Hello! The Carolinas News Editor is Tim Rogers. The breaking news supervisor is Skip Foreman.

A reminder this information is not for publication or broadcast, and these coverage plans are subject to change. Expected stories may not develop or late-breaking and more newsworthy events may take precedence. Advisories and digests will keep you up to date.

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TOP STORIES:

LGBT RIGHTS-NORTH CAROLINA TAXPAYERS

RALEIGH — More than $176,000 in legal bills have been racked up by North Carolina Republican Gov. Pat McCrory and state GOP legislative leaders to defend the law directing transgender people to use school or government restrooms corresponding to their birth certificate. According to an Associated Press review of legal bills already submitted and made available through a public records request, law firms in Washington and Charlotte representing legislative leaders have charged more than $129,000 and McCrory’s lawyers have billed nearly $47,000. This is only a partial tab of what state taxpayers are on the hook for as not all of the law firms working on the case have submitted invoices yet and the case is likely to take months if not years to resolve. By Gary D. Robertson and Emery P. Dalesio. SENT: 310 words.

SCIENCE PANEL-RESIGNATION

RALEIGH — The coastal and marine geologist who helped found a science panel to advise the state on coastal issues has resigned, saying political actions have rendered the once respected group ineffective. In a letter dated Monday, Stan Riggs of East Carolina University said he was resigning from the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission’s science panel partially because of controversy over a report on sea-level rise. Instead of projecting for 90 years, as the panel had done previously, it was told to project for 30 years . By Martha Waggoner. SENT: 490 words.

BIRTH DEFECTS-SOCIAL MEDIA

CHICAGO — Parents of newborns with rare genetic conditions used to hear the grim words that the severe birth defects were “incompatible with life.” Support groups and social media showing the exceptions have changed the landscape. So has mounting research suggesting that not all such babies are doomed to die. The latest study focuses on trisomy 13 and trisomy 18 — genetic conditions that typically cause mental impairment, facial and organ abnormalities, breathing problems, heart defects and other medical problems. They involve extra copies of certain chromosomes. By Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner. SENT: 870 words, AP Photos NY331, NY332.

EARNS-REYNOLDS AMERICAN

WINSTON SALEM — Reynolds American Inc. (RAI) on Tuesday reported second-quarter net income of $796 million. On a per-share basis, the Winston Salem, North Carolina-based company said it had net income of 56 cents. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, came to 58 cents per share. SENT: 160 words.

CATHOLIC SCHOOL-HOUSE PARENT-ABUSE

EBENSBURG, Pa. — A former house parent at a central Pennsylvania Catholic school has been charged with sexually attacking two Chinese international students he supervised. John Bowman Thornberry, 28, of Mills River, North Carolina, declined comment when reached Tuesday by The Associated Press. He was charged Monday by the Ebensburg police and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. SENT: 460 words. Please note N.C. angle.

SHARK FINNING

PORTLAND, Maine — American fishermen are digging in for a fight over a congressional proposal to send a message to the rest of the world by shutting down the vestiges of the U.S. harvest of shark fins, prized for soup and traditional medicine in Asia. The traditional “finning” of sharks — in which they are pulled out of the water, have their fins sliced off and are discarded into the sea, often still alive but unable to swim — is already illegal in the U.S., but fishermen are still allowed to hunt sharks and have their fins removed during processing on land. By Patrick Whittle. SENT: 640 words, AP Photos BX602, BX601. Please note N.C. interest.

IN BRIEF:

— CHILDREN CHAINED, from CHARLOTTE — Police in North Carolina have charged a couple accused of chaining their six children to their beds and locked them in their rooms. SENT: 120 words.

— JETER-VOTING INVESTIGATION, from COLUMBIA, S.C. — Officials in South Carolina have requested voting records to see if former North Carolina Rep. Charles Jeter voted twice in the 2004 election. SENT: 130 words.

— MONEY DISPUTE-STABBING DEATH, from RICHLANDS — Authorities in Onslow County are looking for a suspect in a stabbing death that they say stemmed from a dispute over money. SENT: 100 words.

— DEFENSE SECRETARY-BOSTON, from CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — The military’s latest effort at improving its technological capabilities has come to Massachusetts. SENT: 120 words. Please note N.C. angle.

— DEPUTY-FATAL SHOOTING, from LILLINGTON — A North Carolina judge will decide whether to make public more than 300 pages of documents on the shooting of a man who refused to let a deputy search his home without a warrant. SENT: 120 words.

— DOCTOR’S DEATH INVESTIGATED, from ASHEVILLE — Search warrants and court documents show a North Carolina plastic surgeon was under investigation for embezzlement when he was found shot to death in his home. SENT: 130 words.

— SOUTHERN JEWELRY STORE ROBBERIES, from PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Three Georgia men face up to life in prison after being found guilty following a federal trial in the Florida Panhandle on conspiracy charges connected to six jewelry store robberies across the southeastern United States. SENT: 130 words. Please note N.C. angle.

— DURHAM MURDER CASES, from DURHAM — Durham County has seen a 60 percent increase in the number of people awaiting murder trials in the past year. SENT: 110 words.

— SHOOTING-DRIVING FOR HELP, from GOLDSBORO — North Carolina deputies say a man has been charged with murder in the death of a man who drove away trying to get help after he was shot this weekend. SENT: 100 words.

— MOTHER KILLED, from MOORESVILLE — Authorities in North Carolina say a man has been arrested and charged with murder in the beating death of his 79-year-old mother. SENT: 80 words.

— ESCAPED INMATE CAUGHT, from WILMINGTON — Authorities have recaptured an escaped inmate in Wilmington following a pursuit that resulted in a car crash. SENT: 120 words.

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The AP, Raleigh