Law enforcement officers in North Carolina must have good moral character to be certified, and may lose their certification if they lose their good moral character. The requirement of good moral character is neither unique to North Carolina nor exclusive…

This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on August 20, 2025. An indictment for injuring property to obtain non-ferrous metals was sufficient despite the lack of any allegation concerning the value of…

Law enforcement officers have long been authorized to search a person incident to the person’s arrest. But the precise scope of that authority has shifted over time. The most recent major case in this area was Arizona v. Gant, 556…

If you thought it was only corner-cutting lawyers and tech-savvy college students that were relying on artificial intelligence to do their work for them, this week may force you to reconsider. Reuters reports here that “[f]ederal judges in Mississippi and…

A few weeks ago, the General Assembly passed, and the Governor signed into law, S.L. 2025-71. The bill makes quite a few changes to the criminal law. It creates new crimes, like a larceny offense specific to gift cards; enhances…

Municipal police have many duties, sometimes including enforcing municipal ordinances. Municipalities without their own police departments typically rely on the county sheriff to provide law enforcement services. The sheriff certainly has territorial jurisdiction to enforce state laws within city limits.…

Former Durham Bull Wander Franco was convicted of sexual abuse of a minor in the Dominican Republic this week. This ESPN story reports that he received a suspended sentence, while “[t]he mother of the [14 year old] victim . .…

Law enforcement officers may mislead suspects during questioning. For example, an officer may falsely tell a suspect that an accomplice has confessed, or may falsely state that incriminating physical evidence has been found. Courts generally permit such deception, reasoning that…

This post summarizes the published criminal opinions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals released on June 4, 2025. Previously, summaries were added to Smith’s Criminal Case Compendium, but due to personnel changes and resource limitations, that resource is no…

If you’re a police officer, a correctional officer, a probation/parole officer, a juvenile court counselor, or a juvenile justice officer, there’s something you need to know: using CBD products, even legal ones, may cost you your career. You are subject…