Regular readers of this blog know that bail reform has been a hot topic in criminal law. Jessie has posted about the Criminal Justice Innovation Lab’s ongoing collaborations with several North Carolina jurisdictions in efforts to evaluate and improve bail practices, and she also has noted recent litigation over the constitutionality of the Alamance County bail system. Late last month, the Supreme Court of California ruled that money bail, when used, must be set at an amount an arrestee can reasonably afford unless there is clear and convincing evidence that no nonfinancial condition of release will reasonably protect victim or public safety or assure the arrestee’s appearance in court. This post takes a closer look at the opinion – In re Humphrey, No. S247278, 2021 WL 1134487 (Cal. Mar. 25, 2021).
News Roundup
A United States Capitol Police Officer, William “Billy” F. Evans, died this week after he and another officer seemingly were deliberately hit by a car as it was driven into a barricade at the Capitol Building by a man who then threatened other officers with a knife before being shot and killed. Evans had served with the Capitol Police since 2003. News reports have emerged suggesting that the perpetrator, 25-year-old Noah Green who was living in Virginia, had been experiencing increasingly delusional thoughts and declining mental health, perhaps attributable in part to drug abuse. The Associated Press says that investigators believe the attack was an isolated incident. Keep reading for more news.
Case Summaries: N.C. Court of Appeals (Apr. 6, 2021)
This post summarizes published criminal decisions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on April 6, 2021. As always, these summaries will be added to Smith’s Criminal Case Compendium, a free and searchable database of case summaries from 2008 to present.
Jail Credit for Consolidated Sentences
My colleague Jamie Markham and I have received quite a few questions lately about jail credit for consolidated sentences. Jamie has written several blog posts over the years explaining the various jail credit laws. However, there are no statutes or case law that govern the peculiar scenarios that come up regarding consolidated sentences.
Supreme Court to Decide Whether Hot Pursuit Applies to Misdemeanors
In 2016, the North Carolina Court of Appeals held in State v. Adams, 250 N.C. App. 664 (2016), that law enforcement officers acted lawfully when, lacking a warrant, they chased a man suspected of driving while license revoked into his home where they arrested him. The court determined that because the officers were engaged in hot pursuit, they did not need to establish additional exigent circumstances such as immediate danger or destruction of evidence to justify forcibly entering the suspect’s home. This year, the United States Supreme Court is reviewing a California case raising the same issue: Does pursuit of a person who a police officer has probable cause to believe has committed a misdemeanor categorically qualify as an exigent circumstance sufficient to allow the officer to enter a home without a warrant? See Lange v. California, 141 S. Ct. 1617 (2020) (granting review of People v. Lange, No. A157169, 2019 WL 5654385 (Cal. Ct. App. Oct. 30, 2019) (unpublished)).
News Roundup
The Fayetteville Observer reported this week that an arrest has been made in connection with a road rage shooting last week near Lumberton that killed a Pennsylvania woman traveling with her husband to a beach vacation. Dejywan R. Floyd has been charged with murder for allegedly shooting into the passenger side of an SUV occupied by Julie and Ryan Eberly after the SUV came close to Floyd’s car during a lane change maneuver on I-95. Julie Eberly was struck by the gunfire and died. Keep reading for more news.
GiveUNC: A Note from Mike Smith, Dean of the School of Government
For the entirety of its 90 years of existence, the School of Government’s mission has been focused on the people of North Carolina. Through our commitment to offering high-quality education, advising, and support to public officials across the state, we improve the lives of North Carolinians. We firmly believe this work is more critical … Read more
Case Summaries – U.S. Supreme Court (March 25, 2021)
This post summarizes a decision released by the United States Supreme Court on March 25, 2021.
News Roundup
A second mass shooting in the span of a week, this one killing 10 people at a Colorado grocery store, shook the nation on Monday. Those killed included the first responding police officer, Eric Tally, a father of seven. The apparent shooter, 21-year-old Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, was taken into custody after being shot by police and has been charged wih murder. News reports indicate that Alissa was wearing a tactical vest and was armed with an assault style rifle that he bought last week. Keep reading for more news.