State v. Newborn: Failure to Separately Indict Felon-in-Possession Did Not Deprive Court of Jurisdiction

Earlier this month, the state supreme court rejected a defendant’s challenge to his conviction for possession of a firearm by a felon pursuant to an indictment that failed to comport with a statutory pleading requirement. That case, State v. Newborn, 330PA21, ___ N.C. ___ (June 16, 2023), is the latest in a decade of rulings determining that technical pleading defects do not deprive the trial court of jurisdiction. This post will review Newborn and consider its place among jurisprudence departing from the traditional view that a defective pleading fails to vest jurisdiction. State v. Newborn. Cordero Newborn was indicted in a single indictment for three crimes: (1) possession of a firearm by a felon, (2) possession of a firearm with an altered or removed serial number, and (3) carrying a concealed weapon. The charges arose from a traffic stop in Haywood County. Newborn was pulled over for driving with a revoked license. The officer who stopped Newborn smelled marijuana, which Newborn admitted to recently smoking. Based on the smell and Newborn’s admission, officers searched his vehicle, discovering a pistol between the center console and driver’s seat. Court of Appeals opinion. Newborn was convicted of all three charges at trial. On appeal, Newborn argued for the first time that the trial court lacked jurisdiction over the felon-in-possession charge because it was not contained in a separate indictment as required by G.S. 14-415.1(c). See id. (requiring that the indictment “be separate from any indictment charging . . . other offenses related to or [...]