Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Table of Contents
Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
About
This compendium includes significant criminal cases by the U.S. Supreme Court & N.C. appellate courts, Nov. 2008 – Present. Selected 4th Circuit cases also are included.
Jessica Smith prepared case summaries Nov. 2008-June 4, 2019; later summaries are prepared by other School staff.
Instructions
Navigate using the table of contents to the left or by using the search box below. Use quotations for an exact phrase search. A search for multiple terms without quotations functions as an “or” search. Not sure where to start? The 5 minute video tutorial offers a guided tour of main features – Launch Tutorial (opens in new tab).
Although declining to reach the merits of the defendant’s claim that the trial court erred in handling a juror’s inquiry about whether jurors may question witnesses, the court noted that whether to allow jurors to question witnesses is within the sound discretion of the trial court. Although the trial court may allow jurors to ask witnesses questions, the better practice is for the jury to submit written questions to the trial judge, who then has a bench conference with the attorneys, hearing any objections that they might have. The judge would then question the witnesses.