Opinion
12 citizens: The enduring promise of the jury
When you answer a summons, you become a living link in a chain that runs from the Magna Carta to Halifax to your own courthouse door.
News
State: New Election Maps Would Cause Confusion, Add Costs
If a three-judge federal court panel does not freeze its order to redraw a new congressional election map by Feb. 19 the result would be voter confusion, inability to protect the integrity of the electoral process, suppressed voter and candidate turnout, and more than $12 million of increased taxpayer expenses, according to an affidavit filed...
Opinion
The Right-of-Center Constitutional Divide
A new book documents the debate among conservatives and libertarians over "judicial activism" and "judicial restraint."
News
Court: Manmade Ditch Is A Navigable Waterway
RALEIGH — Is a manmade ditch considered navigable under state law, and thus public property, if fishing boats use it? The state’s second-highest court ruled May 18 that it is — and such manmade waters are subject to the state’s public trust doctrine.
News
Appeals Court: Government Not Required to Notify Landowners of Subdivision Plans
RALEIGH — The state’s second-highest court concluded that government officials may not have to provide nearby residents with any notice at all before rezoning moves forward.
News
Appeals Court Strikes Down Random Drug Tests in Schools
RALEIGH — The North Carolina Court of Appeals has rejected the Graham County Board of Education’s plans to conduct random, suspicionless drug testing of all its employees. The appeals court found that such testing violated the North Carolina Constitution’s guarantees against unreasonable searches and seizures.
News
Court Rules on Testimonial Evidence
RALEIGH — In a significant reversal, the N.C Supreme Court has awarded a new trial for a Raleigh woman. The ruling came after the U.S. Supreme Court clarified an issue of constitutional law and ordered the state Supreme Court to rehear the case.
News
When Cities Take On Businesses
RALEIGH — North Carolina’s second highest court last week clarified under what circumstances a city or town can engage in activities that private business ordinarily provide. The ruling comes in a case about the legality of the fiber-optic network Laurinburg was using to provide Internet access to itself and outside governmental and institutional users. The North Carolina Court of Appeals held that because the wording of state law defining what constitutes a cable television system was ambiguous, the town could operate the network, even if it didn’t offer cable TV.
News
Church, Court, and Dividing Lines
RALEIGH — The U.S. and N.C. constitutions divide church and state into different spheres. Government cannot legally establish a state religion or to become involved in church disputes. This doctrine was highlighted by a recent N.C. Court of Appeals ruling about a couple ejected from church membership after they sought financial records. “Membership in a church is a core eccelesiastical matter,” the court found, thus outside its jurisdiction. However, it did find jurisdiction over “property disputes” involving churches, such as the couple’s claim that the church had no bylaws so the method of their ejection was flawed.
News
Court Upholds Regulator Discretion
RALEIGH — North Carolina law often grants state environmental agencies a great deal of discretion in determining whether to issue a permit for a specific activity. A recent N.C. Court of Appeals decision highlights that state courts will ordinarily not second-guess regulators even if a different weighing of factors might produce a different result. Under state law, wrote Judge Robin Hudson for the court, “the agency has broad discretion both to determine what factors to consider and how to weigh those factors.” Although regulators could have reached other conclusions, she continued, “we see no violation of the statute here.”
News
Legal Rules Change for Testimony
RALEIGH — The Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides in part that “in all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right … to be confronted with the witnesses against him.” While a seemingly simple concept, a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision has changed the standards for determining what evidence can be used at trial against defendants. Based upon this new guidance, the N.C. Court of Appeals ruled Oct. 19 that identification from a photographic lineup is inadmissible if a defendant has not had an opportunity to cross-examine the identifier.
News
Courts Find Sentences Unconstitutional
CHARLOTTE — Among the most significant cases the U.S. Supreme Court decided last term was Blakely v. Washington, in which it found portions of Washington state’s criminal sentencing laws were unconstitutional. The court’s reasoning was sweeping, calling into question how courts across the land determine sentences. Last Tuesday, the N.C. Court of Appeals found that the same constitutional problems found in Washington also exist under North Carolina’s system. The case involved Timmy Speight, a Pitt County man appealing two involuntary manslaughter conviction and a driving-while-impaired finding.
