I recently taught a session at the magistrates’ conference about arrestable conditions of pretrial release. The session sparked a lot of discussion about the law surrounding pretrial conditions for in-custody defendants. It is well understood that when a defendant violates pretrial release conditions after being released from custody, the law allows several mechanisms for enforcement, including revocation of pretrial release, arrest of the defendant, and the setting of new, potentially stricter conditions of pretrial release. What’s less clear is (1) whether or not conditions of release are enforceable if a defendant has not yet been released, and (2) if they are, what tools judicial officials have for enforcement. This post addresses these questions.
Brittany Bromell
News Roundup
Verizon Wireless is facing a lawsuit after a man claiming to be a detective with the Cary Police Department was arrested for stalking. Last year, Robert Glauner, who is a resident of New Mexico, sent Verizon Wireless a fake search warrant demanding phone records from a Cary woman. He falsely claimed that the woman was a homicide suspect, but it was later revealed that she was someone he was stalking after connecting with her online.
Legislative Amendments to Larceny Laws
Sticky-fingered Sam goes to the local shoe store to purchase a new pair of shoes. The last pair of shoes in her size are priced at $150. Deciding that these are too expensive, Sam removes a sticker from a box of shoes on the clearance shelf priced at $30 and places the sticker on the box of the shoes she wants. Sam takes the $150 shoes to the register with the $30 sticker on them, pays the lower price, and leaves. Has Sam committed a larceny? Has Sam committed the crime of larceny from a merchant under G.S. 14-72.11?
Sam’s acts do constitute larceny and are similar to the acts of the defendant in State vs. Hill, 291 N.C. App. 633 (2023). However, the North Carolina Court of Appeals held that a defendant’s use of a price label sticker from another product did not represent larceny by product code (a form of larceny from a merchant) under G.S. 14-72.11(3). The court acknowledged that there is another larceny statute that would have been more appropriate for this circumstance. In response to Hill, the North Carolina General Assembly has amended the laws related to larceny and retail theft to bring more clarity about its scope. This post discusses the holding in State v. Hill and examines the newly amended laws applicable to these specific types of larceny.
Short Stop in the Short Session
The North Carolina General Assembly has temporarily adjourned for the short session, with plans to reconvene a few more times throughout the remainder of the year. So far in 2024, a handful of bills have been enacted that affect criminal law and procedure. One of these bills includes laws that have already taken effect, summarized in this post. Listed at the end of this post are brief highlights of other noteworthy enactments.
News Roundup
Last week, Louisiana became the first state to allow surgical castration as punishment for sex crimes against children. Effective August 1, the legislation gives Louisiana judges the option to sentence someone to surgical castration after the person has been convicted of certain aggravated sex crimes — including rape, incest and molestation — against a child under 13. The punishment is not a mandatory one, and a judge will be able to order the punishment at his or her discretion.
According to this AP article, a handful of states, including Louisiana, California, Florida and Texas, have laws allowing for chemical castration for those guilty of certain sex crimes. In some of those states, offenders can instead opt for the surgical procedure, but no other state allows judges to impose surgical castration outright. Chemical castration uses medications that block testosterone production to decrease sex drive. Surgical castration is a much more invasive procedure that involves the removal of both testicles or ovaries.
Proponents of the law hope the new possible punishment will deter people from committing sex crimes against children. Opponents argue that it is “cruel and unusual” punishment in violation of the U.S. Constitution and that it is sure to face legal challenges.
Posting a Cash Bond: Who Gets the Money After a Defendant’s Case is Complete?
When a person is arrested, a law enforcement officer must take that person before a judicial official without unnecessary delay. G.S. 15A-501(2). Subject to certain statutory exceptions, defendants charged with most non-capital offenses are entitled to pretrial release. G.S. 15A-533(b).
G.S. 15A-534 requires that at least one of five conditions of pretrial release be imposed before a defendant can be released. One type of release condition a judicial official may impose on a defendant is a secured bond. A bail bond may be secured in one of three ways: a cash deposit of the full amount of the bond, a mortgage by the defendant pursuant to G.S. 58-74-5, or by at least one solvent surety.
Judicial officials frequently impose secured bonds and accept cash in satisfaction of those bonds. However, people posting those cash bonds—whether it be the defendant or a person posting on behalf of the defendant—may not always fully understand the procedure surrounding cash bonds. This post addresses the common question of who is entitled to a refund of the cash at the conclusion of the case and how a person can preserve their interest in the cash pending the outcome of the case.
News Roundup
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty of 34 felonies in his “hush money” trial in New York yesterday, making him the first former president in U.S. history to be convicted of a crime. On their second day of deliberations, the jury found that Trump illegally falsified business records to cover up a $130,000 payment to an adult film star before the 2016 election. He could face up to four years in prison and a $5,000 fine for each count and is set to be sentenced on July 11.
Lethality Assessment Protocol
Intimate partner violence is abuse or aggression that occurs in a romantic relationship, usually between current or former spouses or current or former dating partners. According to the NC Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men in the United States have experienced some form of intimate partner violence. In North Carolina, 35.2% of women and 30.3% of men experience domestic violence and stalking in their lifetime.
Since 2018, the North Carolina Department of Justice (NCDOJ) has partnered with several communities across the state by sharing and helping implement the Lethality Assessment Protocol (LAP). The LAP, which was originally created in 2005 by the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence, is a program designed to prevent intimate partner homicides and serious abuse by connecting high-risk victims with safety resources. This post gives a brief introduction of how the LAP works and information for NC communities that may wish to participate.
News Roundup
A lawsuit has been filed against the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and its secretary, asserting that the state’s lack of assessment and treatment services has resulted in people with severe mental disabilities suffering in county jails while waiting months for psychiatric services. The complaint—which can be accessed here—centers on those who sit in jail for months or years if there are concerns about their capacity to proceed in their criminal case. The lawsuit contends that they wait, on average, two months for an assessment to be completed and nearly five months for treatment at a state psychiatric hospital. While waiting, they remain in jail, sometimes longer than they would be if convicted.
Criminal Processes in the Context of the Pretrial Integrity Act
By now, court officials are familiar with the pretrial release laws as amended by the Pretrial Integrity Act. The application of G.S. 15A-533(b) regarding defendants charged with certain high-level felonies has been fairly straightforward. Application of the 48-hour provision, G.S. 15A-533(h), has not been as simple and has given rise to several questions, including what procedures to apply when a criminal process other than an arrest warrant is used.
Under the new law, when a defendant is arrested for a new offense while on pretrial release for a pending proceeding, a judge—rather than a magistrate—must set conditions of release for the new offense within the first 48 hours after arrest. This post addresses the application of this provision with regard to citations, summonses, orders for arrest, and indictments.