A UNC School of Government Blog
WRAL news reported last week that a Selma police officer had been placed on administrative leave after he allegedly handcuffed an emergency room nurse who refused to withdraw blood from a defendant suspected of impaired driving. The nurse reportedly was released from handcuffs after Smithfield police arrived, and charges against the suspected impaired driver were … Read more
For as long as I can remember, parents have worried about adulterated Halloween candy, razorblades in apples, and the like. This concern is exaggerated, but not totally unfounded. Snopes states here that researchers have identified about 80 cases of sharp objects, usually pins, reportedly being inserted in fruit or candy distributed at Halloween. Although most … Read more
G.S. 14-34.1 makes it a Class E felony to discharge a barreled weapon or firearm into occupied property. The offense is elevated to a Class D felony if the property is an occupied dwelling or occupied conveyance in operation, and to a Class C felony if the defendant causes serious bodily injury. Although the statute … Read more
Jeff previously posted his “cocktail party review” of significant criminal law legislation passed this year by the North Carolina General Assembly, or at least legislation people might be interested in asking you questions about. Consider this the après-party review, when we go through the entire house, look for anything left behind, and give everything a … Read more
Senate Bill 105, which passed both chambers of the General Assembly overwhelmingly and appears certain to become law (either with the Governor’s signature or because of the passage of time without her veto), increases the penalty for most second-degree murders. Second-degree murder is currently a B2 felony, but for offenses committed on or after December … Read more
Concluding that current State criminal statutes “do not sufficiently recognize the increased danger to the public and do not sanction appropriately acts of terrorism,” S.L. 2012-38, the General Assembly recently enacted a new terrorism offense. The new crime applies to offenses committed on after December 1, 2012. Id. Here’s what you need to know: Statute: … Read more
In recent years there has been a spate of cases assessing the sufficiency of the evidence in murder prosecutions where the State’s case is built on circumstantial evidence. A recent decision by the court of appeals in State v. Carver should make prosecutors happy while frustrating the defense. The majority described the facts of Carver … Read more
This weekend, the New York Times carried an article entitled Risky Rise of the Good Grade Pill. The piece concerns the abuse of certain prescription medications by high school and college students trying to stay awake to study, or trying to stay focused during exams. The most popular drug seems to be Adderall, which is … Read more
The Fourth Circuit recently rejected a vagueness challenge to the federal stalking statute. Because of the similarity between the federal statute and North Carolina’s stalking law, I thought the decision was worth mentioning here. The federal stalking statute makes it a crime to “engage in a course of conduct that causes substantial emotional distress to … Read more
In a post here, Jeff updated you on the dueling superior court decisions on whether G.S.14-306.4—the internet sweepstakes ban—is constitutional or not. The Court of Appeals recently resolved the conflict, holding, over a dissent, that the statute is an unconstitutionally overbroad regulation of free speech. So at least for now, internet sweepstakes operations are good … Read more