In terms of having an impact on a large number of people, the biggest news of the week may be yesterday’s announcement by Transportation Secretary Tony Tata. He proclaimed that the DMV will follow the Attorney General’s advice and will issue driver’s licenses to young illegal immigrants who are protected from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program announced by President Obama last summer. The News and Observer reports here that 18,000 to 50,000 North Carolina residents may be eligible for licenses. One attorney described the announcement as “a nice Valentine’s Day present for the immigrant community.” In other news: 1. Interesting appeals. The Appellate Division was busy hearing interesting cases this week. The court of appeals heard lawyers for ousted Durham District Attorney Tracey Cline argue that she didn’t receive due process, as WRAL reports here. Meanwhile, the state supreme court again considered whether certain inmates sentenced to “life” terms between 1974 and 1978 – when “life” was defined as 80 years – are entitled to sentence reduction credits that could result in their release. (The court has previously addressed this issue, ruling that no credits need be awarded, as Jamie discussed in detail here. However, that case involved convictions for first-degree murder while the current case involves defendants convicted of lesser offenses, according to this News and Observer story.) 2. No bare breasts? The General Assembly is in full swing. One bill that has garnered some attention is HB 34, which would expand (clarify?) the indecent exposure [...]
Faculty Coordinators
