It's time for a fact-check of North Carolina politics. This week, we're looking at claims made by North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore related to protests in Raleigh in 2020 following the death of George Floyd.
Marshall Terry: Here's Moore speaking on the Tying It Together podcast with Tim Boyum on Feb. 7:
(Tim Moore): "We saw the riots that happened just, just blocks from this building a few years ago where people were injured. Uh, I think was someone was actually shot and killed."
Terry: Moore made a similar claim about a person being killed during two legislative committee meetings the next day. To find out if it's true, we turn now to Paul Specht of WRAL. OK, Paul, before we get to Tim Moore's claim, give us some context here. Why was Moore bringing up the 2020 George Floyd protests now?
Specht: Well, that's because Speaker Moore has a bill that would enforce new, tougher penalties for anyone who participates in a riot and specifically causes more than $1,500 worth of property damage, or injuries or kills anyone. All that would be a felony under his bill. It has some other things, too, like giving property owners the right to sue the people who damage their property during a riot. It's quite unusual, actually, for the House speaker himself to be presenting bills in committees like he's been doing. That sort of shows how much he wants it to pass.
Terry: So is it true what Moore said? Was someone killed during the protests in Raleigh?
Specht: You know, that really...
This story is the second in an ongoing series on the Cost of Fraud, as Open the Books tallies the hidden fees on American tax returns. Click here to read the first story on fraudulent autism billi...