NC Criminal Law
This post summarizes criminal law and related cases released by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals during May of 2026. Cases of potential interest to state practitioners are summarized monthly. Previous summaries of Fourth Circuit are available here.
District court correctly found that the Sixth Amendment right to a jury...
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 state must give notice to the defendant of any expert witnesses that the state reasonably expects to call as a witness at trial.
A misdemeanor statement of charges is a criminal pleading prepared by the prosecutor, charging a misdemeanor. A statement of charges is a type of pleading, but is not a form of process, and cannot be used to initiate a prosecution and compel the defendant to appear. See G.S. 15A-922(b)(1).
An information is an accusation drafted by the prosecutor and filed in superior court, charging one or more criminal offenses. An information may be filed only if the defendant waives indictment.
The use of the conjunctive “and” in an indictment charging two theories by which offense may be committed does not require the state to prove both theories.