Two recent opinions from the Court of Appeals illustrate the remarkable controversy currently underway over the specificity required of indictments. In State v. Coffey, No. COA22-883, 2024 WL 675881 (N.C. Ct. App. Feb. 20, 2024), our Court of Appeals ruled an indictment for felony obstruction of justice was facially defective for failure to allege an essential element of the offense: the purpose of hindering or impeding a judicial or official proceeding or investigation. By contrast, in State v. Jackson, No. COA22-280, 2024 WL 925480 (N.C. Ct. App. Mar. 5, 2024), our Court of Appeals ruled an indictment for habitual misdemeanor assault was sufficient though it failed explicitly to allege an element: causing physical injury. This post attempts to reconcile the divergent analytical approaches taken in Coffey and Jackson.
State v. Coffey
Case Summaries: N.C. Court of Appeals (Dec. 15, 2020)
This post summarizes published criminal decisions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on December 15, 2020. Special thanks to Gabby Supak and Jamie Markham for assisting with this batch.