NC Criminal Law
This post summarizes two recent decisions by the Supreme Court of the United States.
A state law prohibiting individuals from carrying guns onto private property without the express approval of the property owner violates the Second Amendment.
Wolford v. Lopez, __ U.S. __ (June 25, 2026) (Alito, J.). For...
When a statute sets forth disjunctive or alternative ways by which an offense may be committed, a warrant or indictment should charge them conjunctively, linking the alternatives by the word “and” instead of “or”.
In district court, jeopardy attaches once the court begins to hear evidence, which occurs when the first witness is sworn. In superior court, jeopardy attaches once the jury is sworn and impaneled.
The state must give the defendant, at the beginning of jury selection, a written list of the names of all witnesses whom the state reasonably expects to call during the trial.
A prosecution in superior court must be by indictment, although a noncapital defendant may waive the right to an indictment and be tried on an information. See G.S. 15A-642; -943.
Unlike “character,” which refers to a person’s general disposition or personality trait, a “habit” is a person’s regular response to a repeated, specific situation. Evidence of a person’s habit may be introduced to show that the person’s conduct was in conformity with that habit on a particular occasion. G.S. 8C-406.