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Parking Enforcement: Civil Penalties, Infractions and Wheel Locks

The contents of an envelope tucked under the windshield wiper of your car parked on a city street doesn’t seem as ominous as a citation hand-delivered through your driver’s side window by a law enforcement officer illuminated by the flashing blue lights of her police vehicle. But both may land you in district criminal court. … Read more

Internet Sweepstakes Update

I’ve blogged before about the General Assembly’s latest effort to eradicate internet sweepstakes. Because G.S. 14-306.4 went into effect yesterday, I’ve had lots of questions about the law. (I even made a brief television appearance — apparently, my 15 minutes seconds of fame.) My colleague Chris McLaughlin posted about the controversy in this area yesterday … Read more

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Strict Liability Crimes

In prior posts, I discussed transferred intent and criminal negligence. Intent and criminal negligence, along with malice and willfulness are some of the common states of mind that the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt to obtain a criminal conviction. With strict liability crimes, the prosecution’s case is easier. Strict liability crimes do not … Read more

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Criminal Negligence

Criminal negligence (sometimes called culpable negligence) means recklessness or carelessness that shows a thoughtless disregard of consequences or a heedless indifference to the safety and rights of others. State v. Jones, 353 N.C. 159 (2000); State v. Early, 232 N.C. 717, 720 (1950). The showing required to establish criminal negligence is less than the level … Read more

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Cyberbullying

Perhaps in response to news reports of teen suicides blamed on embarrassing and/or insensitive web postings, I have been fielding a fair number of calls about North Carolina’s cyberbullying statute. The statute, G.S. 14-458.1, was enacted in 2009 and applies to offenses committed on or after that date. S.L. 2009-551, sec. 3. Subsection (a) sets … Read more

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Constructive Possession of Drugs

One of the most frequently litigated issues in North Carolina drug cases is constructive possession. Jeff wrote about one case (here) over a year ago. My research shows no less than eleven published cases in the last two years (click here for a full case listing in my online Criminal Case compendium), including one earlier … Read more

Cultural Differences and Child Abuse

One of the clipping services to which I subscribe recently highlighted People v. Assad, __ Cal.Rptr.3d __, 2010 WL 4035491 (Cal. Ct. App. 3 Dist. Oct. 15, 2010). The defendant in Assad was a Syrian man. He tied his twelve-year-old son to his bed and beat him repeatedly and severely with a hose and wooden … Read more

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Who’s Driving?

The New York Times recently published this piece on Google cars that drive themselves.  And we’re not just talking about steering a straight line down the interstate.  One car even navigated the hairpin turns on San Francisco’s famously curvy Lombard Street. The cars use navigation systems and software capable of sensing nearby objects and reacting … Read more

Obstruction of Justice

As the current edition of North Carolina Crimes explains, “[o]bstructing justice consists of any act that prevents, obstructs, impedes, or hinders public or legal justice, and it may take many forms.” Jessica Smith, North Carolina Crimes 451 (6th ed. 2007). The breadth of this common-law offense was recently highlighted by the court of appeals in … Read more