news

In Italy, six scientists have been convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to six years in prison for failing to predict an earthquake. Seriously. In other news: The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers has just launched this website, which offers information on the restoration of rights after a criminal conviction in all 50 states and … Read more

In Durham, a man who shot at police during a traffic stop, and who was also served with warrants for first-degree sexual offense and other crimes, was given a total bail of $7.8 million. Durham’s chief magistrate told the News and Observer that it is not the highest bail in the county’s history. Readers, what’s … Read more

Fall is here, meaning cooler weather, leaves changing colors, and of course, elections. The North Carolina Bar Association has a new website that provides the results of performance surveys regarding incumbent trial court judges and their challengers. There are also elections for several seats on the court of appeals, and one on the state supreme … Read more

I wrote earlier this week about James Ladd, the murderer who recently escaped from a North Carolina prison. Well, he’s been caught, apparently without much fuss: a motorist saw a man running from some woods towards a house and called the authorities, who went to the house and found Ladd crouched in the garage. In … Read more

The story generating the most interest this week is, in the words of the News and Observer, that “[a] two-year investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice has found that [Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson] and his deputies routinely discriminated against Latinos by making unwarranted arrests with the intent of maximizing deportations.” Among other conclusions, … Read more

There have been several sad and frightening stories in the news recently, from the apparent murder of UNC undergraduate Faith Hedgepeth, to the ice cream truck operator charged with being a sexual predator, but the one that may have struck the deepest nerve is the fatal shooting of Kathy Bertrand by her ex-husband in Raleigh. … Read more

It was a short week, but not a slow week. Here in North Carolina, the News and Observer has this story describing the increase in post-release supervision resulting from the Justice Reinvestment Act, and noting the lack of any additional supervising officers to handle the influx. Officers’ caseloads are way up, and the Division of … Read more

Results from the July bar examination are now available. Apparently, there were some, um, irregularities in the administration of the test. Above The Law reports that “[o]ne test site — which appears to have been a giant livestock pen at the state fairgrounds — lost power, causing all kinds of drama as the students tried … Read more

Can you name all nine Justices of the United States Supreme Court? Take a moment and test yourself before you read on. How did you do? If you were able to name even one Justice, you are better informed about the Court than most Americans. According to a recent survey, two-thirds of us came up … Read more