Knives and the Right to Bear Arms
There’s been a great deal of litigation recently about firearms and the Second Amendment. But guns aren’t the only “arms” sometimes carried for self-defense, and there have been several recent […]
News Roundup
Several grand juries have recently considered whether to charge white police officers with killing black men. We’ve already discussed the case in Ferguson, Missouri on this blog. Wednesday, a Staten […]
Guns at the State Fair
Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler has stated that firearms, even those carried pursuant to a concealed carry permit, will be prohibited at the North Carolina State Fair, which opens next week. […]
News Roundup
My favorite story this week concerns the alleged criminal mastermind who was charged with trying to steal copper . . . “from a construction site where the Garner Police Department […]
How Should the Police Respond to a Report of a Man with a Gun?
Case study: the Neenah stop. Recently in Neenah, WI, a woman called the police to report a man with a gun strapped to his back walking down the street. The […]
News Roundup
What an interesting week! The sports world was fascinating, between a dramatic World Cup win for the United States, a Raleigh native being picked first in the NBA draft, and […]
Case Summaries: N.C. Supreme Court (August 22, 2025)
This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the North Carolina Supreme Court released on August 22, 2025. Previously, summaries were added to Smith’s Criminal Case Compendium, but due to […]
Purses, Fanny Packs, Backpacks, and Duffel Bags: The Impact of Arizona v. Gant on Searches of Hand Luggage Incident to Arrest
Law enforcement officers have long been authorized to search a person incident to the person’s arrest. But the precise scope of that authority has shifted over time. The most recent […]
Case Summaries: N.C. Court of Appeals (July 2, 2025)
This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on July 2, 2025.
Common Character Evidence Questions in Self-Defense Cases
Character evidence is one of the most challenging areas of evidence law to navigate, as Jessie Smith observes here. Jessie’s blog features a useful chart to apply Rules 404 and […]