2018 Cost Waiver Report Available
The Administrative Office of the Courts has submitted its annual report on criminal cost waivers to the General Assembly. The report, available here, tracks court cost waivers under G.S. 7A-304(a)—among […]
Probable Cause, Pretext and the Proliferation of Crimes
I concluded last week’s post on District of Columbia v. Wesby, ___ U.S. ___ (2018), with a promise to return to Justice Ginsburg’s suggestion in her concurring opinion that it […]
When a Person Commits a Crime, Is There Probable Cause to Search the Person’s Phone for Evidence?
The question in the title of this post is one that I’ve been asked lots of times in different factual contexts. The basic question is, given that most people have […]
Real-Time Cell Phone Tracking Update, Including a New Case
The Court of Appeals of North Carolina recently decided a case about police obtaining real-time location information from a suspect’s cellular service provider. The case does not address the principal […]
News Roundup
On Tuesday, a 15-year-old high schooler with a handgun killed two fellow students and wounded sixteen others in Kentucky. According to NBC News, the shooter opened fire in a common […]
Felony Deferrals in District Court
Can a district court judge enter a deferred prosecution order or conditional discharge for a defendant charged with a felony?
Probable Cause and the Party at Peaches’ House
The United States Supreme Court issued its opinion in District of Columbia v. Wesby on Monday, holding that police officers had probable cause to arrest 16 people for unlawful entry […]
New Developments Regarding Risk Assessments
Risk assessment tools are starting to take root in the criminal justice system. They’re used to make decisions about pretrial release, sentencing, and the level of supervision or custody to […]
News Roundup
A disturbing case of child abuse has received widespread national news coverage this week. As the L.A. Times reports, David and Louise Turpin of Perris, California, were charged with multiple […]
Releasing Inmates to Other Countries
North Carolina law allows certain inmates to be released from incarceration to return to another country.