“Stipulating” to Habitual Felon Status
This post discusses what may be the single most common error in habitual felon proceedings: having a defendant stipulate, rather than plead guilty, to being a habitual felon. Must plead […]
Habitual Felon and Previous Convictions from New Jersey
I don’t mean to cast aspersions on the Garden State, but it seems like there are a lot of people here in North Carolina with criminal records from New Jersey. […]
News Roundup
The top of the news this week is SB 10, which appears to have passed the state Senate. (You can see the bill’s progress here.) Readers of this blog will […]
State v. Lovette and North Carolina’s Miller Fix Law
Earlier in the week, the court of appeals decided State v. Lovette, the appeal of one of the defendants convicted of killing UNC student body president Eve Carson. The case […]
Computer Restrictions on Supervised Sex Offenders
Last week I wrote about the North Carolina law that makes it a crime for any registered sex offender to use a commercial social network, G.S. 14-202.5. In that post […]
Pleading in the Conjunctive
Many veteran prosecutors know the rule, “plead in the conjunctive.” In other words, in an indictment or other charging document, join different theories of the crime with the word “and” […]
You’ve got to know when to hold ’em
Magistrates walk a tight rope of sorts in setting conditions of pretrial release for defendants charged with impaired driving offenses. In addition to taking into account all of the factors […]
News Roundup
The internet sweepstakes soap opera took a dramatic turn this week. An employee of a Davidson County sweepstakes business was charged with violating the recently-upheld sweepstakes law, G.S. 14-306.4. The […]
Social Networking Restrictions on Sex Offenders
In last week’s news roundup, Shea mentioned Doe v. Prosecutor, Marion County, Indiana, a recent case in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit struck Indiana’s […]
Rule 404(b) and Noncriminal Conduct
I have been asked several times whether the state may admit, under N.C. R. Evid. 404(b), evidence of noncriminal conduct. The answer is yes, assuming of course that the evidence […]