absence Archives – North Carolina Criminal Law

Explaining the Defendant’s Absence at Trial

August 27, 2012 by Jessica Smith

About a year and a half ago I did a blog post here about trial in the defendant’s absence. The recent Court of Appeals case, State v. Anderson, suggests that a quick update is in order. As noted in my earlier post, the right to be present at trial is a personal right that may … Read more

Trial in the Defendant’s Absence

May 23, 2011March 1, 2011 by Jessica Smith

[Editor’s note: Sorry there was no post yesterday. I was out of town and had technical trouble that made it impossible to access the blog.] Can a defendant be tried in absentia? In this post, I will answer that question. The Right to be Present at Trial A criminal defendant has a constitutional right … Read more