State v. Davis. When a defendant's convictions for felony death by vehicle and second-degree murder arise out of the same conduct, he may be punished only for second-degree murder and not for felony death by vehicle. Also, when a defendant's convictions for felony serious injury by vehicle and assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury (ADWISI) arise out of the same conduct, he may be punished only for ADWISI. We reverse the Court of Appeals' decision to the contrary and remand for re-sentencing.

Tagged with: Criminal Practice first impression Gaston County Second-Degree Murder sentencing

State v. Chandler. Contrary to the superior court's ruling, there has been no significant change in the law regarding admissibility of expert testimony in child sexual abuse cases since the time of defendant's trial and appeal. Defendant is not entitled to the relief he sought pursuant to the retroactivity rule of G.S. § 15A-1415(b)(7). Reversed.

Tagged with: Buncombe County Child Sexual Abuse Criminal Practice evidence expert witnesses

State v. Ray. Where defendant objected to the admission of evidence regarding his 1990 assaultive behavior only during a hearing out of the jury's presence and did not then subsequently object when the evidence was actually introduced at trial, defendant failed to preserve for appellate review the trial court's decision to admit evidence regarding his 1990 assaultive behavior.

Tagged with: appeals Criminal Practice evidence Hoke County

A homicide investigator's handwritten notes have become the focus of what some attorneys are calling the biggest murder trial in Charlotte in a decade. The case, State v. Montgomery, involves the killing of two Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers in 2007. Attorney Bill Powers of Charlotte-based Powers McCartan said if police officers and prosecutors don't turn over their entire file, except for work product, they may be subject to sanctions. Powers is not involved in Montgomery.

Tagged with: Criminal Defense Criminal Practice discovery discovery sanctions discovery violations murder

  State v. Minton. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-16-0830, 14 pp.) (Cheri Beasley, J.) (Barbara Jackson, J., concurring in the result only) Appealed from Orange County Superior Court. (Paul C. Ridgeway, J.) N.C. App. Unpub. Holding: Defendant has waived any challenge ...

Tagged with: Closing Arguments Criminal Practice Felony Hearsay Orange County

  Pethtel v. Ballard. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-01-0834, 14 pp.) (Agee, J.) No. 09-6075, Aug. 18, 2010; USDC at Clarksburg, W.Va. (Keeley) 4th Cir. Holding: Although West Virginia likely did violate the IADA in this case, the 4th Circuit is ...

Tagged with: Criminal Practice habeas corpus

If you weren’t looking for it, you’d miss Porthole Alley. But it’s there, right off East Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, near the Carolina Coffee Shop. About a half-block long, it dead-ends into a small university-owned parking lot behind the ...

Tagged with: Criminal Practice Felony Guns N.C. Court of Appeals University of North Carolina

State v. Marshall. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-07-0810, 9 pp.) (Barbara Jackson, J.) Appealed from Mecklenburg County Superior Court. (Christopher M. Collier, J.) N.C. App. Holding: Even though the state’s evidence showed that defendant had the opportunity to steal a Chevrolet ...

Tagged with: Criminal Practice Mecklenburg County Possession of Stolen Property

State v. Smith. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-07-0812, 20 pp.) (Linda Stephens, J.) Appealed from Wake County Superior Court. (A. Leon Stanback, J.) N.C. App. Holding: Defendant voluntarily spoke to law enforcement officers and offered varying explanations for how the 2-year-old ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Practice murder Wake County

State v. Wray. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-07-0814, 30 pp.) (Cheri Beasley, J.) (Linda Stephens, J., concurring) Appealed from Cleveland County Superior Court (Forrest D. Bridges, J.) N.C. App. Holding: A criminal defendant who does not engage in serious misbehavior and ...

Tagged with: Cleveland County Criminal Practice Forfeiture of Counsel