General Assembly Closes Up Shop, Gives Us "Technical" Corrections

The General Assembly reached an agreement on coal ash and has adjourned for the session. Shortly before departing, it approved a technical corrections bill that has become law. The bill contains several criminal law provisions, some of which arguably are not "technical." But let's not get technical about what's technical! Bob Farb sent a summary of the bill out yesterday afternoon, and I've pasted it below for those who haven't seen it. It includes several provisions that I have previously noted on the blog, including one regarding vapor cigarettes for jail inmates and one regarding the disposition of seized weapons. But the bill contains additional items of possible interest as well, so here's the entire summary: S.L. 2014-115 (H 1133): Miscellaneous criminal law changes. This 58-page session law makes miscellaneous changes to a variety of statutes, including criminal provisions, which are effective on August 11, 2014, unless otherwise noted. The section numbers and pages of the session law are noted to facilitate locating the provisions. Amended G.S. 15A-830(a)(7), involving the Crime Victims’ Rights Act, revises the listing of offenses included within the act to reflect reclassifications and repeals, and specifically states that the changes do not adversely affect the rights granted to victims before these changes become effective. Section 2.1 (pages 2-3). Amended G.S. 7A-273(2) (magistrates’ authority to accept guilty pleas) includes open burning offenses under Article 78 of G.S. Chapter 106. Section 20 (page 13). Effective for offenses committed on or after December 1, 2014, amended G.S. 14-258.1 allows local [...]