News Roundup
NBC has this article up about the top national criminal law story of the moment. It notes that “[a] federal grand jury indicted former national security adviser John Bolton on […]
Disclosure of Child Welfare Records in Cases Where DSS is Not a Party
Child welfare records maintained by a department of social services (DSS) contain sensitive information that parties in various proceedings are often interested in seeing. A complex web of state and […]
Evaluating the Impact of Burlington’s Mental Health Co-Responder Program
Earlier this month, the School of Government’s Criminal Justice Innovation Lab released our final report evaluating the Burlington Police Department’s mental health co-responder program. This report is the culmination of […]
A Nice Knock-Down Argument: Statutory Construction in Jenkins and Hardaway.
Under G.S. 14-34.10, it is a felony for any person to discharge a firearm within any occupied enclosure, such as a motor vehicle, with the intent to incite fear in […]
New Paper on Contracts Between Cities and Sheriffs (and Counties) for Law Enforcement Services
I recently completed a new paper on contracts between cities and sheriffs for law enforcement services. It is available here. Dozens of North Carolina municipalities have decided not to operate […]
News Roundup
The U.S. Supreme Court denied review of Ghislaine Maxwell’s convictions for sex trafficking of a minor and other crimes this week, according to SCOTUSblog. Maxwell, the longtime partner and co-conspirator […]
No Authority for Immediate Civil Judgments on Criminal Costs and Fines
The practice of ordering a civil judgment for costs and fines at the outset of a criminal case has run its course.
Domestic Violence Charts Available
I am happy to announce the release of a new resource on Domestic Violence Crimes and the 48-Hour Rule. This guide is intended primarily to assist magistrates and others in […]
Case Summaries: N.C. Court of Appeals (Oct. 1, 2025)
This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the Court of Appeals of North Carolina released on October 1, 2025.
News Roundup
The federal government entered a partial shutdown this week. The shutdown has had sweeping effects, including disruptions to law enforcement and judicial proceedings. The Justice Department announced that while federal […]