NC Criminal Law
This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on February 4, 2026.
Superior court did not lack jurisdiction when misdemeanor charge was initiated by presentment; State’s evidence of misdemeanor death by vehicle did not vary from the indictment.
State v. Gibbon, No. COA25-415 (N.C. Ct. App. Feb. 4, 2026) (Buncombe County). The...
A defendant who is in custody has a Fifth Amendment right to counsel during an interrogation.
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 court may take judicial notice of adjudicative facts that are not subject to any reasonable dispute if the facts are common knowledge in the jurisdiction or can be easily determined by reference to reliable sources.
Evidence of the victim’s character may be introduced in two circumstances: First, the defendant may introduce evidence of a “pertinent trait” of the victim’s character. G.S. 8C-404(a)(2). The most common example is evidence of the victim’s violent character, offered when the defendant is claiming self-defense. Second, in homicide cases, the state may offer evidence of the victim’s character trait for “peacefulness” to rebut a claim by the defense that the victim was the first aggressor.
All criminal pleadings must name or otherwise identify the defendant. See G.S. 15A-924(a)(1).