State v. Dew: Multiple Assault Offenses and Distinct Interruptions

Happy New Year, everyone. Around this time last year, I blogged about the decades-long question surrounding assault in our state: when do multiple physical acts constitute one continuing assault offense and when do they constitute more than one assault offense? At the time the blog was written, the Court of Appeals had analyzed this issue several times, but the question had never reached our state Supreme Court. The Court has since decided State v. Dew, ___ N.C. ___, 2021-NCSC-124 (Oct. 29, 2021), building on the Court of Appeals’ jurisprudence and offering clarification on the “distinct interruption” approach used in deciding these cases. This post reviews the Court’s decision in Dew and the implications it has on physical assault cases moving forward. Facts State v. Dew presents an issue of first impression for our Supreme Court: how do courts delineate between assaults in order to determine whether the State may charge a defendant with multiple assaults? In Dew, the defendant beat the victim for hours inside a family member’s trailer home. The defendant hit the victim’s head and ears, kicked her in the chest, bit her nose and ear, punched her in the nose, head-butted her, and strangled her until she vomited. When the beating was over, the defendant told the victim that they were leaving to go home. He made her take the sheets off the bed, which were stained with her blood, and clean the mattress cover. They then packed the car and drove home. The defendant beat the victim [...]