A UNC School of Government Blog
Jeff Welty 
Eleanor Aker, the print shop operator at the court of appeals, has retired. Ms. Aker is 86 and worked for the state for nearly 40 years. Chief Justice Parker presented her with the Old North State award upon her retirement. Ms. Aker told WRAL: “I love to work. . . . I’ve enjoyed every day … Read more
Durham County Superior Court Judge Elaine Bushfan, hearing cases in Alamance County, reversed her own judgments in five cases this week, saying that the Alamance County District Attorney’s office was too “harsh,” and that she would no longer hear criminal cases in Alamance County. Three of the five cases were habitual felon prosecutions. District Attorney … Read more
When may rap lyrics written by a defendant be admitted as evidence of guilt? That question has been in the news quite a bit lately as a result of a decision by the Nevada Supreme Court. (For example, see this ABC News story, or this Washington Post piece.) There’s also some North Carolina authority on … Read more
I recently finished an Administration of Justice Bulletin about the habitual felon, violent habitual felon, and habitual breaking and entering laws. It’s a substantial expansion and revision of a paper I wrote in 2008. I creatively named it North Carolina’s Habitual Felon, Violent Habitual Felon, and Habitual Breaking and Entering Laws. It’s available here, for … Read more
The DWI blood test backlog at the state crime lab has started to receive media attention. TheWinston-Salem Journal recently ran this editorial, arguing that the situation is “unacceptable” and reflects a “management failure by the state.” The piece notes that the lab has trouble retaining analysts, who often receive more lucrative offers in the private … Read more
The line between a consensual encounter and a seizure can be blurry. Generally, there is no seizure when an officer simply approaches a person and asks the person a question. But there is a seizure when an officer approaches a person with a show of authority that would make a reasonable person feel that he … Read more
The top story of the week may be that the SBI “and its insurers have agreed to pay $12.475 million to two innocent men who spent a total of 31 years behind bars,” as reported in this News and Observer story. The men in question are Floyd Brown and Greg Taylor. The latter was exonerated … Read more
Earlier this week, United States Attorney General Eric Holder, speaking to American Bar Association, announced a policy change in how drug cases will be charged in federal court. This post summarizes Mr. Holder’s speech, the policy change it announced, and its likely impact in federal court. It then considers whether the new policy will have … Read more
A truly incredible story has culminated over the past few days. In 1998, Shon Hopwood was sentenced to 147 months in federal prison for bank robbery. He became a jailhouse lawyer, and in 2002, he filed his first petition for certiorari with the United States Supreme Court. Former Solicitor General Seth Waxman described it in … Read more
Maybe so, according to a recent Reuters report. Apparently, the Special Operations Division of the DEA receives information from the NSA and passes it to DEA field agents. The agents then begin criminal investigations based on the information. There are two possible problems with the program described by Reuters. End run around privacy protections. First, … Read more