Recent blog posts

We last addressed the 2023 trial of Alex Murdaugh, the South Carolina lawyer convicted of murdering his wife and son, in February of 2024 (although Shea subsequently reviewed a nonfiction […]

Some guilty pleas are “open,” where the defendant pleads guilty to agreed-upon charges without any promises from the State about the ultimate sentence. Other pleas include an arrangement as to […]

Child pornography (also known as child sexual abuse material, “CSAM”) is a category of speech that is not protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, so long […]

This post summarizes the published opinions in criminal cases issued by the North Carolina Court of Appeals on May 6, 2026. The trial court properly revoked the defendant’s probation for […]

Just over a week ago, former FBI Director James Comey was indicted in the Eastern District of North Carolina. This press release from the United States Department of Justice explains […]

More than thirty years before the United States Supreme Court in Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963), determined that the Sixth Amendment guarantee of appointed counsel for indigent defendants […]

During any initial appearance, magistrates must consider a host of issues. Starting with determining whether to begin the initial appearance, finding probable cause, determining whether they may set pretrial release […]

In my last post, I noted that I am doing more work in the area of extradition. The news generated a lot of great questions, many of which I hope […]

A Greensboro, NC, police academy cadet has been charged with impersonating a police officer, per this story from local media. Maceo John Cannon, 20, allegedly confronted a woman about her […]

In late March The Office of Indigent Defense Services (IDS) instituted a new process for the appointment and payment of counsel for cases in which a juvenile between the ages […]