News Roundup

Local news became national news this week when a man serving life imprisonment for the murder of a one-year-old child on Christmas escaped from custody. According to the AP, 30-year-old Ramone Alston was able to free himself from leg restraints and run into the woods as his van arrived at a UNC hospital in Hillsborough, NC. Mr. Alston was scheduled for a medical appointment. After the state offered a $25,000 reward for tips leading to his apprehension, and the U.S. Marshals added an additional $10,000 incentive, authorities received a torrent of phone calls. Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood stated he has known Mr. Alston since Mr. Alston’s birth. After a three-day search for Mr. Alston involving 19 law enforcement agencies, Mr. Alston was apprehended at a Comfort Inn in Kannapolis.

Read on for more criminal law news.

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Smith v. Arizona and Retroactivity

My colleagues have covered the retroactivity rules many times before on the blog but the analysis for determining the retroactivity of new federal rules has changed in the last few years. Considering that and the recent Confrontation Clause rule for substitute analyst testimony announced in Smith v. Arizona, 602 U.S. ___; 144 S.Ct. 1785 (2024) (summarized here), an update is in order. Today’s post reviews the federal retroactivity analysis and examines how it may be applied to Smith. Read on for the details.

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Character is Destiny: Improper Argument in State v. Anderson

Evidence of prior bad acts is admissible unless the only reason for introducing the evidence is to show the defendant’s propensity for committing the crime. In a trial involving a defendant’s sexual assault of children, the prosecutor told the jury, “[t]he best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.” Is that an inaccurate statement of law? The Court of Appeals recently held that it was. This post considers the rule – that incorrect statements of law in closing argument are improper – and its application in this case, State v. Anderson, No. COA23-821 (N.C. Ct. App. Aug 6, 2024).

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Grants Pass: Local Government Authority and the Constitutionality of Laws Against Camping or Sleeping in Public

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According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, well over half a million people are unhoused on any given night in America. Given the magnitude of the crisis, local governments face immense challenges in addressing the underlying causes of homelessness while managing public health and safety concerns. Some local governments, including many in North Carolina, have adopted anti-camping and/or anti-sleeping ordinances as part of their response.

The Supreme Court of the United States recently considered whether the Eighth Amendment’s Cruel and Unusual Punishments Clause barred an Oregon city’s adoption of ordinances restricting camping on public property in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, 603 U. S. ____ (2024). One of us previewed the case and commented on the oral arguments a few months ago. On June 28, 2024, the Supreme Court upheld the city’s public camping laws, concluding that their enforcement does not constitute “cruel and unusual punishment” under the Eighth Amendment. This blog post analyzes the Court’s decision and offers guidance to local governments regarding anti-sleeping and anti-camping ordinances.

[Editor’s note: This post is cross posted on Coates’ Canons, the School of Government’s local government law blog.]

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News Roundup

Last week, the Department of Defense announced that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammad and two co-defendants had reached plea deals. Generally, the defendants would plead guilty to various charges before the military tribunal at Guantanamo Bay and accept life in prison, and in exchange would be spared the death penalty. Then the Department of Defense announced that the deals are off. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin issued a memo revoking the deals and reserving to himself the authority to enter into plea agreements. Some families of 9/11 victims have cheered Austin’s decision while others support the deals. The defendants assert that a deal’s a deal and that Austin can’t nix them. Litigation is sure to ensue, further extending cases that have lasted more than two decades already. Keep reading for more news.

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New Dashboard Metric Shows How North Carolina Criminal Charges Get Disposed

We recently added 2022 and 2023 Automated Criminal Infractions System (ACIS) court records data to our Measuring Justice Dashboard. We also just released a new Dashboard metric showing how North Carolina criminal charges get disposed. At the Lab, we support evidence-based approaches to criminal justice that promote public safety, a fair and effective system, and … Read more

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Legislative Amendments to Larceny Laws

Sticky-fingered Sam goes to the local shoe store to purchase a new pair of shoes. The last pair of shoes in her size are priced at $150. Deciding that these are too expensive, Sam removes a sticker from a box of shoes on the clearance shelf priced at $30 and places the sticker on the box of the shoes she wants. Sam takes the $150 shoes to the register with the $30 sticker on them, pays the lower price, and leaves. Has Sam committed a larceny? Has Sam committed the crime of larceny from a merchant under G.S. 14-72.11?

Sam’s acts do constitute larceny and are similar to the acts of the defendant in State vs. Hill, 291 N.C. App. 633 (2023). However, the North Carolina Court of Appeals held that a defendant’s use of a price label sticker from another product did not represent larceny by product code (a form of larceny from a merchant) under G.S. 14-72.11(3). The court acknowledged that there is another larceny statute that would have been more appropriate for this circumstance. In response to Hill, the North Carolina General Assembly has amended the laws related to larceny and retail theft to bring more clarity about its scope. This post discusses the holding in State v. Hill and examines the newly amended laws applicable to these specific types of larceny.

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Book Review: An Inconvenient Cop

An Inconvenient Cop is a book authored by long-time NYPD officer and whistleblower Edwin Raymond along with professional writer Jon Sternfeld. Raymond served fifteen years in the New York Police Department. He rose to the rank of lieutenant, but his time with the NYPD was contentious. The book is a memoir that tells the story of Raymond’s career and offers his perspective on policing and police reform.

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News Roundup

Stops are down but traffic fatalities are up. According to this article from The New York Times, local law enforcement data collected from cities across the county reflects a decline in the number of traffic stops police are making since before the pandemic. Data from the 30 largest U.S. cities reveals a rise in road deaths over the same time span. The writers suggest that the correlation indicates police have responded to the pandemic and the recent police reform movement by declining to confront reckless drivers. Recent deaths on North Carolina roads reflect this trend. The Gaston Gazette reports that Herman “Dennis” Kiser, 68, was killed last Saturday when a tow truck attempted to pass his tractor on a rural road. Scottie Brooks, the driver of the tow truck, has been charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle. The Charlotte Observer reports that a street race between teenage drivers on Sunday morning resulted in the death of Robert Birch, 81, who was making a U-turn. Both teenagers have been charged as adults with felony hit-and-run, street racing, and no operator’s license. Read on for more criminal law news.

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