NC Criminal Law
We are excited to announce the publication of a new bulletin in our Administration of Justice series: “Initial Appearances before North Carolina Magistrates.” Special thanks to my colleagues Brittany Bromell and Melanie Crenshaw in putting this together. They were instrumental in discussing, crafting, and drafting this bulletin.
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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”.
The court is not bound by the rules of evidence (except for rules on privilege) when deciding whether challenged evidence is admissible.
If a case is transferred to another district for prosecution, the prosecutor of the originating district must continue to prosecute the case, unless the prosecutor of the receiving district consents to the prosecution. See G.S. 15A-133(d).
If a defendant pleads guilty to an H or I felony in district court, is placed on probation, and is subsequently charged with violating that probation, the superior court has jurisdiction to hear the violation. But with the consent of the state and the defendant, the district court may hear the violation. G.S. 7A-271(e).
An acquittal under the Double Jeopardy Clause includes a dismissal of a charge for insufficient evidence or an appellate court’s reversal of a conviction for insufficient evidence.