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News Roundup

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As one of his first acts as in office, President Trump issued sweeping pardons and commutations for the people convicted of crimes stemming from their involvement in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. Most of the defendants received full and unconditional pardons, while fourteen people convicted of seditious conspiracy received commutations of their sentences, according to this report by the AP. The President has also directed the U.S. Attorney General to dismiss the remaining pending prosecutions of January 6th defendants (around 450 cases). This sweeping grant of relief serves as a rejection by the executive branch of the outcomes of what was “the largest investigation in Justice Department history,” according to the story. Supporters of the move praised the President’s actions as undoing what they consider politically motivated prosecutions, while detractors have categorized the relief as a blow to the justice system, pointing to the hundreds of defendants duly convicted of assaulting law enforcement officers and other serious crimes. At least one defendant convicted of a misdemeanor relating to January 6th is attempting to refuse her pardon, although the legal support for such a move is unclear, according to this story. Additionally, President Trump issued a full pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road, an online marketplace for drugs and other contraband. Ulbricht was convicted of various drug, conspiracy, and computer offenses in 2015 and was sentenced to life without parole. Read on for more criminal law news.

Biden Issues Preemptive Pardons. As one of his final acts in office, former President Biden issued sweeping, preemptive pardons for any potential crimes committed by a number of individuals thought to potentially face prosecution from a new U.S. Justice Department. Those covered by the pardons include Dr. Anthony Fauci, retired General Mark Milley, members of the House of Representatives committee who investigated January 6th, and the police officers who testified before that committee. These pardons come on the heels of other unconditional, preemptive pardons by Biden of his siblings and their spouses. These moves were separate from former President Biden’s move to pardon his son, Hunter, of any and all crimes committed between 2014 and 2024 (as Jeff Welty has previously covered, here). AP News has the story. Like the Trump pardons, these pardons have generated some controversy, with supporters claiming they were necessary to protect against future politically motivated prosecutions and critics claiming that the moves undermine the rule of law.

Executive Order on Capital Punishment. Sticking with developments at the federal level, another one of President Trump’s first acts in office was to sign an executive order entitled “Restoring the Death Penalty and Protecting Public Safety.” Federal executions were paused under former presidents Obama and Biden. President Trump resumed executions during his first term, effectuating a total of 13 death verdicts. Under the new executive order, the U.S. Justice Department is ordered to pursue death verdicts “for all crimes of a severity demanding its use” and, when consistent with the law, whenever a case involves the murder of a law enforcement officer, or a capital offense committed by a person without legal immigration status. The order further directs the U.S. Attorney General to encourage state actors to pursue death verdicts for all capital offenses, to take steps to ensure that states have access to lethal injection drugs, and to attempt to overrule U.S. Supreme Court precedent limiting the use of death sentences, among other directives. That order is here. As discussed in an earlier News Roundup, former President Biden commuted the sentences of most of the defendants on federal death row before leaving office, leaving only three federal prisoners still facing a death sentence.

Former Prosecutor on Trial. According to this report, former Georgia prosecutor Jackie Johnson is currently on trial relating to charges of hindering a police officer and violating her oath of office. Johnson was the District Attorney of Brunswick Judicial Circuit in the state. The charges stem from her alleged efforts to interfere with an investigation in order to protect Greg McMicheal. McMicheal was one of the men convicted of killing Ahmaud Arbery five years ago while Arbery was jogging down the street. McMicheal was a former law enforcement officer and formerly worked as an investigator in Johnson’s office. Johnson denies wrongdoing. Jury selection has so far been slow, in part due to weather-related closures mid-week.

Raleigh Officer Shot. A Raleigh officer was shot in the line of duty this week after responding to a residential burglary call. When Officer Max Gillick arrived, gunshots could be heard coming from inside the residence. The suspected shooter was killed after exchanging fire with officers during the incident, but not before killing a victim and seriously injuring Gillick. The officer, a former Army captain, remains in critical condition at the time of this writing. The suspected shooter had a criminal record of multiple stalking and harassment-related offenses against his ex-wife and was under a restraining order to stay away from her. Despite the order, the incident occurred at the ex-wife’s home. WRAL has the story, here.

Tik Tok Arson. A 19-year-old man is accused of setting fire to a congressman’s office in Wisconsin this week. The suspect was apparently motivated by the (ultimately temporary) federal ban on the social media application TikTok. No one was inside the building at the time of the fire and the structure apparently sustained only minor damage. The suspect was apprehended after he was seen watching the fire, which occurred around 1 a.m. on Sunday. The suspect had a first appearance this week on arson charges, and bail was set at $500,000.00, according to this local news outlet.

Reptile Cruelty. Two brothers in Wasila, Alaska, got into an argument in their apartment that escalated dramatically when Tyler Lowe threw his brother’s pet alligator outside into the snow, which prompted Rickey Lowe to respond by tossing Tyler’s crocodile into the snow. The alligator was recovered, but the crocodile is missing and presumed dead due to local weather conditions. It is legal to own both alligators and crocodiles in Alaska, unlike in North Carolina, where only crocodile ownership is permitted without a license (as detailed in this post from Dean Aimee Wall). Both men were in pretrial detention as of Thursday, according to the story.

Laced Legal Docs? A long-running investigation into drug distribution at Duval County, Florida, jails netted 21 arrests, including a local attorney. According to the report, Nathan Williams attempted to smuggle synthetic cannabinoid-laced papers into a detention center. He is accused of conspiring with inmates within the facility to smuggle drugs inside for money. The county detention centers have seen  a decrease of more than a 60% in overdose deaths since the investigation began. Synthetic cannabinoids are a dangerous category of drugs unrelated to marijuana, classified under federal and state law as Schedule I substances. See G.S. 90-89(7) & 21 U.S.C. 812(d)(1)-(2). As the story notes, the National Library of Medicine has identified the problem of paper-soaked controlled substances being smuggled into jails and prisons and noted the serious health risks associated with the use of such substances. Some speculate that the practice may have been inspired by this scene from the classic film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (the original, of course).

N.C. Criminal Debrief. A new episode of my podcast is out. The episode discusses recent search and seizure cases on plain feel and probable cause, constructive possession, the state’s failure to store firearms to protect minors law, and a Fourth Circuit case analyzing hemp-derived cannabinoids. Give it a listen here or wherever you listen to podcasts if you like!

I hope everyone has a safe and relaxing weekend. I can always be reached at dixon@sog.unc.edu for questions, comments, or feedback.

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