There's been a lot going on this week. The first evidentiary hearing under the Racial Justice Act has come to an end. The Fayetteville Observer reports on the parties' closing arguments here. Both sides are expected to file additional briefs, and a decision is unlikely for several weeks. The national media is interested in the story, as evidenced by this Wall Street Journal post. In Durham, embattled District Attorney Tracey Cline secured one continuance of her removal hearing, hired an attorney, and has now asked for additional time to prepare her defense. The News and Observer story is here. Meanwhile, various arms of the General Assembly are considering criminal law issues, such as possible reforms to the Innocence Inquiry Commission, and possible changes to the Racial Justice Act. If that's not enough: 1. The New Orleans Police Department is going to place big red stickers on every house it has "checked" or "investigated" for drug activity based on a Crimestoppers tip, apparently regardless of the results of the investigation. Anyone can remove the stickers at any time, and the glue supposedly causes no damage to property. Read more here on what strikes me as an impressively bad idea. 2. Staying in the Big Easy, Above the Law reports here on a fascinating story. The short version is that the public defender's office in the city is overburdened, especially after budget cuts forced it to let 21 attorneys go last week. A criminal court judge who views the situation as a "constitutional [...]
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