Getting the phone call that Sen. Tom Goolsby (R-Wilmington) was going to announce a bill pertaining to the Death Penalty and the Racial Justice Act made my heart race. I thought, “Is this really the beginning of the end?” The first thing I did was to call the Lowry and Turner families, who have been [...]
Confused or Misinformed?
Watching the Legislative Black Caucus (6:05 – 7:21) last week something made my ears perk up. Rep. Marcus Brandon (D-Guilford) was introduced to talk about criminal justice issues on their agenda. Brandon began talking about a bill that had no House number, one Rep. Marilyn Avila (R-Wake) was working on, and which he said dealt [...]
Judge Beasley to Supreme Court, Next the Appeals Court
As reported by Civitas Tuesday Governor Bev Perdue is picking Appeals Court Judge Cheri Beasley to fill an empty seat on the State Supreme Court. That seat was vacated when Justice Patricia Timmons-Goodson stepped down. Now Perdue will have to pick someone to take Beasley’s place on the Appeals Court. There was specualtion she would [...]
The Devil is in the Details
“The Devil is in the details” should be the theme of the Legislative Research Commission’s Age of Juvenile Offender Committee. This committee is meeting to discuss what to go about last year’s “Raise the Age” bill. HB632/S506 was proposed in 2011, and would raise the age from 16 to 18 to determine whether you would [...]
Prosecutors Face Legal Hurdle in Racial Justice Act Hearing
(RALEIGH) – A hearing continues this week in a Cumberland County courtroom as three death row inmates use the Racial Justice Act to claim racial bias played a key role in their receiving a death sentence. The three are Christina Walters, who killed two women as a gang initiation, Tilmon Golphin, who murdered a state [...]
