North Carolina

North Carolina Drone Photographer Seeks Supreme Court Support for First Amendment Rights

Published

2 hours ago

September 10, 2024

North Carolina Drone Photographer Seeks Supreme Court Support for First Amendment Rights

Michael Jones asks the court to uphold his right to provide aerial information to clients.

Yesterday, the Institute for Justice (IJ) filed a petition with the United States Supreme Court on behalf of Michael Jones, a drone photographer in North Carolina. The case brings forward an important question: does providing data and information through aerial photographs qualify as speech that the First Amendment fully protects, or do state licensing boards have the authority to censor it?

For several years, North Carolina’s land-surveying board has targeted small drone operators, including Michael Jones, claiming that their aerial maps amount to illegal land surveying. Unlike many states, North Carolina classifies even basic aerial mapping as surveying. This requires operators to hold a full surveyor’s license, which demands years of education and experience. The state has enforced this law rigorously, threatening drone businesses with severe penalties.

Jones’ Legal Battle

Michael Jones, based in Goldsboro, North Carolina, is an FAA-licensed drone operator who sought to build an aerial-mapping business. His goal was to provide landowners with aerial perspectives, which they often find useful without needing a full land survey. He wanted to use his drone to capture images and create maps or 3D models using publicly available tools.

However, in 2019, the North Carolina surveying board issued a cease-and-desist letter. The board ordered Michael to shut down his operations or face civil and criminal penalties. In response, Michael sued the board, arguing that his maps and photographs are forms of speech protected by the First Amendment.

“I’ve always been clear what I’m doing isn’t setting property lines. It’s simply providing pictures and information,” said Michael. “I even included a big red disclaimer on my website saying I’m not a licensed surveyor, but the board shut me down anyway. I don’t know of any surveying company that was using drones like I was.”

The Fourth Circuit Court Decision

In May, the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Michael’s case. Although visual information and images have long received First Amendment protection, the court ruled that Michael’s creation of maps was “conduct” and not speech. The court’s reasoning was partly based on the fact that Michael’s work takes place on private property, which it claimed gives the government more leeway to regulate.

IJ Senior Attorney Sam Gedge criticized the ruling, stating, “Drone technology may be new, but the principles at stake in Michael’s case are as old as the nation itself. Taking photos and providing information to willing clients is speech, and it’s fully protected by the First Amendment. Only by badly misapplying the First Amendment could the Fourth Circuit hold differently.”

The Fourth Circuit’s ruling conflicts with decisions made in other federal courts. The Fifth Circuit, covering Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana, and the Eleventh Circuit, covering Florida, Alabama, and Georgia, have issued rulings that favor the protection of such activities under the First Amendment.

A Call for Supreme Court Intervention

With the split between the circuits, Michael is now asking the Supreme Court to take up his case. His petition argues that if the government can stop someone from communicating aerial photographs simply because they contain specific information, First Amendment rights are at risk. “When a government agency sends a cease-and-desist letter telling you to stop communicating photographs containing specific types of ‘data’ and ‘information,’ that’s a red flag that serious First Amendment interests are in play,” said IJ Attorney James Knight.

This is not the first time the Institute for Justice has faced such a challenge. IJ has successfully defended similar cases, including a mapping company in Mississippi that faced similar accusations of unlicensed practice. Michael’s case joins others, including a map maker in California.

The Supreme Court’s decision on whether to hear Michael’s case could have far-reaching implications for First Amendment rights, particularly in an era when technology like drones is rapidly evolving. The outcome may determine whether state licensing boards can regulate new technologies in ways that limit both entrepreneurship and free speech.

Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.

TWITTER:@spaldingbarker

Subscribe to DroneLife here.

Source link

Click to comment

North Carolina

North Carolina Lottery Powerball, Lucky For Life results for September 9, 2024

Published

10 hours ago

September 10, 2024

Press Room

North Carolina Lottery Powerball, Lucky For Life results for September 9, 2024

The North Carolina Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Monday, September 9, 2024 results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from September 9 drawing

01-16-21-47-60, Powerball: 05, Power Play: 3

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from September 9 drawing

16-26-30-35-46, Lucky Ball: 06

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from September 9 drawing

Day: 7-3-5, Fireball: 0

Evening: 5-7-1, Fireball: 8

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from September 9 drawing

Day: 3-9-2-5, Fireball: 1

Evening: 4-1-6-2, Fireball: 9

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash 5 numbers from September 9 drawing

06-08-21-30-43

Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Double Play numbers from September 9 drawing

10-18-21-33-43

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All North Carolina Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.

For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at North Carolina Lottery Offices. By mail, send a prize claim form, your signed lottery ticket, copies of a government-issued photo ID and social security card to: North Carolina Education Lottery, P.O. Box 41606, Raleigh, NC 27629. Prize claims less than $600 do not require copies of photo ID or a social security card.

