Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Table of Contents
State v. Blackwell, 228 N.C. App. 439 (Aug. 6, 2013)
In this drug case, the trial court did not violate the defendant’s constitutional rights to due process and effective assistance of counsel by denying a motion to continue. The defendant argued that defense counsel had been appointed only 54 days before trial and had just become aware of material witnesses that might testify favorably for the defendant. Also, the defendant argued, on the Friday before trial week, the State turned over a confidential informant’s statements. The court noted that the trial was a retrial and that the underlying facts–two hand-to-hand sales to an undercover officer--were straightforward. Furthermore, the defendant failed to explain how a period of two months was insufficient to prepare for trial. With respect to the additional witnesses, the defendant failed to explain why he was unable to find them in the more than three years since his indictment and why their testimony was material. Also, the defendant already had copies of the informant’s statements.