News Roundup (February 6, 2026)
Jeff Welty
News about crime, criminal justice, and the courts often tends towards the gloomy, so I’m going to start this week with some positive news. The Carolina Journal has a story […]
State v. Julius, Round Two: Court of Appeals in Fractured Opinion Affirms Trial Court’s Determination that Good Faith Exception Applies (February 5, 2026)
Shea Denning
The North Carolina Supreme Court held in State v. Julius, 385 N.C. 331 (2023) (Julius I), that an officer’s warrantless search of a vehicle trapped in a ditch and partially […]
Trends and Highlights from the 2024 DWI Sentencing Statistical Report (February 4, 2026)
Belal Elrahal
As 2025 came to a close, the North Carolina Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission published the Driving While Impaired Convictions Statistical Report for Fiscal Year 2024 (hereinafter “the report”). The […]
Case v. Montana Attempts to Clarify the Emergency Aid Exception to the Warrant Requirement (February 2, 2026)
Jeff Welty
When can law enforcement officers enter a person’s home, without a warrant, in order to provide emergency assistance? How sure must the officers be that assistance is needed before an […]
News Roundup (January 30, 2026)
Joseph L. Hyde
Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder, pled not guilty on Monday to running a lucrative drug trafficking ring. PBS has the story. Wedding competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics […]
Expunction Changes and Updated Expunction Guide for 2026 (January 29, 2026)
John Rubin
The 2025 legislative session was relatively quiet for expunction law but still potentially important for some people. I have incorporated the changes in the law into the latest version of […]
Orders for Arrest for Failing to Appear (January 28, 2026)
Brittany Bromell
Debbie Defendant is charged with misdemeanor stalking under G.S. 14-277.3A. She fails to appear in district court on January 23, 2026. The district court judge issues an order for Debbie’s […]
Discovery in Delinquency Cases (January 27, 2026)
Jacquelyn Greene
The Juvenile Code provides explicit procedure for discovery in juvenile delinquency matters. This procedure does not mirror the law that governs discovery in criminal matters. The statutes also do not […]
Case Summaries: N.C. Court of Appeals (Jan. 21, 2026) (January 26, 2026)
Belal Elrahal
This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on January 21, 2026. (1) Impeachment by prior inconsistent statements and bias did not constitute […]
News Roundup (January 23, 2026)
Phil Dixon
On Wednesday this week, Austin Thompson entered guilty pleas to five counts of murder and other charges stemming from a 2022 mass shooting in a Raleigh neighborhood. The defendant, who […]