North Carolina Lawyers Weekly
The owner of a home gave his nonverbal consent for law enforcement officers to search his home by opening the exterior door and voluntarily allowing the officers to enter and follow him and by opening a bedroom door with the officers present. Even if, as an overnight guest, defendant had some expectation of privacy in the house, the officers’ entry in the home was lawful based on the owner’s consent. The trial court did not err when it denied defendant’s motion to suppress the testimony of an officer that he had observed the 45-year-old defendant, while naked, get out of a bed with 14-year-old K.S., who was wearing only a bra and underwear.
We affirm the denial of defendant’s motion to suppress.
State v. Barrett (Lawyers Weekly No. 012-437-22, 7 pp.) (John Tyson, J.) Appealed from Montgomery County Superior Court (James Hill, J.) Amber Davis for the state; Christopher Heaney for defendant. 2022-NCCOA-698
