I am embarrassed to admit that I enjoy the movies in the Fast & Furious franchise. I like exotic cars, which the films have in abundance. And there is something virtuous about Dominic Toretto, the character played by Vin Diesel. A downside of the series is that the films, particularly the early ones, glorify the spectacularly dangerous and irresponsible sport of street racing. Paul Walker, a star of the early movies, died while driving a Porsche at high speeds through the streets of Los Angeles. WRAL reports here that a bill moving quickly through the General Assembly targets street racing and street takeovers in North Carolina. Language has been added to S91 that would criminalize “operat[ing] a motor vehicle in a street takeover” or otherwise participating in or facilitating such an event. Drivers would be guilty of a Class A1 misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class H felony for later crimes. Vehicle seizure would also be possible under the law. Keep reading for more news.
Report finds Jeffrey Epstein’s suicide was made possible by a “combination of negligence, misconduct and outright job performance failures.” Recall that in the summer of 2019, financier Jeffrey Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges. A little over a month later, he hung himself while in custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York. Four years later, the Office of the Inspector General within the Department of Justice has issued a 128-page report examining the incident. The Associated Press summarizes here that Epstein “was left alone in his jail cell with a surplus of bed linens the night he killed himself. Nearly all the surveillance cameras on his unit didn’t record. One worker was on duty for 24 hours straight. And, despite his high profile and a suicide attempt two weeks earlier, he wasn’t checked on regularly as required.” Two of the guards on duty “admitted lying on prison records to make it seem as though they had made the checks but avoided prison time under a deal with prosecutors.” The Bureau of Prisons has committed to reforming its practices as recommended by the new report.
WRAL reports on challenges in eCourts rollout. WRAL has this new story up about the electronic filing and case management system being implemented by the Administrative Office of the Courts. The system is being piloted in several counties and the story reports that the system is frustrating, time consuming, and the subject of nearly 600 reported defects as well as a lawsuit alleging that the system contributed to unlawful arrests and detentions of several individuals. The system is next supposed to expand to Mecklenburg County, but that phase has been put on hold for the time being. The AOC reports that the system is making “significant progress” and that it has not been able to substantiate any allegations about unlawful arrests or detentions resulting from the new system. Looking in from the outside, it is difficult to know whether the reported challenges to eCourts are normal growing pains or something more. I certainly hope that any problems are addressed and resolved quickly.
Murder rate falling sharply (?) so far this year. Jeff Asher writes here in The Atlantic that his data show “strong evidence of a sharp and broad decline in the nation’s murder rate.” His data are based on preliminary reports from selected large cities, and he cautions that “[i]t is still early in the year and the trend could change over the second half of the year.” But overall, “[t]he United States may be experiencing one of the largest annual percent changes in murder ever recorded,” about 12 percent on average in the cities he tracks, and as much as 30 percent or more in cities like Atlanta, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee. Why is this happening? Asher notes that “[e]xplaining the trend is much more difficult than describing it,” but possibilities include the hiring of more police officers, the return of normal schedules and structures as the COVID pandemic winds down, and the funding of community violence interruption programs.
More prison inmates going to college. The Associated Press reports here that the federal Pell Grant program “is about to expand exponentially next month, giving about 30,000 more students behind bars some $130 million in financial aid per year.” According to the article, Congress prohibited prison inmates from receiving Pell Grants in 1994. It reversed course in 2020, but only a limited number of universities were authorized to offer programming to prisoners. “Now, the floodgates will open, allowing any college that wants to utilize Pell Grant funding to serve incarcerated students to apply and, if approved, launch their program.” The article includes some inspirational stories of personal transformation through education, which are – of course – music to this professor’s ears.
New episode of the North Carolina Criminal Debrief podcast now available. Episode 9 has arrived, courtesy of my colleague Phil Dixon. You can listen here or on your podcast app of choice. According to the show notes, the episode “discusses recent legislation, including changes to satellite-based monitoring and a new offense of misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, as well as recent state cases on constructive possession, Harbison error, and expert testimony.”
New edition of Arrest Warrant and Indictment Forms now available. I know – it’s like Christmas in June! The 2023 edition, authored by yours truly, has twenty-nine new or revised forms, and you can buy it here for just $43. Does your co-worker have a birthday coming up? Could this be the unique anniversary gift your spouse would love? Folks who work for the court system will likely want to procure it through the AOC’s online store. We are working to update NCPRO to include the latest forms as well.