State v. Chambers, COA22-1063, ___ N.C. App. ___ (Feb. 20, 2024)

In this Wake County case, defendant appealed his convictions for first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon, arguing his right to a properly constituted jury was violated when the trial court substituted an alternate juror after the jury began deliberations. The Court of Appeals agreed, vacating his convictions and remanding for a new trial. 

Defendant came to trial in August of 2018 for a shooting at a Raleigh motel. After jury deliberations began, a juror informed the trial court that he had a doctor’s appointment and could not return the next day. The trial court replaced the juror with an alternate juror and ordered the jury to restart deliberations; defendant was not present in the courtroom when the substitution was made. Defendant subsequently appealed. 

Turning to defendant’s arguments, the Court of Appeals concluded that the trial court’s substitution of an alternate juror was error. The court referenced State v. Bunning, 346 N.C. 253 (1997), and explained that the N.C. Supreme Court has interpreted the unanimous verdict requirement of the North Carolina Constitution in Article I, § 24 “to preclude juror substitution during a trial after the commencement of jury deliberations.” Slip Op. at 3. Because the substitution meant that thirteen jurors participated in the deliberations for defendant’s convictions, “[d]efendant’s constitutional right to a properly constituted jury of twelve was violated when the trial court substituted an original juror with an alternate juror after the commencement of jury deliberations.” Id. at 4. The court reached this conclusion despite the text of G.S. 15A-1215(a), noting that “where a statute conflicts with our state constitution, we must follow our state constitution.” Id. at 5.