Is a Single Drug Sale from a Residence Enough to Support a Conviction for Maintaining a Dwelling?

Last week, the court of appeals decided State v. Miller, a case in which the defendant was convicted of maintaining a dwelling based almost entirely on the fact that he conducted a drug sale there. Would the court of appeals find the evidence sufficient under State v. Rogers, __ N.C. __, 817 S.E.2d 150 (2018), which substantially expanded the scope of maintaining a dwelling and related offenses? In a word, no. The court of appeals deemed the evidence insufficient. But the ruling raises several questions, including whether it is consistent with Rogers. I’ll delve into those questions below. Facts. According to the court of appeals: The State’s evidence showed [that an officer] received a complaint asserting Defendant was “involved in sales and narcotics” . . . [so the officer] hired a trusted confidential informant to attempt to purchase crack cocaine from Defendant. . . . [T]he informant . . . knew Defendant, but did not assert she had previously purchased drugs from him. Officers provided the informant with a recording device and $48.00 in cash. The informant went to Defendant’s home and was allowed to enter into his living room. . . . She gave Defendant $48.00 to purchase crack cocaine. Defendant left the room, walked outside and went towards an old school bus parked on his property. When Defendant returned, he provided the requested crack cocaine rocks to the informant . . . Procedural history. The defendant was charged with PWISD cocaine, sale of cocaine, and maintaining a place to [...]