What Happens When Community Violence Intervention Gets the Support It Needs to Thrive?
As cities look to make new investments in non-police responses to gun violence, the Bull City United program in Durham, North Carolina, shows the importance of stable funding and sustained commitment.
Rebekah Barber Feb 21, 2023
Can Residents Trust Durham’s Police Chief After She Cooperated With ICE?
Patrice Andrews once promised she’d never work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. But in 2018, she directly ordered the arrest of immigration activists during an ICE deportation.
Tina Vasquez May 13, 2022
North Carolina’s Clemency Process is a ‘Black Box,’ Advocates Say
Even with the recent creation of the Juvenile Sentence Review Board, the governor’s process for granting clemency remains unclear.
Katie Jane Fernelius May 21, 2021
Americans Are Getting Tired of Willie Horton-Style Fearmongering
In North Carolina, Attorney General Josh Stein’s Republican opponent painted him as soft on crime. Voters re-elected him anyway.
Jay Willis Nov 18, 2020
Democrats Could Flip the Ohio and Michigan Supreme Courts
Shifting control of the states’ highest courts next month will prove critical on a number of major issues, including redistricting in 2021.
Joshua Vaughn Oct 15, 2020
A Vegan Meat Company Purged Its Pro-Labor Employees. Workers Say An Anti-Union Drive Prompted the Firings.
No Evil Foods created products like El Zapatista and Comrade Cluck, but workers say its conduct doesn’t live up to its leftist branding.
Paul Blest May 19, 2020
A North Carolina Professor Gave Up His Free Speech Rights To Resolve a Case Involving a Controversial Sheriff
Rann Bar-On pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault of Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson to remain a legal U.S. resident. For the next two years, he isn’t allowed to protest in the county.
Aaron Morrison Feb 11, 2020
Deaths By Suicide and Overdose Skyrocket in North Carolina Jails
A report from an advocacy group says that deaths in the state’s jails have soared— and that 2019 could set a record for suicides.
Zachary A. Siegel Nov 19, 2019
North Carolina Judge Rules That Prosecuting 16-year-old As An Adult Violates His Constitutional Rights
Two years ago, the state passed ‘raise the age’ legislation that goes into effect in December. A judge’s decision regarding a teen charged in 2015 raises the possibility of relief for other young people charged since the law’s passage.
Roxanna Asgarian Oct 22, 2019
A One-Sided Report on North Carolina Gun Violence
The Charlotte Observer built a narrative on gun crime that relies almost exclusively on police and prosecutors, ignores the violence of incarceration, and offers zero non-carceral solutions.
Adam H. Johnson Oct 11, 2019
The Persistent History of Excluding Black Jurors in North Carolina
A statewide pattern of discrimination in jury selection has gone largely uncorrected, while lives remain in the balance, advocates say.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Aug 26, 2019
Drug Treatment Is Reaching More Prisons and Jails
Recent legal victories have spurred counties and states to provide medication-assisted treatment to prisoners struggling with substance use.
JB Nicholas Jul 31, 2019
Spotlight: A City Council Says No To More Police
Last week, in a 4-3 vote on the 2019-20 budget, the City Council in Durham, North Carolina, voted against funding 18 new police officers. It voted instead to raise the wage for part-time city workers to just over $15 an hour. With that, the city joined jurisdictions around the country that are critically evaluating requests for increased […]
Vaidya Gullapalli Jun 10, 2019
North Carolina Jail Staff Accused Of Beating And Abusing Mentally Ill Veteran
A civil rights lawsuit claims officers pepper sprayed him, stripped him naked, and then surrounded him and beat him to death.
Kira Lerner May 17, 2019
‘Please Help Me, Sir’
In September, Marcus Smith experienced a mental health crisis and begged Greensboro, North Carolina police for help. Instead, they tied him with restraints. Moments later, his body went lifeless.
William C. Anderson Apr 09, 2019
North Carolina Sheriff Criticized For Unleashing K-9 Dogs On Black People Faces Re-Election
Advocates say that Sheriff Donnie Harrison is unfit for a fifth term because of such abusive practices as well as his office’s cooperation with ICE.
George Joseph Nov 02, 2018
Did Prosecutors Use a ‘Cheat Sheet’ to Strike Black Jurors in North Carolina Death Penalty Case?
A single training document uncovered in a prosecutor’s files could save Russell William Tucker’s life.
Jacob Biba Sep 04, 2018
Jail Policies Restrict Legal Representation in North Carolina
Public defenders in Charlotte say restrictions on communication hinder their ability to help jailed clients.
Jessica Brand Dec 14, 2017
Despite Public Outcry Over Pay-to-Play Justice, Prosecutors Just Don’t Get it
Mecklenburg, North Carolina District Attorney R. Andrew Murray doesn’t seem to understand the problem with the county’s deferred prosecutions system, even after a group of faith leaders held a press conference Monday morning, arguing that the current system discriminates against the poor most in need of help. The protest was timed with a hearing in the case of Charlotte […]
Jessica Pishko Oct 25, 2017
A county in North Carolina wants to give its bail system a serious makeover
A local solution to a national problem.
Carimah Townes Oct 13, 2017
Father of five arrested for leaving kids unattended while at work
On August 15, Victor Alonzo King of Raleigh, North Carolina was arrested and accused of child abuse. His offense? Allegedly leaving his five children under the age of eight unattended while he went to work. King’s employer says he left the children with a neighbor, who then left them alone, according to ABC 13. In court on […]
Rebecca McCray Aug 21, 2017
Two North Carolina prosecutors indicted after hiring each other’s wives for phony jobs
Two elected district attorneys in North Carolina have been arrested and one has pleaded guilty for a scheme that authorities said involved both men hiring the other’s wife for bogus jobs. Craig Blitzer and Wallace Bradsher were both accused of taking about $100,000 in state money from the North Carolina payroll program for jobs that didn’t really […]
Larry Hannan Aug 16, 2017
Gaston County D.A. accused of withholding evidence in murder case
Defense lawyers are asking a judge in North Carolina to hold Gaston County District Attorney Locke Bell in contempt over allegations that he has failed to release files relevant to the investigation and prosecution of Mark Carver. Carver was convicted of strangling University of North Carolina student Irina Yarmolenko in 2011 and sentenced to life without parole. […]
Larry Hannan Jul 23, 2017
Follow up: Gaston County D.A. accused of withholding evidence in murder case
On Monday, July 3, 2017, a Superior Court judge granted Mark Carver’s request for an evidentiary hearing, which will be held in September. Carver claims he was wrongly convicted of the 2008 death of Irina Yarmolenko, a UNC Charlotte student. As previously discussed here, Carver’s attorney, Chris Mumma of the N.C. Center on Actual Innocence, has alleged […]
Jake Sussman Jul 06, 2017
District attorney defends prosecution of man convicted of killing father of basketball superstar Michael Jordan
It was the crime that caused the greatest basketball player in history to become a minor league baseball player who couldn’t hit a curve ball. And 20 years later, doubt has emerged over whether the man convicted of killing Michael Jordan’s father is actually the one who pulled the trigger.
Larry Hannan Jun 20, 2017