Go Ahead, Test Me
Most people stopped on suspicion of impaired driving would rather avoid the trip to the police station. Some suspects attempt to dispel officers’ suspicions by answering questions about whether they have been […]
New Ethics Opinion on Incarcerated Defendants’ Right to Review Discovery
Many criminal defense lawyers are reluctant to give incarcerated clients copies of discovery materials. Lawyers may worry that the materials will be stolen by other inmates, who will then use […]
The Right to Be Present at Sentencing
A North Carolina defendant has a common law right to be personally present when a criminal sentence is pronounced. That right is separate from the constitutional right to be present […]
Free Legal Research
Now that I have your attention . . . . Ever wonder what happens to those case summaries that you receive from me by email? (If you’re not getting them […]
News Roundup
Several grand juries have recently considered whether to charge white police officers with killing black men. We’ve already discussed the case in Ferguson, Missouri on this blog. Wednesday, a Staten […]
Assembly Line Justice
Have you ever been convicted of or pleaded nolo contendere (no contest) to any violation of the law other than minor traffic tickets? Millions of people, many of whom were […]
Handling Jury Trial Waivers
As of December 1, 2014, North Carolina criminal defendants may waive their right to a jury trial in superior court and instead opt for a bench trial. This is because […]
Authenticating Social Media Evidence
One of my all-time favorite emails was received from a prosecutor who was handling a drug trafficking case. The email included a picture, plucked from what purported to be the […]
Prior Possession of Drug Paraphernalia
It’s December 1. That means a number of new laws come into effect today. WRAL has a good rundown here, while the School’s annual summary of legislation of interest to […]
News Roundup
Short week, short news roundup. National attention remains focused on Ferguson, Missouri, where attorneys for Michael Brown’s family have weighed in on the prosecutor’s handling of the grand jury proceedings […]