Blog

Violence in America

In 2018, Austria - a country of roughly 9 million people and 32,000 square miles with a diverse population, especially around its capital of Vienna - recorded 70 homicides, a increase of more than 20 percent over the previous year.  That is a rate of less than 1 homicide per 100,000 people. By contrast, North...

What Does My North Carolina Uniform Citation Mean?

If you've been stopped while driving or cited for a crime, chances are that you have received a North Carolina Uniform Citation, a single page document that, front and back, explains the charge or charges that have been issued against you.  If you've received a citation, you haven't been arrested and detained, but you have...

Can I win a federal drug trafficking case?

The United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina announced nearly two dozen arrests in a federal drug trafficking ring at UNC, Duke, and Appalachian State this month in conduct he is calling "astonishing."  The arrests triggered initial appearances in federal court in Greensboro this month, and additional arrests may follow as prosecutors...

How Can I defend against Paycheck Protection Program Fraud?

Here come the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and CARES Act Fraud cases.  In March of 2020, Congress passed and President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), a $2.2 trillion economic stimulus bill that also included a whole host of federal responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. CARES Act...

Rehabilitation, Federal Criminal Lawyers and Justice

Does "United States judicial law explicitly prohibit[] judges from considering rehabilitation when sentencing"? Yes, says Darrell Owens, someone who has the right sympathies about the cruelty of American prisons, but not much of a grasp on the law. Any federal criminal lawyer knows that rehabilitation must be taken into account when a judge sentences a...

North Carolina Drug Stop or Arrest

Being pulled over on suspicion of having drugs in your vehicle can be a frightening experience, and all you may be thinking about is the potential for getting arrested and sent to prison. But remember, you haven’t even been arrested yet, much less tried and convicted! If you act calmly, know your rights and exercise...

The Kids Say: Lorrin Freeman Should Step Down

Lorrin Freeman is a good person, and I supported her in 2014 when she ran against Boz Zellinger and John Bryant. But I have to say, the Kids are Alright when they call for her resignation. Her handling of the COVID virus in the courthouse and the protests in Raleigh has been deplorable. Her seeking...

DNC Delegate for Bernie Sanders

Arrests in Twitter Hack

Florida law enforcement has arrested a seventeen-year-old in Florida who they say is the "linchpin" of a hack that resulted in multiple hacked Twitter accounts in July. President Obama, Elon Musk, who himself has been subject to federal investigations for SEC violations, and Joe Biden are among those whose accounts were briefly taken over. The...

Antifa as a Group Sets Up RICO prosecution

Today in his testimony before Congress, Attorney General Bill Barr confirmed through his non-denial denial what we all know: That the Trump administration plans to use the 1970s-era Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act to prosecute Antifa. The Trump Administration has been claiming for years now that Antifa, the loose, largely unconnected-but-similarly-minded people who appear...