North Carolina Criminal Law

Judges can continue prayer for judgment in any case. Except when they can’t.

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Sentence credits are the days of credit the prison system can award to inmates as an incentive for good behavior, work, or participation in programs in prison. The main sentence […]

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In Grady v. North Carolina, 135 S. Ct. 1368 (2015), the Supreme Court held that North Carolina’s satellite-based monitoring regime for sex offenders is a search, but left it to […]

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Laboratory expenses for analysis of controlled substances used to be ordered as restitution. Since 2002, they have been a court cost. There is a difference.

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The North Carolina Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission recently released its biennial Correctional Program Evaluation—known better as the Recidivism Report. The report, prepared in conjunction with the Division of Adult […]

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For felony sentencing, a defendant’s criminal history is scored as a “prior record level.” The analogous measure for misdemeanor sentencing is “prior conviction level.” There are important differences between the […]

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In my last post I wrote about some of the statutory options for providing relief from various criminal legal financial obligations. Several of my “friends” gave me a hard time […]

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Not all types of relief from a criminal monetary obligation trigger the statutory requirements for notice, hearing, and findings.

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There need not be a violation for the court to modify probation.

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Knowing when probation begins is generally pretty easy. Figuring out when it ends can be a little trickier.

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