To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a prize claim form and deliver the form, along with your signed lottery ticket and government-issued photo ID and social security card to any of these locations:

Asheville Regional Office & Claim Center: 16-G Regent Park Blvd., Asheville, NC 28806, 877-625-6886 press #1. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Greensboro Regional Office & Claim Center: 20A Oak Branch Drive, Greensboro, NC 27407, 877-625-6886 press #2. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Charlotte Regional Office & Claim Center: 5029-A West W. T. Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28269-1861, 877-625-6886 press #3. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
NC Lottery Headquarters: Raleigh Claim Center & Regional Office, 2728 Capital Blvd., Suite 144, Raleigh, NC 27604, 877-625-6886 press #4. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Greenville Regional Office & Claim Center: 2790 Dickinson Avenue, Suite A, Greenville, NC 27834, 877-625-6886 press #5. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Wilmington Regional Office & Claim Center: 123 North Cardinal Drive Extension, Suite 140, Wilmington, NC 28405, 877-625-6886 press #6. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.

Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://nclottery.com/.

When are the North Carolina Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
Pick 3, 4: 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. daily.
Cash 5: 11:22 p.m. daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Carolina Connect editor. You can send feedback using this form.

Source link

North Carolina

RFK Jr. must be removed from North Carolina ballots, state Supreme Court rules

Published

17 hours ago

September 10, 2024

Press Room

RFK Jr. must be removed from North Carolina ballots, state Supreme Court rules

The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled Monday to remove former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from state ballots ahead of the general election.

The 4-3 ruling upholds an appeals court ruling Friday that said Kennedy’s name should be taken off the ballot. A lower court had previously denied Kennedy’s effort to be removed. It also means ballots will need to be reprinted.

“We acknowledge that expediting the process of printing new ballots will require considerable time and effort by our election officials and significant expense to the State,” Justice Trey Allen wrote in Monday’s majority opinion. “But that is a price the North Carolina Constitution expects us to incur to protect voters’ fundamental right to vote their conscience and have that vote count.”

Justices Anita Earls, Richard Dietz and Allison Riggs dissented.

An attorney for Kennedy did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday night.

The decision is a victory for Kennedy, who was dealt a blow earlier in the day when Michigan’s Supreme Court ruled that he must remain on the battleground state’s ballot after he dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed former President Donald Trump. Kennedy, who previously fought to get his name on as many state ballots as possible, has sought to get his name removed as polling indicates he could hurt Trump’s chances in November if he remains on the ballot.

NBC News has reported that the legal battle over Kennedy’s appearance on the North Carolina ballot has affected the timing of ballots being sent out, after the state’s election board told officials not to begin mailing ballots on Sept. 6 as initially scheduled.

A spokesperson for the North Carolina State Board of Elections did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the court’s decision or the new timeline for ballots.

Monday’s ruling cited the state constitution’s Free Elections Clause, which includes protections for the right to vote and for those votes to be counted accurately, in rejecting an effort to block the enforcement of the appeals court’s order to remove Kennedy from the ballot. The majority contended that if Kennedy’s name “appears on the ballot, it could disenfranchise countless voters who mistakenly believe that plaintiff remains a candidate for office.”

A Trump campaign spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday night.

Source link

North Carolina

North Carolina House Rep. Jeffrey Elmore resigning before term ends

Published

1 day ago

September 9, 2024

Press Room

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A longtime advocate for Republican K-12 education policies in the North Carolina House is resigning from his seat a few months before his term was to end.

Rep. Jeffrey Elmore of Wilkes County, who joined the House in 2013, will step down effective Friday afternoon, according to his resignation letter read Monday on the House floor.

Instead of seeking a seventh two-year House term, Elmore ran for lieutenant governor, finishing in the middle of the pack in the 11-candidate GOP primary in March.

Elmore, who has been a House Appropriations Committee chairman, told the Wilkes Journal-Patriot that he was resigning due to another opportunity, with details to be released soon.

“I was part of many great accomplishments in the past 12 years in the State of North Carolina. There will be even more great things to come in North Carolina’s future,” Elmore wrote in his resignation letter dated Sept. 3. He told the newspaper that he was also resigning as a Wilkes County public schools teacher.

Elmore, 46, represents the 94th House District covering Alexander County and most of Wilkes County. Republican activists in his area would pick someone to serve out the remainder of Elmore’s term through the end of the year.

Republican Blair Eddins and Democrat Steve Moree are on the November ballot seeking to succeed Elmore in 2025 in the 94th District.

Elmore’s departure marks the latest by a House member since this year’s chief floor session ended in late June.

Republican Reps. Jason Saine of Lincoln County and John Faircloth of Guilford County and Democratic Rep. Ashton Wheeler Clemmons of Guilford County all submitted their resignations in recent weeks. In other developments, Democratic Rep. Kelly Alexander Jr. of Mecklenburg County died last Friday.

Source link