North Carolina

NC governor seeks to remove execution roadblocks with repeal of Racial Justice Act

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory signed a repeal of the state’s Racial Justice Act this week, saying the law had created “procedural roadblocks” to executions. Four inmates used the law to change their death sentences to life in prison, report the Wall Street Journal Law Blog (sub. req.), the Associated…

Jun 21, 2013 3:00 PM CDT

‘Ratzilla’ problem at historic courthouse solved by adopted cat

At first, those in charge of the maintenance at the historic Henderson County, N.C., courthouse tried poison to resolve an out-of-control rodent population. But when a dead “Ratzilla” began decomposing in the walls of a county commissioner’s office, they decided there had to be a better solution to the problem.…

Jun 19, 2013 4:35 PM CDT

Cuffed murder defendant bolts from courthouse, is captured; judge says trial will continue

Already serving a 54-year federal sentence over prior robberies, Keith Lauchon Jackson apparently felt he had little to lose by bolting Monday afternoon from the North Carolina courthouse where he is being tried on a first-degree murder charge. After a lunch break, the 24-year-old defendant slipped out of his leg…

Jun 11, 2013 5:12 PM CDT

Banned from bench over refusal to give up board seat, ex-judge is now accused of lying during probe

A former North Carolina judge who gave up his seat on the bench in 2009 in the midst of an investigation over his continued membership on a corporate board and other issues is now facing a legal ethics case over accusations that he lied during the probe. Bill Belk, who…

May 14, 2013 5:52 PM CDT

Closing attorney loses federal mortgage fraud appeal, now faces likely lengthy prison term

A federal appeals court has reinstated the conviction of a North Carolina real estate closing attorney who faces a sentence of up to 25 years in a mortgage-fraud case. Convicted for her role in closing 210 transactions between 2000 and 2004, for which she received $235,000 in attorney fees, Victoria…

Apr 9, 2013 9:04 PM CDT

Matrimonial lawyer made false statements in suit against ex-client’s husband, bar complaint alleges

In a disciplinary complaint filed on Valentine’s Day, the North Carolina State Bar charges a matrimonial lawyer with bringing a baseless lawsuit. After being named as a defendant in an alienation of affections complaint filed by the husband of a former client, attorney David Shawn Clark subsequently filed suit himself…

Feb 25, 2013 4:50 PM CST

Law Firm Fire Insurance Probe Leads to Theft Charges Against 2 Legal Secretaries

Two employees of a small North Carolina law firm are facing criminal charges, after an insurance investigation of a January 2012 fire there uncovered evidence of alleged thefts from their employer. Kelly Renee Jones was charged Monday with 19 counts of larceny by employee, and Jacqualynn Donna Stroud was charged…

Jan 9, 2013 6:37 PM CST

Top NC Court to Decide: Did Lack of $30 Fishing License Preclude $910K Award for 883-Pound Marlin?

A monster catch in a North Carolina fishing contest has turned into a major legal case for the owners of the boat on which it was caught. The celebration aboard the charter boat Citation in June 2010, when an 883-pound blue marlin was hauled aboard after a five-hour battle, soon…

Jan 8, 2013 5:45 PM CST

Victim’s Brother Shouts at Judge Who Overturns Three Death Sentences for Racial Bias

A North Carolina judge reduced three death sentences to life in prison on Thursday, spurring an outburst by a brother of one of the victims, a slain state trooper. Judge Gregory Weeks of Cumberland County cited racial bias in sentencing and voided the death sentences under the state’s revised Racial…

Dec 14, 2012 12:39 PM CST

Lawyer Takes Plea, Gives Up Law Practice; Records Showed He Charged Extra for DWI Backdating

A North Carolina lawyer had initially intended to fight a criminal obstruction of justice case over the work he did for clients charged with driving while intoxicated. But after counsel for James Crouch, 46, found out last week that he had altered law office paperwork, after he was criminally charged,…

Nov 14, 2012 5:59 PM CST

Judge Halts New Year’s Eve Possum Drop, Cites Patrick Henry

A North Carolina judge has halted the traditional New Year’s Eve Possum drop in the town of Brasstown, saying the state didn’t have the authority to issue a permit for the event. Administrative Law Judge Fred Morrison Jr. said the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission didn’t have the authority to…

Nov 14, 2012 2:29 PM CST

Former Office Manager Repays $350K to NC Law Firm

A former office manager who has repaid $350,000 to the Raleigh law firm at which she once worked is being held at a North Carolina jail on felony embezzlement charges after turning herself in on Friday. Susan Rouse, 64, is suspected of stealing from Nicholls & Crampton between 2003 and…

Nov 12, 2012 11:05 PM CST

Rare Sex-Crimes Case re US General May Be Derailed by Prosecution’s Access to His Email with Counsel

Just as an Article 32 military hearing was about to get under way concerning evidence that could be used in an unusual criminal case against a U.S. Army general concerning his sexual conduct with subordinates at American military bases and abroad, a major issue has come to light. Contrary to…

Nov 5, 2012 10:33 PM CST

Heirs of Early Supreme Court Justice Win Legal Fight for His Papers

Heirs of a justice appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court by George Washington are entitled to his papers, according to a ruling by the North Carolina Supreme Court. A descendant had loaned the papers of Justice James Iredell Sr. to the North Carolina Historical Commission in 1910, the Associated Press…

Oct 4, 2012 10:45 AM CDT

Memories Conflict at Hearing for Army Doctor Convicted in Long-Ago ‘Fatal Vision’ Murder Case

Still fighting his 1979 conviction for murdering his pregnant wife and two young daughters in their Fort Bragg, N.C., home 42 years ago, a former U.S. Army physician who became a household name is once again in the headlines as witnesses testify about evidence and legal counsel in the notorious…

Sep 24, 2012 8:52 PM CDT