A UNC School of Government Blog
James Heselden, the owner of the company that makes the Segway personal transporter, died recently after driving his Segway off a cliff. It appears to have been a tragic accident, and the accounts I’ve read suggest that Heselden was an interesting person and a remarkable philanthropist. Thinking about Segways, though, reminded me that I’ve been … Read more
[Editor’s note: This post originally appeared here, on the School of Government’s local government blog. For an update on local government authority to regulate cell phone use by drivers, see this post.] Questions frequently arise regarding whether cities and counties may lawfully adopt ordinances regulating traffic. For instance, may a city or county allow the … Read more
Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer around these parts, and I thought I’d mark the occasion with a post related to boating (a favorite summer pastime) and crime (since this is, after all, the criminal law blog). Specifically, this post discusses the crime of boating while impaired. G.S. 75A-10(b1) prohibits the operation of … Read more
I’ve just finished a paper about motor vehicle checkpoints. It’s available here as a free download. It’s meant as a resource for judges, lawyers, and law enforcement officers, and it includes sections on establishing, operating, and litigating checkpoints. I hope it’s useful, and I’ll be interested in your feedback about it, which you can provide … Read more
I blogged here about the court of appeals’ opinion in State v. Davis, ___ N.C. App. ___ (2010), a case in which the defendant was convicted of several offenses and sentenced to more than 35 years imprisonment for driving while impaired and crashing his truck into another truck, killing two people and seriously injuring a … Read more
Earlier posts (here, here, and here) discuss the statutory and constitutional requirements for obtaining a sample of a defendant’s blood for analysis in an implied-consent case. This post likewise addresses blood draws in such cases but addresses two narrower issues. First, must the State establish that the blood was drawn by a qualified person before … Read more
I blogged here about the North Carolina Court of Appeals’ initial opinion in Lee v. Gore, ___ N.C. App. ___ (January 19, 2010), holding that DMV lacked authority to revoke the petitioner’s driving privileges for refusing a chemical analysis upon receipt of an affidavit that failed to allege a willful refusal. DMV filed a petition … Read more
As I pulled out of the parking lot after work the other day, I found myself immediately behind a dump truck. On the back of the truck was the following advisory: “Stay Back 300 Feet. Not Responsible for Broken Windshields.” I have often wondered whether such statements have any legal effect. I was particularly curious … Read more
Jeff wrote here about the court of appeals’ April 20, 2010 opinion in State v. Hopper (Hopper I), which analyzed when an officer’s mistaken beliefs can support an investigative stop. The defendant in Hopper was stopped for violating G.S. 20-129(a)(4) by failing to operate the taillights on his vehicle when the windshield wipers were in … Read more
The court of appeals in State v. Simmons, ___ N.C. App. ___ (July 20, 2010), decided this week, awarded a new trial to a defendant convicted of impaired driving, finding that the prosecutor made improper and prejudicial remarks in his closing argument. The court found a substantial likelihood that these comments led the jury to … Read more