As the current edition of North Carolina Crimes explains, "[o]bstructing justice consists of any act that prevents, obstructs, impedes, or hinders public or legal justice, and it may take many forms." Jessica Smith, North Carolina Crimes 451 (6th ed. 2007). The breadth of this common-law offense was recently highlighted by the court of appeals in State v. Wright. In a nutshell, the defendant was a state representative who filed inaccurate campaign finance reports, failing to disclose approximately $150,000 in contributions received and $77,000 in transfers from his campaign account to his personal account. He was charged with, and convicted of, felony obstruction of justice. He appealed, arguing that "because he filed all of the campaign finance disclosure reports before any criminal investigation or legal proceedings had begun, there could be no obstruction of justice." The court of appeals rejected this argument. It relied in part on the civil case of Henry v. Deen, 310 N.C. 75 (1984), in which the court stated that tampering with medical records in an attempt to avoid a medical malpractice suit would constitute obstruction of justice. The court of appeals reasoned that Wright "deliberately hindered the ability of the [State Board of Elections] and the public to investigate and uncover . . . whether defendant was complying with campaign finance laws. . . . Further, his false reports concealed illegal campaign activity from public exposure and possible investigation." In other words, the court adopted a broad interpretation of obstruction of justice that includes activity designed to prevent [...]
Faculty Coordinators
