Mental illness cases involving diminished-capacity defenses are procedurally complex and often result in underwhelming outcomes. And justice reform and mental health advocates are often left wishing for more. Two recent North Carolina cases illustrate the “we can do better” mindset well.
Under the Emergency Community Supervision Act, the government would release vulnerable individuals from prison. Then, it would place them in community supervision while COVID-19 continues to present a national health emergency.
The First Step Act was a bipartisan project several years in the making. The goal of the bipartisan effort was simple but important. It aimed to reduce the number of people in federal prisons while maintaining public safety.
Defendants in criminal cases have a constitutional right to a jury of their peers. But courts have made it clear that they don't have the right to a jury of their own race. So, when a prosecutor strikes a juror for their “tone of voice,”
The North Carolina Second Chance Act gives people with nonviolent criminal records an opportunity to have misdemeanors and low-level felonies expunged from their records.
The constitutional right to a jury trial comes from the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It states that “[i]n all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury….” But what happens when a juror
The chance of a “perfect trial” is slim to none. Whether it’s a sleeping juror, a lack of record or something else, anything close to a perfect trial is hard to come by. And that’s true even when the wrong juror convicts you.
In an opinion authored by Justice Anita Earls, the North Carolina Supreme Court held that retroactive application of the General Assembly’s repeal of the NC Racial Justice Act violated the constitutional prohibition on ex post facto laws.
Everyone knows the court reporter’s purpose: they record what happens in court. Then, when an issue occurs down the road, everyone can return to that record. Yet some states don’t require a record of jury selection.
Reuters did a special report on the disparity between the often harsh penalties that judges impose on a daily basis and the significantly less harsh penalties they face for their own wrongdoing in America’s justice system. This leads to an important question: Are the consequences