A UNC School of Government Blog
What is the basis for the indefinite license revocation reflected in the driving record entry below? A. A revocation under G.S. 20-24.1 for failure to appear for a motor vehicle offense. B. A revocation under G.S. 20-24.1 for failure to pay a fine, penalty or court costs ordered by the court upon conviction of a … Read more
In a recent case, State v. Fisher, the NC Court of Appeals upheld an involuntary manslaughter based on the defendant’s act of dumping an intoxicated and injured victim, alive but partially clothed, outside in a remote area and in freezing weather and then lying about the victim’s whereabouts. When I sent a summary of the … Read more
A truly incredible story has culminated over the past few days. In 1998, Shon Hopwood was sentenced to 147 months in federal prison for bank robbery. He became a jailhouse lawyer, and in 2002, he filed his first petition for certiorari with the United States Supreme Court. Former Solicitor General Seth Waxman described it in … Read more
Improper counting of a defendant’s prior out-of-state convictions is a common sentencing error. This post collects the law on the subject, including the many appellate cases decided over the past decade or so. I’ll admit, it’s the Atacama Desert of blog posts: long and dry. But the issue comes up often enough—and can have significant … Read more
Maybe so, according to a recent Reuters report. Apparently, the Special Operations Division of the DEA receives information from the NSA and passes it to DEA field agents. The agents then begin criminal investigations based on the information. There are two possible problems with the program described by Reuters. End run around privacy protections. First, … Read more
This topic was divided in two parts. This is Part II. Part I was posted yesterday. In yesterday’s blog post, I discussed the United States Supreme Court in 2009 ruling in Arizona v. Gant that significantly restricted an officer’s authority, based on the theory of search incident to arrest, to conduct a search of the … Read more
This blog post is divided in two parts. This is Part I. Part II will be posted tomorrow. The United States Supreme Court in 2009 issued a ruling in Arizona v. Gant that significantly restricted an officer’s authority, based on the theory of search incident to arrest, to conduct a search of the passenger compartment … Read more
Nationally, the focus this week was on the sentencing of Ariel Castro, the Cleveland man who imprisoned three women in his home for years and sexually assaulted them. Castro spoke on his own behalf, stating that he “is not a violent person” but is simply “sick,” and claiming that he and his captives lived in … Read more
I wrote here about how law enforcement officers may obtain historical information about the location of a suspect’s cellular phone. There have been several developments in the law since then, including earlier this week when the Fifth Circuit rendered its decision in In re Application of the United States of America for Historical Cell Site … Read more
Which of the following defendants may be sentenced to “time served” (choose all that apply)? A. A felony defendant with 5 months of jail credit sentenced to 6–17 months. B. A felony defendant with 7 months of jail credit sentenced to 6–17 months. C. A felony defendant with 9 months of jail credit sentenced to … Read more