The biggest news of the last few days, of course, is that Kyrie Irving is expected to return to the court when Duke plays Hampton this afternoon. (OK, the biggest news has been from Libya and Japan, but Kyrie Irving is a close third!) In terms of criminal law news, there have also been several interesting stories: 1. The General Assembly is rolling along. The House passed Laura's Law, which would increase the penalties for drunk driving, 118-0. It's on to the Senate. Meanwhile, the News and Observer reports that the Republican leadership believes that "a move to put partisan identification back in judicial elections could pass this session." A move to a system of appointing judges with retention elections is apparently unlikely. 2. The News and Observer also notes that Max Cogburn, a Buncombe County native, former federal prosecutor, and former federal magistrate judge, has been confirmed to be a district judge in the Western District of North Carolina. I believe that the seat in question is the one formerly occupied by Lacy Thornburg, so Judge Cogburn will be filling some substantial shoes. 3. Two death-penalty-related stories caught my eye this week. Locally, this story reports on the oral argument before the state supreme court on whether an administrative law judge had the authority to order the Council of State to reconsider North Carolina's execution protocol. That litigation is one reason why the state has had a de facto moratorium on executions for the past few years. Nationally, this New [...]
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