Fatal Variance — Use It or Lose It
A fatal defect in an indictment occurs when the indictment fails to allege an essential element of the crime charged. A fatal variance, by contrast, occurs when the facts brought […]
August 16, 2012
Alibi Defense Doesn’t Mean the State Can’t Amend the Offense Date
A criminal indictment must allege an offense date. G.S. 15A-924(a)(4) provides that a criminal pleading must contain “[a] statement or cross reference in each count indicating that the offense charged […]
August 7, 2012
Crawford’s Implications on the Bruton Rule
In yesterday’s post I set out the basics of the Bruton rule. Put simply, Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123 (1968), held that a defendant’s confrontation clause rights are […]
August 6, 2012
The Bruton Rule: A Primer
Although recent confrontation clause litigation has focused on the new Crawford rule, the Bruton rule continues to create issues in joint trials of codefendants. In this post I’ll give you […]
July 31, 2012
Pro Se Defendants and Ineffective Assistance of “Counsel”
Can a defendant who chooses to represent himself subsequently argue that he received ineffective assistance of “counsel”? No, as illustrated by the recent case of State v. Brunson, __ N.C. […]
July 26, 2012
2012 Amendments to Teenage License Revocation Law
[Editor’s Note: We are continuing to experience difficulty with our email subscription function. In attempting to remedy the problem, our hard-working technical folks accidentally sent two test email notifications to […]
July 25, 2012
Notice and Demand — One More Time
I recently wrote here about North Carolina’s notice and demand statutes and how they allow the State to obtain a constitutionally valid waiver of confrontation clause rights with respect to […]
July 23, 2012
Closing the Courtroom in Sex Crime Trials
A recent decision by the court of appeals illustrates the procedural pitfalls of a common practice: closing the courtroom during the testimony of the victim of an alleged sex crime. […]
July 18, 2012
Justice Reinvestment Clarifications Become Law
Like most complicated legislation, the Justice Reinvestment Act (JRA) was less than perfectly clear as originally written. Earlier this week (July 16, 2012) the governor signed House Bill 1021, Justice […]
July 17, 2012
Authorization for Continuous Alcohol Monitoring Expanded by S.L. 2012-146
Five years ago, the General Assembly authorized judges to require that defendants placed on probation for a Level One or Level Two impaired driving offense abstain from consuming alcohol for […]
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