker, the Hickory girl whose plight appears to be more disturbing than previously revealed.

Read the court documents.