News Roundup
As the Washington Post reports, the Senate confirmed Christopher A. Wray as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation earlier this week. Wray served as Assistant Attorney General in charge […]
Classifying Prior Convictions for Sentencing Purposes
When determining a defendant’s prior record level for felony sentencing, prior convictions count for points according to their classification as of the offense date of the crime now being sentenced. […]
Counties May Impose Civil Penalties for Passing a Stopped School Bus
Four years ago, the General Assembly increased the criminal fine for passing a stopped school bus and enacted new license revocation and registration hold provisions. During the previous year—2012—there had […]
Expanded Expunction Opportunities
In S.L. 2017-195 (S 445), the General Assembly made several changes to North Carolina’s expunction laws. Most importantly, the act expands the availability of relief in two ways: it reduces […]
New Restrictions on Citizen-Initiated Criminal Process
A colleague stopped into my office the other day to ask “did the General Assembly get rid of citizen-initiated warrants?” No, but it did make some significant changes to the […]
News Roundup
The Associated Press reports that the investigation into the Word of Faith Fellowship congregation in Spindale is expanding into questions of whether church members enticed Brazilians to come to North […]
Is G.S. 90-96(a) Mandatory or Discretionary?
Whether or not to grant a conditional discharge for an eligible defendant under G.S. 90-96(a) used to be within the discretion of the trial judge. In 2011, Justice Reinvestment made […]
NC Regulates Fully Autonomous Vehicles
Last month, the General Assembly ratified a bill authorizing the operation of fully autonomous vehicles on state roadways. The legislation is effective December 1, 2017. If you expect your car […]
Legislative Changes to Which Prior Convictions Can Support a Habitual Felon Charge
S.L. 2017-176 makes two important changes to which prior convictions can support a habitual felon charge. The legislation (1) clarifies the status of prior convictions from New Jersey and other […]
News Roundup
The criminal tribulations of O.J. Simpson once again captured the nation’s attention this week. Simpson was granted parole yesterday after serving nearly nine years in prison in Nevada following his […]